A Year Ago...

Then

and now...

What
a
difference
a
year
can
make
in
all
of
our
lives

Hello First Day of Summer!

Welcome...we're glad you are here!

Blossom Update

Blossom is still tending her nest......see the egg peeking out under her breast?

We have one more week to go....

Blossom

You really need to meet Blossom.

In a flock of chickens she stands alone.

While all the other hens just run around doing lunch and discussing the pecking order, Blossom has taken it upon herself to enter in to that most holy state of all,

motherhood.

Blossom has gone "broody" which is the old timey word for crazy.

If one defines crazy as sitting in one spot day and night denying oneself of water, food and even cable.

So without further ado, here's Blossom

One would expect a hen who is hatching out her babies to pick a secluded safe spot. A place where no one would normally go and thereby endanger her precious offspring - to - be. Somewhere safe from dogs and cats and U.P.S. men.....

Blossom picked the spot just beside our front door.

The blue wood you see in the bottom right corner is the front door.
Blossom nearly fell over from hunger and lack of water and on day 3 she staggered off her nest in search of food and I got to take a quick picture.

There are seven eggs. There were eight but Blossom stepped on one thus ruining her chances to be this years "octomom" of the chicken world but oh well...seven babies will have to do.

That is assuming there will be any babies at all.

We dont know if Blossom has had any romances with our resident rooster, Gregory Peck.

Mr. Peck really gets around the neighborhood

Here he is showing the horse some of his lady friends.

So who knows if Blossom is sitting on eggs that are not fertilized and therefore just wasting her time OR if she really has something going on there.

It takes 21 days to hatch an egg. Blossom began her sit in 3 days ago.

So we are going to have adorable baby chickies in 18 days or we are going to need to send Blossom for therapy.

Time will tell.

Wednesday Whimsy

Diamonds and roses

PJs and TV at Nanas

You wear it well...

Eating a lincoln log is SO tiring...

Breaking the Rules

I saw something just a little irregular today on my way to work today...

whats this?

I am driving down a lane between two pastures

straight ahead there are two cows...

notice that they are OUTSIDE

the fence?

This is breaking ALL the country club rules and I must hasten over in my golf cart and remind/reinforce them!

That is Cody on the left and Sarah on the right (and a cowbird in the middle)

Sarah, you are so beautiful...I remember feeding you your first bottle...I knew you were going to be big and go far....and look!

You are big and you have gone far...

outside the fence that is.

And Cody?

We do not keep bulls on a dairy farm.

The only exception to that rule is if a "Rock Star" cow has a bull calf that is from an "Amazing" bull - then and only then will we keep you...

and you are that one in a million Cody,

The problem is we shouldn't have named you Cody

We should have named you wanderlust

or if that isn't a name then maybe Daniel Boone or something

because you are a wanderer

I find you in every field but the one you actually belong in

For the entire last month he put himself in the close up pen - cows that will be birthing within days. So there  were all these big waddling soon to be Mamas and.....Cody!

They get fed a little more, maybe that was the appeal?

So Mr Codes.....you are a sweetheart considering one day you will weigh over a 1000 pounds and be the size of a minivan.

Now you just want to get a scratch behind the ears don't you?

A TALE OF THREE TRACTORS

Another irrefutable sign that spring is in full swing is the constant chug and thrum of tractors in the distance.

Here is the John Deere. Breaking ground to plant silage for the late summer and fall.

This picture shows how much has to be plowed but maybe I can get a little closer...

thats a little bit better!

So thats the action on the eastern front, turning west we find the Duetz, the prize of the farm. This tractor is over 70 years old, German made and can outwork anything on the place. It is also the only tractor that will start without a jump off when the temperature drops in to the 20s or below.

  

This field has already been plowed and what is happening now is it is being tamped down with a big heavy roller. Packing the loose soil helps it retain moisture for the seeds that will be planted.

  

The cowbirds are the "foremans" of the job on a day like today. They are everywhere at once supervising. They feast on the grasshoppers and other bugs that are sent scurrying by the noise and activity of the equipment.

