baby sitting duty

Cows need a break from dealing with their babies so if they desire to graze in a different area of the pasture or go to the water tank or maybe just socialize with other cows of the herd they often will leave calves with 1 cow staying to look after them.  It is not unusual to see 1 cow with multiple calves and no other cows in site.  This probably keeps the calves from running off or it may protect them from predators such as coyotes.