Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Ladies in Waiting

Now I have a pretty accurate timetable for the arrival of our next calves.  


Babe, the Polled Hereford, has a due date of September 12; she could calve as early as ten days before this or ten days after.  She will have a purebred (but not registered) Hereford calf.  


Bonne-the-Jersey-cow is bred to the same Hereford bull as Babe.  Her previous two babies were also from Hereford daddies.  She is due to calve around November 18, a few days before Thanksgiving.  She's always had boy calves, and now that I have other cows, I don't care if she has one more baby bull.  I'm hoping that next time she's in need of a boy friend, we can get her to a Jersey bull; if that happens, I will be wishing for a heifer.  


Jody, the baby I raised on a bottle, is due February 18.  Since she is at least half Jersey and was bred to a Jersey bull, her calf should look like a purebred.  I really want a heifer from her.  
If all three should have heifer calves (fat chance), I'd probably end up selling one of them, most likely Bonnie's crossbred calf, at weaning.  The time is approaching when we will have to purchase our hay (not this winter, thank goodness), and we can only afford to buy hay for so many cows. 
Now that we know for certain they are all bred, I look forward eagerly to the new babies. 


By the way, it was approaching noon and the temperature was at 100 degrees today when I went in search of the cows.  I was fairly certain of where I'd find them.  It's shady, and there's a nice breeze there.  They will probably stay there all day, moving only when their shade moves, and come up to drink this evening.  They do most of their grazing between 6 P.M. and 6 A.M.

9 comments:

  1. Good luck, I think your chances of getting a heifer this time are pretty good!

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  2. Babies everywhere!! That's going to be a busy time for you. Hope your get your heifer!

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  3. The good news is...they are not all due around the same date. Are you going to try and milk any of them? I know you milked Bonnie when she had her previous calves. Certainly you couldn't milk all three of them. Your herd will be doubling in size. Sounds like if you want to take a trip it'd better be before September.

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  4. "Ma", a Hereford cow only gives enough milk for her baby. I will milk Bonnie once or twice weekly, as always, until Jody calves in February. If she turns out to be a gentle milker, I might turn Bonnie loose with her baby and milk Jody once or twice a week when I need milk. Or, if I can find a baby calf to put on her around the time her calf is born and get her to accept it, I may let her raise two babies. Honestly, it would be better in some ways if they WERE due at the same time.

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  5. Sweet photos -- and I loved the title. They look cool -- unlike the rest of us who are boiling. MGW

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  6. Looks like they've found the right spots to be in in this weather. They are all so pretty!

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  7. You're going to have a barnful, that's for sure. Thank goodness they aren't all due at the same time. They all looked peaceful and content sitting there in the shade. KEEP your cool, anyway you can.

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  8. Sheesh. I'd like to go find a shady spot to lie in for the rest of the day myself. But I volunteered to work on my day off. Pfui.

    Glad to hear your ladies are all doing well and you won't have to buy any hay this year. From what I have read, farmers are losing money all over the place.

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  9. Sounds like you have a lot going on. These are pretty cows.

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