Witnessed Calf Birth #2

So, as I said in my last post, I was able to witness my second calf birth (our 3rd calf this year) last week.  She was not so hidden in the weeds and, while it did progress fast, it was not quite as fast as the first one I witnessed a few weeks ago!  The photos are from my phone which means they are not the best quality, but they do show exactly what was happening.  I didn't have time to go get the camera or I would have missed the whole thing!

First sight was 2 hooves showing.

With each push more of the calf was showing.

Some pushes I could tell were extremely hard and painful.

At this point the bag was torn and we could see the calf breathing.

The rear end was a little harder to expel than the head was.

All of a sudden --plop onto the ground!!  We were almost certain it was a girl and IT IS!

The first few attempts at standing were very wobbly.

Momma quickly gets the new calf cleaned off.

Finally she stands and after some help from us, starts to drink.

Once again it was an amazing sight that I feel privileged to be a part of.  Red is a great mother and this adorable little girl born on May Day is named May!!

Our Cow's Labor Stages

Yesterday as I was driving past the pasture I noticed our cow, Mabel, standing with her tail straight out and looking like she was straining with nothing coming out (or so I thought from that far away).  Also, she was in the corner of the pasture away from the herd.  This was about 2:30pm.  I rushed right down with her in time to catch all of this:

 This is what she looked like when I first saw her.

When she turned I could see this discharge from her vaginal area.

After a few pushes like above it seemed she was pushing harder and her tail would curl.  This went on for a few pushes. 

Finally I was able to see just a little of the bag starting to appear.

More and more bag appeared with each push.  She seemed to be progressing just fine.

Finally she laid down to push.  Even more bag was visible.

A few more hard pushes and it is hard to see with the weeds, but the baby is being delivered in this photo. (Unluckily she moved behind these weeds just before this) This was around 3:30pm.  This all was right at or just over an hour after I noticed labor had begun. (Not exact on times due to watching cow not my watch!)

It took momma a minute or so to get up after delivery and I was starting to get a little nervous because I couldn't see the baby moving.  A couple licks from mom and I could see movement!

Baby is all black and is still being cleaned off just minutes after birth.  Already seems very alert.

And baby calf stands!  This was the first full stand after a few failed attempts.  This was roughly 10 minutes after birth.

Later that evening we went to check on the calf and found out he is a boy!  He is 7/8 angus and 1/8 maine anjou.  

Today we were able to check out the black white-faced calf born earlier yesterday and she is a girl!  I am so excited about that because she will be retained for breeding.  Both calves are great looking babies and we are so happy with them.  I feel privileged to have witnessed such an event.  I did stay back a ways so that momma could have her room to do her thing, but she is a wonderful gentle and tolerant cow so she lets us touch and pet the calf anytime.  She is also very protective and rarely leaves his side.

We feel so blessed this year already and have a few more to go!  

Long Awaited Arrival

It is days like today that make all the hard work and money spent all worthwhile.  It seems like I have been waiting forever to see our first new arrivals of the year (pretty much since the bull was here) and we are calving much earlier this year than any previous year.  

I have been keeping a close eye on the cows out in the pasture with binoculars from the house when busy doing housework and everything else.  Today after lunch I noticed the cows were within sight so I whipped out the binoculars to check on them.  To my shock and amazement there it was, a little black white faced calf running about near it's mother, Maria.  Yep, Maria was the first to calve and a first time mom who did it all by herself without a hitch.  What a tremendous calf she has(as I believe they all are).

Of course, I headed out to check it out and snap some pics of it.  We still cannot tell for sure if it is a heifer or bull calf, although my husband thinks she's a girl and I sure hope so.  If so, she will definitely be a keeper!

I then had to go into town to get our weekly ration of feed for the goats and chickens.  Driving by the field on my way home I noticed Mabel was in the corner of the pasture again as she was when I was out earlier.  I had checked on her then with no signs of labor.  She was now standing kinda funny with her tail straight out, but she wasn't eliminating anything.  I just had a feeling she was maybe in labor.  I ran in the house, grabbed the camera and my phone and headed back out determined to see the whole thing.  I did get to see it and it was an amazing hour.  I got lots of pics of the whole thing, some of which I will be posting maybe tomorrow in a "step by step of labor post".  The end product is a beautiful little boy that is as black as night and also oh so wonderful.  

Mabel is a wonderful momma and let us pet him this evening.  What an experience that was.  She is an amazingly gentle cow who is one of my favorites if not the favorite as far as temperament.

We still have 3 to go and each is sure to be as amazing as the others! My son also has a heifer to calve.  With all the events of today, one never knows what tomorrow might hold!