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COWS-fed-barely-sprouting-fodders, page : 78
Hot weather calving:
When your cows calve during hot weather make sure to provide shade for the cows and their newly born. If there is natural shade such as shade tree where they are calving so much the better. Severely hot weather is stressful to a cow in labor and also her newborn. If possible aim for your calving season when it is neither too hot nor too cold
Wet weather calving:
In wet weather you may want a shed with dry bedding, because it is much cleaner and safer that out in a wet, muddy corral and much easier on the newborn calf if it is born in a downpour!
Early spring calving:
If your cows are going to calve in early spring you will need a calving barn, which is a shelter to keep calving cows and their newborns out of the wind and cold. The barn should be adequate to accommodate all the cows at once in case they all decide to deliver at the same time! Individual stalls for each pair are better than having several calving cows together because it eliminates the risk of mix-ups, or bossier cows injuring another's calf.
Cold weather calving:
The body heat of a cow keeps the barn reasonably warm in cold weather, however, if temperatures drop to 20 degrees Fahrenheit inside the barn you may need to dry a new calf with towels before it gets too cold to stand up and nurse. CALVES NEED TO BE UP AND NURSING WITHIN 30 MINUTES TO AN HOUR AFTER BIRTH TO GET FUL BENEFIT FROM ANTIBODIES IN COLOSTRUM AND TO GET QUICK ENERGY FROM THE CREAMY FAT. Once they have nursed they are better able to stay warm. If the temperature drops to be 20 degrees Fahrenheit, ears or tails may freeze and a calf's mouth may become too cold for him to nurse.
If you calve during a cold spell you may be tempted to leave the pair in the barn for a while, however, they can do fine outside by the second day if you have a sheltered area in the pen or pasture where calves can be protected from wind and bad weather. A couple of small, sheltered pens with a windbreak corn can be an ideal place if the cow and calve is not quite ready for the big pasture. To make a simple wind break you need a sheet or two of plywood. If you have two or three pens next to each other, the windbreak from one pen serves as a windbreak on the backside of the next pen making a shelter on three sides. Calves soon learn to use the sunny sheltered corners bedded with straw. The plywood reflects heat from the sun and at night,
calves usually bed in these corners with its mother lying in front of her calf to keep him warm. The idea of sheltered pens on the second day has another advantage, it helps both
When your cows calve during hot weather make sure to provide shade for the cows and their newly born. If there is natural shade such as shade tree where they are calving so much the better. Severely hot weather is stressful to a cow in labor and also her newborn. If possible aim for your calving season when it is neither too hot nor too cold
Wet weather calving:
In wet weather you may want a shed with dry bedding, because it is much cleaner and safer that out in a wet, muddy corral and much easier on the newborn calf if it is born in a downpour!
Early spring calving:
If your cows are going to calve in early spring you will need a calving barn, which is a shelter to keep calving cows and their newborns out of the wind and cold. The barn should be adequate to accommodate all the cows at once in case they all decide to deliver at the same time! Individual stalls for each pair are better than having several calving cows together because it eliminates the risk of mix-ups, or bossier cows injuring another's calf.
Cold weather calving:
The body heat of a cow keeps the barn reasonably warm in cold weather, however, if temperatures drop to 20 degrees Fahrenheit inside the barn you may need to dry a new calf with towels before it gets too cold to stand up and nurse. CALVES NEED TO BE UP AND NURSING WITHIN 30 MINUTES TO AN HOUR AFTER BIRTH TO GET FUL BENEFIT FROM ANTIBODIES IN COLOSTRUM AND TO GET QUICK ENERGY FROM THE CREAMY FAT. Once they have nursed they are better able to stay warm. If the temperature drops to be 20 degrees Fahrenheit, ears or tails may freeze and a calf's mouth may become too cold for him to nurse.
If you calve during a cold spell you may be tempted to leave the pair in the barn for a while, however, they can do fine outside by the second day if you have a sheltered area in the pen or pasture where calves can be protected from wind and bad weather. A couple of small, sheltered pens with a windbreak corn can be an ideal place if the cow and calve is not quite ready for the big pasture. To make a simple wind break you need a sheet or two of plywood. If you have two or three pens next to each other, the windbreak from one pen serves as a windbreak on the backside of the next pen making a shelter on three sides. Calves soon learn to use the sunny sheltered corners bedded with straw. The plywood reflects heat from the sun and at night,
calves usually bed in these corners with its mother lying in front of her calf to keep him warm. The idea of sheltered pens on the second day has another advantage, it helps both