Tired Goats...

It's been in the upper 80's here for the past week or so, the kind of days that make a dog fall asleep. Even the goats try to "work" when it's cool out, then take a siesta about mid day.

Of course, when you're a kid, you take a nap whenever the "feeling" comes upon you.

This morning at 6:30 or so, I looked out to see the two moms and their four charges, out in the driveway. Albeit, they were heading in toward the barn at the time. I figured they'd be up and causing trouble until it got too warm to play.

When I went out to feed them at around 7:30, one mom was up eating, the other mom was laying in an odd "dead" looking position in a gate way, and the four little monsters were nowhere in sight.

I was about 10 feet from the barn door when the grazing mom saw me, let out a yell, and headed toward the can of food in my hand. This, in turn, made one of her daughters jump up from the tire she had been dozing in. Deeming it wasn't an emergency - and apparently not being hungry - the little girl settled back down to nap in the morning sunshine. This time she lay on the outside of the tire.

At this point, I decided that the better part of valor would be to forgo feeding, and return to the house to get my camera.

I hoped that everyone would stay where they were until I got back.

My first picture when I returned was this one, with the little girl still fighting sleep, leaning up against the tire feeder she hopped out of.



I noticed a spot of white "fluff" behind her, in the tire, so figured I had better get a closer view.



It was a pretty precarious moment. I prayed that I could get a couple half-way decent photos before everyone was disturbed enough to scatter. I crept closer and closer, until I could hold the camera out and snap another one:



Normally, this tire is sitting the other side up, and is used as a feeder in the winter. For most of the rest of the year, it becomes a "play toy"

Or a bed....

It would have been nice to get a photo of all four of them in there, but you can see where she WAS lying. It must have been a tight squeeze to get everyone in there, but kids are good at "weaving" themselves into tight places. Maybe this girl figured it was time for a stretch.

At any rate, the shadow approaching from the east in the bottom photo is one of moms coming to roust everyone.

She just HAD to spoil the fun...

FINALLY....

It's been raining off and on over the past week, and add it the other things we've been up to, and the grass in the front yard needs baled....er.....mowed. At last, this afternoon, I hopped on my little lawn tractor and clipped it down to bare earth - or something about 4" away.

Since my last experiment with haylige was molested by a hungry bovine who destroyed the bag it was in to get at what was inside, I decided it would be a good idea to "hide" this stuff. That way, miss Mabel will need to work at it in order to get at it.

There was one thing I used today that I never have had the chance to run since we got it. It's an old "lawn sweeper" that Deb's Uncle had when he died in 1994. He had a lawn care business in Independence, Missouri, and it was one of the things he had for his work.

I've not used it up until now because I never picked up the clippings! When I DID want to pick them up, the lawn we had was either too small, or I didn't have a lawn tractor to pull it.

It's nothing fancy - just a sweeper broom on the front that picks up the clippings and tosses them into a basket. It sure beats hand raking and allows me to dump all the clippings in one spot with a flip of a handle.

The BAD thing about it is, it takes multiple passes to get everything swept up! I still have to come behind it with a rake, but it isn't as much. I'm still experimenting with how I mow to keep the clippings in small enough "windrows" so the sweeper can pick them up.



The sweeper also has lost the "thread" out of one stitch along the side and bottom. I'll need to figure out how to fix that before I used it again. At least I know it DOES work, just not as good as I had hoped!

I got about 1/2 the lawn mowed, so I still have lots to do.

MAYBE I'll get back to it tomorrow.....

Stanchion Update, And Deb's Birthday...

It's been kind of a hectic week around here! There's been a little bit of everything going on - most of it good.

Wednesday, May 19th, was Deb's Birthday - the big 4-0! She's been planning things for several months. She even bought a COW for herself for her birthday! Wonder of wonders - a year ago, she wouldn't even come CLOSE to a cow - now she leads Daisy around by a rope, and even gives her HUGS!

It's understandable, though. Prior to our cows, the only experiences she had with them were not very good. Plus, she grew up with goats, which are WAY less intimidating! Here is a photo of her and her cow, Daisy. The cow is just hoping the photo session will hurry up and end, so she can get back to munching grass. Either that, or the neck scratching was especially nice...



Unfortunately for Daisy, she had to endure another round of photos - this time with ME at her side!

