Wednesday's calf Mystery solved 3/29!
Mar 26, 2015 3:52:53 GMT -5
treatlisa, dunderi, and 8 more like this
Post by lew92 on Mar 26, 2015 3:52:53 GMT -5
I always watch to see if I can spot a likely calf before they enter the arena. The one we ended up with was standing in the entryway with his front legs bowed in and his head down, so I knew he didn't feel good, which equals going for a lower price. When he got into the arena, I could see his eyes were bugged out a bit and the sclera at the bottoms was red - ah, pinkeye! That'll make a guy feel lousy! No one was bidding, and the auctioneer got down to $20 and I bid. Finally got him for $50, which was as high as I was going to go for him. I even bid on another calf later, but set my final at $65 and that one went for $70.
So I gave him a bottle of electrolytes in the parking lot of the gas station down the road, stopped at the vet's for Inforce 3 (immunization against 3 respiratory illnesses), and a shot of Draxxin (long lasting antibiotic). Added a shot of BoSe from the bottle I have, for good measure. Then we shut him in the barn until chore time.
At first, we were wondering if he was blind because his pupils look like opals and he didn't react to my hand waved in front of them - but that was outside when we gave him his bottle. He nursed well at chore time, though I only allowed him one front quarter and a bit of her back quarter, as I didn't want him to get a belly ache. You never know if these calves were being fed waste milk or milk replacer - always better to be safe than sorry and let them be a bit hungry is my motto.
Anyway, I got a nice long look at him. I think he is at least a week or two old, as he is thin, but not new-born Holstein bony/skinny. He's very long in the body, very clean, his manure is just what it ought to be. Other than the pinkeye, he seems to be very, very healthy. I led him outside for a bit of a walk and to keep him away from the cow until Chevy was done nursing and he followed me even when I wasn't talking to him or letting him suck on my fingers, so I'm pretty sure he can see, which is good.
I took some pictures, but left the camera in my chore coat, so I'll have to post them later.
BTW, healthy calves 80 pounds and higher were starting at $400. There were several that went for over $600 - red calves, mostly black calves, or Holsteins that were 110 lbs and up. There was one Guernsey that went for $50, but I don't care for them, so I didn't even bid.
I feel totally blessed by the calf we came home with!
So I gave him a bottle of electrolytes in the parking lot of the gas station down the road, stopped at the vet's for Inforce 3 (immunization against 3 respiratory illnesses), and a shot of Draxxin (long lasting antibiotic). Added a shot of BoSe from the bottle I have, for good measure. Then we shut him in the barn until chore time.
At first, we were wondering if he was blind because his pupils look like opals and he didn't react to my hand waved in front of them - but that was outside when we gave him his bottle. He nursed well at chore time, though I only allowed him one front quarter and a bit of her back quarter, as I didn't want him to get a belly ache. You never know if these calves were being fed waste milk or milk replacer - always better to be safe than sorry and let them be a bit hungry is my motto.
Anyway, I got a nice long look at him. I think he is at least a week or two old, as he is thin, but not new-born Holstein bony/skinny. He's very long in the body, very clean, his manure is just what it ought to be. Other than the pinkeye, he seems to be very, very healthy. I led him outside for a bit of a walk and to keep him away from the cow until Chevy was done nursing and he followed me even when I wasn't talking to him or letting him suck on my fingers, so I'm pretty sure he can see, which is good.
I took some pictures, but left the camera in my chore coat, so I'll have to post them later.
BTW, healthy calves 80 pounds and higher were starting at $400. There were several that went for over $600 - red calves, mostly black calves, or Holsteins that were 110 lbs and up. There was one Guernsey that went for $50, but I don't care for them, so I didn't even bid.
I feel totally blessed by the calf we came home with!