No Calf This Week

I wanted to follow up on that post from Monday about Dandelion.  We've checked on her several times everyday this week, but there has not been any change that we could notice.  She seemed a bit more restless, tonight, but that could be from being penned up for a week now.  She has the run of a large stall and the barn breezeway, but it's not much space compared to the entire pasture field she did have.  She does show all the signs of being ready to calve any time.

Here is what Carla says in her excellent book that we frequently refer to:

"Because a cow's birthing instinct is to go hide in a woods and do it all by herself, it's wise to bring her into ... the barn where you're providing a warm stall with losts of clean bedding... Do that at least a couple days before her calving date so you can keep a close watch on her.  You'll know calving is getting near when her udder swells with a milk supply, her vulva swells, and the flesh seems to loosen around her tail bone and fall away.  After that point, check on her several times a day.  You have a big investment at stake here and will want to help or call the vet if she has calving trouble.  But ordinarily your cow will calve, and you'll find her standing there nuzzling her baby, and you won't have to do a thing except provide the usual necessities of food, water, and shelter..."

Here's Dandelion.  Maybe you can tell by her belly that baby calf is getting close!

On another farm note, the White Rock pullet that disappeared Sunday showed back up Tuesday, no worse for the wear!  Maybe she was around Monday, but I didn't notice her.  I guess she just chose to spend a couple nights out in a tree but then decided that she preferred the coop!  I'm very thankful that it was not a predator.  I am also very thankful that we got an egg in the coop nests both yesterday morning and this morning!  It has been rare for us to get any eggs in December in the past, and it especially seems strange to get 2 eggs the week before the winter solstice while the daylight hours continue to shorten.  I hope this egg trend will continue and some of the other hens and pullets will pick up on the idea!