Bye Bye Betty

 Here is a picture of me feeding Betty. Often you have to straddle the calf and hold the bottle 

above it's head. This helps you get the closest angle to as if it were nursing from its mother.

Well, another one bites the dust yet again. We were sad when we lost Buttercup. Only a couple weeks later, Isaac brought home Betty. Betty seemed so promising. She sucked on her bottle a lot better and was much more active. However, Betty had no tail. By the time Isaac had found her at the feed yard, some coyote had already gotten her tail. Isaac doctored her up but I now wonder if she got an infection or lost too much blood.

Lubbock has CRAZY weather. The past couple weeks we have seen record highs and record lows. One day it will be 90 degrees and the next night it will be below freezing. Betty was our first ever animal sleepover. And let me tell you, she was a party animal, literally. She stayed in our "laundry room." It is really just a laundry area by the back door. I put down some newspaper to keep the area relatively clean. We also put up a board so that she couldn't escape.

Betty would get up and wobble around a lot in the night. She also peed everywhere. You may think, "that is gross!" but we all know that even people, well drunk people, behave this way so give Miss Betty a break! She actually has a legitimate excuse. Well as the days went on, Betty appeared to be gaining strength but we noticed that her eyes were turning cloudy and blue. Betty was blind. So sad! Well, one afternoon when I went out to feed her, she wouldn't eat and I noticed that she was lethargic. The next time we went to feed her she wouldn't even get up. I even lifted her up (usually the cow will straighten its legs and stand if you do this) but she just collapsed. A few hours later she was dead. I was so disappointed. I took consolation in that maybe it was for the best. I had read on the internet that blind cows need to be in a herd for protection or they would become prey to predators such as coyotes. Since we don't have a herd of cattle, she may have died a more tragic death in the future. Betty was so cute! She would use her hearing to follow us around. And bless her heart, she would wag that little stump of a tail trying to get rid of the flies that congregated around her bum. I'm gonna miss that heifer!

Another update: Isaac brought home another calf yesterday. From the beginning she didn't drink very well. I named her "Lucky" in hopes that the third time really is a charm. She also spent the night inside with us because this week we also had a freeze. Today she passed away. I felt sad and told Isaac that I might need a break from trying to keep these cows alive. When I asked him why we keep losing the calves he told me that most likely these calves aren't getting colostrum from their moms and sometimes they aren't immediately found by the cowboys. Well, someday we will get a cow that will make it. I just know it!

Here is a funny picture of Betty. Betty hung out a little bit with our dog Snax. I guess the grill is a hot hang out spot. When I saw her smelling the grill I chuckled and thought, "How ironic!" Oh Betty!