Our Birds

September 25, 2016September 25, 20163 Comments

Our birds live life with the sun, the rain, the cold and the “what’s the weather like today?” They eat bugs, worms, alfalfa leaves and grass.

Today, we moved some birds to the pasture. Our thespian children helped. After taking a photo or two, I felt confident that Brent and I could make this whole operation go quicker without them … but not as many laughs. So, I went back to my tasks and left Brent and the kiddies to it.

The pups want so much to be a part, but they waited patiently for us to return.

Lucy, who is not short … no really … okay, I think she is short, but not by French standards … shows us our chook tower.

Otto and Lucy pop the chicks in their new home. One lot at a time. Brent moved two to their one. You see, the taunting and trash talking between these two slows down the operation.

… leading artwork by Otto Curtis, age five ( at the time ). We both said it was a duck, but now think he painted a chick.

Chickens On The Move

May 15, 2016May 15, 2016Leave a comment

Brent and Otto moved the chooks for the second time today. The chickens are young, so they are still working out how to work the pasture. They are always on fresh grass for them to pull out the bugs and worms and nibble the alfalfa leaves.

Lovely day today, not too hot. Otto refreshes their water.

He likes to see how high he can raise the hose while still making it in the tank. I know I’ve set myself up for “boy jokes,” but he is very specific about his work.

The herd are fat fat. So much grass. They got so bored today, they did a little jog then hung out by the water cooler. I’m not a fan of a herd jog, but they settled in. It’s nice to see them work a paddock.

Cozy Calves

March 19, 2015March 19, 20159 Comments

While waiting for the water bowl to fill, I grabbed some shots of the calves.

When the cows are moved, the calves get excited. They run around and then get bored. The sun is on today, so they snuggle into the grass while they wait for mum to have her tea.

Lots of chatter about the water cooler today. I stood there for thirty minutes or so waiting for the bowl to fill. But it was sunny and I haven’t sunbathed for years, so it was good times.

The herd gets cozy when it’s warm.

The grass is good.

Poor mum can’t have a break to take a drink without junior.

Milk Nose and Ear Tags

March 18, 2015Leave a comment

After a calf has a feed, they get milk nose. Milk all over their face. They really get into feeding. They butt their mother’s udders with their head and then feed. I’ve fed a bottle calf before, you must watch out because they will butt you too. They’ll butt anything to get more milk.

Brent tagged another calf today. Can you see him? He’s in the middle of a curious herd. Don’t try this at home. He has a technique. A technique based on a foundation of calm. If you are calm, then they are calm. We’ve tried other ways of tagging a calf that were successful, but this year has been smooth. He also castrates the boys as well.

I’m not a fan of tagging calves. It can be dangerous. Have you seen those horns? But regulations say we have to. In France, you tag both ears. I see that America has gotten off easy with one ear tag. If you don’t tag the calf the first day, you will never catch it. I believe there are rodeo events based on this principle.

Woodhenge

March 10, 2015March 10, 20153 Comments

This is Woodhenge. Brent took the photo above a month after we moved to the farm ( October, 2010 ). It was early morning. I’m not sure what the structure was intended for. It rests in a paddock we call “Detroit.” Detroit was named because it was overgrazed for too long. Then the auto industry of fertility left, leaving the paddock full of thistles and weeds.

We didn’t do anything major to Detroit. We used it as a sacrificial paddock as it is close to the yards. Brent over-seeded clover and rolled out hay. The cows graze Detroit to work the soil. Year after year, Detroit seemed to perk up. Now, Detroit is full of many grasses.

Detroit is green, green, green and the thistles and weeds have lost. But, check out Wood Henge!

Our silly cows used it as a scratch post and this is all that remains.

I took this photo today from a different angle. Don’t worry, the old trees in the “before” shot are still there and even bigger.

And The Cows, Oh How They Laughed

February 20, 2015February 20, 201511 Comments

I moved the cows yesterday. I wasn’t intending to. Brent was coming back late last night. I thought I’d set up the fence for him so that when he arrived, he could roll the hay out and move the cows. It was getting darker by the minute and Brent was not home. All this talk about squatting and hay bale rolling. I thought I’d give ‘er a go. Why not? I’m on my own, I have no walkie talkie, I’ve never done a cow move by myself, it’s getting dark and the cows with the big horns are staring at me. What could go wrong?

