Jane’s Bad Week
Poor little Jane. Her week isn’t going too well, first her Christmas present came via UPS – a new replacement nipple for her bucket, plus two extra ones – which to Jane is like us receiving underwear beneath the tree instead of something fun. (I’ll explain that later.) Then the other night a Pacific storm blew in with rain and heavy winds, and during the night as the transformer near the barn started arcing and woke us up in the house with the noise and light, apparently it scared Jane enough she ran through the electric fence and into the adjacent barnyard paddock. The mangled fence wire and her fear of coming back to the barn attested to how scared she had been. Then today she managed to get her head stuck in the feeder gate. I personally think cows are smart, except the part of their brain that sees only forward and if the hole is small enough for a muzzle, they think they can get their whole body through the rat hole. Thank heavens for the Sawzall. I never liked that used feeder gate anyway!
It helps to have friends when you’re in a tight spot.
Jane is not happy to say the least about her new nipple. It’s easy to slip into bad habits, and I realized one cold, snowy night that, gee, she sure is sucking down that milk fast…next thought, oops, nipple hole too big, nursing should be working her. I was liking the quick feedings. It is a pain to bottle or nipple bucket feed a calf. They butt the bucket to stimulate letdown, and they aren’t nice about it. And I would never bottle feed a calf if I didn’t have to. But in this case I have no choice. So while Jane is not happy with the harder work, it is better for her in the long run. She is producing more saliva, working her jaw, wagging her tail, and butting that bucket to beat the band. Chugging her milk was not producing those things.
Jane’s upbringing is full of lots of ifs. If her mom was here, she wouldn’t be supplemented with grain. If her mom was here, she would be nursing whole milk from her mom twice a day, after I milked. If her mom was here, I wouldn’t be sad 
If, if, if, doesn’t bring Della back, and keeps me from doing a good job with Jane.
So, I’m focusing on getting Jane ready to be a milk cow. She’s almost 7 months now and the time has flown by. She will be bagging up before I know it. The biggest concern for me with a bottle baby is flight zone. I want her to allow me into her space, but I don’t want her in mine. Meaning I can push her around, but I don’t let her push me around. Sometimes the easiest way to do that is to make sure I avoid situations where she can get at me. I don’t go out in the field and play with her, and if I do go out in the field I have a switch or stick in my back pocket. Calves like to play, and they play hard. I have to be the one in control.
I can teach her bad habits, if mine are bad, just as easily as good ones. So I have to teach her good habits. Habits that I want ingrained when it comes to freshening time for her which is still about 18 months away. I won’t be able to teach her the actual milking routine until that time. But the rest of it has to be in place. Like dogs nearby, standing quietly in close quarters, being messed with while eating, moved from side to side by me when I touch her in a certain place, voice commands, etc. It’s not too different from sacking out a horse. She is being conditioned without knowing it, to the sights, sounds and routine of milking twice a day. A lot her training started in the first week of her life, I always halter break and lead train my milk cow’s calves. I plan on share-milking my way, which is I let the calf nurse twice a day, after I milk. The calf must be trained to lead, tie and be manageable by the second week at the latest, because otherwise I can’t handle them when they get larger, or don’t want to. And if you think a two-week old calf can’t cause you grief on the end of a rope, think again, and they only get bigger. But, if they “think” you are stronger and in control you will be, even when they are much bigger and stronger.
Someone else is getting trained without knowing it too. Trace hates being brushed, but for some reason, he is tolerating getting curried lightly with this curry comb I use on Jane. He hikes his rear up on the straw bale and lets me do this for about 2 minutes before he decides he has had enough. I’ve been working him up a minute a day and I quit on a good note with him. He’s a smarty, that one. He wants Jane’s grain but knows he will get in trouble if he just helps himself, so he barks as if he hears a perpetrator and Jane will back away and listen because he has sounded the alarm, and magically the threat is gone and he dives in to her dish for a bite. So monitoring those two in essential when she is eating her grain.
