This morning was unlike any other, and I still can\u2019t quite put into words why it hit me so hard. I\u2019ve pulled a dead calf before. I stayed calm, helping an older vet who didn\u2019t have the strength. We used chains, pulled, and accepted the loss as part of life. But today\u2026 today was different. It felt like my heart left my body. I was completely out of control, overwhelmed by emotions I couldn\u2019t manage.
\nLast Thursday, our cattle vet came out to check on Big Mama and start the AI process. He palpated her and inserted the CIDR. On Monday, I pulled the CIDR and gave her a shot, expecting things to go as planned.
\nBut this morning, while feeding our Corrientes, I noticed Big Mama had stringy, bloody discharge. She looked uncomfortable, uninterested in food. Then, at 8:45 am, she started pushing while standing. My stomach dropped.
\nI called the vet\u2019s office, but the person who answered wasn\u2019t the vet. They said they\u2019d pass along the message and call me back. That was at 8:55 am. I messaged my husband, flooding him with videos and pictures. Something was wrong\u2014I knew it.
\nBy 9:05, I saw Big Mama lie down as I cleaned the horse stalls. Suddenly, she let out a deep, gut-wrenching moo. I walked over and saw her water bag coming out.
\nPanic set in. We had NO idea she was pregnant. The vet had literally checked her last week! I was alone. No vet. No husband. Just me, watching this unfold. I sent a picture to my little brother, Brett. He said it looked like she was either aborting or going into premature labor. But that made no sense\u2014we were supposed to AI her TOMORROW.
\nThen, out of nowhere, she started pushing. By 9:10, she was lying down, hooves barely visible. I started freaking out.
\nI felt everything all at once\u2014
\nAnger that no one had realized she was pregnant.
\nFear that I might have to pull another lifeless baby from its mother.
\nHappiness that I was there for her.
\nHeartache that she was struggling so much when this should have been her seventh smooth delivery.
\nI had Brett on speaker, guiding me through every step. But I wasn\u2019t ready. No chains. No towels. No gloves. She was in a pen that wasn\u2019t even clean since we were AI\u2019ing her tomorrow.
\nThe hooves came out enough for me to grab them. I braced my feet against a pole, pulling as she pushed. Five, maybe ten minutes passed. The legs emerged, then the tongue. My heart pounded. I had to make sure she didn\u2019t suck the face back in\u2014if she did, the baby could suffocate.
\nI held on for dear life to those slippery legs, praying. Mama pushed again, and I pulled with everything in me. She looked at me with the softest, most grateful eyes as if to say, \u201cThank you, Mom.\u201d
\nThen the baby got stuck.
\nI urged Big Mama to stand, hoping gravity would help. As she pushed, I pulled again, and finally, the calf fell to the ground. I adjusted its tiny body, cleared its nose\u2026 and suddenly, it shook its head. It was ALIVE.
\nI broke down. The weight of everything\u2014fear, relief, exhaustion\u2014hit me all at once. I wanted to cry, scream, celebrate. I had been so scared of letting Mama down, of letting this baby down.
\nI called my husband, sobbing. I couldn\u2019t calm down. He sent my mother-in-law to check on me, and Brett\u2019s wife, Heather, came too. I was not okay.
\nThen the vet finally texted me. \u201cIf you hadn\u2019t been there, neither Mama nor baby would have made it.\u201d
\nThat moment\u2014this entire morning\u2014was terrifying, beautiful, heartbreaking, and joyful all at once. And I will never, ever forget it. \u2764\ufe0f
\nCredit to the rightful owner~<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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