It's amazing, but I never realize how SHORT these two cows are when I am working with them. It's not until I see a photograph that I see how "vertically challenged" they really are! I am 6'7" and Daisy comes to just over my waist. Mabel is a few inches taller, but not much.

Maybe we need to get them some platform hooves.....



They weren't real happy with me today, though. It was raining, so they didn't get out to "play" in the yard - they had to stay in the barnyard all day - most of which, they spent in their little shed.

I did make some progress on the stanchion today! I measured out and cut the pieces for the feed pan. It went together pretty easy, once everything was cut. I decided to use an old refrigerator "crisper tray" for the feed pan itself, and cut some sheet metal for "slobber guards".

I haven't gotten it attached yet, but it is ready to go on.



As you can see, the "inspector" couldn't hardly wait until it was done to see if it was "worthy". I still have a couple of little things to do to it (the feed pan, not the cat....), but it can be used as it is.

Just a few more "bits" and the stanchion will be ready for use.

Of course, it has to stop raining, too.....

Cow Tipping.....

Mabel has a bad habit of just strolling along on the way to the stanchion. She does this just about every morning, and just about as often, Daisy cuts her off at the pass, and shimmies through the door first, leaving poor Mabel to stand there, blinking.

On rare occasions, Mabel DOES manage to sneak in ahead of Daisy for first dibs at the feed pan, but she has to be dang quick. I've seen Daisy wait until Mabel is 10 feet from the door, then kick it into high gear, and come from 10 cow lengths behind, to take the checkered flag.

Mario Andretti would be proud.....

After Daisy feeds her face, I open the front door of the barn, and turn her loose into the Great Wide Open. This, of course, does NOT sit well with Mabel. She can look out of the window in front of her, while she eats, and see Daisy happily munching on the lawn.

Maybe I should invest in a curtain.

I guess all this builds up in Mabel's Brain Housing Group, until it reaches a point where she just can't stand it anymore, and she begins to plot her revenge. Most of the time, this revenge is not only directed at Daisy, but I become a victim, too.

Last week, I saved the lawn clippings in a bag so I could make "haylige". I had my grand experiment sitting in the barn, minding it's own business. It was just sitting there, fermenting nicely, unaware of what was about to befall it.

Last evening, I was on my daily round up to bring the two girls back to the barn for milking and overnight. During these jaunts, Daisy usually takes the lead because Mabel wants to get in that "last mouthful" of grass before heading in for more food.

There we were - Daisy out in the lead by a good 30' feet, with Mabel and I moseying along behind. All of a sudden, Daisy developed an itch, and stopped to scratch it. It was one of those that get them right under the back leg. The only way to fix an inch like that, is to stop, stretch the offending leg as straight out as possible, balance on the other three legs, then curl back and attack the itch with your tongue.

That being the case, that's precisely what Daisy did.

This is where Mabel's plotting came in handy. She saw her chance, dropped down into over drive, and body slammed poor Daisy. The next thing Daisy knew, she was listing to port at about 30°. It took a total miracle that she didn't go all the way over. As it was, she did some pretty fancy maneuvering to stay in the upright and locked position.

Meanwhile, Mabel let out a "Victory Moo" and sashayed off toward the barn.

Once we got there, I discovered my goodie bag I had sitting peacefully in the barn had been molested. There were grass clippings everywhere, and the broken, torn, and mutilated body of the bag it was in lay ominously on the barn floor. I quickly discovered the culprit, as Mabel walked by, giving the bag a triumphant snort.

It seems that SOMEBODY had broken INTO the barn and found something to pay me back with.

I'd have suspected BOTH cows, but Mabel was the only one who seemed overly proud of herself.

Oh well, if it weren't the cows conspiring against me, it would be the goats - and there's MORE of them.....

South East Nebraska Wednesday Morning All-Star Rodeo And Roundup

This is Belle (which APPARENTLY is short for Belle-zebub...). She had a rough morning - which is not to say that WE didn't have a tough go of it - Belle just got the worse end of the deal.



It all started yesterday afternoon (this is the part on TV where everything starts to flicker, get wavy, and fade into a flashback...).....

I figured I'd be real nice to the two younger cows and let them out into the new pasture a few days early. With they not needing milked and all, there was really no reason why they COULDN'T go out there. The grass was nice and lush, and the fence was done. There hadn't been a cow on that part of the place for 3 years so it was about time to re-introduce them.