On her horn notes, I’ve been happy with the dehorning paste, at almost 7 months I am not seeing any sign of horn growth. There is one little bump on her left side that could possibly be a scur, but it doesn’t really seem like it. It may be the shape of her skull, since my half Guernseys that are born polled have quite a knob on their skulls where horns would have grown. I did a cross between the calf and goat instructions with the paste, I applied a larger circle as specified for calves, but I neutralized it at 6 or 7 hours with vinegar and washed the site with water. She healed nicely, I thought.
I think after such a bad week, this little sweetie needs her throat scratched!
Food Renegade
Simple, Green, Frugal Co-op
I’m looking at that feeder where she got her head stuck and I’m wondering why all hay feeders I’ve ever seen — and feeding setups for ruminants in general – have that slant? what does the slant do? It’s obviously important. I just can’t figure it out.
Bruce, feeders are designed to make it hard for the cow to get their head and head out, it is supposed to make them “behave” and keep their head in and eat, not fight. I bartered for this one along time ago (and regretted it many times) and that cross piece in that filler space is in the wrong place, or there should have been more cross pieces or been blocked off. Our other purchased one in the feeding shed is a little different and much better, but ideal is a V-shaped, a cow tends to pull their head up to get out of a predicament and if she would have lain down she probably could have slipped back out herself. Once we started pushing down on her head and neck and twisting her head she started to push forward more – time for tools.
Poor Jane, rough week indeed!
DH told me a story yesterday about the calf and steer. They are fed inside now, as we use bedding to create deep litter and preserve the nutrients in the manure.
DH had gone out to do bedding (which hasn’t been done frequently enough this fall due to his being short handed) yesterday afternoon. The procedure is to lock the cows out, level the pack, then spread bedding, which around here is pine shavings.
So he got that done, filled the hay feeder and let them back in. The steer comes rushing in, sees the bedding spread across the middle of the stall and decides a broad jump is appropriate, to reach the feeder.
He reached it alright, banged right into it. Fortunately no one or thing was hurt. Head in feeder, he was happy.
The calf came charging in, saw the bedding, put 1 foot in it, jump into the air, turned 180 and was out of there in a flash. Next time DH saw her, her head was in the feeder, so I guess she survived the trauma of bedding.
It’s not like bedding had never been done, but you’d never have guessed this from their behavior. Good thing DH had built a strong hay feeder…
It was Jane’s head in the feeder that reminded me of this. She must have loved the sawzall….
Pam, just when you think they’re solid and tame, they get goofy like a horse! That’s funny
In our case there are two animals with access to this loafing shed and room for at least 15, why she had to put her head through that little hole to reach a wisp of hay out of the feeder is beyond me. We weren’t home, so she probably was in there at least 5 hours.
I covered her eyes because of metal shavings, and I’m sure that vibrating pipe was rattling her brain. This happened before with a big stump we have cut out for a salt lick, our bull got stuck in there, and DH had to use the chainsaw to get him out. Anybody that has had cows for very long can come up with some funny ones – the sheer strength they can exhibit at times of stress or the predicaments they can get in are pretty amazing.
Hope you all have an easier weekend!
LindaG, me too!!
What a week for you and Jane! I loved the photos especially the one where the other cow is consoling Jane. The things animals do could be a great video for Funniest Home Videos.
Trace cracks me up with his hind quarters sitting on the bale of hay.
Have a great week.
Finding Pam, Jane is having a better end to the week. She’s not happy about the snow but that’s life.
Trace does that on the couch too – it’s pretty funny, he’ll just come and sit beside you as if to chat.
i got smacked in the face once by a calf that was taking a bottle. they bunt really hard!
Chook, they sure do! I’ve worn more milk than I care to admit!
Oh My!, what troubles these calves won’t find! Our beef calf( 8 months old now) got his head stuck in a corral panel several months ago and we had to cut him out too. Thankfully he was unhurt due to all his struggling and Mike welded the panel back into place, ground down the weld and painted it, so it looks almost like new*wink*
We learned( the hard way) not to play with calves, because then as the get bigger and heavier and stronger they still think they are playing but to us it was getting dangerous. Sadly then we had to retrain and the calf felt it was a punishment( which it was, because of our ignorance*sigh*) I guess the positive is that we learned that lesson, so no other calves will have to be punished unjustly.