I removed the hay net, easy. Then went in for the deep squat. But did it budge? No, not a bit. I felt them roll their eyes. “Come on lady, he does it each day, three times a day,” they insisted in a Seinfeld cow kind of way. I squat again. And I push and push and again and squat and push. Nope. I switched tactics and used momentum and gravity. I got the ball rolling. As it rolled down the hill, I noticed that is was not unrolling. I needed to turn it. A round bale of hay weighs a ton ( well, not exactly a ton, but it felt exactly like a ton ). Darker it gets, their laughter increases, so I stopped. I left a small line of hay with a ball at the end. I started winding up the temporary wire fence to let the cows through. The cows were lovely. Perfect move. Except for the silly me winding the wire. While watching the cows come through, the wire popped off the reel, but I kept on reeling it in. Then, well, the sun had set. I couldn’t see how to fix it. So as the cows were munching, I gathered the wire and picked up the posts. As I came to the end, the gate hook attached to the ball of wire I was holding caught on the live fence. Yep, zapped four times. And anther zap on my way out of the paddock.

The next morning the cows were in! In the wrong place! The abandoned ball of hay rolled over the temp fence, knocking it off and low enough to cross. They had a lovely Grand Slam morning breakfast on their next strip.

Brent is back home and thankfully all is right. No new calves today. Whew.

Don’t Eat The Golden Snowdog

February 3, 20154 Comments

Snow day today! We’ve not seen snow here since 2013. A great day for the kids. When the snow falls, you know your day will be different. All your plans of driving and doing things are arrested and you spend the day understanding just how cold snow can be.

I kept the fire piping hot. I’ve been here before. Snow is great until your mittens get wet. Then they come in crying.

Lucy made a giant snowman. Brent pointed out that he has never made a snowman. I share that same attribute. But I have made my fair share of sand castles.

Zelie doesn’t remember the snow. She slept in and was so incredibly excited to get out there. Her world turned into a “fluffy cupcake.” Her words, not mine.

Brent finished off his morning coffee dodging puppies, gazing at Lucy’s giant snowman wearing his best snow Crocs.

But the snow must go on. The herd had their second bale of hay when things started melting. They are rustic cows. This snow ain’t nuthin’ compared to where they came from.

They are loving the hay, but still manage to find grass underneath the snowy bits.

This is what cow poop looks like in snow. I knew you were curious…

Hello Cows

February 1, 20154 Comments

The cows came home today. They are marching their way on another loop of the farm. There is some grass, but we are giving them hay now. Today was sunny. They were dozing in the warm with full bellies. Happy cows.

Hey!

January 13, 2015Leave a comment

Calf doing “hay” face. The calves, confused, wander about copying the herd. They put their nose to the ground as the herd munches on fresh grass. They munch the hay because that’s what everyone else seems to be doing. But the hay doesn’t go down as smoothly as mum’s milk. Then, they make this face.

Brent strategically lays the hay out so that each ball rolls downhill. Tomorrow’s morning bale will be a bit uphill. He can do it.

With all this warm sunshine and fresh grass and hay, the herd has been very calm. They do enjoy sunbathing.

We are expecting one more calf this month. After, the rest of the gang shall pop out in March and April.

Naughty Cows

January 9, 2015Leave a comment

Brent lays out hay for January. Perfect hay bales. The herd gets two bales a day with fresh grass. But last night, they pushed through the front, temporary fence. Could have been a calf or could have been a silly mistake. No matter, they had a great night of hay buffet, all-you-can eat. Ruffled bales of gastronomique proportions.

Brent rolled out some hay and we pushed them back down to their strip. They did this.

Sat down, ruminated, stood. Not much eating. Their stomachs were full.

We later rolled out another bale and moved them along.

They found room.

New calf this day. The mother’s name is “Heather” after my niece. We call her “Jumpy Heather” because she is a bit of a spaz … but then, so is my niece. But she is a fantastic mom. Funny enough, so is my niece. The calf is a strong boy, healthy and content.