No time for bloggin'

Time for serious ranch business.  These are the days that Matt, the ranch manager, has gone away to a conference.  That leaves Betsy, me, Loki and 85 pregnant cows up here in the Tom Miner Basin.  Yesterday was our first day with Matt away.  We went up to the Schoolhouse ranch early to bottle feed the goat kids.  Then came back down to start our every three hour checks of the cow herd.  We had our first calf born on our watch at 11 AM- we had suspected the mom was in labor on an earlier check, then followed where she went.  The delivery was OK, but she had separated herself from the herd, as they almost always do, and was up high in the pasture in fairly deep snow.  So we had to get a calf sled, and get the calf in it, and move her slowly, so the mother stayed with us but wasn't too anxious, down closer to the barn and into straw instead of snow.
Then another calf born at our 7 PM check.  It takes a while to ensure things are OK, calf is strong enough, body temperature warm enough- but this one went OK.
Our 10 PM check was pretty calm.  But then the 1 AM check- our spotlight from the Gator found a cow down, quite a ways out in a lower pasture.  Too much snow and too far out for the Gator, so we walked across- not a pretty sight.  Looked very grim for calf and mom.  We finally got the calf into a sled and over to a calf incubator in the barn, but too late for her.  The mom was in serious trouble- we talked by phone with Matt.  Sounded like she would not be alive in the morning.  But this AM, we were out early, and could see she was alive and had moved.  We worked with Alan, who is coming in at 7 AM to put out hay, and got her up to the barn.  She had a prolapsed uterus.  The vet came about 9, and worked on her.  She is now up and feeding in the barn- she may make it, but it will be touch and go.
Today's checks have been smoother, and the weather is pretty mild.  The vet, in coming up from Paradise Valley, exclaimed " Whoa, it's a whole different season up here!"  We're in deep snow, and most of the valley is bare ground now.
Checks every three hours take a chunk of the day- but a much bigger chunk if one check occupies 1 1/2 to 2 hours!
We did find time to bring lunch down to share with Ginny at her cabin.
So we have 5 calves now, and  two more days till Matt comes home.  We hope to host the potluck supper for the Anderson crew- Malou and Dre from up at the stone house, Hillary Andrew and their two children will be in town for the weekend from when we were here for sabbatical, and Ginny.  The calves may have second ideas about whether we are able to get the dinner together or not.