Dillon nodded.“Let’s do it.I'll go get the meds to induce her.And I’ll grab one of the C-section kits I put together.”
Jenna appeared at the barn door, wearing an expression that fell somewhere between resigned and fascinated.She said, “How are my girls?”’
“Getting bigger by the minute.Dillon has agreed to induce labor up to two weeks early to give the smaller cows a chance to deliver naturally before their babies get too big to pass through the birth canal.”
Jenna closed her eyes briefly.“As a woman who’s delivered a baby, I can’t tell you how much sympathy I’m feeling for my cows, right now.”
Gray smiled a little.“I found the lot number on your sperm order.I'll walk you through the documentation tomorrow so you can file a claim against the company.But first we need to get through calving season.Then you can send them a nice, fat vet bill.”
“And hopefully not the replacement cost of any cows we lost in calving,” she said heavily.
“Dillon’s a very good vet,” Gray replied with quiet conviction.
“Okay,” Jenna said with the determination of a woman who’d faced worse and come through it.“What can I do to help?”
By noon, they had successfully induced and delivered three more calves, two naturally, one by C-section.
Sully drafted Dillon’s brother Reno into the birthing operation, as well.Reno was a bullfighter for the rodeo and outstanding at knowing when cattle were getting ready to panic or rebel.Not only that, but he knew exactly how to restrain a cow without harming her.It was an odd skill set and not applicable in too many other situations, but it came in handy today.
They broke for lunch up at the house.Jenna served plates of sandwiches and coffee along with a casserole had mysteriously appeared in Jenna's refrigerator this morning while everyone was in the calving barn.
Gray suspected it was the work of the WoWS.The women struck him as the types to make sure any of their sisters dealing with a crisis were adequately fed.
As they carried their plates to the sink, Dillon said, “The good news is Charolais cattle tend to have healthy calves, good conformation, and excellent birth vigor.These aren't sick babies.They're just big.”
“Very big,” Jenna said dryly.
“Very big,” Dillon agreed.“Have you done the math on their likely market weight?”
“I haven't had time to do anything except stare at giant white calves.”
Gray had already run the numbers because he ran numbers the way other people drank water—automatically and continuously.
He piped up with, “Charolais-cross steers typically finish around fifteen to twenty percent heavier than Hereford-cross steers,” he said.“At current market prices per hundredweight, that translates to roughly?—”
He gave her the number.
Jenna set down the plate she was washing and turned to stare at him, soapy water dripping heedlessly off her hands onto the floor.
“Per animal?”she said blankly.
“For the steers.The heifers will be worth more than that.Charolais cows are highly desirable breeding stock in beef operations.Honestly, you might want to consider keeping the heifers to add to your herd.”
Jenna nodded, looked a bit dazed.
Gray continued, “The silver lining to this mess is that these calves may end up being worth significantly more than what you were expecting from a Hereford-cross crop.”
Jenna looked at Dillon for confirmation.
“Whoever mixed up the semen shipment may have accidentally done you a financial favor.Assuming we can save most or all of the cows and calves.”
“I still want compensation for the expense of having to keep a veterinarian here around the clock to oversee the birthing and do multiple C-Sections,” Jenna said firmly.
“You're absolutely entitled to that,” Gray declared.
Jenna told Dillon, “I expect you to charge top dollar for your time and effort.”She added tartly, “And I'm going to need the company to send me thirty-two apology gift baskets.That and about three months of free therapy for the trauma this calving season is causing me.I’m already having flashbacks to delivering Bobby.And his wasn’t even a hard delivery.”
Gray made a note of her demands and stared down at them for a moment.“All of these expense look reasonable to me.They’ll probably consider themselves lucky if you don’t tack on a hefty damages settlement just for the heck of it.”
