Calves

 Spring speaks of new birth, most profoundly at its core is the new birth given through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, celebrated in the spring.  This spring, we have invited newborn baby animals into our family, which has been another exciting adventure for the Dansie Family Circus.  We got on the list for three new baby calves, each of the kids would buy one with their own money.  When we got the call that they had been born, Jeff (of course) was stuck at work.  Lucky for me, he was able to pull away long enough to help me hook up the horse trailer, since that could have been a disaster had I attempted it on my own.  Once we were all hitched up, the kids and I were off to pick up their new baby calves.  Daisy and Levi were each excitedly gripping their white envelopes with their carefully counted cash to buy their very own baby calf.  None of us really knew what we were getting ourselves into.

 Two of the calves were strong and healthy, but Levi's little calf was very weak and lethargic and would not suck.  That night, I sat in the manure under the stars with his little head in my lap.  I would slip my fingers between his lips behind his teeth to squeeze the nipple of the bottle trying to get as much colostrum as possible into his stomach so he would get stronger.  After two hours, he had drank less than a cup.  Our prospects were grim, but I held out hope.

The next morning I was afraid to go out to the little pen fearing that he didn't make it through the night.  But he did!  He still wouldn't stand up, but he did attempt to suck that morning.  By that night, he was standing on his own, though still a little unstable and weak.  Now, three days later, he is an aggressive eater and keeps up with the other two.  Every little milestone has been so gratifying for me.  To see him standing and sucking brings such satisfaction after holding him on my lap trying to get him to eat for those first few feedings.

 Spring is also the new birth of our chicken coop, which I am really excited about.  I am admittedly a fair weather farmer, and while I love having the chickens and fresh eggs, winter is just not worth it for me. But now its SPRING!  We have a dozen baby chicks who are growing fast.  They are starting to shed their newborn down and grow feathers.  The kids feed and water them every day.

 It's been really nice to get to know our calves and start a feeding schedule while the kids are on Spring Break.  We get up early each morning to mix milk and bottle feed them.

 Daisy's calf is the strongest and most aggressive, but showed up with scours two days ago.  Since Jeff was at work, I was on my own to find a solution.  I was off to the 'farm store' (and Google) to see what I needed to do.  I returned home with medicine and for the last few days I've been honing my veterinary skills as I administer the medication to Daisy's calf.  Since he's under the treatment of such an attentive caretaker, I am certain he will be just fine. 

 Isaac likes his baby calf, but at 5 days old it is his same height and weighs more than him, so when it licks his face and jumps to play, Isaac isn't so sure about it.

 Not only do the calves require a lot of time for feeding, but I've been doing double duty when it comes to sweeping and laundry too.  We do our best to take our boots off outside, but we still end up tracking in miscellaneous animal debris, and as you can see from the manure on Levi's jacket and the slobber on his hand, taking care of calves is dirty business.

Today when we went to feed, Levi found this nest on the ground by our barn.  Just one more treasure added to the endless curious daily adventures that make up our lives.