Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

We felt just a tease of spring this past week with temperatures 

above 60 degrees for a couple of days and the birth of a calf.

Even though we see calves born throughout the year,

it was the perfect reminder of many good things to come!

Spring brings the birth of many calves from the heifers we have raised 

from birth. These first calf heifers have been cared for

 everyday of their lives for at least two years before giving birth.

Our heifer birthing watch started this week with the arrival

 of 10 heifers  to the pasture by the house.

All of our heifer calves grow up to become the cows that 

produce  high-quality milk,

so we make it a priority to get them off to a healthy start.

I'm thankful for the many signs of  hope that are provided when

we so desperately need them down on the dairy farm.

Happy Christmas Birthday

New babies are always special on the dairy farm

 but having a Christmas baby  is a great gift for a dairy farmer.

Having two is even better!

                                                                    Merry Christmas
                                                                               from
                                                      down on the Arkansas dairy farm!
                     

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

We met more than a little bit of fog this morning in the pasture...

                                                                     I'm thankful for...

                                      the cool August weather that makes life more comfortable

                          for us and our cattle, the Ayrshire heifer that gave birth to a new heifer

                                                                           and 

                                            for these beautiful scenes that are part of our

                                          everyday  life down on the Arkansas dairy farm.

                                                         

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Most of our cows and heifers deliver without assistance but during the birth process we're keeping a close eye on the situation. This baby had a foot bent backwards that was making delivery difficult and  did require dairy farmer intervention.  

Celebrating birthdays on the dairy  farm is always exciting and  never gets old!

                                                                   
                                                         I'm thankful for every healthy delivery!
                                                             
                                                             

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

We're celebrating a birthday today!!

 

                                                          Spring hasn't officially started
                                                                             but
                          I'm thankful that our spring calving season officially started today  with
                         our young Holstein  heifer giving birth for the first time  to  this   sweet heifer calf!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Who doesn't love a new baby?

 

All birthdays are special--especially on the dairy farm!

Mama (#9213) gave birth this afternoon in the pasture with out any complications or assistance from us. Even though most cows will give birth with out any problems, we keep a close eye on them to ensure a healthy delivery.

 

                                                                                  
                              I'm thankful for today's special delivery down on the dairy farm!

January Delivers Spring Down on the Dairy

How often do we get a 60 degree January day on the dairy farm? Not very often this year!

Although Mother Nature was just teasing us today with a spring-like day, it   was  a perfect day

    for welcoming a new calf into the world. 

 

 

We're always keeping a close eye on our cows to ensure a healthy delivery, but it was nice to know that this baby would be born on a much warmer January  day.

 

 Our calves are usually born in the pasture but with the extremely cold January days that we have experienced,  we have been moving  the mamas to the maternity barn close to calving time  so the baby would be born  in a more protective environment.

 

With tomorrow's forecast for twenty degrees, it looks like we'll be back to the maternity barn for delivery!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dairy Delivery

A point of interest on every tour of our dairy  farm is the little shed building we call the 'maternity barn'. It's special because it is like the labor and delivery room of a hospital--not sterile like a hospital but a place where we can assist  in the delivery of a calf if the mother is having difficulty. 

 

Yesterday this heifer  needed assistance while giving birth to her first calf  so she was walked from the pasture by our house  to the maternity barn for assistance in delivering her baby.

 

 

On a recent tour of the farm with a group of Northwest Arkansas  registered dieticians, the maternity barn was empty but these soon to be mothers couldn't resist having their picture taken before delivery!

 

                                                   Can you tell that we were having fun?

                                
                Although we didn't have any deliveries on the day of the tour, I  did enjoy sharing
          how we work everyday to produce high-quality milk by caring for our cows and the land.
               I appreciate how these registered dieticians tell what dairy delivers to consumers!

Celebrate World Milk Day

 

Routine is part of our every day life on the dairy  farm--feeding our cows,milking the cows, feeding baby calves and all the other chores that happen in a day to take care of the land and our animals.One of my favorite dairy farm  routines is   having a new calf born on our farm.  This mama gave birth just a few hours ago and I wanted to share this 'first kiss' picture in celebration of World Milk Day!

 

Routine for this baby today includes resting in the field with her mama, a bottle of colostrum to provide antibodies to protect from disease, and a name tag placed on her ear. Tomorrow she will be taxied to the calf raising area and become part of my daily routine! You can find more information about dairy routine and what's so good about dairy at Dairy Makes Sense.  

 

Hope you're having a dairy good  Wednesday! 

Holstein Yard Ornament

I was so excited to see the rain Saturday morning that I nearly missed the new black and white yard ornament in the iris bed just outside the patio door. When this ornament moved, it was a sure sign that it was not a concrete yard ornament!  The new baby Holstein heifer that was born late Friday afternoon had managed to get under the bottom wire of the yard fence and cuddle up in the flower bed.

