BFMH Land & Cattle Co. Inc.
Last
modified:
Friday March 02, 2012
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BFMH Land & Cattle Co. Inc.
Last
modified:
Friday March 02, 2012
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| Calves... The best reason to get into the Longhorn Cattle business. They steal your heart immediately. Average survival rates of Texas Longhorn calves is approximately 3 times higher than that of any other domestic cattle found in the United States. High quality calves come from high quality cows and bulls. They, in turn, become the breeding stock that will increase the quality and number of any existing herd. When selecting calves, once your initial quality standard has been met, seek out the ones that capture your interest with their color and their We continue to gain great personal satisfaction as each calf grows and changes in interesting ways that we watch and note, with pride. Texas Longhorn cows typically calve without assistance, lessening the recovery period of the mother cow and reducing the risk of birth related complications to the new calf. These Longhorn cattle are 'survivors'. They have been reproducing in the wild for hundreds of years, naturally building and maintaining strong genetic traits for ease of birth. We are always astonished at the ease and elegance with which they give birth and the great mothering instincts that continued careful breeding maintains. Once a calf is born, not only does its dam clean it -- immediately and vigorously -- but other cows may assist her in this chore. The calf is a source of interest to the other cows when just born. They arrive to smell the calf and occasionally give it some licks. If it should stray too far from it's dam in the first days, we have observed other cows nudging a calf back to its dam, who invariably is calling it with a special voice used only for its offspring. The next order of business for the dam is to get her calf up on shaky legs. This instinct is strong. The calf must be up as soon as possible for numerous health and safety reasons. The dam will urge the calf up both physically and vocally. The calf is also aware of the necessity to respond to the unrelenting prompting, even though it has next to no muscle tone and zero experience. Interestingly, once the calf has reached this point in development, the dam is increasingly comfortable leaving the calf in the company of the other cows, as in a nursery, if food or water are not close by. The initial identification process comes into play at this time and the other experienced cows, whether or not they have a calf at their side, are protective of the calf. The calf will generally stay absolutely still, lying where its dam left it until her return--which she signals as she comes back to her calf with the voice reserved for that purpose.
In the next weeks, growth is startlingly fast. It is difficult to remember the unsteady little calf when looking at the 2-3 week old energetic, filled out, piece of lightening out playing in the field. It is also difficult to visualize the herd without the calf. It is completely integrated into the herd and so, into our consciousness. Incredibly curious, calves will play with anything that makes noise or moves.
Identification of 'herd', 'home', and 'danger' having been imprinted satisfactorily, in a few months, the huge rate of new learning will slow and the bull or heifer joins the daily routine of the rest of the herd, and in Texas Longhorn style, simply being gorgeous while doing so.
E-mail inquiries to sarah@texaslonghorn.us or michael@texaslonghorn.us |
COUNTRY LAND FOR SALE! 2 Lots in Horseshoe Bend, Arkansas
CLOUDFOREST HOME FOR SALE! Monteverde, Costa Rica
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Last modified: Friday March 02, 2012 Send e-mail to
sarah@texaslonghorn.us with questions or comments about this web site.
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unique conformation, and the personality they project. 
In the face of repeated defeat the dam does not allow the calf to give up. The sweet reward, once balance is achieved, is energy-giving milk. Less likely to be the object of predatory attack, able to feed and move with its dam as she eats and goes for water, this calf is now a member of the herd.
Within days, the calf is exuberantly exploring its surroundings. With leaps and sprints it travels around the pasture, never straying too far from its dam. She keeps a lookout and calls for its return when the distance has reached the limit of her comfort level. The calf is on 'high alert' when exploring and will startle for seemingly no reason. A whiff of something new on the wind or a piece of grass moved by the breeze will freeze the calf for a millisecond, then send it back to its dam's side at full gallop.
Human interaction with calves at this stage is fantastic. They will investigate the clicking of a camera shutter for example. A person sitting in the pasture is a source of fascination--a feast for the calf's senses. It will approach and retreat numerous times, full of concentration. It will sniff the wind, practicing their skills of interpretation so necessary to their survival beginning 500 years ago on the Texas range. 
