Brittney the calf and the Ferorious Beast

The area in front of our house this time of year contains 15 or so calves....well, right now there are eight because the other seven jumped the fence into the heifer pasture, but that's a whole other story. 

It's fun to have Brittney near our house {she's on the right with the mostly white face}.  These girls have a pasture full of belly high green grass, but they still smash the fence down  to get to the grass on the other side. 

Just like a girl to keep all options open at all times, right?! {or maybe just never satisfied}

Well, my little ferocious beast, Chloe will keep them in line.

This little fluff ball of a dog, loves to have a herd she can call her own so near the house to keep in line.

She has stepped up to the plate and taken on the responsibility that any good 'cow dog' would.

We're going to the Dairy Princess Ball tonight, what are you up to this weekend?

I love to hear from you! Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to leave a comment, you can click on the “Post a Comment” link below to do so. Have a peaceful day.



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The Surrogate Cow

Just the other day, when I was trying to capture a calf birthing on video, in the calf barn {which I missed by the way} I snapped a few photos of a baby calf nursing on mama.  How picture perfect and mama wasn't too concerned that I was standing only a few feet from her and the baby.

But the most interesting thing about this photo is, this was not her own calf.

It is interesting that some cows will allow any calf to suckle, while there are others who will push away a calf that is not her own.  This cow is just happy to have any calf nursing off her to relieve her of her milk? 

It's no wonder why dairy cows seem to really enjoy and look forward to milking time in the milking parlor twice a day.

This cute little calf {one of a set of twins} followed this mama everywhere, even though her own mama was in the same barn.

From what I've witnessed with the calves, their top priority is to find milk.  Whether it be from a cow, a bottle or a bucket, they seem to be satisfied if the end result finds them some milk to drink.  And after drinking milk or eating, a nice, long nap is in order.

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Things that happen in the Heifer pasture

Spring is on the way and the heifers are ecstatic about it.  Why?  Play time is one reason, as you can see in the above photo.  These two girls were so excited to be let out on pasture, the just couldn't contain themselves.

During the rainy days the heifers live in their freestall barns and after a few days of dry weather, they're let back out on their pasture to graze on the grass that's been growing for them.

A couple of reasons they're not out on pasture during rainy days are; it keep the grass from being torn up by them running around on it and keeps the seed in tact.  Another reason is, pasture grass, during the rainy season, has very little nutrients to it and is mainly composed of water, but once that sun hits it and it begins to grow, it's full of nutrients.

{all of those nutrients which are great for cows, are also the reason Joey, is not allowed on pasture right now}

Here's a short video I took of the two girls playing from the above photo:

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A Kid and a Calf

There is almost nothing I enjoy more than watching my kids interact with animals.  Especially farm animals.   With dairy calves, just the kindness of them with a child is so pleasurable to watch.

A baby with a baby. 

Remember Brittney?  Well on our 'Secret Tunnel ranch walk' the other day, Paige insisted that we visit her at the calf barn.  It wasn't necessary to insist at all because I'm always up for a visit to the calf barn.

We love Brittney.  She's so interactive with us.  Even though Paige fed the calves a little snack of alfalfa, which is in the feeder underneath her, Brittney still took the time to give Paige some love.......and licks.

She gave me some also.

Brittney has the perfect temperament as a prospect to enter in the county fair.......if only my kids were old enough.  Hmmm, maybe I can talk my nephew, Gavin, into choosing Brittney as his heifer entry this upcoming fair season.  We'll see.

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It's Looking a lot Like Christmas, here at our home on the dairy

We broke out the Christmas decorations on Tuesday.  No, we don't have our tree yet but I thought it might work out better if we spread out our decorating over a five day period or so....plus I had to dig out the advent calendar for the kids. Can't miss a day!  They are so excited, each day, to find what treats await them in the little drawers.

Along with the calendar, out came the garland for the mantel and my small collection of Nutcrackers.  Paige didn't remember these from last Christmas and became SO excited when she saw them. 

"Mommy are those soldiers?!!"

And to go along with all the decorating we had a fire going, some Christmas music playing and I sipped on another seasonal favorite of mine, Ginger Snappish tea....SO good.

Mixed with a teaspoon of french vanilla creamer, it was perfect.

To end a perfect day, we went over to Bryce and Paige's Great Grandma and Grandpa's house, here on the ranch, for a turkey dinner.  What a treat!  Everything Great Grandma cooks is delicious, no joke.  I think I had the juiciest turkey ever! 

Great Grandma has a toy box full of toys for the grand kids to play with, but what do they find?  I don't think this was a toy, but they played with it the entire night.

How's your decorating coming along?  Do you have your tree up yet?

Happy Thursday!

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