So, out I went with a bucket of grain to lead the blind guy and Belle to the gate. I figured that Belle would be the tough one, but she walked right in (along with the goats, unfortunately). Chuck, on the other hand, decided that he didn't like a slope he had to negotiate along the way, so he stopped cold. After shoving and pushing, I finally had to let him stick his face INTO the bucket.

Amazing how the taste buds make your feet forget what they are doing - Mr Scaredy Cat walked right down that slope and through the gate without even thinking about it.

Now, I had to figure a way to get the goats back to THEIR pasture. Always the eager ones to explore, they disappeared into the underbrush. A couple were easy to catch, but others knew what I had planned. The one who I figured would be the hardest, turned out to be the easiest - he stuck his head in the - now empty - bucket and didn't see me reaching for his horns. He was so embarrassed, he didn't even put up a fight.

It took about 45 minutes, but I finally got the goats all rounded up and back through the gate.

Little did I know that this was only the first event of the Rodeo.....

Early this morning, Deb hollers "BELLE'S OUT!" Ok, FINE....I wasn't sleeping anyway. To make things even MORE enjoyable - it's RAINING. One of those misty, drizzly, icky types of rains.

So I get dressed and head out to Day Two - the first event - Calf Finding. I head to the barn to grab a bucket of grain, all the while, Belle is watching me from a point about 20' from the barn door. When I come back with the bucket - all of about a MINUTE later - Belle has *POOF* disappeared!

Ok, so I figure, the last place I seen her was east of the barn, so I head off in that direction. I check in and around both sheds I have there but, no Belle. Now I decide to go tromping up the wet hill to see if she ran across the hayfield.

No Belle...

Now that I've walked about 1/8 of a mile in a nasty drizzle - who do you think I see standing by the gate I am hoping she'll go through - clear down by the house? Stupid cow is testing me.....

Ok. I figured that this was where she got out in the first place. I remember going through that gate when I was working on the shed, and not wiring it shut. Upon closer review, I was right, it was open about "cow wide".

At any rate, all my hopes had begun to come true - Belle was standing not 3 FEET from the open gate I wanted her to pass through. I even allowed myself to think "WOW, This is gonna be EASY!"

I SHOULD have known better.

The crazy cow saw me heading her direction, saw the bucket in my hand, and started COMING TO ME. We passed within a foot of each other as she watched me head toward the gate. She stood there, dumbfounded for a few seconds, then walked after me. Life is good, thought I, as I walked through the gate. I turned around just in time to see the blue-green glow of the force-field that stretched across the open gate. Apparently, humans can go through this force-field, but cows cannot.

Belle had stopped cold once again - 3 feet from my freedom....

Ok, time for a little "Cow Physcology 101"..... I'll just feed Chuck, then Belle will see him enjoying breakfast and come running.

Yeah, RIGHT.

I forgot to turn off the force-field.

She STOOD THERE, watching Chuck gobble down the feed. I calmly walked past her to see if I could coax her through from behind. All this made her do was walk PAST the gate. I managed to cut her off at the pass and turn her around. She bounced off the force-field and took off at a dead run toward the barn.

Since that worked so well, I decided to try "Cow Physcology 102". I'd go get Daisy, since I could lead her, walk her through the gate, and Belle would follow. Well, this plan was going nicely until I slipped and let loose of Daisy's halter...Now I had TWO cows that wanted to enjoy front yard freedom.

About this time, Deb came out to help. Daisy, as it turns out, didn't want to miss breakfast, so she headed into the barn and onto the stanchion. Amazingly, Belle was in tow.

Now we had her snookered, albeit, in the BARN, not the pasture where she belonged, but hey, snookered, nevertheless. Deb decided that it would be a good time to put a halter back on Belle so we could (MAYBE) use that, either now or in the future. We had a nice, pretty green one we bought just FOR Belle. Now was the day to put it on.

I'll spare you the details but, suffice it to say, my foot, back, and my milking stool will NEVER be the same again, but we got the halter on Belle.

Now the fun part. I hooked a lead to Belle, and opened the door. We figured that she'd zoom out the door, but she walked out, casually. Of course, she stopped in the middle of the doorway. Deb hooked a lead to Daisy, and let her loose from the stanchion. It took a head butt, but Daisy was successful at removing Belle's behind from her path.

