Larger family

Well, as of today, we are up to 75% in the calf department. The total would be four boys and 2 girls. That is not exactly what we were hoping for, but they are all well and the births were uneventful. The colors are interesting. The bull is black with a white belt. The heifers were either black with white faces or just black. They produces one with a white face, one with a white on his face, two with partial belts, one all black, and born last --- one brown calf with a full belt and white on his face.

They are all named after characters in the Charlie Brown comic strip. Charlie was born first - black with white on face. Schroeder was next - black with partial white belt. Sally was next - black with partial white belt. Then came Spike - black with a white face. Next came Peppermint Patti - all black. Last came Pig Pen - brown with white belt and white on face.

They are a cool group. It is fun to watch them race around the pasture with tails held high. It is also very interesting to watch how the mothers keep track of their own calf. Some of them are very consistent and others seem to care a lot less. Twice now I have seen a calf nursing on a mother that is not his real mother. I am a little worried about Schroeder. He does not seem as lively as he was at the beginning, and he has been nursing on another mother.

Out of all of those six calves, I have yet to see a calf born. Jake and I sat in the barn with Poppy for over an hour and waited while she labored. We went into to the house just to eat and when I went back out there, Spike was on the ground and getting a good licking my his new mom. I think that she planned it that way. Pig Pen was born on a wet morning, and even though that was a name that hadn't been used, by the next morning he had lived up to it. His nose was covered with mud and so was his side where his white belt was. I didn't even know until the other day that he has one white foot. His feet had been covered with mud. He is a cute big boy.