The Big Dipper: A tale of Tuffy
If you recall, I alluded to a bit of a bumpy rollercoaster-ish kind of ride in these parts, in the pre-Christmas period. And I’m guessing I shouldn’t keep people hanging on through the New Year (cause I have BIG THINGS planned for the New Year in this little ol’ black blog…)
…
You ready?
…
You ready?
Coffee and tissues at hand?
Okay then…
Remember this calf?
Our amazing little injured bull calf and his incredible Mum…
Our amazing little injured bull calf and his incredible Mum…
To catch people up, this little boy was discovered beside the public road running through our place. He was badly injured after apparently being hit by a vehicle. We had thought his mother had abandoned him, but when we reunited the two after bringing him home for nursing, she showed her true colours by standing over top her injured baby to feed him.
Well, in the lead-up to Christmas he became the House Pet, as my visiting niece Salina followed the rest of the family in completely falling in love with him.
.
As well as being (pre-accident) the perfect package physically of a baby Brangus bull, he showed us the most calm, gentle, optimistic nature. Despite never being much around humans before, he was quiet and happy to lay his head in welcoming laps as we tended his needs. He seemed to know we just wanted to help. We consulted a couple of vets, brought him water daily, injected him with anti-inflammatories, moved shade and offered hay – and in return he never stopped trying to recover.
Well, in the lead-up to Christmas he became the House Pet, as my visiting niece Salina followed the rest of the family in completely falling in love with him.
.
As well as being (pre-accident) the perfect package physically of a baby Brangus bull, he showed us the most calm, gentle, optimistic nature. Despite never being much around humans before, he was quiet and happy to lay his head in welcoming laps as we tended his needs. He seemed to know we just wanted to help. We consulted a couple of vets, brought him water daily, injected him with anti-inflammatories, moved shade and offered hay – and in return he never stopped trying to recover.
.
And while ever an animal is TRYING, we tend to keep trying to help them. He was nicknamed Tuffy for his resilient attitude despite clearly being in pain with his injuries.
He continued to try to stand, regardless of the fact he could never actually get up.
He continued to try to stand, regardless of the fact he could never actually get up.
His legs simply would not hold him.
His mother continued to come back to him a few times a day to check on him and feed him. The wonderful Bay Lulic (the real name for this amazing cow) kept K114 (the ‘name’ we gave Tuffy’s Mum when she was a calf) company in the paddock by our house. Bay Lulic’s adopted orphan would frolic around the game little Tuffy as if encouraging him to ‘come and play!’
.
Our place is very hilly, and each effort to stand would take Tuffy further and further away from the house. A couple of times each day we would re-tie the blue tarp over his newest position, refill the knocked-over water containers, push the hay closer and give him another cuddle.
His mother continued to come back to him a few times a day to check on him and feed him. The wonderful Bay Lulic (the real name for this amazing cow) kept K114 (the ‘name’ we gave Tuffy’s Mum when she was a calf) company in the paddock by our house. Bay Lulic’s adopted orphan would frolic around the game little Tuffy as if encouraging him to ‘come and play!’
.
Our place is very hilly, and each effort to stand would take Tuffy further and further away from the house. A couple of times each day we would re-tie the blue tarp over his newest position, refill the knocked-over water containers, push the hay closer and give him another cuddle.
.
But it just wasn’t enough. It was very hot and he would breath terribly heavily. One shoulder swelled up massively and he gradually lost weight. Then about 10 days after we brought him home, I saw it. That dull look in the eye that an animal will get when they start to fail.
And I knew. I just couldn’t let it go on.
He was just never going to get up.
He would never recover.
So I decided (such a heavy, heavy decision),
Mr Incredible quietly agreed,
and we waited until Salina went home.
.
The next morning I took Tuffy a drink, a small sheaf of hay, scratched his jaw in the spot he liked the most… and then I took the kids for a drive in the truck.
.
Mr I and Lila (our lovely neighbour who discovered Tuffy initially) put the little guy out of his pain. Afterwards they did a bush autopsy and discovered terrible, extensive bruising, one severely dislocated shoulder and a broken back thigh bone. (Someone asked me in a previous post if we would eat the meat if we put him down – I have to say it would have been hard because we had bonded with him, but this really wasn’t an option at all with such injuries).
.
Tuffy had put up such an incredible fight – we couldn’t believe how shocking his injuries were. He didn’t stand a chance really. It made the pain of the decision we made a little easier, mixed with guilt that we should have done it earlier.
.
The kids were upset initially but we explained how Tuffy would now frolic pain-free up in Heaven, just like all the other calves. Dash accepted this, but for a while Violet was beside herself that she hadn’t said goodbye properly. I assured her that he already knew how much we all cared. We wiped away our tears and climbed from the truck.
.
But our job was not over. We had to take K114 back to her paddock – she had been patrolling the house paddock looking for her Tuffy and we needed to re-settle her as best we could. So we reloaded the truck and drove her home.
She was reluctant to get off the truck on arrival – she knew she was missing something.
Why am I here? Shouldn’t someone else be getting off the truck too?
Is he hiding somewhere in the shed?
And off she went…
Straight back to the creek where she had seen him last in this paddock.
She was reluctant to get off the truck on arrival – she knew she was missing something.
Why am I here? Shouldn’t someone else be getting off the truck too?
