Post by wyomama on Sept 11, 2005 21:58:12 GMT -5
My cattle are holding me to my parenting and infant feeding principles. 
I have joked for a couple of years about my "La Leche League cow" - Cindy is a determined and dedicated mother. Milk sharing with her is a battle best not fought, and she will NOT allow her calves to be weaned, no matter how long she has been separated from them. She even convinced the bull she was with last year to nurse! I had envisioned taking the easy way out and having her be foster mom to "all" the calves, but Domino's calf died, and Cindy does have the best tasting milk of the three...
I took Snowflake away from her after two weeks (I was gone and didn't want helpers to have to bottle feed on top of everything else). Got Snowflake on the bottle - which made me laugh at myself a little as I'm known as one of those "militant" breastfeeder types - at least it's milk she gets in her bottles instead of replacer... I really wasn't thrilled about the time it takes to raise a calf that way, but oh well. I got this handy-dandy bottle holder, and things were tripping along fine for about a week. ONLY, now Snowflake has decided she won't take a bottle unless I am holding it.
I have to rub and scratch and pet her, and then she leans against my legs to take the bottle. If I work her towards the holder, and slip it in, she will finish the last quarter of a bottle out of the holder, but she won't start one out of it anymore for anything. She knows it's there, and nudges it, licks at it, then nudges whatever part of me she can reach and cries piteously at me until I relent and go into the pen with her and hold it for her.
Yes, I am training this calf. HA!!!
I have joked for a couple of years about my "La Leche League cow" - Cindy is a determined and dedicated mother. Milk sharing with her is a battle best not fought, and she will NOT allow her calves to be weaned, no matter how long she has been separated from them. She even convinced the bull she was with last year to nurse! I had envisioned taking the easy way out and having her be foster mom to "all" the calves, but Domino's calf died, and Cindy does have the best tasting milk of the three...
I took Snowflake away from her after two weeks (I was gone and didn't want helpers to have to bottle feed on top of everything else). Got Snowflake on the bottle - which made me laugh at myself a little as I'm known as one of those "militant" breastfeeder types - at least it's milk she gets in her bottles instead of replacer... I really wasn't thrilled about the time it takes to raise a calf that way, but oh well. I got this handy-dandy bottle holder, and things were tripping along fine for about a week. ONLY, now Snowflake has decided she won't take a bottle unless I am holding it.
I have to rub and scratch and pet her, and then she leans against my legs to take the bottle. If I work her towards the holder, and slip it in, she will finish the last quarter of a bottle out of the holder, but she won't start one out of it anymore for anything. She knows it's there, and nudges it, licks at it, then nudges whatever part of me she can reach and cries piteously at me until I relent and go into the pen with her and hold it for her. Yes, I am training this calf. HA!!!
