# Lonely Calf



## Twoewes (Oct 1, 2008)

Some advice please. I bought a 3 yo Jersey & her 4 mo unweaned calf a month ago - weaned the calf by putting her in a separate stall - they can't see each other - 4 weeks ago. The calf was OK till last week - now she's bawling non-stop, day & night. I put her in a paddock & she got out somehow & we found her in the yard, bawling her head off - so she stays in the barn now. What can I do to calm her down? She's not sick - just lonely. Also, how do I teach her to walk with a lead-rope? I get her all hooked up & she bucks like a maniac. Hope someone can advise. Thanks

___________
Two Ewes
There is no "Ready"! - Jumanji


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## CJBegins (Nov 20, 2009)

It's possible she is having her first heat cycle and well....she is telling the world about it.  Some of those little gals start cycling early. As far as breaking her to lead, I would tie her up so that she has some room to move but not enough to put her head down and leave her there for a while. Let her figure out that the rope is in charge. Make sure she is tied using a halter and lead rope, not by using a slipknot around her neck. Once she learns the rope is in charge then you can teach her to lead. Be prepared, she will probably throw herself to the ground and look like she is dying more than once. She isn't, it's a trick. Good luck!
Carla


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## myheaven (Apr 14, 2006)

^^^^^what she said!


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## PaulNKS (Jan 11, 2009)

A weaning calf can carry on like that for a week or so. It's normal. He wants mama.


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## LibertyWool (Oct 23, 2008)

Why not try a weaning ring that way they could be together? Might make everyone happier. This is one: Crown Weaning Ring - Jeffers

It might not work, but could be worth a try.


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## SpaceCadet12364 (Apr 27, 2003)

I think 4 mos is early I like 6 mos or let mom wean her. If mom is in good condition.


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## genebo (Sep 12, 2004)

Are you milking the cow and need the milk? If not I'd let her stay on mama until she weans herself. That makes great calves, if you are handling mama evry day. Calf learns from mama.

There are lots of different ways to get a calf to lead on a halter. Some are for breaking the calf to the halter and some are for training the calf to the halter.

In the latter way, the calf is led into a restricted area, small enough so you can touch her with a cattle stick no matter where she goes. Do that, touch her with it at arms length and follow her with it until she gets the idea that she can't get away from it and slows down.

Then shorten the distance between you. Approach her from abreast of her shoulder, not from the front or rear. Keep the session pleasant, but be persistent. Once she will let you approach her, slip the halter on with lead rope attached. Let her walk around, stepping on the rope. She'll learn quickly to stop when she steps on the rope and won't learn to resist you.

Offer her treats. After a 1/2 hour or so, take the lead rope off and let her go, unharmed. Repeat for 3 or 4 days and she's yours. Then you can start trining her to the fine points of leading, such as standing, posing, backing up, all the good stuff.

Touch her a lot during the whole process.

Throughout, maintain a confident attitude and be calm. You are to become the Alpha figure in her life, the one she cannot consider disobeying. She comes with the instincts to do this built-in. All you have to do is to bring them out and reinforce them. Dexters and Jersey cows do. That's why they are so popular for family milk cows.

Read any of the works of Temple Grandin to get an understanding of how to effortlessly handle cattle.


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## cathleenc (Aug 16, 2007)

Temple Grandin also recommends weaning where the cow and calf can see each other and even touch (but not suckle) through the fence.


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## Twoewes (Oct 1, 2008)

Thank you, everybody for the advice! Now that she's completely off milk, I guess I could move her to the adjoining stall to Momma. I weaned her because Momma's teats were bleeding from teeth scratches - I had initially tried to share the milk but it didn't work - too many cuts. I like the cow stick idea - hadn't thought of that - the stall is 8X12 - just right for arms' length. She's gentle enough but jumps on me like a goat if I turn my back while in the stall - I hadn't thought of leading her in the stall either - when I take her outside she goes nuts, jumping, bucking & running - so I prefer to keep her in a restricted area. Oh, yeah, I spent 2 hours with a hose today - every time she bawled, I squirted her - took 2 hours for her to actually think twice & keep quiet - Gave her an extra thick straw so she was comfortable & then let her have it - she hasn't bawled for 6 hrs now - a record!! Gave her plenty of apple pieces in between squirts - she still loves me!! Can you tell I've never raised a calf before? Thanks again! AND...thanks for reminding me of Temple Grandin - forgot all about her! 

_________
Two Ewes
There is no "Ready"! - Jumanji


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## arnie (Apr 26, 2012)

After the training in the stall and tieing in the manger .don't let her learn that she can buck and pull when she's out side and win with brute forse .lead her to somewhere sbe wants to go or use a bucket of feed along with the rope if nessary and she hasn't come around tie the rope to the tractor or truck after a couple short slow trips she will figger out not to pull and folowing is easyer giving her treats when she moves forward is a good idea


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## G. Seddon (May 16, 2005)

Twoewes said:


> Oh, yeah, I spent 2 hours with a hose today - every time she bawled, I squirted her - took 2 hours for her to actually think twice & keep quiet - Gave her an extra thick straw so she was comfortable & then let her have it - she hasn't bawled for 6 hrs now - a record!! Two Ewes
> There is no "Ready"! - Jumanji


Yikes, where on earth did that idea come from and what is the reasoning behind it?


