Post by tabitha on Jun 16, 2008 8:58:18 GMT -5
No calf yet!
things are looking more & more like a calf soon.
i just ordered a new silicone setup for my surge. i dearly hope that portablemilkers.com will ship it fast because i need it right away!
i also have gathered 2 IV kits and one tube of calcium for milk fever JIC. i pray these never get used. i have a good vet's cell and pager handy in case of this.
and i have a bottle of synergy animal products excell 7000 since Nimue has freshened twice with mastitis. this last time we dried her off we administered ToMorrows, so i am hopeful for this freshening.
as many know there are concerns about the calf. i still have been unable (and i am out there every day, more than once a day) to bump the calf. this is not why i am concerned, but adds to the concerns. the trouble would be if she was at critical moments in gestation when she suffered through bluetongue- this can cause disorders that include not having a brain, eyes, etc. at the mildest the calf could only be blind. or, if she wasnt at a critical place, the calf may be fine. the worst-case scenario involves her never going into labor because the calf cannot trigger it hormonally. also, a living calf could be a carrier of bluetongue, which my vet assures me is not worrisome. we have more deer in our woods carrying it already. most cows do not get symptomatic bluetongue. Nimue was the exception, and she also miraculously lived.
if the calf is born still or needs to be put down we hope to get a bottle baby from the sale. i need to be able to calf share while i am in labor/ the week after. i am due july 25th.
i always say this, and i really mean it: you guys (even those of you i dont 'know') and this forum have been an awesome support for us through it all! i hope that this calving marks the end of all we have gone through with Nimue's illness and she can go on to have a long, healthy life with our family. part of my heart is closed off about it and i cannot really hope. part of me worries she will die and the calf too, and that will be that.
it is unreal how emotionally tangled we are with this farm life and all of our living things- from the zucchini plant i lost yesterday to vine borers to Nimue who feeds us and gives us calves and nourishes our garden!
things are looking more & more like a calf soon.
i just ordered a new silicone setup for my surge. i dearly hope that portablemilkers.com will ship it fast because i need it right away!
i also have gathered 2 IV kits and one tube of calcium for milk fever JIC. i pray these never get used. i have a good vet's cell and pager handy in case of this.
and i have a bottle of synergy animal products excell 7000 since Nimue has freshened twice with mastitis. this last time we dried her off we administered ToMorrows, so i am hopeful for this freshening.
as many know there are concerns about the calf. i still have been unable (and i am out there every day, more than once a day) to bump the calf. this is not why i am concerned, but adds to the concerns. the trouble would be if she was at critical moments in gestation when she suffered through bluetongue- this can cause disorders that include not having a brain, eyes, etc. at the mildest the calf could only be blind. or, if she wasnt at a critical place, the calf may be fine. the worst-case scenario involves her never going into labor because the calf cannot trigger it hormonally. also, a living calf could be a carrier of bluetongue, which my vet assures me is not worrisome. we have more deer in our woods carrying it already. most cows do not get symptomatic bluetongue. Nimue was the exception, and she also miraculously lived.
if the calf is born still or needs to be put down we hope to get a bottle baby from the sale. i need to be able to calf share while i am in labor/ the week after. i am due july 25th.
i always say this, and i really mean it: you guys (even those of you i dont 'know') and this forum have been an awesome support for us through it all! i hope that this calving marks the end of all we have gone through with Nimue's illness and she can go on to have a long, healthy life with our family. part of my heart is closed off about it and i cannot really hope. part of me worries she will die and the calf too, and that will be that.
it is unreal how emotionally tangled we are with this farm life and all of our living things- from the zucchini plant i lost yesterday to vine borers to Nimue who feeds us and gives us calves and nourishes our garden!