Do you ever feel like you’re forgetting something but can’t put your finger on what? Well, it looks like this cow can relate.
In a viral TikTok video with 3.1 million views, a cow can be seen sprinting across a field to her calf. It turns out she had forgotten about him, despite giving birth three days prior.
The caption justifies her behavior, stating: “[She] got excited about moving paddocks and totally forgot she had a baby.”
The text layered over the clip describes the scene as the “moment she realized she was, in fact, responsible for the baby.”
@sunnycattleco
Got excited about moving paddocks and totally forgot she had a baby ????? #cow #cowtok #farm #farmtok #baby #newbaby #farmlife #sunnycattleco #momlife #cattle #farmanimals #fyp #fyp? #fyp??viral #countrylife #yourewelcome
? Dramatic Sad Violin – Platon Davydov
The clip ends with the cow giving the woman behind the camera a dirty look. However, the woman takes it in stride, sarcastically saying: “You’re welcome.”
The heartwarming yet hilarious video has been a huge hit online, amassing over 390,200 likes and 1,800 comments since it was shared by @sunnycattleco in November.
The cow’s cheeky behavior hasn’t gone unnoticed. One commenter pointed out: “Then looking at you like it’s your fault,” which racked up over 65,000 likes, while another said: “That look that she gave you was like… WTH!!”
The owner responded: “Yeah, almost like it was my fault.”
Another user joked: “Running like she’s been a present mama this whole time,” while a fourth quipped: “She was in her party girl era.”
A stock image of a mother cow comforting her calf. The internet has gone wild over a video about a cow that forgot she is a mother.
A stock image of a mother cow comforting her calf. The internet has gone wild over a video about a cow that forgot she is a mother.
Modfos/iStock / Getty Images Plus
Although their relationship may have started off on the wrong foot (or hoof), it seems the mother is now ready to embrace parenthood. This is a positive development for the calf, as research shows that growing up without a mother can have significant consequences for young calves.
In 2015, a study published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science, investigated the long-term effects of early maternal deprivation in dairy cows.
The researchers from Vetmeduni Vienna and the Thünen Institute of Organic Farming in Germany, including Kathrin Wagner and Susanne Waiblinger, examined a total of 26 differently reared cows. Eleven calves were separated from their mothers immediately after birth and placed in a calf group, where they were fed milk using an automatic feeder. The remaining 15 calves stayed with their mothers in the calving pen for the first five days, allowing them to form a mother-calf bond.
After this period, these calves were moved to the calf area but maintained contact with their mothers. Of these, nine calves had access to their mothers twice daily, while the other six were free to move between the calf group and the cow herd at any time.
The results showed that calves raised with their mothers, particularly those with constant maternal and herd contact, displayed greater activity during isolation. They moved more in their calving boxes and explored their surroundings more actively compared to calves raised without maternal contact. This behavior may reflect a stronger motivation to rejoin the herd and a more proactive approach to coping with isolation.
The findings highlight that a richer social environment during rearing—one that includes contact with mothers and other cows—promotes greater sociability and social competence in adult cattle.
Newsweek reached out to @sunnycattleco for comment via TikTok. We could not verify the details of the case.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Moment Cow Realizes She’s ‘Responsible’ for Baby She Had Three Days Ago
