• About Me
  • Work with Me
  • Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube

Ranching with Kids

Raising Homeschool Kids on a Cattle Ranch in British Columbia.

  • Home
  • The Blog
  • Ranch Life
  • Mom Life
  • Homeschooling
  • Work with Me
  • Contact Me

Calving Season Begins

March 5, 2019

Tweet
Pin1
Share64
65 Shares

Calving Season has arrived on our ranch. Some years, it starts fast and other years it starts slowly. This year, the calves slowly arrived for the first 7 days and then we got into the full swing!

Vaccinations

A couple weeks before calving, we bring the cowherd in to get them organized for calving. We give each cow a vaccine to help prevent calf scours. We want to ensure that the new calves stay as healthy as possible. By keeping our pens cleans, frequently moving the new pairs to clean ground, feeding high quality hay and monitoring daily, we can greatly reduce calf sickness during calving season.

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife

The boys love helping out! They are great at keeping the cows moving up to the cattle squeeze, they stay on task so well while learning their numbers to 100 by reading the tags to us.

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife

First Calf

This was the first calf on the ground, 19-1. The weather has been quite cold so we brought this little guy into the barn as soon as he was born so that he would stay warm. Fingers crossed that the weather will warm up a bit soon!

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife #calf

We sometimes use a calf sleigh to bring calves into the barn. Sometimes it is used for kids too!

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife

First Set of Twins

This set of twins received lots of love from the boys as they were warmed up in our supply room! We check the cows every 3 to 4 hours, or sometimes more often, when it is cold. These two were found shortly after 2am and their mom had done a great job drying them off and keeping them warm until we arrived.

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife

Feeding Colostrum

Sometimes we have to feed a newborn calf a bottle of colostrum if they are not able to get up and nurse on their own within the first 2 hours. Our youngest generation is always eager to help with this.

Similar to humans, the colostrum contains proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and proteins (antibodies).

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife

If the calf is a bit weak, cold, had a hard birth or stressed for some reason, the colostrum gives it an early source of immunity and energy. Quite often, all it takes is one feeding and the calf is up and nursing on its own mom in no time!

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife

A Busy Season Ahead

The next week will begin to get very busy on the ranch. Between checking cows, processing calves, cleaning pens and feeding, our days will be spent outside, snow or shine!

Calving Begins on the Ranch. #calvingseason #calving #ranchlife
Pin Me
Tweet
Pin1
Share64
65 Shares

Filed Under: Ranch Life Tagged With: calving, ranch life

Previous
Next

About Me

I am a homeschooling mom to two busy boys & a baby and beef cattle rancher in British Columbia. My passion in life is family and all aspects of agriculture.  My hope is that this blog gives you some insight into our ranch life while being a homeschooling mom.  I would love to hear from you about your journey in agriculture, raising children and/or homeschooling!! Click here to read more about me.

Follow Me Here

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

Join My Newsletter

Homeschool Review Crew Team Member

Review Crew

Follow me

@ranchingwithkids

ranchingwithkids

Homeschool mom of 3 boys giving you a glimpse into managing the many tasks of ranch life.
Local Beef & Lamb @ogilviestockranch
Learn more 👇

Ranching with Kids
Though I spend most of my days multi-tasking betwe Though I spend most of my days multi-tasking between all the tasks of being a mom, I tend to get my BEST work done outside in the fresh air. There is just no better place to be with three young boys than outside, running off all their energy and living life on the ranch! Who agrees?
Wow! Winter came in with a blast! We are now feedi Wow! Winter came in with a blast! We are now feeding hay once per day to our 2 year olds and a few of the older cows. We will soon start feeding the cow herd hay as well. But right now, the cow herd is grazing some amazing grass that we had saved for when the snow arrived. We also supplement them with protein tubs to make sure they get sufficient protein as the grass may not have quite enough protein this time of year. 

PS - This is one of the photos in our 2023 calendar, which we are now taking orders for.
What a busy week and it’s not over yet! Between What a busy week and it’s not over yet! Between hauling square bales, moving sheep fence, helping the boys with their show projects, checking hay, running the boys back and forth to the tractor for their “turns” baling hay, beef deliveries, tending to the garden, and doing all the other mom tasks, every day has been full. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. Being a mom on the ranch to three incredible boys is so special. Watching their keenness, enthusiasm and love of life is the reason why I do what I do. However. I have to admit, I am not sure how to keep up to their energy level sometimes. They don’t tire out!
We check the cattle on our summer pastures on a re We check the cattle on our summer pastures on a regular basis throughout the entire summer. This is important so that we can ensure that the animals are healthy and have adequate water and salt.  It is also very necessary to check the condition of the pasture to help us determine when the cattle need to be moved to maintain, and often to continue to improve, the land and the grassland ecosystem.
Recently I got stuck trying to figure out how to s Recently I got stuck trying to figure out how to stop some predators from continuously trying to take our lambs. I felt like I was constantly getting discouraged as we couldn't stop the lambs from getting out of their fenced pasture.  Then, I reflected on what I have been learning on social media by watching other sheep producers. This gave me a fresh outlook and I was able to figure out a new solution for all of the sheep to help better manage their large pasture and keep the lambs contained.  Everything changed, and all it took was a new perspective.  I didn't need to continue doing things the way that I had been.  Sometimes we just need a new perspective. Do you agree?
I will be the first to say that I was a bit scepti I will be the first to say that I was a bit sceptical about using electric fence for our sheep as I haven’t had the best experience in the past.  However, I am now 100% confident in using it while increasing our grazing potential for sheep on our operation. We currently use 2 sets of the electronet with the energizer from @fencefast_ .  I was amazed with how well it is keeping the sheep in, even when it is placed within tall grass. It is helping to protect the ewes with lambs from predators and allowing us to rotational graze the pasture. We are resting some areas of the pasture that have been grazed heavier and grazing areas that have a lot of grass that needs to be used.
Follow on Instagram
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins
Error: Access Token is not valid or has expired. Feed will not update.
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Copyright © 2023 · Ranching with Kids · Hello You Designs