The fun of babies..

This was our first calf of the season. 
He's full of spit and vinegar.



This little man is only 2 days old in this photo.
You have to taste everything.




This little guy is only a day old here.
I think he likes the bath he's getting.




The calves always find the dogs interesting.
We take the dogs with us when we check cows so everyone gets introduced right away.


 We only have 4 more to go in the next week and then there's a small break before we start over.  And sadly we will be breeding at the rate time is flying by.  I hope you all are having a good week.  Take care...

New arrivals..

We have been a little busy around here.  The weather is so crazy! One day it's warm, then cold, then snowing.  You just never know what you will wake up to.  I'm waiting for it to just turn off cold and stay that way, but who knows.

We have been having a few new arrivals the last couple of days.  I have been checking cows every two hours, even at night.  I'm glad to be able to do this.  It's so rewarding when you save one and then they are out playing with the others.  If not it can be heartbreaking loosing one.  You work so hard and wait so long.  We take it very personally.

We currently have 3 on the ground.  The first was a first calf heifer that calved on her own.  The second is a cow we've had a few years.  And then yesterday we had a heifer that her calf wanted to arrive with his head facing his butt.  So with the chains and a LOT of help, he's resting in the barn with his momma.  Now to calve a few more.  Have a small break and start all over.  Seeing a calf born still amazes me, it's like the first time every time.

I have a few photos of the new babes I will share once I'm not exhausted and can relax a little.  But I have been keeping up with everyone and enjoy you posts.  Have a great week!

What I'm Loving Wednesday



I got this lovely at one of our cattle shows




This beauty cam from North American International Livestock Exposition.




This is a wrap bracelet you can wear it as a bracelet or necklace.
Calypso Studios...love their jewelry.




This set is from one of my favorite stores: Target.




This is the bracelet that started my obsession, it's from Kohl's.




I got this from Little Miss for Christmas. 




And these cuties are from Claire's.



I hope everyone has a great Wednesday!

Out with the old..

I have been wanting to replace our mailbox for a while.  It's not very big for photos to be delivered, packages and all those important things. :)  And when the rain blows the door pops open on it.  The weather gets in it and then we had to dry out the mail.  So finally while with SIL Mel I got the post.  And wondered how many times I would have to ask before Mr. M put it up for us.

Then we went to NAILE in November and I asked for some mailbox decor.. And Mr. M had no choice but to put up our new mailbox.  So he got all the supplies and off he went.  I love it.  The mail stays dry, photo envelopes fit and so do some of the smaller packages. 

Tada!  Now to find a cow rain gauge for it and it's complete.  Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Preparing for calving

We prepare for calving like we did when the babes were born.  Supplies, cleaning and being as ready as possible.  We Artificially Inseminate (that's a later post) as many as our cows as possible.  This allows us to know when the cows due dates are and move them to the lot where we can watch them. 

We baby our cows because we can and because we want them to have the best start possible.  So last week we prepared the barn.  During the summer we use it for storage, turkeys and new laying chicks.  The barn is ready now.  And we are just watching the cows through the day and getting up in the middle of the night.  You never know when one of them may need help.  With the crazy weather we are having,  it can make them go a little earlier than normal.



All clean and ready for set up.




We use the Skid Steer to roll out 2 huge round bales of straw.
The straw is the bedding to keep the cows/calves warm.




All the pens up and ready for the cows to have their babes.

Each pen has a water container,  because the cows require a lot of water.  Especially after they have their babes to help produce milk.  They will be fed a certain amount of feed to help keep body condition and to produce milk.  And each pen has a heat lamp in it for the calves to lay under to stay warm.  If there are no problems and the calves do well then they will only stay in the pens for about 48 hours.

Then new bred cows are moved to the lot to be watched more closely.  That way when we see signs of labor they are moved into pens.  We have a waiting to calve group in the big lot.  And then we have the calving anytime group in the lot where the calving barn is.  That way they are easily moved into the barn so they can calve in clean bedding and warmth.

 We try and be present with each calf being born.  They get vaccinations, navels dipped and ear tagged.
 Then they go out to the lot with the bred cows.  The cows/calves are still checked daily to make sure that everyone is nursing and healthy. 

That may sound confusing or like a lot of work to some, but we wait for 9 months for these calves.  And they usually only have one calf.  And the future of the cow, our herd and our sales depend on each live, healthy birth we have.  So each and every precaution is worth it to us.

Have a great week!

Steer Project


This fella is Tabasco.  He is the steer out of the set of twins we had this year.  His sister is gone now, she went to the sale barn.  When you have twins that are opposite sex they are sterile, Free Martens.  You wouldn't know by looking at him that he is a twin.  His momma is a milking machine.

Anyway, we decide to keep him so that our Little Man can start learning how to clip.  So this is his project for the year.  He weighs his feed, washes/rinses, and makes sure he has plenty of hay/water.  You have to start somewhere.  And if he carves him out too much its no big deal.  But as you can see they grow very fast.

 And then in August we will have him butchered.  Now I know some people have an issue with that. 
How can you raise him from a baby?  Then get him broke as a dog, then butcher him.  Don't you feel bad?  The answer is no.  We are cattle farmers.  This is the natural coarse of life.  This is what cattle are raised for.  We take the best care of our animals.  And when it's time for any of them to butchered or removed from the herd they are handled with care to the end.  They are treated with respect and dignity.  We like knowing where our food comes from.  And to be honest, most farm animals have a better life than most people.

We hope you have a great weekend!  Stay warm and be safe.

In a Nutshell

The last two days Mr. M has been home with me.  He's on a weird work schedule right now.  Pioneer is trying to get everything ready for planting.  We had some things that had to get done while he was home.  And mission accomplished.
 
With the unusual weather this year we consulted with our vet and are changing our vaccinations on our calves this year.  So they can deal with the ever changing weather.  The cows are moved to the lot.  The barn has calving pens ready to go.  We have heat lamps, vaccinations and all the maternity gear ready to go.  We have our first two due on the same day.  And one is a heifer, that I swear is not going to make it to her due date.

We went to a baby shower for a friend last Sunday.  I can't to meet their little man.  This Saturday is my SIL 30th birthday.  She doesn't look her age or act it either.  She is lots of fun.  The next couple of days will be spent getting everything on my house list done.  Because once calving gets into high gear I tend to just glaze over the household stuff.  I prefer to be in the barn anyway.

I have been having a lot of fun with my new little camera "Dinky".  I take it everywhere with me and it fits in my pocket or bag.  So I will share a few of those pictures with you.  We are expecting up to an inch of snow today.  The babes are super excited.  Well, off to do something productive.  I hope you all have a wonderful day....