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## DWH Farm (Sep 1, 2010)

Cows are herd animals and prefer not to be alone. She is crying because she is lonely and misses mom. I think that your life would be much easier if you would try to work with her natural behavior (sharing a fence line with cow or getting her a companion) than to try to train it out of her. If you don&#8217;t want to do that you just might have to live with her bawling for a while. We always have a huge ruckus when weaning or when a calf goes to market. I don&#8217;t love it but I never thought of trying to get them to stop. It&#8217;s just their normal behavior.


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## PaulNKS (Jan 11, 2009)

Twoewes said:


> T...when I take her outside she goes nuts, jumping, bucking & running - so I prefer to keep her in a restricted area.


That's called "play time". All calves run, jump, buck, etc, ESPECIALLY if they are being kept in a confined area like veal in a stall. They need to be out where they can run and exercise.

_________
Two Ewes
There is no "Ready"! - Jumanji[/QUOTE]


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

Spraying her with a hose like that is a horrible idea. She is a baby. How about the teacher squirts your child with a hose the first week of kindergarten because he misses you and cries? These are living creatures here. They deserve caring and kindness, not shock and awe.


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## downsized (Aug 28, 2012)

Can I ask a question along the same weaning lines? I have a Dexter cow/calf and two other heifers. I've been letting the cow out for 6 hours a day (they're in a 35'x100' space), sometimes longer, while the calf stays with the heifers.

They fuss when she's let out, but eventually settle down. If I go in the barn, the fussing all starts again, but then they settle back down. Right now, I also get fussing from the heifer that is the daughter of the cow (that heifer also tried to go back to milking when the cow had her calf!).

The cow is quite content to go play around the farm and eventually (when pressure builds in her udder), she lets me know that she's ready to go back in. 

The calf is not weaned yet. I'm hoping this will teach the calf to eventually be okay without mom around when she's weaned. Am I building up false hope? Or is it possible to wean a calf without having it cry for days on end like the world has ended?


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## SpaceCadet12364 (Apr 27, 2003)

It is always possible, In nature anything is possible. We weaned a heifer this year she cried for mom twice and that was it. The neighbor weaned three calves at once shortly after we shut the windows for a week till they were hoarse.


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## downsized (Aug 28, 2012)

Thanks for the response. I guess I'm going to keep up with the same until the cow decides to wean the calf and just hope for the best. I hate to hear them crying and stressed like that. I've weaned foals this way (by leaving them with herd mates while mom "wanders off" and they seem to take it well. I guess now, I'll get to see how calves do. I'm hoping that she'll learn to rely on her other 'herd mates' and not feel so insecure without mom.


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## G. Seddon (May 16, 2005)

Downsized, letting the cow decide when to wean is okay, I guess, unless you have a bull calf breeding its mother (could be as young as 8 months to succeed, though they will try mounting much earlier).


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## downsized (Aug 28, 2012)

Thanks G.Seddon.... she's a little heifer, so I think I'm safe there.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

We always expect a week or so of non-stop crying when we wean. It is what it is.


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## G. Seddon (May 16, 2005)

I am wondering how the poor lonely calf is doing; I hope she is getting some sunshine and exercise and not being hosed down anymore.


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## willow_girl (Dec 7, 2002)

> Are you milking the cow and need the milk? If not I'd let her stay on mama until she weans herself.


Umm, I did that with Christine's last calf and Lil nursed 'til she was 2! :teehee:


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## Twoewes (Oct 1, 2008)

Update on the lonely calf: she's "all better" now!! Sorry if I offended anyone with the squirting - I watched & watched & figured that her "bawl" button was stuck & she didn't know how to stop. I was right, she hasn't done that high-pitched bawl since - just the normal "where's my food?" mooing. FWIW, I didn't squirt her in the face, harm her or threaten her - just calm, short squirts when she let out a high-pitched bawl - when she stopped, I gave her a bite of apple; she wasn't hungry, sick, hurt, uncomfortable, alone - just bawling non-stop. She will now let me halter her in the stall & "walk" her around the barn - that's progress but I'm still not taking her outside until she learns to WALK on a lead - that's a good way for ME to get hurt. Anyway, thanks for the advice & again, sorry if I startled anyone - Momma & calf are doing fine, now.

___________
Two Ewes
There is no "Ready"! - Jumanji


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## G. Seddon (May 16, 2005)

Twoewes, yes, I think you startled quite a few people. A young calf, deprived of its mother, confined to a stall, no like companionship, being haltered, then blasted by a hose for calling to her mother ("Gave her an extra thick straw so she was comfortable & then let her have it....")

If you've got a 4H group in your vicinity, why not get in touch with them and see if someone can assist you with proper care, halter breaking, etc. Your cow and calf will thank you!


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## thequeensblessing (Mar 30, 2003)

cathleenc said:


> Temple Grandin also recommends weaning where the cow and calf can see each other and even touch (but not suckle) through the fence.


This is what we do when we have to wean and we never have a problem. Mom can reach over the gate and lick her baby and interact, but baby can't reach through and suckle from Mama. 
That being said, we find that the calves that are left with mom for as long as possible fill out and develop much nicer than do bottle calves that are kept in the barn. There's something about fresh air, grass, and mama's milk straight from the tap that does a wonder for the babies.


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