Chronicle Editor
WHILE most processes regarding nature especially in livestock production, will follow a known path to an expected outcome, it must be realised that it’s not every time that processes will proceed and conclude in the expected manner.
There are various incidences where deviations from the usual occur and farmers may find themselves saddled with a challenge which they do not quite know how to handle. Most of the times these occurrences are not exactly strange but just that they are not very common.
An example is that of a cow giving birth to twins. Many people may actually age without seeing a cow with twin calves, this writer included, but the phenomenon does happen.
In fact, twin births in cows seem to be getting more common. Just this past week an avid follower of this column contacted me seeking some advice because his goat had given birth to four kids.
Sadly, one died immediately and he needed to know what to do to ensure the three kids get sufficient milk from the mother and grow into adulthood.
Another issue which happens at times and tends to bring stress to livestock farmers, is when a cow gives birth and abandons its calf. The normal process is that when a cow gives birth, it immediately forms a bond with the calf and it starts protecting and nurturing it immediately.
This is called the mothering instinct. Abandoning newly-born calves usually happens among first-time calvers who may struggle to understand what has just happened.
Cows, especially heifers, can be intimidated by older cows soon after birth and they may just leave and abandon the newly-born calf. This usually happens when the cow or heifer does not get enough private space to give birth and bond with its child.
A cow needs space where it can give birth without disturbance, lick its calf, allow the calf to nurse and bond with the calf. Cows may also abandon calves due to premature human interference before the cow has established a bond with its calf.
Your boys may notice that the cow has just given birth and they want to take it and its calf home for protection especially from predation. The tendency is to carry the calf and hoof the cow home.
It is important to allow the cow sometime to lick its calf and even let the calf nurse from the dam a bit. Licking the calf and the calf suckling from its mother helps to establish a bond better the dam and the calf. It is important to note that animals identify each other primarily by sense of smell, so it is important to allow the cow to register the smell of its calf within its “database” so that it will be able to identify it as its own.
If you come in and pick the calf, carry it home while hoofing the mother, your own smell from perfumes, sweat and soap will interfere with that of the calf and the mother will not recognise the calf as hers when you get home and you want to introduce the two.
In fact, the cow will go to the place where it calved down, to look for its calf, leaving the one you carried on your shoulders in the kraal! If your cow has calved down and its not licking its calf you may need to sprinkle some feed or salt on the calf so that as it licks the feed it also licks the calf and eventually connect with the calf. If the cow is now rejecting the calf because you interfered too early, you may need to force it to nurse the calf. This means you have to restrain it and allow the calf to suckle from the udder.
If you do not restrain the cow, it may become violent to the calf and even injure it. Most of the times if the calf nurses from the dam, the cow may come around and accept its calf again. Another way of stimulating maternal instincts in a cow which seems to be slow to lick its calf, is to smear the birth fluids across the mouth and nose of the cow. The birth fluids smell like the calf and this helps the cow to register the calf as its own and kick in the mothering instinct. Livestock farmers are in continuous learning with a seemingly endless syllabus, it will be nice to get in touch and share your own experiences and how you handled the situation. That way we can help educate others who are yet to encounter similar scenarios. Uyabonga umntaka MaKhumalo.
Mhlupheki Dube is a livestock specialist and farmer. He writes in his own capacity. Feedback [email protected]/ cell 0772851275
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