New Inhabitants in the Valley

February through April is the main calving period in Snake Valley, and I've had the opportunity to visit some of the new calves recently. The main types of range cows in Snake Valley are hereford (above), black angus, red angus, black baldy (a mix of black angus and hereford), simmental, and Charolais.

There is also a dairy in Snake Valley, at EskDale, which has Holsteins. In addition to producing milk, they sell bulls and embryos. You can learn more at the EskDale Dairy website.

Here we've got black baldy on the left, hereford, and black angus on the right. The calves arrive at about the same time due to artificial insemination. 

When the calves are born, they weigh about 50-80 pounds. Within ten or eleven months, they weigh about 800 pounds. That's some weight gain!

The young calves often appear playful, chasing each other and exploring the area. They usually don't get too far from the mama cows, though. One mama cow might be designated as the babysitter while the others go for water or a rest. Even though it looks like the calves are playful, it's never a good idea to approach one because the mama cow will take it as a threat and might charge.