Reece (Stud Ranch 4)

It wasn’t much warmer in the barn, especially considering it was open to the elements on one side, but the break from the wind did help. But our little calf was nestled underneath the roof in the dry hay, all curled up.

Reece immediately went to the corner of the barn where there was a small counter with a big drop sink. He turned on the water from the spigot and waited for it to run warm before filling up about half of a big four-pint bottle. Then he opened a big plastic bucket and scooped some powder into the bottle. He closed the top and shook it vigorously. He finished by snapping on a big rubber nipple before coming back to me where I stood beside the calf.

“How’s she doing?” I asked.

“I got her up on her feet in the middle of the night, so that was encouraging. But we’ve got to make sure she can get up as much as possible today if we’re gonna keep her alive.”

My heart lurched at the idea that we could still lose this precious little life.

She looked up at us with big moon-black eyes.

“Here, you feed her.” He handed me the oversized bottle. “I’m gonna see if I can get her standing again. Maybe the food will encourage her to try out her legs more.”

I looked up at him in alarm, holding the bottle awkwardly. “I don’t know how.”

He smiled at me. “Just hold it upside down. Don’t worry. We used to have the little kids do this back where I worked before. You never want a bottle calf, but the kids always loved them. They become like the family pet.”

Okay, well, that did make me feel a little better.

“Come on, Bessie, up you go.” He hooked a leg over the calf, then leaned over and grabbed the calf from its middle to help her up onto her legs.

Bessie extended her wobbly legs, collapsing a few times before she got them underneath her. She was still unsteady, and Reece helped keep her up while I held the bottle for her.

She bumped it with her nose a few times curiously. When milk dribbled out onto her lip and her little pink tongue came out to lick it, then she got more interested and started to suckle at the nipple.

“Oh my gosh, she’s doing it!” I grinned at Reece, feeling like an absolute superstar, even though all I was doing was barely keeping hold of the bottle while Bessie did all the work.

But Reece smiled just as wide back at me, the smile where he showed all his teeth. “Told you you could do it. You’re a natural.”

Bessie suckled a little too hard and almost yanked the bottle out of my hands and I yelped and snatched it back before it fell. But I took it as a good sign if she was attacking it so vigorously.

“Look at her go,” I couldn’t help announcing, still delighted down to my bones as the liquid disappeared from the bottle. “She’s amazing!”

“Of course she is. She’s Bessie, firstborn of the HB’s new heritage.”

“The HB?” I asked.

“Harshbarger Ranch. Jer and I didn’t see any reason to change the ranch’s name. Especially with Ruth staying on, it’ll probably mean even more not to change it. Besides, what’s Xavier gonna call it? He’d just name it after his wife again and we’d have another Mel’s Ranch.”

I smiled. “That’s sweet.”

“He’s crazy about her. And the kids. His family’s the guy’s whole world.”

I shook my head, looking down at Bessie as she finished up the bottle. “I can’t imagine,” I said before thinking better of it, then announced, “All done!”

Bessie was still bumping her nose at the bottle and trying to suckle it.

“Here, trade off,” Reece said. “You see if you can help her stand up and walk around while I prepare the second bottle.” He let go of Bessie and she actually wobbled forward a few steps uncertainly.

“Way to go, baby!” I cooed.

Then she stumbled backwards and went down again, landing on the soft hay. Reece took the bottle from me. “Keep working with her,” he said, walking back to the other side of the barn.

“Uh,” I started saying, but he was already turning on the spigot.

So I hauled a leg to straddle the calf like he had, then reached down and picked Bessie up, stabilizing her between my legs. When I let go, she stood for a little bit and took another step furtively forward.

It was amazing. Human babies took months to learn how to walk, but cow babies somehow came out just knowing how to do it? I’d had no idea.

And as if invigorated by the first bottle, she stayed on her feet, awkwardly stumbling forward on her long, coltish legs. By the time Reece got back with the second bottle, she was moving around the pen like a little champ.