Yesterday when we had the field trip we rescheduled with out veterinarian and check around twenty-five cows to see if they were pregnant. On our farm I have mentioned that we use artificial insemination, but we also have a specific pen with a bull. We will try to breed them with the appropriate sire that the computer program will provide to us based on the cows traits. For example, a cow is graded on something called a body condition score. This score is based on different attributes of the animal such as udder, legs, and feet. If there is a low number it would suggest that certain area could be improved so a sire with an excellent score in that same category would make for a good breeding choice. Our bull pen is here because some cows can be really tricky to breed and if we are unable to succeed she will go with the bull to hopefully be bred! Below is a photograph of Tequila, one of the very first bottle calves I helped raise when she was just a baby. She has had two healthy babies on our farm!
I have started learning more about cow breeding recently and it is hard work! If you have been to a farm then you will know that to artificially inseminate a cow you will put a very large glove over one arm and insert it in the cows rear. You will use your non-dominant hand and after a few seconds of this your arm will get all tired like you have been lifting weights. However, by doing this it will actually allow you to feel the cervix of the animal, thus making breeding with the instrument much easier as you can maneuver the device easily and have a higher chance of success with breeding. I hope to one day successfully breed a cow!
Today we shipped 5,466 gallons of milk and had one new heifer calf.
Awe, Tetuila is cute. It's hard for me to think that you have been at the farm long enough for her to have had two calves. The older I get the faster time goes.
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