Special delivery: Farmers endure long nights and frigid temps during calving season

As Dylan Puls drives down his family’s pasture just outside of Hoskins in northeast Nebraska, he recalls checking the same field during a string of brutally cold nights in late February when temperatures dropped well below zero.

“It was probably negative 15 or something,” Puls said. “I think it was a little breezy, but it was damn cold.”

His family takes turns checking cows every few hours during calving season. On that frigid night, it was his turn to head out at 2 a.m. After just a few hours of sleep, he made his way through the snowy pastures, using his flashlight to scan the fields from his truck.

As he looked up the hill toward the powerlines, he caught a pair of eyes. Standing in a snow pile was one of his pregnant cows that wandered from Puls’ cozy sheltered hay beds.

“She had a calf out laying on the ground, completely frozen – or what looked like completely frozen,” Puls said. “I kind of nudged that calf a bit. I thought for sure it would be dead.”

Puls hoisted up the calf into his arms, set it in the backseat of his truck and took off for the house. He barrelled his way through a few doors to quickly get the cold calf under warm water.

“A shower is the quickest way to heat them up if they’re that cold, because it’s basically going to freeze to death,” he explained.

Puls saw frostbite had set in on the newborn’s body, but it survived. A few days after its frosty delivery, the calf is stomping through the thick, thawing mud right next to its mom under a sunny – and much warmer – sky.

“It’s got heavy frostbite on those ears,” Puls said. He points out the puffy, floppy skin on top of the calf’s head. “She’ll probably lose most of these ears, but she’s alive, and she’s eating.”

The winter months can be a vicious period for newborn calves and a tiring time for farmers, but it’s one of the few breaks in the year that provides time to focus on the animals.

After the last cow has its calf, hopefully by the end of April, 28-year-old Puls and his family must turn their attention to planting a few hundred acres of row crops. The dangerously cold weather and constant cattle checks are inconvenient parts of the agriculture business plan, but it’s worked for his farming family that’s been homesteading outside of Hoskins since the 1970s.

There are quite a few cows to keep track of between Puls’ barns and fields. His family runs about 200 head of cattle, nearly surpassing the town’s population. Their cattle are a mix of Red and Black Angus. During calving season, the family’s bulls are exiled to a different farm.

Roaming around the nearby fields are some experienced mother cows and some that are carrying calves for their first time, otherwise known as heifers, that Puls keeps closer to the barn. If all 175 female cows produce calves – or even twins, which was common on his farm last year – it’ll double his herd.

“These cows are probably worth a pretty good little chunk of change with the way the market is,” Puls said. “You got a lot of money sitting in cows right now if that’s where you have your money invested.”

Cattle are a hot commodity as U.S. herd numbers remain at a record low from 2022’s historic drought. It’s important to Puls’ livelihood to have as many healthy calves as possible.

Watch: Hoskins farmer helps deliver a calf during calving season. Puls clears the calf's nose as it makes its way out from its mom. It's important to make sure the calf's airways are clear so they don't have issues breathing during delivery.

As Puls peers across the pasture, he clocks a newborn calf that managed to break out of a barn and mosey down the driveway. It might be easier to herd cats than it is to wrangle calves.

Puls corrals the dark red calf that’s still slick from sliding out of its mom’s womb this morning. Even being a few hours old, the calf has already stood up, fed from its mom and found its way around the farm – all key signs of a healthy delivery and a sturdy new herd member. Puls doesn’t have to do too much if the deliveries go well.

“It’s very cool to watch,” Puls said. “Oftentimes, you’re sitting there thinking, ‘I can’t believe any of these cows calve on their own, because it just seems like there are so many things that can go wrong.’”

Most deliveries go according to plan, but farmers are ready for complications that can quickly arise during labor.

In Red Cloud, Nebraska, veterinarian and calving expert Dr. Lindsay Waechter-Mead helps prepare cattle owners for calving season, whether they got their first bottle calf as a kid or they’re starting their own homestead as an adult.

“Even last week I was having a conversation with a couple that just started. They had four heifers, and two of them were bred, so they were just starting from scratch,” Waechter-Mead said. “It was really fun to step back and just talk about the basics. No question is a dumb question.”

The Nebraska Extension educator cares for her own herd of cattle outside of Red Cloud on a homestead that’s been in her family since 1901. Similar to Puls’ upbringing, she’s been around livestock since she could blink.

Waechter-Mead started teaching women how to help with deliveries during training workshops at Women in Ag conferences. Over the last few years, Waechter-Mead’s trainings have evolved into hands-on mobile seminars with attendees across the state, even as far away as Montana, Texas and North Carolina. They ranged from high schoolers to experienced ranch hands to older cattle owners.

“A woman in her 70s last week said, ‘I’ve watched this my whole life, but I’ve never got to do it.’” Waechter-Mead said “Well, now you will! Let’s get in here, and let’s do it.”

They learn from a life-sized model cow named Bessey, who’s delivered the same plastic calf for years. You might have seen her displayed in the ag barns at the Nebraska State Fair. While Bessey’s deliveries aren’t high-risk, the model provides a chance for farmers to practice handling stressful labors and complications.

Waechter-Mead discusses what to do if a calf is breeched or doesn’t survive the birth. The first few hours of a calf’s life is a critical time to ensure it gets the proper nutrients and antibodies. Sometimes, there’s ongoing care if a calf struggles to stay healthy. Even if the newborns survive the cold calving season, they can be lost to Nebraska’s notorious weather.

It was about this time of year six years ago when floodwaters washed away whole herds in the middle of calving season. Waechter-Mead recalled tornadoes that tore through northeast Nebraska a few years ago that picked off cows from farmers’ herds.

“It’s not just a job,” Waechter-Mead said. “It’s not just a career. I mean, it’s your livelihood, and you care for these animals. Dealing with those types of losses can just be devastating.”

Watch: Red Cloud farmer and veterinarian Dr. Lindsay Waechter-Mead helps deliver a calf during calving season. Waechter-Mead saw the cow's labor was taking longer than normal. Waechter-Mead saw one of the calf's legs was stuck under the rim of the cow's pelvis. Once she corrected that, it was an easy delivery.

Back on the farm near Hoskins, Puls makes his final lap through the calving barns to finish up his afternoon check.

“One rule that dad always tried to impart on us is ‘Don't get too attached to these animals, because they are not pets,” Puls said. “It’s a tough dynamic to balance, because there is a lot of heart that goes into a job like this. I don’t think there’s anybody who’s grown up on a farm that hasn’t shed a tear or two over a home-raised calf, or even a home-raised heifer.”

Puls stops to take a peek at a large Black Angus cow, who just delivered her first calf. Puls calls her ‘Spot’ since she has a round black circle around her right eye. Several cows on the Puls Family Farm have been named over the years. Sometimes numbered cattle tags just don’t fit as well as nicknames do.

“Home-raised cows are always fun,” Puls said. “I still remember taking my first calf to the sale barn after I showed [it in 4H] for a summer.”

Spot stares at Puls as he passes by the red gate and guards her newborn who’s staying close to his mom’s utter.

“A cow like this is going to stay protective of her calf for the life cycle of that calf,” Puls said. “She’s not going to stop being a mom one day and not care anymore. Even when this calf gets to be 600 pounds, she’s still gonna be looking for him and checking on him.”

Puls’ admiration for Spot shows. He reaches into the pen and pats the newborn with Spot’s permission. If anything makes the harsh Nebraska winters just a little easier to weather, it might be simply knowing the farm is still growing.