Is he hiding somewhere in the shed?
And off she went…
Straight back to the creek where she had seen him last in this paddock.
.
I broke up a bit at this point, I admit it.
A Mother’s Love is a powerful, powerful thing.
She did her very best.
We all did.
R.I.P. Tuffy.
I hope you are frolicking free…
22 Comments
jeanie
Alert – huge cry warning – going off for my nap now, and will dream of a pain-free Tuffy.
My word verification is "thpgmet" – which is about what I am able to say at the moment, as I am very teary.
BUSH BABE
Sorry… you can see why I kept it til after Christmas – I hated to ruin everyone's holiday mood. But a few people really wanted to hear an update on our little bovine battler.
I wish we could have had a Christmas miracle for you… I do have a more upbeat tale in the pipeline I promise!
(Struggling to find time to post at the moment… bloomin' visitors!)
🙂
BB
Kelly
Dadgummit, BB…you've got me tearing up!!! We have livestock and I know it's all part of it, but that still doesn't make it any easier.
Bless his tuff little heart. And poor Mama.
Sues2u2
Not what I needed right before bed but I'm so glad that y'all made that decision. Poor little guy.
mrscravitz
Aww….Now I need Tissues!!!! RIP TUFFY!
Jayne
*sniff* Teary here, too, but he's out of pain and roaming free now.
Mary Paddock
Awww . . . man . . .
Deb
I'm sorry for all your sadness….it's so hard to make that decision. Especially little critters who just won't quit like Tuffy.
Tuffy was one of the lucky ones. Many folks wouldn't have tried like you all did. He's at peace now – no pain and suffering.
Wishing you all happy days ahead!
Debby
Oh. I knew it. I just knew it. You all did the right thing, and it was a story that was worth telling, even if the ending was heartbreaking. It is a story of giving it your best, and of pain, and kindness, and love. The children will all benefit from knowing this story, and it will be added to the stories that they remember all of their life.
All this being said, did you really have to post that last picture? I went from tears to bawling outright as soon as I saw it. Consider yourself dratted.
Lydia
Thanks for sharing this story. I had a dairy farm for 12 years, and this is such a familiar story. I must say during those years I cried more over my cows than any people I knew!
By the way, my favorite cow was 411. She was an amazing girl, kept all my secrets, and never kicked me even when I was prepping her for milking with cold hands. :}
Julie in Australia
Had a bit of an 'iffy' day BB.
Didnt need this…set me over the edge. Tears were freed.
Feeling all the pain for his Mama…but she will recover I know.
Poor little kids though. But…they are bush kids and will take it in their stride I'm sure.
Thanks for waiting til after Christmas to tell us…
But…life rolls on…so…
Happy New Year to you, your family and friends. And all the readers all over the world who stop by regularly to have a little read.
Doin' well BB…keep it going OK?
Thanks for all your efforts.
Anonymous
There is a short list of folks that:
Endure the heat, cold and long hours.
Do extra things because it is the right thing to do.
Stay out late at night in a cold rain to help a birth.
Carry a baby to the house to be feed when a mother is lost.
I think that you can add an other hundred items to this list, so I will summarize by saying – these are the folks that God allows to be herdsmen.
I'm proud I know ya. – Bill
PS I'm glad that Bella is doing well.
Mom L
A very sad but powerful tale, BB. It seems as though Tuffy tried really hard to do his part in your and his mother's efforts to save him. And when the kids grow up, I know they'll remember that brave little guy.
Nancy
Jeanne Klaver
I have to say I'm totally crying at this point but I do appreciate the truth of this story. You write, "She did her very best…" Don't we all? Yet somehow I have a powerful heart for all things not human because I wonder if they understand? There are no words, all we can offer is comfort and pray they feel our understanding. Thank you for this most honest insight.
Anonymous
You and Mr I and the kids are very good stewards of the land! and sometime being good stewards (like parenting) you have to make really tough choices 🙁 take care
Theresa in Alberta
Tamsyn
I managed to hold back the tears until the Mama cow went looking for her Baby. A sad, but beautiful story.
Linda D.
So sorry to hear about the loss of "Tuffy". He was a very fortunate calf having you all around him showering him with love. You all were very fortunate to get to share all that love with him.
Cactus Jack Splash
Wonderfully written and so touching. See any animal out is so hard, especially when they put up such a valiant fight.
Mikey
Oh gosh, I knew from your comment it wasn't good. He gave it a good effort, but there is no repairing that kind of damage. You all did your very best making him comfortable and did the right thing in ending it before it got unbearable. I'm so very sorry for how it ended, I wish a miracle would have happened.
We are going in tomorrow to have my moms dog put down. After recovering from his back end paralysis earlier this year, he suddenly developed lymph node cancer and it's progressed fast. He went off food yesterday and today and has dropped weight. We agreed it was time, rather than let him suffer. Sadly, he's only 5 yrs old. Gonna be a tough day, so all I can say is I feel your pain. Caring properly for animals is tough on your heart. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
Country Girl
Incredibly sad. I learned a rule of thumb a long time ago at our first horse farm job. Where there's livestock, there's dead stock. It's a fact of life.
That last photo made me cry.
Rural Revival
Sad news indeed. My heart goes out to his momma…seeing her returning to his last spot broke my heart.
Christie - Childhood 101
Simply heartbreaking.