it's a good thing

Greg texted me this photo not too long ago. Seems like a normal occurrence, but for this calf to be up on all 4's sucking on momma was something we didn't anticipate.

You see, this calf had/has black leg.

Duh...I know the calf is black so she has 4 black legs.

I'm referring to a debilitating disease calves get between the ages of 6-12 months. It's from eating feed or grass with bacteria which causes their muscles to deteriorate and usually is fatal within 12-48 hours. It's very rare to cure black leg, which is why this calf should have been vaccinated for it.

It's a good thing Dad and Greg were out looking at the property one afternoon, because they noticed this calf away from the group, laying down by the creek. Immediately they noticed her leg being inflamed and called the vet, who wasn't optimistic of the outcome, but advised us to give her penicillin anyway. We gave her a big dose, and continued to monitor her and now she's doing quite well.

Will she gain back full use of the leg? Probably not.
Will we have to put her down? No.
Will we eat her? Maybe...but only after 60 days following her last dose.

It's a good thing.