Well, Pink Night was last night at the National Finals Rodeo. What a great night for the Western Industry. We raise millions through rodeo. It is so awesome to look out into a crowd of pink at the Thomas and Mack! The following is a story from calving season, and involves the Tough Enough To Wear Pink watch, a watch sold for the breast cancer awareness program.
When I got home one day after a very long day at work, I came home to find Rex gone; Quade playing "Guitar Hero"; Syd on the computer; and cow #840 all hunched up, looking very uncomfortable. When I looked closer, I could see one little back foot sticking out and knew the calf was backwards. Now, one must understand how Rex and I have things arranged here:
1) We have 30 head of cattle and 15 horses on 70 acres - most of which is covered in brush and trees. Therefore, the yard has been our calving pen; the horses are in panelled pens; and the older cow/calf pairs are turned out onto the 40 acre pasture with the most grass and the least brush.
2) We have no "official" corrals - therefore, we have no chute, no sweep tub, no alley.
3) We have lots of trees - some with just the right amount of space to tie a head to one and a foot to another - if you get my drift!
So, when I got into the house, I yelled at Quade to get off the #$%&! game and grab a rope. Then, I changed my shoes to boots and found my gloves. Quade and I left the house with a kind-of, sort-of game plan:
A) Rope the cow
B) Do not choke the cow
C) Do not kill the cow
D) Do not kill Quade
I roped the cow, blurting a prayer out loud, "Dear Lord - pleeeeze help us get this calf out without choking the cow!"
Well, the cow backed up, slinging her head and slobber (and well, you know, stuff) everywhere. Quade was on the other side of her, asking what he could do. I threw the rope around the nearest tree, and yelled, "Get a good wrap!" When Quade went around the tree, the cow started winding herself in the rope and got one of her front feet in there so that it was impossible for her to choke! (Talk about an instant answer to a very demanding prayer!!)
What does this all have to do with my Tough Enough To Wear Pink Watch?? Well, I'll tell you! I quickly took off my gloves, my coat, my shirt, and stood there in my bra thinking. There are three ways to get a backwards calf out:
1) C-Section
2) Turn the calf around
3) Get both back feet out and pull it out backwards (not usually the best option)
All three options involved bodily fluids. I had to run an arm in (yes, in there!) to see what was where. Just as I stuck my hand in, the evening sun shone on my Tough Enough To Wear Pink watch. I jumped back with a yelp and took it off. "Geez Mom, you scared me!", Quade yelled.
Well, one of the back legs was bent back and when I pushed the calf back in and got it straightened up, I was able to get some twine around both feet and pulled it out.
Then I cheered on Quade while he fought to get the rope off of the proud momma.
The good news is - my watch is doing fine, and still ticking - oh - and the the calf was ALIVE!!! It was a heifer -
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