We learn in the Mishnah, that we award half damages for the goring inflicted by a tam cow from her body, and quarter damages from the calf's body because it may or may not have been born at the time of the goring.

This results in some complex debate to avoid awarding the ox's owner more than the half damages he's entitled to.

But what if the ox is worth $300 and the cow only $100, and the calf $50. If the ox dies, then from the cow's body the ox's owner cannot recover half his damages. So we look to the calf. Since we don't know whether she was born at the time of the goring, we say only quarter of the damages are assessable against it. Its $50 value falls within that amount.

So can we take the calf and thereby complete the $150 owed to the ox's owner?

Salvador Litvak, United States