Featured Bovine of the Week..."the Twin"...

You know how often there's a teen of the week featured in the local newspaper? Or at least there used to be...

A week or so ago when the vet was here for herd check, he was doing pregnancy checks on some cows, and we got to talking about the history of this one particular cow.  He said I ought to do a blog post about her...

So here she is...#245, aka "the Twin"...

You'll have to forgive her not so perfect photo.  She was much too interested in chewing on some hay than posing for her picture to be taken.

Here are a few facts about her:

Birthdate:  August 13, 2005

Sibings: twin sister #244

First freshening date:  July 10, 2007

Heifers vs Bulls to date:  5 heifers, 4 bulls

Interesting facts, trials and tribulations in her life:

...Twin calvings are often hard on Mom, and she's had several sets.

...Early on, she had some paralysis in her one leg from a complication during calving.  She went down in a narrow entryway (late at night, of course) and we had quite a time getting her up again.  We made a pathway of rubber cow mats for her, and she was able to crawl until she got to a box pen.  She had better footing there and was able to stand.  Jim kept her in the box pen and milked her by hand for a few days, and then with a portable milking unit for another week or so until she had regained her strength and was able to handle herself in a stall.

...Last year after freshening she developed a mysterious infection and temporarily lost her sight.  She has since fully recovered.

...She tries really hard to be good!  She doesn't like to be surprised and doesn't like it if the milker squawks when it's being put on her udder.  For some reason on her (just the way her udder is shaped) when the milker is finished and stops pulsating, it tends to fall off of her right away.  She doesn't like it, but tries to stand still like a statue until someone comes and rescues her!

This was her last night just after the milker was put on.  She's milking like crazy...

And oh, what a relief it is when she's done...

She will be ten years old in August, and is the second oldest cow in the barn. She's seen and heard a lot over the last ten years, and she must be enjoying life here, because she's sticking around a lot longer than most cows do!

A "Finished" Experiment...

Way back in April, when the corn was first planted, I decided to do an "experiment".  I followed the corn from the day it was planted until it was harvested.  You can follow the growth of the corn  by clicking here... (Each post contains a link that takes you back further, until you get to the first one!)

Here is the final result...

That corn stalk took on a new look yesterday morning...

It quickly turned into this...

Now it needs to ferment in the silo until it feeds a hungry cow.  Then, it will eventually turn into this...

The cycle continues!

Cows + Rye = ....

Last week  I posted some pictures of the cows going out onto the rye field for the first time this spring.  They were beside themselves with excitement...yes cows can get excited!  They enjoyed several hours of grazing before we brought them back into the barn.

Then the rain came...

The ground became too soft to let them out.  Their hooves would have made horrible tracks in the meadow and rye field, destroying the tender new growth.  So...they were forced to be patient.

This is what they have to look forward to when it dries off...



Jim seeded this field of rye in the fall with two things in mind.  First of all it's a cover crop; it helps to prevent erosion and puts valuable nutrients back into the soil.  Second, we can graze the cows on it this spring until it's time to plant corn.  At that time, the corn will be no-tilled into the ground.

For now, he will section the field off into small areas where the cows will graze on a rotating basis.  I guarantee you...there will be no complaining from them on this arrangement!

Neither will there be complaints from the farmers!  After two short days of grazing on the rye, the volume of milk in the tank had increased by an average of four pounds per cow, per day!

COWS + RYE = MILK  !!