A long overdue update on the cow.
My cow had a new calf around July 30 2023, you can see it here in its newborn glory.
At this point my uncle didn't know for sure if it was a bull or heifer but suspected a bull because he spotted what he thought was a scrotum.
In August I went with my family to Colorado to visit. I would tell you how I had an excellent time visiting family and riding a horse but that would be off topic, this is about the cow.
I managed to get a couple pictures, it may be hard to see here but my cow and calf are dead center by the wattering hole below. You can tell it is my cow because it is red with horns.
I also got these neat Colorado beef stickers because I am now an official cattle baron.
In October my calf was tagged as #80 and I got an interesting update. Turns out my calf is not a bull, it is a heifer with a type of hernia that means the cow had two fertilized eggs and one fetus was absorbed. This type of heifer is called a "Freemartin" which means she cannot be bred, is treated essentially the same as a steer, and must be sold along with a disclosure. This required a farm visit fee and examination fee for the vet so cost me $120. This is also a little unfortunate because if it was a breedable heifer I could have had two calf-producing heifers in a couple years. Otherwise though this should not need any additional care.
After that update in October there was not much to report. My uncle sent me an article talking about the inflated cattle prices and how they are expected to stay that way for the next couple years. In short, it is a good time to be a ruthless cattle baron.
An Unfortunate Turn of Events
Unfortunately the life of a cattle baron is not all roses. Last Thursday (Feb 08) my uncle was out at the pasture to look at other cows when my cow and calf came over. Everything seemed fine but the calf promptly laid down and died. The calf was just 3 weeks away from weaning.
From talking with my uncle it has been many years since they last lost a calf however this is something that occassionally happens. My uncle checks on the cows almost every day and never saw anything to be concerned about.
While unfortunate this is something my uncle was very clear was a risk when I first bought my cow. Hopefully we have better luck next year, my cow may actually be pregnant again already. There has been a bull there since Oct 14th and earliest calving date would be late July.
So long for now
That is all for now. Many thanks to my imaginary readers.