Rousseau has the "spring itchies" & loves a good scratch.
It’s definitely spring now, and the animals are starting to get rid of that heavy winter coat. Most people are familiar with the concept of grooming their cat or dog, or a horse, but may not necessarily associate it with cows. However, if you own just one or a few cows, you may want to consider grooming & bathing them to help that shedding process. Let me tell you how & why I take the time for grooming with my girls.
I think Rousseau loves the FURminator even more than I do.
The Daily Routine
Through most of the year, I take at least a quick minute to brush each cow most days. Our routine is that they come into the parlor for a “breakfast” snack each morning, whether or not they’re currently milking. It makes the parlor a safe, familiar, comfortable place for them. So while they’re there, it’s the perfect opportunity to give each one a “go over”. Even if I just quick brush the loose dirt off, it’s a way to get my hands on and look over each cow to make sure nothing’s wrong. That daily familiarity with your cow helps you to notice when something isn’t quite right, and it helps her to feel safe & comfortable with your handling of her. Read more »
The pretty side of spring - calves & daffodils, but........
I hate mud! March here in Clay Co. KY is generally a nice, dry month. The rain stops, the sun comes out, winter’s mud dries up and there’s finally firm ground beneath our feet for a while. The grass starts growing again and we can start planting early crops in the garden. Then, in April the spring rains start & we get mud, round 2.
....don't stand still tooo long, you may lose a boot!
But this year seems a bit different. Here we are almost half way through March, with Winter & Spring still duking it out, one day the one winning & the next day the other, it’s raining & flooding and we’re in mud up to our gizzards…..and I HATE mud!
The steers come running through the mud for their breakfast.
But, I guess as long as we have winter & spring, we’ll have mud, too. So we need to deal with it. And one of the best ways to deal with mud is to try to prevent it from happening in the first place! Unfortunately, we’re not doing too well with that here. I know what we need to do, it’s just a matter of getting it done. So, here are some ideas….and if you have any other good mud-busting strategies, please leave a comment & let us know about it. Read more »
Mace seems to think this pile of dirt was put there just for him....and he LOVES it!
Hello again to all our friends & welcome to those who are new to our site! One of the nice things about owning Dexters, which I forgot to mention in my last post, is all the great people you get to meet. It has been a season of greetings for us here lately, so I’ll give you the scoop on our most significant recent “hello’s”. And if you don’t find other information you’re looking for here on the website, or if you have further questions about what you do find, please don’t hesitate to give us a “hello” – we’d love to hear from you!
Mace settled right back in with the girls at home.
Welcome Home, Mace!
We recently returned to Never Know Farm to say hello again to Hank & Zoh Murphy, and to Mace. Our Little Man had successfully completed the job he went there to do, so it was time to come back home. Hopefully their Mini Pearl gives them a nice little heifer this fall. Read more »
Or….WHY WE LOVE OUR DEXTERS!
How can you resist such cute faces?
I get asked a lot of questions about keeping a Dexter as a family cow, and always end up telling people I love my Dexters. And it’s true…I’ve been stricken with a disease known as “Dexteritis”. There are so many good things about this little breed that it’s hard not to fall in love with them! Although there are some issues with the breed that you need to watch out for, Dexters are definitely a prime choice for a homestead cow. If you’re new to this family cow thing and wondering if a Dexter might be the cow for you, read on to learn what this diminuitive breed has to offer. Here are some reasons you may want to choose Dexters for your homestead. Read more »
Baby Maxwell in his stall hangout.
Jan. 19, 2009, S&H Hilltop Sara brought a strappin’ little black bull calf into this world. The next day our temperature plummeted to give us the coldest weather we had all year…-2 F. I kept them put up in the stall overnight, with the doors all closed, to protect the little bugger from freezing to death, but he didn’t even seem to notice that it was cold! And thus began Maxwell’s life with us.
Max helps with the morning milking...2 for you, 2 for me.
Mama Sara is a cow who doesn’t like to let down her milk for anyone other than baby for the first several weeks after calving. So, since I wanted to milk her, I needed help, and for the first month of his life, Max was my assistant. They would be separated overnight so to keep him company I would put his big sister, Keira, in the stall with him, and she seemed quite content to babysit. Then in the morning, I would take Sara into the parlor, clean up her udder & hook up the Surge, and she would let down nary a drop until I came back dragging Max in with the halter. Once he had his teat, all was well! Read more »