Soon after being discovered, she was taxied to the calf raising  area and placed inside her own individual hutch. Before escaping to the yard,she had already received her first bottle of colostrum and will receive her mother's colostrum milk in a bottle for the next couple of days. Colostrum is needed for every calf because it contains the protective antibodies to fight disease. We monitor the quality of the colostrum with a colostrometer to make sure we are providing the best for each calf.
Freezing extra colostrum provides a supply of quality colostrum when needed for other newborn calves.

 

No longer a Holstein yard ornament, she is now enjoying being fed milk twice a day,individual care and   monitored for any problems. High quality milk is produced by a healthy cow and that begins with the quality colostrum and care each calf receives from the start!

Taxi Calves

Did you know we give taxi rides on the dairy farm?  Our baby calves get a taxi ride on their first day on the farm! We pick them up in the field or in the maternity barn where they are born and deliver them to the calf raising area. The taxi they ride in, of course, is actually a wire enclosed wagon with a non-slip rubber floor pulled by a small tractor. Today's taxi calves are twins--one boy and one girl. We don't even charge extra for two riders!

The mother of the calf will follow the taxi to the first stop which happens to be the milking barn . Once the mama cow enters the barn, the calf taxi continues on to  the calf raising area. The taxi pulls up and stops in front of an individual hutch that the calf will call home for the next six to eight weeks.  The end to this taxi ride is where my work begins to provide good nutrition for the calf and monitor closely during these first weeks of life.

Our commitment to provide high-quality milk begins with the care each calf receives because healthy animals produce a healthy product.

   These two boys (now grown up) are my favorite taxi drivers and
                     we're looking forward to a lot of taxi calves
                                    in the next few weeks! 

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Northwest Arkansas has a rich agricultural history that includes 108 years of the Benton County Fair.  Although the petting zoo has only  been a part of the fair experience for the last 15 years, it ranks at the top of the list for things to do at the fair!

Come on over and ...

 milk  Betsy,

 the Farm Bureau cow that never goes dry,

                                                     love on some baby chicks,        

and

get a kiss from a calf.

As one of the zookeepers, I'm thankful for all the Farm Bureau and 4-H members that make this farm-city connection possible!  

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

We monitor our pregnant cows closely during the birth of a calf to ensure the health of both animals.  I'm thankful for  the fact that this mama delivered her calf with no problems during this week's triple digit temperatures. 

Happy Birthday Baby!

Happy Birthday Baby! We woke up Saturday morning to find the arrival of a new baby calf in the pasture.  We try to avoid having  dairy calves in the coldest months but we always manage to have a few new babies scattered through out the year.  As mild as our January weather has been this year, it's too bad we weren't  having alot more birthdays!

This baby calf stayed with his mother for about twelve hours in the pasture before being moved to the calf raising area.  Calves are separated from their mothers to ensure the best individual care and monitoring. Each of our calves is placed in an individual hutch and fed twice daily. Our babies are bottle fed for three days with the colostrum milk from their mother and then taught to drink from a bucket.  Grain is added to their diet when they start drinking from the bucket. I'm their momma for the next eight to ten weeks before they will be moved to a small pasture.

Experiencing new life on the  dairy farm is always a blessing and a reminder to me of the commitment we have to provide high-quality milk by taking good care of our calves and cows.  I think we may name this baby--January! 

Nursing Baby Calves

The weather was perfect last week when I had University of Arkansas nutrition students touring the dairy farm. When we were looking at baby calves in their individual calf hutches, one of the students asked me what we did when the weather got cold. My quick reply was that I put on warmer clothes.  I didn't realize that I would be adding those warmer clothes this week! When the weather man said it was twenty nine degrees with wind this morning, I suited up for calf feeding chores with my hooded sweatshirt and coveralls.Although you can't see it, I always have my nursing hat on when I go to feed calves!

Temperature and weather changes like we have had this week create a stress for our baby calves and stress can lead to illness. Even though the inside of the individual calf hutch is warm and cozy, each calf will be closely monitored for any signs of pneumonia.  As we feed the calves, I observe their activity and eating behavior and listen for coughing or unusual breathing that may occur if they are getting sick.  After all the calves are fed, I will walk through the rows of hutches for a second observation of each calf.   It is important to monitor baby calves closely and if necessary treat with medication prescribed by our veterinarian.

Raising healthy baby calves is a job I take seriously because these calves will eventually be part of our milking herd. I've used my nursing degree everyday on the farm-raising baby calves and kids!  Our commitment to producing quality milk starts every day in the calf hutches with consistent,vigilant care making sure each calf is healthy.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

                                  

Quality milk begins with caring for our animals everyday on the dairy farm. One of my daily chores is to feed and care for the baby calves. Every heifer calf that we raise is important to the future of our milking herd.   I'm thankful for each new calf that is born on our farm and for the opportunity to live and work on a dairy farm. 

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Petting the baby calves is always a highlight of every farm tour! I am thankful for the opportunity to have conversation with University of Arkansas students about the commitment of dairy farm families working everyday to care for our animals and land as we produce safe,high quality milk.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

With the arrival of spring, I am thankful for warmer weather,the smell of fresh green grass and the miracle of new life on the farm! This baby Holstein calf was born just a couple of hours ago and being cared for by her mother while the dairy farmer watches over both.