If it's spring, it means there are plenty of newborns arriving on the farms at WVU Potomac State College.
The College's two livestock farms, supported by the agricultural department, are experiencing a bit of a “Baby Boom” this season with 20 calves born to cattle at the Malone Farm in Forth Ashby and 25 kids born to the goats at Gustafson Farm near the Keyser campus. Ethel had twins on March 5. Then her sister Thelma had a baby the next day. Loretta went into labor on March 7. And Reba is due any day now.
And there are still more to come. The cows and goats that have not yet produced offspring are expected to be first- or second-time mothers between today and April 11.
“It’s one big maternity ward right now on the farms,” said Tyler Rohrbaugh, Malone Farm manager. “Welcome to spring. It’s time for the babies!”
While it may seem like one big happy coincidence, the births of more than forty-five babies added to the Catamount community are family planning at its best. Potential mothers of both cattle at Malone and goats at Gustafson are timed so that every potential female has a chance to give birth to her young around the same time, temporarily doubling the livestock population. The typical time frame for new births among ag animals at PSC is early March through mid-April, although some babies decide to come early and others arrive late.
“In the morning, it isn’t uncommon to arrive at one of the farms this time of year and find out at least one more mother has given birth,” said Natasha Henry, Gustafson Farm Manager. “We have a newborn born nearly every day for about two weeks. Sometimes we have multiple births in one day.”
The scheduling of cattle births is assisted from conception. Both a stud bull and the use of artificial insemination are used for the cows. Artificial insemination accounts for about 60% of the calves. The goats seem to have more success the old-fashioned way – with one male Billy Goat named Rocky doing all the work.
Among the cattle, the fertility rate is about 95%. The rate among the goat population is the same, if not higher, depending on the end-of-the-season birth numbers. The babies also often become a popular “watch” attraction for those who follow the farms – both on social media and in real time. Visitors often come to the farm this time of year just to see what new life has arrived.
“We have really good neighbors and community partners who keep an eye on the property too, and the animals are always protected,” said Henry. “People are always asking me in the spring how many babies we have had and when they can come and see them.”
Occasionally, human intervention is needed to assist in difficult labor. Henry said when one of the goats was giving birth on March 9, the calf got “stuck” and she had to manually maneuver the kid’s leg and reposition the head so the baby could make his arrival safely.
Most new life comes to the farm, however, with only Mother Nature as the midwife.
“There was one morning I stepped away for a short meeting, and when I came back, there was a new birth just like that,” Henry said. “She literally gave birth 15 minutes after I left, and the baby was there when I got back.’
After birth, some babies require a little extra attention from humans as well. It’s akin to a human baby coming into the world and needing care from the NICU.
“We have had to bottle-feed and bottle-nurse many a cow or a goat until they are strong enough to manage on their own,” said Rohrbaugh.
Natasha Henry, Gustafson Farm Manager, shown here with Baby “Toes,” born March 9
Henry admitted that on more than one occasion, she has taken a goat home with her for around-the-clock care. Sometimes, that baby lives with her longer than it probably should.
“Ethel, for instance, who just had a baby, I raised her,” Henry said. “I call her Ethel Jean, the drama queen. She was my house goat before she was strong enough to come back to the farm and live. She used to actually hop inside the truck with me and go for rides. And she just had two babies, so yeah, I guess in a way, that makes me a grandma.”
Gustafson Farm at WVU Potomac State College
Rohrbaugh and Henry are not the only human support team at Potomac State College who tend to the now forty-one adult cattle and thirty-two mature goats that call the campus properties home, even if temporarily.
“Students do about 99% of everything here,” said Rohrbaugh. “They make the feed, and they do the feeding and cleaning up and even herding them from one field to the other.”
That herding is done in the time-honored tradition of physical wrangling. By horseback. No machinery or vehicle is used when the cattle or the goats need to be relocated into greener pastures.
“Vehicles moving in the field tend to stress the livestock out,” Henry said. “So, we still do it by getting on horses. It could look a lot like the TV show Yellowstone around here at times.”
Rohrbaugh points at that at Malone Farm, he considers the cows his employees, who have one specific job – and that is to reproduce, every year. Each cow's annual performance review and her continued employment on the farm are contingent upon her successfully completing those duties.
“I do look at the cows as employees,” he said. “And it’s good to get along with your employees, but they all know what they need to do. The cows need to be able to work on the farm. Everyone works on a farm. And this is a true working farm.”
Interestingly, cows and goats have different approaches to motherhood. Cows tend to prefer the helicopter style of parenting, while goats are more free-range in their styles.
“The cows are very territorial when it comes to their own babies,” said Rohrbaugh. “Occasionally, they will babysit another mother’s calf, but they know what baby belongs to what mother. And they will call out to their young if they get separated.”
Goats, on the other hand, are a bit more submissive and cooperative when it comes to rearing their young.
“Goats are people-friendly and will let you pick up and hold their babies right after the babies are born,” said Henry. “They care, but they don’t care. Or maybe they just trust the people at the farm.”
In fact, Henry tells a story of a young mother two years ago who was in labor. Her kid was stillborn.
“She was grieving, and goats do grieve, not just the loss of their young but other goats in their herd,” she said. “And one of the other mothers had twins. So, the mother who had the stillborn baby in her grief just went up to one of the twins and kidnapped one and just took it in as her own. And the biological mother let her do it because I think she knew that the only way she would get over that grief was to have one of her own.
Malone Farm at WVU Potomac State College
With more than three hundred acres of property, the Malone Farm is one of the largest self-sustaining farms in the county. In fact, hay and straw used to feed and comfort the cows are produced here. Manure produced on the property is used here and even on the Keyser campus as fertilizer for crops, agricultural, and even decorative landscaping. Nothing here goes to waste.
“The farms as a whole are very efficient,” Henry said. “And right now, we are right in that window of time when it's early spring and all of the babies are being born. And everyone is excited to see how many are born. And then people love to come out and visit and look at them. I mean, who doesn’t love a baby animal?”
March is designated as National Agriculture Month in the United States, dedicated to recognizing the vital role farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses play in producing food, fiber, fuel, and their agricultural contributions to the economy and daily life. In its 125th anniversary year, WVU Potomac State College celebrates its rich history of educating leaders in the agriculture industry.