With our dairy heifer( a Dexter), we did just as you, halter breaking, touching,picking up her feet, getting her used to the stanchion, vocal commands, as well as touches( for having her move over a step or two to get her lined up and enough room for the bucket( to sit on) to milk. We’ve actually( much like sacking out a horse as you said) worked with scooting the bucket toward her and away from her( as if you were moving in closer or getting up and pushing the bucket away), just so she’d get used to the sound of it sliding across the cement. She did kick at first, but now is adjusted to it, enough that we feel comfortable sitting on the bucket now to scoot it*wink*
Now our beef calf( angus) is halter broken, but we don’t typically handle him as much. He does enjoy a good nub rubbing, or scratching under the jaw and he trust us enough that we can handle him if needed.
I had to giggle a bit about the new nipple, we just changed the nipple on Hoss’s bottle( can’t use a bucket he butts it to hard and wastes the replacer) and “Hoss” is feeling much the same as Jane and as you said it’s for their own good. At first he was butting really hard, now he’s adjusted over the last few days and doesn’t seem so frustrated*wink*
Glad Jane is okay and glad the dehorning paste worked for you, I’ve seen bad results from improper use of dehorning paste, our Jersey had mangled horns that we had to file to keep it from growing back into her skull and she was simply to old to dehorn( and I wouldn’t be able to stand doing that anyway*grimmace*)
Kelle, I’m wouldn’t be sad if this feeder disappeared. We need to rework this shed anyway, it is too hard to clean and the feeder is fixed. The one that raises as the bedding builds up is much better. But I’ll have to make do for now.
We do the same with the future milk cows as you, anything I may have to do when I am milking gets done while they are little. I have to guard Jane’s grain from Ty and Trace so, by opening my personnel gate, and allowing her to eat in that narrow space it is similar to a stanchion. I do my bedding chores and anything else that needs doing in the shed while she is eating, so I have to walk by her, move her, and then walk back and move her from the other side. Gosh, Della could read my mind and movements. But it took a few years. Jane’s gramma got no training except for a couple of weeks before freshening. She never twitched a muscle. The chances that I will get a heifer like that again are slim. I’m too old to break another cow cold at freshening time. So I’m hoping she will be pretty bomb proof when she calves.
Poor Hoss, Jane feels his pain. She is still antsy about that nipple. I finally broke down and bought a new Little Giant plastic bucket and actually I like the nipple assembly much better. I was sure I would not like the plastic bucket, but it is actually nice. I did not add the bracket though, thinking it would weaken the bucket, but I do have to wedge the bucket between the gate and log rub rail to keep from wearing the milk! Just a few more months and no more bucket!
I was skeptical about the paste, and I’m still not sure if that little bump is a horn part or not. It feels a little different than the other side. I’ve burned calves before, and had cows with horns. I just decided this time, to dehorn the quietest way possible. I helped a friend of mine dehorn with paste and the stuff ran and didn’t look too good, but she just bought a heifer that was burned with too big of iron (IMO) and that looks bad too. So I think sometimes every method can go awry.
I have to say that I am just loving the updates and the story of Janes life. Poor little thing that is a rough week! But you have such a great attitude and are obviously such an expert- I am learning a TON that you just never can learn on a commercial dairy situation or from any of the tons of books I have read. I was personally upset when you lost her Mum too but it is clear that Jane has every opportunity to become a wonderful house cow in Dellas footsteps- and it is so delightful to read and see the great pictures in the journey. I just don’t know HOW you manage to always have a camera and DO it all! In my mind you are the equivalent of Martha Stewart in a practical and down to earth non snotty way sans beck and call staff. Thank you SO much for taking the time to blog your experiences and educate those of us who are interested and thirsty! It really means a lot to me!