  

They are nervy little rascals and will stay on the ground pecking and eating until the very last second before the tractor makes a pass and just barely misses them as the reluctantly take wing only to land again the second the tractor passes by.

The last tractor is smack dab in the middle of the other two and is cutting down the last of the winter oats to be made in to hay. This is cut with a special cutting arm (that white thing near the ground on the right of the tractor) that lays it out like palm fronds so that it will dry faster.

It is night now as I post this.

The tractors are all silent and idle. In place of all the activity and noise, is a quiet stillness. The only proof of their busy day is the warm rich smell of newly turned earth coupled with the tangy scent of cut grass. There is a slight breeze wafting the scent across the fields in a way that begs for windows to be left open. 

Spring has not traditionally been  my favorite time of year....but I have to say, it definitely has its own charm, I think it is growing on me...      

BREAKING GROUND

More signs of spring when I hear the rumble of a tractor

the sound of grass ripping and giving way,

the smell of fresh rich dirt ready for seeds

We are most fortunate to have family that is living here now who are experts in gardening. So the expectation of beans, corn, cucumbers and tomatoes is filling my head.

wonderful....

 

Its Been A Beautiful Ten Months....

What did we ever do before you? 

TENT CITY

After a fairly mild, dry winter we are riding out the roughest late winter/early spring in years.

Many nights it plummets down into the high 20s or very low 30s.

The calves that are with their moms do fine. The calves in group pens do fine also. Early morning finds them all cuddled together around the big hay bales fast asleep.

Its the little ones individual pens that I worry about. They cant seek out a warm spot, they depend on me. The best solution I have found is to group them all together each still in their own pen, fill their pen deep with hay and then cover them over with huge tarps.

A tent city if you will....

The tarps are weighted down every few feet with blocks and once they get their evening milk they get "tucked in" for the night.

I do a final check just before midnight to see what the temperature is in their house. Amazingly enough, the warmth of the hay and their combined body heat rising and being blocked by the tarp keeps them 20 - 30 degrees warmer than the outside temperature.

Toasty!

The next morning they are fed and covered back over if it is a very cold day. If not the tent is folded back so they can enjoy the sunshine of late morning

Whats so funny is how much they like the tent. They seem to really enjoy their cozy blue tinged world.

A Princess Party

Aurora is one year old and the Fairy Godmother sent me pictures of a very wonderful party...

Here are some of the highlights of the day...

It began most appropriately with a Mani-Pedi minus the Mani...

The color is Perfectly Princess Pink just in case you want to race right out and make this well hoofed look your own.  

Take note of the two  tone pink french color!

Princess's always know exactly what they want...

  Of course, like any good party there was a marvelous cake,

and special guests!

The Princess continues to lived happily ever after!

To read more of the fairy tale of Princess Aurora: 

http://writingsfromblackberryhill.blogspot.com/2012/05/aurora-and-perigee-moon.html

http://writingsfromblackberryhill.blogspot.com/2012/07/princess-aurora-update.html

http://writingsfromblackberryhill.blogspot.com/2012/10/an-aurora-sighting.html

Meet Melly

Its moving day for lil Mz Melly!

Today is the day she gets to leave her individual pen and go live in a group where she will have more freedom and independence.

Melly meets the criteria for the big move into "big girl world". She can drink from a bucket and is eating grain   every day and is past the newborn stage.

Over the years we tried many ways of moving calves but like most things, the simplest is also the easiest. Melly, although she drinks from a bucket, still knows what a bottle is and like all calves LOVES it. So just a bottle of milk and slowly leading to the new home....

  

gets us to our goal!

Lazzie is thrilled to see Melly coming...they were next door neighbors until Lazzie moved 2 weeks ago, now they can be best buds again.

There is always the same routine when introducing a calf to a new spot...

first they sniff the ground (their nose is a much surer guide to them than their eyes)

Then they realize the freedom....

then finally, the awareness of the other calves...

and finally....

settling in with your BFF to enjoy your new digs.

