Cow Abuse

Many people saw this photo on the internet and made fun of the “dairy” cow by calling her “stupid” but no one has wondered why she would leave the huge, lush, green pasture behind her and climb over a fence. The cow in the photo is a “first-calf heifer” trying to find her stolen baby. These first time mothers will do literally anything to get to their babies. 
A cow will continue to grow physically until she is 3-4 but a “dairy” cow is forcibly impregnated when she is only 15 months old and has her first calf when she is 2. A 2 year old cow is a teenager and will still be playful.

The term “first-calf heifer” is used very frequently in the dairy industry and refers to a cow who has had her first baby. The dairy industry uses the word “heifer” instead of “cow” to describe these first time mothers because they are yet to reach their full mature cow size.

Having not experienced the systematic loss of her babies yet thus very hopeful and ambitious, a “first-calf heifer” will be extremely determined to find and get to her stolen baby that she will literally do anything. This includes crawling over fences, breaking out of fields and walking for miles. To avoid this from happening, dairy farmers try to make their fencing escape-proof with hot electric fence, electric wire strands, steel panels, sturdy barbed/page wires.

 Many thanks to Fighting for Animals on Tumblr