Dead Calf Jacket Fools Mother Cow

Dead calf jacket fools mother cow LIVESTOCK Health 11-3-25 You can trick a mother cow that's lost its calf into adopting an orphan calf by skinning the dead calf and putting the hide over the back of the orphan, according to a report in GRAINEWS, published in Winnipeg, Canada. It's an old trick, according to the magazine, but one that nearly always works. It works best if the calf is skinned while still fresh. Legs should be skinned so that the "jacket" can be slipped right onto the replacement calf, putting the live calf's legs through the leg holes to hold the jacket in place. The tail of the calf should also be left attached. Most cows are convinced after their first smell of the jacketed calf. Once the calf has nursed a few times, a bond forms between the two and you can usually remove the skin.

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