Baby Girl

Here's a somewhat recent photo of Harriet. She's a bit taller now, but her ears still look about as big!

I'm Now the Proud Owner . . .

For my birthday in April, I received a really amazing gift from my dad: the ownership of the family brand.  My Grandpa Hall originally applied for the ownership rights in the early 1960s, and it has belonged to my dad's company since then.  It is H Hanging 4 and looks like this:

Montana and New Mexico are the only states that still require a hot iron brand and that do not accept "freeze brands."  For example, in order to borrow money to buy cattle, the cattle must have a brand that has been "burned red hot so the scar will peel" (according to my brand paperwork from the state).  Similarly, "before change of ownership or removal from county," a critter must have been hot iron branded.  Now, that said, the practice is somewhat controversial, and the MT Department of Livestock has actually been discussing the possibility of accepting freeze brands.  While hot iron brands literally burn the flesh and cause a permanent scar, freeze branding affects the development of pigment in the shafts of hair by killing the color follicle.  As a result, the branded area grows white hair instead of dark hair.  To apply a freeze brand, the animal's hair must be shaved and the iron must be brought to an exceptionally cold temperature with either liquid nitrogen or an alcohol/dry ice combination before it is applied to the skin.  There are even a number of benefits to freeze brands -- the process does not destroy the animal's hide, a freeze brand is far more visible on dark-haired animals than a hot iron brand, and calves that are freeze branded gain weight better because they experience less trauma.  In fact, some expensive race horses are even been freeze branded.

Here are some photos for comparison:

A freshly applied hot iron brand

A freshly applied freeze brand

An older freeze brand with the hair grown back in

Therefore, I am hoping to freeze brand Harriet and probably even Daisy.  I won't be able to sell or move them elsewhere, but then again I don't plan to.  And there's something kind of fulfilling about "trademarking" one's cattle.  It also serves a similar function to putting a tag on a dog's collar -- if a critter were ever to get out, the likelihood of getting it back is a higher.

So when the time comes, I will share more about the process and pass along some photos.  I'm also planning to post some updated photos of Harriet -- she's growing so quickly!

Pictures

Now that she's more than a day old, here are some pictures of Harriet.  She has a healthy appetite, and Daisy has a healthy supply of milk.  Both seem very comfortable around John, Sydney (the dog), and I.

Harriet's Birth

John and I were there for nearly every stage of Harriet's birth, and John had the foresight to record it.  Here's a shortened version, and if you've never seen the birth of a four-legged creature such as a calf or a foal, it's pretty amazing. That said, it's also exactly what you can expect it to be, so know that some people might consider it a bit graphic.  My next few posts will include updated pictures (she's growing so quickly!) and another video of her first steps.

She's Here!

Daisy delivered a perfect heifer calf this morning just a little bit before 8 a.m.  I will write more later about the whole experience, but in the meantime, I want to post some pictures.  Meet Harriet.

While We're Waiting

There's still nothing significant to report, except that a fellow teacher has made me a bit nervous.  Her family raises show cattle, and they just had a heifer that went 18 days past her due date.

Every day at school I'm asked a number of times by students and staff members whether I have a baby yet, which sometimes draws strange looks from passers by.  I've even started joking about how I'll put in the school's daily announcements something to the effect of "Thanks for all of your support.  My husband John and I are happy to report the arrival of our 80 pound black baby."

Today's posting is the result of one of my students asking if I'd read the following article and explaining that he'd immediately thought of me when he read it.  I have to admit, she's a girl after my own heart and I completely understand what she's talking about.

Here's the link:
Horse Dreams Dashed

Still Waiting

I kept waiting over the weekend to be able to create the photo-filled new baby calf post.  And waiting.  And checking.  And waiting to check.  But alas, Daisy is deservedly taking her own sweet time.

John reminds me that I shouldn't worry because there's nothing I can do about the situation -- at which point I try to explain that that is precisely the problem: if I could do something about it, I would, and then I wouldn't worry. If I can't do anything, then I have no choice but to worry.  (I feel as though I've written about this in a post before, but perhaps that's merely because it's somewhat of a theme in my life.)

So I will check again at 2 a.m. and before I go to school, and one of these days I'll have something to report.  In the meantime, here's a really amazing website that will keep you busy watching babies of a different "feather."

http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles