– Why you shouldn’t buy one calf –
– Granny Cows available –
– SHCA presents Vet Talks –
With only a few cows still holding on to their hostages, it is time for us to begin planting seeds for next year’s crop. AI will be in full swing beginning in April.
By May, Elm Hollow Halter School will open with classes preparing these calves for new homes. Maybe your home will want to welcome a new member of the family?
If you’re thinking about starting your own little fold, there are some things you need to know.
MINI LESSON FOR FIRST TIME HIGHLAND BUYERS
WHY YOU SHOULDN’T BUY ONE CALF
There are many sad stories told by people who buy a single calf that is used to having companions in the pasture and is suddenly alone. Some calves become hopelessly entangled in a fence trying to get out and seek companionship. The result may be injury or even death.
Thankfully, more often the end of the story is not that dire. The calf finds a way out and simply runs away looking for its mama or at least companionship.
Each year there are reports of “stolen calves” that later turn up in a neighbor’s pasture where there are other calves.
The saddest story I remember is of a young calf that had not been weaned but was simply taken away from its mother and sold off at a very young age as a bottle baby.
Terrified and hungry, it got out and into a neighbor’s pasture where there were other calves and cows. It looked in vain for its own mother and because cows normally do not accept a second calf, they will kick, or head butt an orphan who tries to nurse. This calf was found a few days later injured and nearly starved. It did not recover.
That is why we try to have appropriate companions available or will help buyers locate an appropriate companion. These are babies.
Think about it this way: A 7-month-old calf is just about equivalent to a kindergartener. Think of a 5-year-old child taken from his/her mama and everyone they have ever known and then plunked down in a strange place, left alone for hours at a time.
A familiar companion would go a long way in helping to deal with the stress of relocation
Registered Highland heifer calves can be expensive and it seems that everyone wants a heifer. When I tell them they need at least two, it can seem cost prohibitive. The second one does not necessarily need to be a registered heifer. A bull is not an appropriate companion, but a steer calf of a similar age is perfect. A steer makes a great pasture pet and won’t cause a premature mating that can endanger your heifer.
A reasonable price for a registered Highland heifer might be as high as $8000-$10,000 if the genetics and conformation is right, but a sweet steer companion can be found for $2000-$3000. That is great insurance for the safety and well being of your heifer investment.
Then, if you aren’t madly in love with the steer, a couple of years later, you can humanely harvest him and have the best beef you’ve ever tasted!
Another solution might be a Granny cow! Gentle older cows can serve as a matriarch for several calves when starting a new fold.
IT’S TIME TO FACE REALITY
We have a number of aging cows and we need to let them go. We have some older girls who are only calving every other year. They would make great Granny cows. Some might even drop another calf or two, but none of these calved for us in 2024-2025 season although they did calve last year. I’ll picture each here and those that are still here by mid-summer will be added to our for sale page.
CCZ Bristol, AHCA # 49838
Bristol is a super gentle and quite small Highland. She is 15 years old but still in good health. She had two wonderful calves for us after we brought her to Elm Hollow just three years ago.
When she arrived, I named her my new favorite. Bristol will come to you for treats and enjoys being groomed.
Here’s Bristol with baby Niamh on 3/16/24.
Asking $3500 to loving home.
CCZ Janie, AHCA # 49837
Janie is half sister to Bristol. Janie is also 15 years old, in good health and had a beautiful calf last year. Here she is with her baby Nancy on 3/26/24.
As cows age, they begin to skip years between calves. Janie has begun doing that, but look at the kind of calf she has on those alternate years!
Janie is calm, but not as eager for interaction as some of our others. She’ll take treats and occasionally will stand for grooming.
Asking $4000 to loving home
CGH Angel’s Grace, AHCA # 51328
Gracie is 14 years old and it appears she’s quit calving, but Gracie loves interacting with people.
Her last calf, Levi, was born in April of 2022. Levi was named reserve champion Jr. Bull at the Southeast show and sale that year.
Gracie misses having a calf and would be an excellent granny cow for a new fold.
Levi stayed on to father a couple of Elm Hollow calves this year!
