June!

Sweetie did it!  My morning barn visit at 5:30 proved to be a successful one.  They were cuddling together out in the pasture.  Mama did a great job!  A little heifer calf.  Mom seemed to be doing ok.  After running back to the house to alert my sleeping husband, we returned to the pasture, camera in hand.  Sweetie loved her already.

John and I got the calf up and wanted to see her nurse.  She was a little uneasy on her feet, but finally got up.  She couldn't find the spigot! She was sucking the top of mama's leg instead of the udder, which was terribly swollen.  We tried and tried, but this little stubborn girl wouldn't locate the bottle.  All the while, I became more aware of just how tight mama was. 

We lured both of them to the barn, and milked out enough colostrum to feed baby a half gallon bottle.  Mama's left side was so swollen, she wouldn't allow us to touch her.  Long story short, baby was caught nursing a couple of times throughout the day, and John and I were able to milk mama out later on, to make her more comfortable. 

Tomorrow will bring a new day, hopefully an easy one on mama, maybe some new chicks too.  Oh, and the baby's name is June.