"Oops Calves" In The Freezing Winter

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posted on

February 22, 2025

We have had baby calves being born this week. 😱

Just a disclaimer: We do not like calving in January or February! Although it is pretty standard for many cow-calf producers, we don't typically start calving until March and continue through May.

However, we had a bull that apparently escaped his bachelor pasture this spring and went carousing with the cows earlier than we expected, causing these early calves. Those naughty cows and bulls!

The challenge for these early-born calves depends on the time of day, temperature, and whether the ground is dry, covered in snow, or wet. If it's really cold but a sunny day with dry ground, a baby calf can survive a cold arrival into the world. However, if it's wet and chilly, it can be pretty rough on a calf, and they have a hard time staying warm, even if mom is doing a good job getting them licked off.

(Momma cows are good at hiding their calves!)

Most of the calves born this week did quite well, but one calf arrived on a chilly afternoon and didn't have a warm, dry place to lie down. After a cold night, he struggled to stay warm. That's when we bring them into the house to warm them up. Their anxious mother paces the fence while we take their baby inside. Once we feel they are sufficiently warm, we send them back out with mom and ensure they get a good nursing from her. We keep an eye on them for a few days until we're confident they've weathered the cold.

Our little kids always enjoy having a calf in the house. It's not every day you get a baby calf that follows you around and poops and pees everywhere 🙄.

Just because a calf is born in the winter doesn’t mean it can't survive; it just usually indicates a tougher start for the little guy. This spring, we'll need to do a better job of ensuring our fences are a bit tighter and that we have an accurate count of all our bulls...

Bird Flu Explained

Ask anyone who buys eggs regularly at the grocery store, and you'll be met with the question.Why are egg prices so high?!Basic conventional raised eggs at the grocery store have reached record-high prices, and most stores are limiting the number of eggs people can purchase.There is clearly a supply and demand issue at the moment, but what is causing such an egg shortage?This might surprise some of you, but the egg shortage is directly correlated with the governments policy of handling the outbreak of the avian bird flu.Bird flu isn't new; it has been present worldwide since the early 2000s, yet it has recently gained renewed attention.The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) policy regarding bird flu states that if your flock tests positive for the virus, all poultry on that farm will be "depopulated" (a euphemism for being killed). This means that if one bird shows signs of illness or dies and the USDA confirms it as bird flu, they will eliminate the entire flock of chickens or turkeys on the farm. The testing method used for bird flu is the PCR test, which gained notoriety during the COVID outbreak for its false positives.This isn't speculation. We witnessed this firsthand with our friends this fall when their turkey flock became sick and died. The USDA came and tested, confirming that it was indeed bird flu. They didn't have to kill any turkeys because their flock succumbed to the virus quickly. However, their small group of laying hens, which they kept for personal egg consumption and were healthy despite being exposed to the turkeys, had to be killed if they wanted any compensation from the USDA.Large confinement operations can house up to 250,000 chickens. Many of these farms have multiple houses, so if a large operation is confirmed to have bird flu, it is required to cull all the chickens on the farm; sometimes, this number well exceeds 250,000. In the last two years, over 160 million chickens and turkeys have been killed to "slow the spread." Yet, bird flu continues to spread.The USDA blames wild birds for carrying and transmitting the disease, yet I have yet to hear the USDA consider a widespread extermination plan for wild birds like starlings, pigeons, and chickadees, but only for the farmers who have chickens and turkeys?For a chicken to start laying eggs, they must be at least 5 months old before they begin to lay regularly. So if a laying operation has to depopulate their entire farm, they will have a minimum of 5 months before they have eggs again, and that's IF they can find chicks to restock their farm. There has been no discussion about breeding chickens that have contracted bird flu but survived the disease. What happened to the survival of the fittest?With millions of chickens being exterminated from the food supply, it's no wonder that egg prices are skyrocketing! Unless the USDA policy changes, it's unlikely we'll see a significant drop in egg prices, unless many new farmers enter the market willing to raise and sell eggs. In the meantime, we will continue to supply our customers with our small flock of laying hens that my daughter raises.

Our Favorite Winter Activity ⛸️

Each winter, when the creeks on our ranch freeze over, our kids rush out to check if the ice is thick enough for skating. Once it is, they spend hours on the ice, knowing the cold may not last. This year, we enjoyed nearly a week of perfect skating, though it got crowded with six kids on the creek. Our younger ones joined in, being pulled in a sled by their older siblings. After hours of skating and plenty of laughs, warmer temperatures ended the season, leaving behind great memories.

When It Rains, It Pours, or Floods! 🌧️

Spring brings both beauty and challenges on the ranch, with green grass and returning birds signaling the season’s change, but also flooding from the moisture we receive between December and March. As calving season approaches, we move our cows from flood-prone meadows to the dry rangeland, where they have ample space and fresh grass to calve safely. Despite swollen creeks, the cows know the way to the canyon where they’ll find the perfect spots to rest. Throughout the year, we ensure their health, checking on them regularly and providing necessary minerals as they move between the meadow and rangeland.

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"Oops Calves" In The Freezing Winter

More from the blog

Bird Flu Explained

Our Favorite Winter Activity ⛸️

When It Rains, It Pours, or Floods! 🌧️

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