Calf 12 - 40's

Calf 12 was born this afternoon to cow 40.  A heifer.  The calf looks just like her mother.  No problems with the calf.  The calf was drinking from her mother when I found her late afternoon.   The calf is already getting strong as I had to make some effort to hold the calf down when I tagged her ear.

The calf got a blue (boy) ear tag even though it is a female.  Last year the tag pulled off the ear of 40's calf - a boy.  40 also had a 12th born calf last year.  So I decided to re-use the tag even though the sex is wrong.  I'll just have to remember the tag's color is wrong.  Good luck with that.

After tagging the calf I fed hay to the cattle.   As I was tossing a heavy amount of hay out of the pickup and into the metal hay feeder I lost my balance. Then slipping on the hay in the pickup's bed I fell out of the pickup and down to the ground. Fortunately I didn't hit the pickup or the metal feeder.  I landed on my back on the hard ground and had the wind knocked out of me.  As I fell I tried to make sure my head didn't hit the ground as naturally I wasn't wearing my bicycle helmet as I tossed hay.  And you know what happens when I hit my head on the ground.  My head didn't hit the ground but my upper back did.  I will be black and blue tomorrow.

Earlier I had spent the afternoon cutting a number of lower and dead branches off a few trees in the south pasture, so I was already probably was going to feel a little tired tonight.  I most certainly feel sore now.  I'm going to sleep hard and long tonight.