Asking $ 3000 for Gracie to a loving home.
Cridhe of Legacy, AHCA # 55000
We have a beautiful 10 year old girl who last calved in December of 2022.
We were certain she was pregnant this year, but believe that when we vaccinated it may have caused her to abort.
At 10 years old, she should have a few more calves to give, but it is time to give her spot to one of our heifers.
Cridhe came to us with four other older cows when we bought a close-out herd from a retiring breeder.
Asking $4000 to a loving home
SHCA presents “VET TALKS”
Vet talks are available to members for $10 (Free to Juniors) Non-members can join us for $20.
Even though the launch date for our website has been slightly delayed, the Southern Highland Cattle Association continues to grow and plan events to help new breeders and some older more established farms as well.
With our new TEAMS platform, we will be able to do virtual education to accommodate without the expense of travel time. Our first vet talk will be presented on April 22 at 7:30. Presentations are planned for alternate months throughout the year. Q&A will follow each presentation. We’d love to have you join us for our Educational Presentations and if you are not a member of SHCA I invite you to join. You do not need to live in the southern region to become a member and take advantage of our member benefits.
Mary Todd, our Education Chairman, will be sending out the links to join our first “Vet Talk”. You can contact Mary by email, mary.todd@fiveoakshighlandsanddrafts.com or marybtodd@bellsouth.net to make arrangements.
To become an SHCA member, contact Nancy@elmhollowfarm.com.
THE SCAMMER BANNER
If you signed on to our website recently, you may have encountered our Scammer Banner that pops up to alert visitors to the scam site, Brushwood Mini Highlands. (Simply click the X in the upper right corner to remove the banner.)
This scammer tries its best to confuse people who are looking for Highlands into thinking that our farm is associated with their fraudulent site that has stolen money from many people looking for calves. Please always check out sellers. Simply reading the site carefully should be enough when you see all the misspellings of common words, the unusual wording, and the strange grammatical errors that scream that the writer is not familiar with the English Language. Here are some examples taken from this particular site.
“Brushwood Mini Cattle is nestled in the beautiful Environment.”
“THE BIGEST STEP TOWARDS GETTING YOUR HIGHLAND
“We are here to help! Given our remote location it is best to use our enquiry form for formal enquires or for general enquires kindly fill out the contact form below. Once filled out, we will be in touch asap.”
Another way to check is to tell the seller that you are nearby and need directions to their farm so you can see the calf they are trying to sell. If you are invited to come on over, it is probably ok. If it is a scam, you will be ghosted.
Also, you can ask for the registration number so you can check the AHCA website herdbook. If you get a number, contact the person listed as the owner. Don’t send money until you are absolutely certain you are dealing with a reliable breeder. (Legitimate breeders also ask for a deposit to confirm a sale.)
Rant over; just be careful. If you include the word miniature or mini in a search for Highland cattle, odds are good that you will find a scammer. Our farm does pop up, because of this article that is available on our site:
https://elmhollowfarm.com/miniature-highland-cattle/
TRAGEDY STRIKES at ELM HOLLOW FARM
On March 8, Elm Hollow Farm suffered its first loss ever to a predator.
When Jonquil stood between her calf and the invaders of our pasture, she fought her best to protect her baby.
At first, we blamed a black bear for taking this beautiful cow’s life, but, as it turns out, further investigation reveals that a pack of wild dogs is attacking cattle in our area. The current count that we know of is four deaths and two injuries from this pack. People here refuse to spay and neuter dogs and dump the unwanted offspring. The result is devastating.
My heart breaks for 4-month-old Nessa who has lost her mama. Nessa was lucky to be old enough to survive without her mama, but at least two of the calves of the other victim cows were not.
That means six total have died from this pack. Little Nessa has had enough trauma; she will be one of our “Keeper Calves” this year.
I put this in our newsletter just to let newer breeders know that there are dangers out there. Even though we check on our cattle several times each day, this happened here. Be aware of predators. This pack was so vicious that I don’t think a donkey could have prevented the attack. Our LGDs did intervene, but in the few minutes between the time they alerted and the time they arrived in the far pasture, it was too late.