
It looks like it came back feet first which usually causes the calf to drown in the amniotic fluids before it is completely born so this cow makes an excellent candidate to graft one of the bums on. We brought her home and are now working on getting one of the calves grafted on her. She is not real keen on the idea yet but she appears to be gentle enough that I can make it work with enough patience and time. I will put that in because a cow will do a lot better job raising the calf than I will. Bums never do real well in the long run.
Now I only have one bum to deal with, and the weather. Winter storm watch is out, talking 3 to 8 inches of snow with possible strong winds to last from this afternoon to Monday morning. Damn, how miserable that is while calving. The moisture won't hurt but it's tough while calving. As always, have to take the good with the bad and make things work out. Lot's of fun.
Love and work are viewed and experienced as totally separate activities motivated by separate needs. Yet, when we think about it, our common sense tells us that our most inspired, creative acts are deeply tied to our need to love and that, when we lack love, we find it difficult to work creatively; that work without love is dead, mechanical, sheer competence without vitality, that love without work grows boring, monotonous, lacks depth and passion. Marta Zahaykevich
When we had to graft an animal, we'd skin the dead calf and tie the hide around the bum. The skin would eventually fall off, but by the time it did, the mom had decided that this was really her calf.