Tompkins Corner Chronicles

While doing his daily hay feeding dad came across a calf on the ground that wouldn't get it.  He was nearly a week old and he and its mother were already let out into the long term pasture before summer. It was odd it wouldn't get up as it had been running the day prior.  After helping it up we found it wasn't putting any weight onto its back left leg.  We brought him and his mother (#309) up into the sick pen and had the vet, Kelly, come out to look at it.  After looking it over she determined it may have gotten stepped on by a cow.   Due to it not standing on its own we would need to find a sling of some kind to hold up the calf, give it physical therapy to help keep strength up, bring its mother in and milk her out, and then bottle feed the calf until it recovers.  We pulled an old mechanics lift out of the brush, hooked up a chain and a sling and brought it up to the calf.  Actually worked really well.  So we began twice a day bringing th...

A 9 year old cow, with some brockle markings on her face had her calf the other day.  The calf was born looking a lot like her mother, white markings in all.  I myself think they look like an "R" and a "7" above the eyes. The cow, unfortunately was developing a pretty massive tumor on the right side of her neck.  It grew as a red lump about 10 inches in diameter and was looking pretty bad. Due to her age and fear of the cancer spreading she needed to go to the butcher a couple days after she had her calf.  We then started bottle feeding her calf, who has henceforth been dubbed the name "Twinkle". It's been nice to have her around for a calf the kids can jump into the pen with. Trouble is, there is a good chance she will grow into an ornery tame cow someday.   Cousins helping feed Twinkle: 

A first calf heifer went into labor but couldn't deliver the calf on her own.  Dad and I brought her into get pulled, we tried several times but her pelvis was too small and things weren't progressing well.  Dad called it quits and we loaded her up in the trailer to go to the vet.  They tried there a few times and had to resort to C-Section and received an antibiotic.  The calf didn't survive.  We brought her home and put her with the others.  After a day dad noticed she wasn't coming up to food with the others.  I hopped on a 4-wheeler and tried to bring her up to get more TLC.    Right as I approached and hollered at her instead of dropping her head and walking away, she raised her head, got a wild look in her eye and took a step toward me.  I backed the 4-wheeler up a bit to try coming at a distance.  She continued leering, head raised, shoulders and neck twitching something odd.  She then charged the 4-wheeler and I, but I ...