Baby Cow in the road????

I was on my way to Nikki's MRI appt when the traffic slowed down to a halt on this two lane country road. I thought there was an accident but when we got up to it, we saw these two guys on the side of the road with a baby cow. At first I thought it was a baby deer, but realized that it was a Jersey bull calf. The guys looked bewildered, so we pulled over and went to see if they needed help.

They told us that they were driving along and there was a kid on a motorcycle stopped in the middle of the road trying to help this baby cow. So they went over to the kid with a rope and put it around its neck and lead it to the side of the road. They said as soon as they did it all the stopped cars and motorcycle guy took off leaving them with this baby lol.

This little guy was probably 25 lbs and he was all beat up. He had road rash on his legs and his chin was busted. We were thinking that he might have fallen off a trailer or a back of a truck. There is an animal auction about 40 miles away on Wednesday nights. I think a farmer was hauling him to the auction.

Upon closer examination I could see that his umbilical cord was still wet. He was probably born earlier in the day. There is a culture among some dairy farmers to take a bull calf from its mother as soon as it is born. They don't allow the baby to get any colostrum, much less milk. The thought is that it is better to separate the male baby quickly to get the mom really putting out milk. This leaves the baby calf without the protection of the mother's antibodies. It is possible to give a young calf synthetic colostrum and calf milk, but it is not the same as from the mother.

We learned the hard way that babies pulled from their mom have a difficult road. We bought this little black and white baby, took him home, and named him SKIT. We bottle fed him, but didn't know that he still needed colostrum. He became ill, dehydrated, and eventually went into seizures and died. It was heart breaking. To see this little baby suffer and for what reason? So that a farmer can milk his cow faster, so that he can make a tiny bit more money? Such a callous disregard for life. Sickening.

On the side of the road I performed Reiki on the calf and gave him some water with apple juice. I was hoping that the sugar would give him a little boost. Animal control was called and they came and picked him up. They were going to take him to the vet and hopefully they will give this little guy a chance at life.

I don't understand how people can not appreciate the beauty and awe of life. How can they be so cruel to male calves. With their actions they sentence them to a painful beginning and even death. When I think about the poor cow that had to endure a pregnancy, labor, and birth only to have her baby ripped from her, I shudder. What grief she must experience... is that what we want in our milk??