Happy Holidays to you and yours!
Jani
Jani, thank you for such a kind comment. Jane is doing much better now, she’s actually quite a trooper, putting up with everything I throw her way. I wonder sometimes just how tired of Jane people are getting, because I am so enamored with her, but I know it must be to some like watching your friends vacation home movies.
But as long as Jane is here, and I am blogging I guess that will be focus of many posts. As for the camera, lots (most) of the time my daughter is taking the photos. She takes many pictures, and it’s pretty easy to pick some out of the collection to use in a post. I’m the one taking endless pictures of cow manure, grass and vegetables 
Not hardly Martha material!
Again, thanks and have a great holiday!
Another really good post! Your photos are very well done. Good job!
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
Linda, thanks!
You appear to be doing a wonderful job with Jane, despite not having Della to help raise her. I agree with Jani–your posts are so informative. I am learning a lot from you. Here’s to peaceful holidays, with no need for extrication equipment!
Mitty, thank you! I agree, hopefully no extraction needed in the near future!
Well, I haven’t been on any blogs for the week, and you sure gave me a good laugh or two! Ben stuck his head in the banister rails when he was 2! Got that big head stuck real good. All he wanted was his daddy, so while dad’s on the phone consoling him, I’m trying to figure out how to get that big head out. I was read to use a saw, but hubs said no…I was ready to call the fire department…they already had our address on speed dial…but Ben didn’t want that….Had to slip his entire body threw that rail! Poor Jane. Ben knows exactly how she feels!!!
How fast they grow!!!
Diane, I bet Ben wasn’t too happy
Jane took it all in stride, and as long as I wasn’t standing on her head she was happy to eat. She was pretty thirsty though after the whole ordeal, eating hay for hours with no water! She’s no worse for wear now though 
I had no idea there was that much training to get a calf ready for future milking. Those of us not raised on a farm have lots to learn…we just take it for granted that these huge animals know what to do when the time comes and allow you to milk them. HA…little did we know!!! Sorry to hear about Jane’s bad week but it looks like it’s ending well with a good scratch. Merry Christmas to you and your family including the critters.
Maura
Maura, if I had a dairy with a more confined way to milk, she wouldn’t need all this handling. But it is definitely worth the time spent now, to keep me safe when she calves. It’s always a worry filled time even with seasoned cows. At least for me
Happy Holidays to you!
We had one of our two year old bulls with his head stuck in the bale feeder and had to get the tractor and tip him out. Funny thing was that when we haltered him the next time………he lead like a saddle horse
Hope it’s a better one next week.
Linda, I would have liked to seen that one! We had an old Simmental bull jump out of the truck with stock racks and he got stuck on the top and teetered and flipped ass over teakettle onto a scrap pile near my Grampa’s old blacksmith shop. Of course you watch in slow motion, thinking all the while, “That’s a lot of hamburger right there, right now.” “Where’s my butcher knife?” He missed impaling himself on metal, got up with funny look and walked off. We were sure we never get him in the corral again or loaded. But we let him heal a little and when the time came, he went right in the corral. I would have never thought that old bull could jump straight up like that and then I never thought he would survive that fall either. They’re pretty tough.
I’m thinking it’s a good thing you trained Jane to lead; otherwise she might have struggled and gotten hurt when her head was trapped.
Ah, yes, the sawzall ranks as one of my favorites.
Lucy, I think you’re right, our beef calves are not lead trained and when something like this happens, they are scared of the situation, you trying to help them, and it is not fun.
My first thought every time I read your blog is “dear gods, this woman does a lot of work” .
The second thought is “dear gods, this woman knows an amazing amount of stuff about cows”.
In all my days in MN and working on farms I have never heard anyone talk about cows and pastures and feed as much as you do. The amount of work and research you’ve done (and blood sweat and tears) really shines. I’m in awe of your knowledge and your abilities – I can even hobble from one side of the room to the other right now, so your energy astounds me.
Wishing you a holiday without further cow-trauma!