bassackwards calf update

[Malinda]

Some of you may remember that a little over a year ago I posted (before SteerPlanet) that I was having an extremely high number of calves coming hind feet first or tail first. I believe it was Cowboy that mentioned living somewhere where the cattle had to travel up and down steep pastures and he had noticed having more bassackwards calves. That got me to thinking.

Well, I believe I haved solved the problem. I have finished spring and fall calving now with one change I implemented.....I moved the 'maternity ward' one lot over from my house. I believe the culprit was my border collie. She can't stand for there to be anything in the yard, near the house or the barn when I walk from the house to the barn. She used to jump the cows up if they were lying anywhere near the fence closest to the house.

Since I moved the cows away from the little tri-colored jumper upper I have not had one bassackwards calf. My vet had a good hoot out of my unsientific study and hypothesis but he can laugh all he wants. All I know is moving the cows is all I have done and it has worked.

Now I have to solve another problem....a 100% fall born BULL calf crop. Bah humbug. What's harder to sell than a fall born bull?........ALL BULLS

Everyone have a good one,

Malinda

 

[DL]

Hey Malinda - I would call that evidenced based medicine - You go girl!!

Wow and all those bulls, think of it this way all dead PHA calves would be harder to sell than fall bull calves - Indiana has a fall bull test - as you might imagine it is pretty heavy Angus - in fact I don't think I have ever seen a Shortie there

Glad things worked out with your heifer - been meaning to email you - getting squished by the big cow slowed me down some

WIll you be at the OBE?

 

[Malinda]

Hey DL,

First of all, I must have missed something; I didn't know you had been squished by a cow. Ouch! Hope you are OK and on the mend. Is the cow still among the living?

Not sure if I will have anything to take to the OBE of my own. I may be getting a heifer ready for some friends. A couple of my fall born bulls are good enough, but I'm sure no  would want to buy a bull calf that young, unless they wanted to show him and promote him. i do have one of the little boys sold as soon as I wean him. One of the boys is out of one of my donor cows  and just might be a keeper.

I have thought about putting a bull in a test, but somehow it has never worked out. Even though I show some, I still think my cattle could do well. Now that sounded pretty hooty didn't it?

The bull these fall calves are out of is the first natural born calf out of my DZ cow. He is a Spike and is named Conductor. His bw was 77#. So far there are about 15 calves out of him and all have been born unassisted, have been very lively and on the teat in less than an hour. Conductor may never sire a national champ, but his calves have all four feet pointed in the right direction. Hmmmm easy calving and structurally sound. Where have I heard that before? There I go getting hooty again! Oh yes, he is tested THF and PHAF.

I called the folks that bought the heifer you asked about. They are very happy with her and she is going well. They plan on showing her in the Hoosier Beef Congress the first weekend in Dec. I am going to try to get over there.

Take care of your squished body and have a good one,

Malinda