Stressful, we lost one last year so know how you feel. Our daughter struggled to keep a little orphan alive and lost too, highly distressing.
But it's kind people like yourself that give it a go, sometimes we just change natures outcome and feel a failure, it sucks.

Bless you for trying Brian, a lot of farmers would simply have put it down.
You did your best, bloody cow got her dates wrong, not your fault!

You gave it a red hot go mate, chin up. I would feel the same though x o x o

milo wrote:

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I too know how you feel GS as I lived on a farm as a kid and while we didnt have cattle i was always helping out
the neighbours with their cattle, and saw some cattle put down..
its never easy to watch or to do, as we take all  animals to our hearts..
all the best

milo

-- Edited by milo on Thursday 12th of January 2012 03:43:53 PM

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 Thanks Milo, but I have to admit I could not bear to be there, he took it away with him.

Bummer! I'm sure the cow also did her best. That's nature.
The fact that you care is very special.
On a cattle station with 20,000 head one of the blokes brought a littly bully calf home. They didn't hand rare because it was too expensive for too little return in the live export business.
Anyway the bloke supplied the food, I supplied the tlc and time, and that little sucker survived. He had a jaw problem with prevented him from sucking on mum, but I literally hand fed him by placing my hand in the milk so he could syphon up between my fingers.
We named him Christopher, as in Skase, because he escaped his fate.
When the bloke called into the main house he told me there was a present in the ute cab. There was this day old calf, with a red ribbon around it's neck. He then said, "I don't know if it's Christopher or Pixie".
And they say station hands are hard ass b.stards. Don't be fooled by the appearance. They're a bit like truckies.
Cast iron on the outside, marshmallow on the inside. Very sweet marshmallow.