The Bovine Bugle

First glimpse of Zita's new calf

I just wanted to send a couple of shots of the cow who was in the process of calving when the Stonyfield group was here visiting the other day. The cow's name is Zita, and she delivered her calf around 2 in the afternoon. I went down around 4 with the four-wheeler to bring mom and her calf up to the barn. Yukon, our Black Lab, was with me and you can bet Zita was not taking her eyes off the dog as we got close to her and her calf.

Zita followed me all the way to the maternity pen in the barn, as I held the new bull calf on my lap. I suspected she would have a bull since she was 4 days over her due date. Usually, when a cow calves earlier than her due date she has a heifer, and when she calves later than her due date she has a bull. This bull was lucky because one of the technicians who breeds cows here on the farm wants some Jersey bulls to raise for beef. I called her to let her know I had a calf for her, and she said she would be by to pick it up in a couple of days. So Zita's boy will be around for at least a couple of years instead of just a few days.

--Jonathan, Howmars Farm
Franklin, Vermont

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Posted by Blogger Chris at August 25, 2005 01:46 PM