Hi I’m Mike.
We are just coming off a short 3 day blizzard.
In that storm we had an inch of rain, followed by about 6 inches of snow.
Today we are going to look at that storm a bit but more importantly we are going to see
how the weather can affect calving as we get it rolling on our Wyoming life.
Welcome back, I hope you had a great week and thanks for joining us once again.
If this is your first time here, you picked a great day to start with us and start exploring
the ranch life.
After this video, if you would like to catch up on the story of how we end up here, check
out a short playlist that we created called New to the Ranch, it takes you through our
beginnings, the animals of the ranch, a ranch tour and much more.
Today we are out here among our breeding herd, these are the cows of the ranch.
All of our breeding herd is female and its their job to have calves.
We all have a job on the ranch.
There is no such thing as a freeloader, unless you count our worthless scarecrow, slim.
He’s always around somewhere and doesn’t get a thing done, but besides him.
Everyone has a job, from the cats to the pigs to the cows including me.
My job here on the ranch is to make sure that the ranch is here from year to year.
That our kids have a choice about staying here and that they always have a place to
come back to.
No pressure right?
That’s the broad stroke of my job but it entails a lot more than just that.
It’s the day to day and season to season cycles of the ranch that need constant checking
on and doing.
Right now its calving season, that is our priority.
Already this year I have had to drop everything and deal with a cow or a calf that is being
born and that’s just the way it is.
Its this time of year that I miss time to spend with the kids, when Erin has to pick
up my slack and I miss things like church or sometimes even just hanging out with friends.
What is happening out here right now is job number 1, without calves there is no ranch.
And losing even 1 calf that I could have prevented is 1 too many, and will weigh on my mind the
entire season.
14 days ago, our first calf of the season was born.
He was a little thing, just over 50 lbs and his mom, as you can see was very protective.
When that first calf is born, it’s a feeling like no other.
It’s not only the beginning of a new season but its also a sigh of relief.
Meaning that the world is still moving forward and so is the ranch.
After he was born he became calf number 1 and for what felt like the longest time, he
was the only calf on the ranch.
Mackenzies class took it upon themselves to name him this year, they took a picture of
him and hung it in the classroom and then put their names in a hat.
We drew and just like that, he became Fireball, a name suggested by Cody, who sits just a
few chairs down from Mackenzie.
I cant talk about naming calves without addressing the issue that we hear occasionally here and
that is how it is absolutely improper to allow our kids to name animals on the ranch.
I do get that it can be tough for kids to name animals then watch them leave, but I
would like to oppose that by saying that some of these animals are of absolute importance
to the ranch and to the kids.
Fireball is our first calf of the season and for that reason, he may be the most important
and he deserves that recognition.
Another reason that I don’t mind them naming a calf, is because its hard to convey to a
3, 5 or 8 year old how important an animal can be to the ranch.
1 single animal can make the difference and naming a cow like Bambi, gives her a identity
and that does carry over to even those that don’t have names.
They are all important and every life is just as important as Fireball is to the ranch,
he just got the ball rolling.
But it didn’t roll far, day after day went by without another calf.
No friends for him to play with, although his mom seems to be the type that wouldn’t
let him have a friend until he’s old enough to drink, it was still hard know there are
so many on the way, and nothing was happening.
But cows aren’t dumb, and they have had survival instincts bred into them for thousands
of years.
I firmly believe that a cow can somewhat control when she is going to go into labor, not consciously
but if there is a reason for her not to have a calf yet, she wont, or at least she will
hold on to it as long as her body can.
After waiting days for a new calf, a storm was forecast to hit the area.
In one day we went from 60 degree weather, to a day of torrential downpours.
The rain continued most of the day and by the next morning it had transformed to snow.
As I headed out to feed that morning, I was really hoping that we had no calves over night.
I had went out and checked but the snow made visibility poor and a cow could have snuck
by me.
Luckily we had no calves born, although I was surprised, with the drop in barometric
pressure that can sometimes cause cows to drop calves too, but we lucked out and yet
again it was just Fireball out here amongst the cows and snuggled in the hay.
No rest for us though, as the snow fell throughout the day and we locked the cows into a smaller
area for easier management during this bad weather, which was quickly turning the entire
ranch into a mud pit.
The temperatures continued to fall and as Fireball got colder, we had to stop and see
him quite often, making sure he could still get up and move and his body temperature wasn’t
dropping as well.
As the sun set, the temperatures dropped more and more and even though the cows are locked
in they still have to be checked on throughout the night.
A calf born in these temperatures will freeze down fast, any moisture in the air will keep
mom from drying him off and a calf that gets too cold will surely have a very rough beginning
to its life.
The next morning we come upon that very situation.
A calf born, only a short time ago.
Our second of the season but there is no time to celebrate as this big boy is already having
issues.
First things first we want to tag the calf.
Sometimes you only get once shot to do this, so take it while you have it.
Then we can start assessing his status.
My first indication that there might be a problem is interpreted from the way his mom
is acting.
You get to know your cows and for her to have a calf in the middle of the herd, without
even trying to get away and then stand back while I am there is almost like asking for
help.
He is big and sometimes that can also cause problems.
First thing we can try to do is to stand him up.
Mom is waiting for us to do something so this is a good place to start.
But when we cant keep him on his feet, a decision must be made.
In the past, I might have himed and hawed but no, after knowing what I have learned
over the last few years, there is no question in my mind.
He needs to come with us, to the shop where we can better get a feeling for what is going
on with him.
His first stop in the shop is the calf warmer.
He will spend a couple of hours in here.
His core temperature is low and this is the only way to warm him up.
While he hangs out in the warmth, we can head back into the cold, and finish looking at
the cows where nothing else is happening.
When we get back to the shop, well, the kids, while waiting for the bus have found him and
are saying hi.
Then its time for chores.
Our hope is to get this guy warmed enough to get him back to his mom as soon as possible.
First though, its worth weighing him.
Cause hes a big kid.
In a very much duh type moment, I come up with idea to put our calf warmer on top of
the scale that we use to weigh calves that have to visit us in the shop, then zero out
the scale, and bring over mr big bones to see exactly what he might weigh.
Normal calves here are born at around 70 to 75 lbs, him being closer to 90, I can guess
what the issue was.
His birth was probably stressful on both him and his mom.
After he was born, after much effort, he didn’t have the energy to get up and laid on the
ground, trying to catch his breath.
Instead, he almost caught his death but hes not out of the woods yet.
We need him to stand on his own, without doing so he cant drink, but here the rub.
His hooves are too slippery for him to stand on the concrete in the shop, so in what might
seem counter productive, its back outside for him to stand up on the dirt and snow,
where he will hopefully be anyway.
He is still pretty wobbly, but I need him to get
with his mom, where he can get some of the first milk that moms give called colostrum
so for this guy, its back in the gator and back out to mom, where we will keep an eye
on him but mom can do what she does best.
Then its back out, to keep checking cows, until we find another who is ready to go.
Feet are hanging and its not long until another calf is on the ground.
This is number 3, a healthy bull calf, who is quickly followed by a little heifer, number
4 and then another number 5.
As we continue and head out for more surprises night checks will continue, more calves will
be born and we will grow our family here together, all the while, never knowing what to expect.
Calving season can be long, but it is ultimately very rewarding by the end we will have a few
more wrinkles and need a haircut but through our efforts, we will save calves lives this
spring and I hope to bring you along for more of it than ever.
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Thanks a bunch, have a great week and Ill see you next time on our Wyoming life.