It’s spring and that means calves on the farm. This little calf’s mom chose to feed its twin and not him so we brought him home to our barn and named him Oliver. A calf will die if it doesn’t get colostrum. Thankfully, you can buy a colostrum formula which we did on Saturday night and bottle fed it to Oliver. He was a good little eater, too.
On Sunday morning, it was my nephew’s turn to milk. He brought some milk up for the calf when he was done.
My cowhands poured it into a bottle,
and headed to the barn.
Sheeba (our dog) came along, too.
Oliver was too weak to get up so they helped him open his mouth and start sucking.
After a minute or so, he stood up to drink and we knew he was going to be alright.
Is that a drinking fountain in your house?! Genius! I’m so jealous. Oh, and that you have a cute calf. Hope he thrives.
Yes–and I love it!! When the plumber was putting it in, he tried to convince me to have a urinal installed in the bathroom, too. I couldn’t do it then . . . but now with 4 boys it’s sounding better and better.
This so brings back memories for me. We would bring the calf into the back porch and warm them with our electric blankets for a few days before we put them in the barn. Then it was my job to feed the calf. I remember learning the hard way to hold the nipple to the bottle, the calf will butt into you so hold your ground and watch them. Many a time I ended up going for a bit of a ride. I hope Oliver makes it. Who know he might end up a special one. My dad had a cow, Susie who lived for over 20 years. She was buried in the back yard under my dad’s favorite tree!
Cricket, you are so right about the butting. That’s why two went to feed him: one to straddle hold him between legs and the other to feed. He’s getting a little more rambunctious now that he’s gaining strength.
Cute! How fun for the kids to have a calf. We always had bummer lambs, but never a calf with out a mom.
We’ve had bummer lambs in the past. They require a lot more feedings and work!