The fire brigade teams from Middenbeemster and Zuidoostbeemster paid a maternity visit to the calf Fire on Monday evening. The animal was born during the major fire in a cowshed in Zuidoostbeemster on October 17.
That night the firefighters rescued 300 cows from a burning stable. The flames could be seen for miles around. A calf was also born that night and was appropriately named Fire.
The men handed out rusk with mice. The pink color of the mice was a guess. It was not entirely certain whether the calf was male or female. “It is indeed a girl,” the farmer’s wife responds. “And we are very happy with that, because now she can stay with us.”
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Fire didn’t really pay attention to all the commotion in the stable. After being put on her feet by the farmer, she seemed to enjoy the attention. The fire boots were especially nice to nibble on.
The farmer’s wife says that the calf Fire is doing well: “She has grown a lot recently. She is a very strong calf.”
Sijtje
A village further away, in Middenbeemster, there was sad news yesterday. There’s the famous cow Sijtje passed away after she contracted the bluetongue virus. Most cows survive the disease, but Sijtje was already old and had a leaking heart valve. In consultation with the vet, it was decided to put her out of her misery.