Musk ox calves
(in our humble, unbiased opinion)
are the cutest babies
of all time!
Not only are they inspirational in their ability to be up and moving within 20 minutes of entering this wild world (I can’t even do that when I have 7 alarms trying to wake me up in the morning!) but they are darn hearty beings and playful to boot: truly a pleasure to observe and learn from.
We decided to name the calves born this year after literary terms and have titled them “The Book Club”. This group of youngsters have all been hitting their developmental milestones head-on and are positively breaking hearts as they do it!
Within hours of being born to Xenon on April 29th, Novel experienced the wild Alaskan spring weather with the warmth of a sunny spring afternoon suddenly shifting to a late spring snowstorm that seemed to melt as soon as it touched ground. In spite of this somewhat jarring introduction to life in Palmer, Alaska, Novel has shown an incredible amount of gumption in her young age, no matter the weather!
May 11th brought us Saga, born to first-time mom Freyja and the late bull, Hickory. Saga was kept close by his mom and kept up with her as Freyja warded off perceived threats (farm staff offering treats). Saga was a bit shy at first, sticking close to his mom but when introduced to Novel, however, Saga immediately warmed up and started stomping and playing with his new friend.
The lovely, food-motivated Osprey gave birth to Story early in the morning on May 16th. This young bull was discovered romping around the calf pasture by our education director, Dani who was impressed when she realized that this rather large, bouncy calf was brand new to this world! Story has led the charge in comfort around farm staff and was the first calf of the year to stand confidently in the stanchion for his first solo weigh session!
May 20th introduced us to Fable, a sweet new addition to the herd. Third-time mom, Acadia surprised us all with this late season calf early afternoon, to the delight of our tour guests. Although Acadia was showing a larger girth and more subdued behaviors, she also was in full shed of her qiviut which, in our oxperience, used to indicate a non-pregnant cow! It just goes to show, there's always something new to learn from this incredible species.
Our 77th herd member joined us early in the morning of May 24th. Amethyst, nicknamed "Slammy Ammy" by our farm staff for her tenacity when it comes to nearby treats, gave birth to Sonnet and immediately confirmed our suspicions of her motherhood abilities. Amethyst truly met our oxpectations for raising a wonderfully calm and oxtraordinarily sweet calf!
This “Book Club” has grown in comfort, confidence, and of course, weight over these summer months and have been curiously following their moms through the barn during daily socialization sessions.
Our moms are actively weaning their calves and farm staff are supporting this by encouraging more time spent with the young ones separate from their moms (with help from fireweed, birch, aspen, and willow leaves, of course).
Now, the seasons are changing (rapidly) and the leaves are turning colors. The grass in the pastures is slowing its growth as winter looms ever nearer. The colder weather is met with appreciation from this cold-hearty species and It is so fun to watch these rambunctious kiddos grow into their best version of a musk ox while also spending SO MUCH energy zooming around their pastures with each other.
We cannot wait to see how they take on their first big snowfall!
*Calves with Freyja oxpressing new pen zoomies from earlier this summer