Our hopes were Belle would "follow" Daisy over to the pasture. This proved to be a "sorta" thing. She followed, alright, but begrudgingly. There were several times when Deb had to stop, turn around and bring Daisy back to "nudge" Belle. It took a bit, but there we stood - at the GATE. Daisy walked through fine, but must have hit the switch with her tail because, Belle dug in her hooves and REFUSED to cross that barrier.

I had visions of the halter breaking, or the rope breaking, or my arm breaking - but we SOMEHOW managed to get the wayward calf back where she belongs. I could plant corn in the furrows she made going through the gate, though.

Now she's sulking - mad at me for not letting her roam free, and for forcing her to wear a halter.

Meanwhile, Mabel was hollering over by the barn. She had seen me open the gate for Daisy, then shut it behind her. Then, she saw Daisy out in the yard where SHE wanted to be. Mabel was NOT a happy cow. When I DID come to the barn to milk her, she trotted over to the gate, thinking it was time to let her out. Instead, she had to go through the barn and stand on the stanchion first.

Talk about a MOOD. Give her breakfast and she complains about it.

We got no "action shots" of the events, but I took a couple photos of Belle afterwards. She wasn't in the best of moods. Her last parting shot at me was this "tail whip". I know it was meant TOWARD me and not just an "ordinary" flip.



She's just biding her time until she can think of something dastardly to do. The last I saw her, she was just standing there, staring at that gate....

......On A Stanchion Built For Two......

That's not EXACTLY how the old song went, but it will have to do for now.

But, then again, it's not a bicycle we're talking about, either.

Last year when we brought Mabel home, I had to do some fancy rebuilding in the barn. I had a stanchion for a GOAT, but not for a COW. I decided that I'd build a "dual purpose" stanchion - one that had a spot for a goat AND a cow.

What I came up with might look a little unorthodox, but it works for both critters. Goats go on the "upper level", cows go on the "second floor" and the cats stay on the ground floor.

A couple of days ago, one of our does - Bunny - gave birth to twin boys. Since she is half Boer and half LaMancha, she has a bigger udder then the rest of the Boer goats. This, while it ensures her kids have plenty to eat, can pose a problem, if the kids aren't eating enough to "relieve the pressure" on mom's bag.

The first couple days, the babies do a lot of sleeping and don't eat a lot when they DO feed, so mom was feeling uncomfortable. She even resorted to pawing at her kids, and forcing them back to her udder. They just weren't eating enough to suit her.



Well - I had to do this last year, so Bunny SHOULD have been prepared. I rounded her up, and off we went to the stanchion. She did a few feeble attempts at hopping around, then realized WHY she was there and relaxed into being "relieved".

She was happy, the kids were happy (no more pawing), and the cats were VERY happy.

That was all a couple days ago. I've been getting Bunny on the stand ever since - twice a day - and helping to relieve her problem. This afternoon, I decided to do and experiment - put the goat AND the cow on the stanchion at the SAME TIME.

I know, I'm asking for trouble.....

Mabel got in first. I figured that I could handle a goat better then a cow if one of them refused to move.

So there we were, Mabel in her headstall, chomping away, Bunny trotting into the room, and me at the ready for anything. Well except for what happened. Bunny hopped right onto the stanchion, stuck her face in the pan and started eating! I figured there would be pushing, shoving, grabbing of horns and gnashing of cud, before the experience was over.



Miss Bunny stood a little closer to the wall then usual, but the draw of food is greater then the fear of cow.

I even did another small experiment - I sat down on my bench I always milk from (it would be right behind the platform Bunny is on, and to the left of Mabel in the photo), put the pail under Mabel, and a pan (for the cats) under Bunny. I counted to 4.5 under my breath, then milked BOTH GIRLS AT THE SAME TIME.

It didn't last long, but it was fun while it lasted. Bunny finally decided she didn't like someone playing with her udder that she couldn't see, so I left her eat, and finished Mabel. Once Mabel was gone, then I sat beside Bunny, and things went smoothly.

I don't know how often I'll do it like this, but at least I know it CAN be done.

The things I think of in my spare time.....

So, I Had This Pile Of Scrap Metal Laying There...