Meet Scully

No she isn't  FBI Special Agent Scully and she knows nada about X-Files!

Scully was born with an odd bent angle to her spine. Probably this is due to laying in an awkward position in utero before she was born.

This isn't a great picture of her but it shows the odd alignment of her spine, especially on her left side.

When calves are very small I keep them in individual pens so I can handle them and feed them their bottles with no competition. As soon as they are big enough I move them to a group pen. There, they can run and romp and play with other calves that are on their same developmental level.

In Scully's case I felt it was imperative to get her in a group setting as soon as possible. The hope was that running and bucking and playing would help to straighten out her spine.

It is working!!!

Scully one week after moving in to her bigger play area:

  

Its always amazing how if given a chance, nature will many times correct its own mistakes. All we have to do is provide the right situation to enable it to happen.

Scully (surrounded by her peeps) is going to do just fine!

Meet Lazarus

Lazzie was born on time, just a little smallish. She was quite "unique" (read ugly)  looking.

For one thing, she didn't have the sleek fur a Jersey normally has but instead she looked like that favorite teddy bear that's been through the spin cycle in the wash a myriad of times!

In addition to her many "cowlicks" she was possessed of a massive under bite  which she proudly displayed  throwing her head high in the air when anyone walked by so they could be impressed with her charms.

At about one week of life she got scours (an upset tummy) which is common between day 7 - 9 of a baby calfs life. Only she got worse instead of better. I moved her to a spot beside the door of the office and erected a plastic tent over her pen with a space heater to keep her warm. She was lethargic and disinterested in everything, including eating. I medicated her and when she wouldn't eat I tube fed her. When she was past the very worst she would  drink her bottle but only an ounce at a time. So I rigged up a bottle feeder to hang in her pen so she could have her milk as she saw fit. This was all happening during the coldest part of our year, deep into January and early February. Every night I would go back around 11 and refill her bottle with warm milk with added electrolytes. I would make sure she had plenty of fresh hay to sleep in and that her space heater was blowing very warm air. Then I would cover her over like a blue bubble and think "she probably wont make it through the night..."

Every morning I would go back and pull off her tent and there she would be, laying there looking half alive but her bottle would be EMPTY. Sometime in the middle of the night she would get up and drink her bottle. All day long she would lay there listless barely able to be coaxed in to eating, I added vitamin B shots to her regimen of medicine, probiotics,  and zinc. Each night I would leave a warm bottle and think, tonight is probably the last night I will see her.....

Each morning there she was....not acting normal but alive, AND her bottle was always empty. It got the the point that even the morning milkers that come at dawn would carefully pick up the tent and look under, thinking this would be the sad day but NO!

There had to be a way to get her interested in life so each day I started letting her out of her pen to walk around freely amongst the other calves while I was there to keep an eye on her. She would stagger around and walk as much sideways as forward and then with no warning she would collapse on the ground. A few minutes later she would rise....stagger around and collapse. At first I would run to help her up but when I realized she could get up when she was ready I quit interfering. It was very alarming to visitors and delivery guys who would be here at the time. They would see this little ragga muffin calf staggering around and then fall  down and would ask if there was something wrong. I heard

"Hey lady, is that calf OK?" many times during that period.

 Each night back she would go in to her toasty warm pen and I started leaving two bottles and each night I would hope for the best and each morning the milkers would greet me with "she rose from the dead again one more time"

Honestly she became the focal point of our morning salutations. Instead of "Good Morning"  it was

"She made it!"

Gradually she started to eat during the day. During her times out of her pen she quit falling down and started to walk more forward than sideways. Her strange tremors that she had slowly disappeared. It was time to give her a name.

I was surprised to see that the name Lazarus is of female origin when I googled it (yes I did) so really what else could her name be?

Only very special calves get 2 ear tags. Most just get one. It was very touching to arrive at work and find Laz with her identity tag in one ear and her vanity tag in the other which said:

So little miss Lazzie Pizazzy is doing so well she has graduated from her individual pen into a group lot where she lives with her homies and runs and plays in the sunshine.