Tips to get a heifer to claim her calf

I had a heifer calve Wednesday night and she is not letting the calf nurse.  She doesn't really go after him just keeps kicking at him and butting him away when he tries to get to her teats.  I've been tying her up and she will let him nurse but still swings a leg at him quite a bit.  First time I tied her up I had to tie her hind leg back to keep her from kicking the calf away.  She has improved a little bit.  I don't have to tie her leg back anymore but have to stay right by her to keep her occasional kick from hittting the calf.  Any tips or tricks i could try to get her to mother up?

Thanks

One of our heifers had a huge bull calf. Unfortunately, the calf was dead when we pulled it. My husband tried to get the heifer to claim any unwanted twin from another cow. He got tired of tying the heifer's head and hind leg up, so he put a set of hobbles on the heifer's hind legs.

Keep tying a leg back and give her time. The more the calf eats, the more he'll start to smell like her. Sometimes it just takes time. I've never had luck with sedating the cow and I strongly believe it just isn't the answer for this situation. If you give the cow time, she'll get there. Good luck!

Get some "Orphan-No-More" from your local feed store, TSC or whoever has it and apply it down the calf's back as directed.  That has worked for us.  Also, sometimes a dog around or in the pen will finally bring out the motherly instinct.  If all else fails, then halters and hobbles work best.  I had one hobbled one time that I was trying to graft a calf onto, but she kept butting the calf around the pen, so had to put a horse halter on her (she was just a regular cow, not one of the pets) with a long lead rope and snub her up when it was time to let the calf nurse.  After about a week (used the Orphan-No-More too), the cow decided she liked the calf and it worked out.

take her awat from the calf for a few minutes. sometimes "absence make the heart grow fonder"

Just keep tying her up,it will take time,but she will eventually give in and the calf will get more aggressive with age.

these are all great ideas, and what ever works best for you is what you should do. we take our lariat over the cows back and just in front of her tit's put the catch or loop up high on the opposite side that your going to stand and gently pull tight. to much pressure the cow will fall down not enough and she can still kick. DONT tie the rope up and go do something else or the cow will be hanging there probably on the calf when you get back. this does the same thing as tailing her but your still on the side so you can help the calf get started if need be. Also a cheaper alternative to get a cow to take an orphan calf is vanilla extract pour some in your hand and wipe from the calves ears to his tail head then splash a little on the cows nose, this has worked well for us with cows and even sows. good luck hope this helps.