Calf in heat already

Just before dark today I went out to check on the feeder and then give the cattle a few small hay bales.  We had snow today so I shoveled the snow from the ground in an area as I don't like putting hay on snow for the cattle to eat.  While doing so I noticed the bull was very interested in one of the calves.  She appeared to be in heat and he wanted to mount her.  She wouldn't stand when he tried to mount her.  She wasn't in standing heat, but getting close I think.  Still she often would raise her tail, so maybe she is in standing heat and was just serviced.  Another time another cow mounted the calf in heat and rode her a distance before I put a stop to it.

So I wanted to separate her and the other calves (other than Diamond's calf as she is still too young for breeding).  Before I put out the hay I tried to get the calves through the gate and into the north pasture so they could go to the corral.  The cows wanted to go through the gate, and Maria briefly got through the gate before I herded her back.  The calves did not want to go anywhere near the gate much less through the gate.  I tried and tried to get them through.

Wait.  What would Donna say?

Get some hay to convince the calves.

So I did.  And I fairly quickly got the calves through the gate. It was getting dark now so I had to be careful not to also let the bull or a smaller cow through the gate.   After the calves ate the little bit of hay they walked to the corral and then I got them into the south part of the corral and to the hay I had put out for them in the feeder next to the barn.  That's where the calves will stay for now.  In case one of them is still drinking from her mother they will also be weaned as it is past time to stop drinking from their mother.

After I put out a few small bales for the cows to eat I then put water in the water trough.   There was some water in the trough from earlier this Fall and now the water was a complete block of ice.  The trough was 2/3's full.  I got an axe and chipped out some ice.  Then I filled the rest of the trough with water.

I knew I would have to separate the calves from the bull at some point but I thought I could wait until January.  Now if the calf had already been bred she could have her calf next September.  I'll see if I got them separated in time.