Chapter 316 The Second Calf
There was a buzzing sound before the intercom rang. After about a second of buzzing sound, Zhao Yeqing's voice came:
"Mu Xi, get ready, the cow is about to give birth."
Mu Xi replied while holding the intercom: "I'll be right there. Let me prepare something first."
The two had experienced livestock production several times and were very familiar with the process, so they operated it in an orderly manner despite the chaos.
Preparations were made in advance, as we knew the cow was about to give birth. Medicinal herbs were placed in the house in advance, boiled into water and fed to the cow to drink, which could enhance its physical strength and reduce the occurrence of inflammation after giving birth.
By the time Mu Xi took the medicine and went down to the breeding basement, the cows about to give birth in the cowshed had already been isolated.
There are also some fences in the basement that can be disassembled and assembled at any time. This is so that when cattle and sheep are giving birth, newborn animals and newly born animals can be managed separately from other animals.
Zhao Yeqing had already laid soft and clean straw on the separated area.
The calf can be seen coming out from under the cow. Zhao Yeqing has already lit the charcoal basin for warmth: "It won't be a big problem this time. The fetus is in the right position."
The two men had touched the cow's belly before and were relieved after confirming that the cow was only pregnant with one baby this time.
Mu Xi handed the warm medicine to the cow's mouth, watched it drink it, and then fed it some prepared fine grain.
As before, it is best for newly-born cows not to eat acidic silage. This year, conditions at home are better, and the two have prepared a lot of grain feed, so they don't have to let most of the cows eat hay like before.
Half an hour later, the calf fell to the ground. The family had stored a lot of bath towels brought back from the B&B in the tourist area. Mu Xi took one and draped it over the newborn calf to wipe off the amniotic fluid for it.
There was a charcoal brazier burning next to it, as well as straw and bath towels for warmth, so the newborn calf would not feel cold.
Mu Xi took a look and saw that it was a little bull. The size was similar to the last calf born and it looked healthy.
Zhao Yeqing is wiping the cow's neinei, and only lets the calf start drinking milk after making sure that the milk is flowing.
Seeing the cow eating fine food and the calf drinking milk under it, they felt relieved as both were in good condition.
Keeping the calf warm is the most important thing when it is just born. Now the temperature in the breeding basement is below minus ten degrees Celsius. If the fire is not lit, the calf will definitely get sick.
It’s not enough to be warm now. You must not catch a cold for at least one month. This means that the charcoal basin in the basement must stay in place for at least one more month.
Mu Xi walked out of the basement and took a look at the power reserve of the generator. There was less than one kilowatt-hour of electricity left, so he moved the generator outside, filled it with gasoline, and turned it on.
The area that currently consumes the most electricity in the house is the planting basement, where iodine tungsten lamps are turned on every day to generate heat. As the temperature continues to drop, Zhao Yeqing has also set up a greenhouse in the planting basement.
By turning on the iodine tungsten lamps in the greenhouse for heating, the heat can be ensured to continue to dissipate. In addition, most of the vegetables planted are cold-resistant. As for tomatoes and the like, it is enough to ensure that the plants do not die. You cannot expect them to bear fruit in this weather.
So it's warm enough to open it for a while during the day.
Including the exhaust fan and lighting, the home consumes about five kilowatt-hours of electricity every day. This consumption has already exceeded the two's expectations. Now the second exhaust fan in the breeding basement has to be turned on, and the power consumption will increase.
Originally, there was only one exhaust fan, plus the ventilation duct, which was enough to exhaust the carbon monoxide released by the charcoal basin placed next to the chicken coop.
Now we have to keep the second charcoal basin burning for fear of animal poisoning, so we cannot save electricity.
The two of them made a mistake by not bringing back some more quilts from the hotel or B&B. Otherwise, they could have covered Xiao Niu with a quilt now.
This cow had already given birth to two babies. Zhao Yeqing felt a little sorry for it, so he went to the cellar, took out two cabbages, broke off the leaves and fed them to the cow one by one.
The cows obviously prefer these fresh vegetables to concentrated feed. They have been eating hay for more than two months, and their eyes light up when they see the green leaves.
The other two cows that were isolated nearby saw the vegetables and almost jumped over the fence to grab the food, but Zhao Yeqing hit them on the head with a piece of firewood and drove them back.
"Don't eat the next meal if you grab it again!"
The cow has given birth, which means there is plenty of milk for the family to drink.
In the first few days after the birth, Zhao Yeqing felt that the cow's milk was not very full, so he did not milk it. After letting the cow recover for a week, he carried an aluminum bucket to the basement to milk it.
Mu Xi's wound had not yet healed completely, so Zhao Yeqing didn't let him go. The wound was on his arm, and milking required both hands. He was afraid that he would tear open the wound that had healed with great difficulty.
When he heard the door open, Mu Xi stood up from the rocking chair, walked over and took the milk bucket from Zhao Yeqing with one hand, which was half filled with milk.
Zhao Yeqing exhaled white air and shuddered the moment he entered the house. He quickly closed the door, "It's so cold, so cold. The few steps from the basement to the house are so cold that I feel numb."
After Mu Xi put down the milk bucket, she saw Zhao Yeqing squatting by the fire to warm her hands. She poured a cup of ginger tea and handed it to her. "The temperature has been dropping over the past few days. When I went to the bathroom last night, the temperature had dropped to more than 40 degrees below zero."
The temperature is dropping, but the snowfall continues to decrease, and it looks like it's about to stop today.
Zhao Yeqing warmed his hands and moved his fingers. Finally, they were no longer stiff. He sighed:
"That's right. Now there is no distinction between day and night. There is no such thing as higher temperatures during the day and lower temperatures at night. The temperature remains low for 24 hours. I remember the coldest time last winter was minus 50 degrees Celsius, right? I estimate it will be even higher this year."
During the chat, Mu Xi had already put the small milk pot on the shelf. The freshly squeezed milk was poured into the pot and was about to boil. He kept working and did not forget to join in the conversation.
“I don’t know how long it will be cold this year.”
Zhao Yeqing didn't say anything. The weather nowadays can be cold or hot suddenly. Last time it was fifty degrees below zero and then suddenly it warmed up.
But this year it’s not even bright this day, how can we keep warm without the sun?
It's probably still going to be cold.
The milk in Mu Xi's pot had already boiled. They each had a cup and sat in the rocking chair, holding the cup to warm their hands.
Last year, I ate too much milk skin, milk tofu and milk chewing gum, so this year I am not craving for them. Anyway, there is plenty of milk and it will take several months to squeeze it out. Zhao Yeqing is not thinking of making it in a hurry now.
Any milk that is not finished every day is poured away.
They felt sorry for it before, but now the whole family drinks it together. The dog and leopard also drink a small amount. Everyone’s stomach is in good condition, and the two of them haven’t seen them have diarrhea.
There are so many mouths that can’t drink it all. Keeping it will only cause trouble for yourself, so you might as well pour it out.
A month later, the original plan was to remove the charcoal basin of the calf and turn off an exhaust fan to save electricity, but plans cannot keep up with changes.
Now not only the calf needs a 24-hour charcoal brazier, I'm afraid the entire basement will need a 24-hour charcoal brazier.
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