Martin decided to bring a cow, who was close to calving, into an empty barn as he thought she was having problems. We left her for an hour and then intervened with the help of a calving aid. Two male calves were born, our third set of twins this year.
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The mother has been taken away to be milked and her milk is saved in a separate vessel. It is vital all calves drink their mothers first milk called colostrum which contains all its nutrients in a very concentrated low-volume form. This is where I come in!!!
It doesn’t take long before the calves are up on their feet and gurzling the milk. I find a empty wine bottle with a rubber calf teat on the end does the trick. Tomorrow they will be moved in another barn where some other calves are being hand reared.
August 26th and the twins are growing. The photo above shows the smallest of the two taking her afternoon milk along with her brother and three other calves. She is still quite small but stands her ground when it comes to feeding time. |
Tags: August, calves, cows, farm, freisian, stour cross farm, twins