Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Doing the Mundane...Among Other Things...

I've had folks ask already..."what needs to be done in the barn in the morning besides milking and feeding?"

Well...it used to be what I often did...but now the truth would be..."what does Jim (or Daniel) do in the barn in the morning and what do you sometimes help with?"

After milking (which I do help with) and feeding, the mundane morning work must be done.  Cows poop.  A lot.  Anywhere.  And everywhere.  So...the manure must be cleaned out of the gutters every morning,  Dry corn fodder or straw is then put into the gutters to help reduce splashing and to help provide bulk that carries the manure up the elevators and into the spreader.

You can also see the white barn dri that has been spread on the entryways behind the cows.  It makes a nice, non slip surface to walk on and helps to keep the barn clean...


Fresh sawdust is tossed under the cows to help keep them clean and dry. The sawdust is stored upstairs on the barn floor, and shoveled down through a hole in the floor into a cart, which is then pushed through the barn to wherever it is needed.

On a side note, a little fyi.  If you look closely, you'll see an orange tag above the cow on the right.  She came into the barn in heat this morning, and that sign indicates to the breeder which cow needs to be serviced...


We were hoping that the heat and humidity were about gone, but it's really sticky outside this morning.  So the cows are staying inside today with all the fans running.  We have five of these 48" fans, along with some smaller hanging fans that help to keep the cows comfortable...


After the routine morning work is finished, the heifers and dry cows at the other farm need to be fed.  Then after lunch, who knows what might need to be done?  There are a bunch of cows that are ready for their vaccinations. Maybe that's one thing we'll do today.  There's always something!

Looking back on the past couple of weeks, which have been super busy...

The silos are full...

Fifth cutting hay is finished...

Rye grass has been seeded in the fields where corn silage came off...

Some of the pens are cleaned out, now that there are some bare fields to spread the manure on...

The West Lampeter Fair has come and gone for another year...

Now we wait for the beans and the remainder of the standing corn to dry and be harvested...hopefully in another few short weeks.  Then there will be corn fodder to bale and more pens to be cleaned out.

I've always said that I think fall is the busiest time of year here...and I think I'll stick to my story!


7 comments:

  1. gotta be a good feeling to have bare fields and manure spread on them. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well, you all certainly stay busy!
    It is a busy time of year though, and so much to be done.
    Thanks for sharing a little slice of your daily routine; I find it so interesting :)

    Hope the rest of your week is lovely.
    ~K.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think it is all good busy. I love reading about it all. I guess, because to me that sounds like normal life. I love seeing all of the pictures. I hope the humidity breaks.
    I do not think your life is mundane. I think it sounds like a wonderful life.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think so also, followed very closely by spring, then summer--winter is hard, but mostly maintaining!
    Linda
    http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Stick to your story I do believe it too. Oh it sounds like you are almost ready for winter and slowing down a bit. About your comment yes PA is one place I really want to visit to see a hardworking farm girl that I truly want to meet someday.It will happen ...right? Sure it will in time. HUGS B

    ReplyDelete
  6. Life is always busy on the farm. That barn is the cleanest I've ever seen. You must be busy. I always enjoy your little snippets. Dairy is different compared to range cattle. I appreciate that you share.

    ReplyDelete

I enjoy hearing what you have to say! Thanks for your comments!