Joy to the World! Fabulous Four Graduate to their “Big Boy Field”

Chapter 1:  On July 28, 2012, we welcomed four newborn Jersey calves to the safety and plenty of CAS. Just days old, they were exhausted and afraid. Two were gravely ill—too weak to stand; too weak to swallow.  After an eventual diagnosis of both Giardia and e-coli (both highly contagious), we moved the boys to our farm on Rt. 32, where effective quarantine was simpler. [Watch their rescue video here.]

Chapter 2:  Over the wall and into their stall I climb, covered head to toe in quarantine gear and holding four half-gallon sized bottles filled with warmed milk replacer. These 5.00am feedings ain’t for the faint of heart!  It was one thing for a solo person to feed the boys a few weeks ago. But now they’re stronger, bigger, and they rush forward all at once, insistent.  I hold one bottle between my knees and Russell, the dominant boy, grabs on. I give my left hand to Bernard and my right hand to Emerson to keep them busy, and within seconds am up to my wrists in cow spit, while Calvin manages the wait by chewing on Emerson’s ear.  I feed the others by rotation. When I leave, I retrieve the flashlight from a soupy pile of diarrhea.

Chapter 3: Two negative fecals….FINALLY they have been deemed healthy by the vet! We all celebrate as four healthy boys return to the main farm and graduate to a large outdoor pen. They hop and cavort with the joy of being alive; we do, too! [See the video of them in their outdoor pen here.]

Chapter 4: Calvin, Russell, Bernard, and Emerson are four months old. As many veal calves head to their deaths, our boys instead graduate to “the big boy field” – several hilly acres that overlook the entire farm.  We are overjoyed—but not as much as they are. Take a look at the video below, and enjoy. From all of us, thank you for being a part of this vital work.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=si4ijr-KRho&list=UU2VpDQ3IbfTxVx3UgNz08TQ&index=1[/youtube]