...and I was wondering what to do with it.

It all started a couple of months ago, when we brought Daisy home. It wasn't spring yet, so the two Jersey cows were living in with the Blind Angus and the Hereford heifer. We knew right off that the grass in that pen wouldn't be enough to support all of them, so I made plans to start building fence as soon as the ground was soft enough.

As it turned out - the fence was the easiest (and quickest) part of the project. The pasture is ready but the shed and stanchion I need are still not quite done enough for the "big move". For now, the two yearlings are in with the pesky goats who like to try and steal food from a Blind Guy, and the Jerseys are allowed to roam free in the yard during the day.

All I have left on the shed is putting tin on, but that will need to wait until the winds die down. The last few days have been brutal where the wind is concerned.
Ah well, this has given me the opportunity to delve into the building of the stanchion.

I wanted something that I could move around from pasture to pasture, so I didn't have to bring the cows back to the barn twice a day. This mean it had to be on wheels. It also needed to be a "raised platform" that got the cow's feet about 10" off of the ground. This also meant that it had to be extra sturdy in order to support the weight of a 1000 pound cow.

Well, I dug into my scrap pile(s), and came up with some things I didn't even know I had!

It's amazing what you can accumulate if you try...

Anyway - Deb's dad had given me the head lock for a stanchion that his dad had used when they had a cow. It turned out to be just the thing to build the rest of the stanchion around.

One of my other requirements for this project, was that it be able to fold so it wasn't "awkward" to move.

I had an old axle from a corn elevator, and a couple of those little fake spare tires that all the cars come with, so I got lucky that way - a little fabrication and they work just fine - it's not like the thing is supposed to go 60 mph down the highway...

I rolled it out of the barn this morning to take a couple photos. This is what it looks like folded down:



I haven't got any braces for the headlock on yet, but it still manages to stand up pretty well - for a photo, anyway:



I have a few cross-braces for the floor ready to go in, but haven't managed it yet. Once I get to that point, I can put a tongue brace underneath to sturdy things up.



When I get it all done, I'll weld a lot of it together. For now, though, I have most of it just bolted down. I'd LIKE to have some expanded metal for the floor but, I don't have any, so I'll use 2x boards.

All in all - it's turning out pretty well! I plan on attaching some "stake holes" so I can make sure it stays in the same spot, a railing along the sides, and - of course - a feed pan. It's getting there, slowly, but surely.

I'm sure the cows will be scared to death of it for awhile....

Ok, I'm Starting To Shake Now.....

The other day, a buddy of mine stopped by. He's a Ford fan, but he is REALLY into IH. He's like me, not a big fan of JD (not bashing JD, just not for me). Anyhoo, during the conversation, I pipe in and say "I only got ONE thing that's John Deere - my old, beat up shredder...".

This old thing was sold to me CHEAP because it was "on it's last legs" according to where I got it. The only thing wrong with it was a bad oil seal and the clutch was shot. I replaced the clutch with a shear pin set-up, filled the gearbox with grease instead of oil, and it's been tearing up grass and weeds for about 8 years since.

As it turns out, I probably should have never said a word about not having John Deere stuff.

My wife chimes in and says "What about that planter?" Oh yeah - I forgot about the 2-row JD Lister....We picked it up from a "divorce sale" a few years back, for $7. Give me a break on that one, I only see it once a year. It does a great job, and I'm glad I got it, popcorn tin lids and all.

Just when I THOUGHT it was safe to change the subject, my buddy pops up with "And that PLOW?"

OK, I forgot about the plow HE gave me....I haven't actually USED it yet, so it doesn't count. Besides, all of the paint has worn off, so I can't tell it's Johnny unless I get close enough to read the writing cast into the arms.

Now, I realize that I'm in serious trouble, so PLAN on keeping my mouth shut. Unfortunately, my mouth wasn't listening. I COULD have just let it go, and we'd have been on to a different conversation, but NOOOO, I had to chime in again.....

"Well, I guess that Manure Spreader I rebuilt a few years back is a Greenie....."
(And the other "parts" spreader just like it that sits behind the shed...). I was getting in deeper and deeper.

As I scanned the horizon and my farmstead, I was hoping against hope that there would be NO MORE John Deere equipment to be found - then, it hit me. There on top of the hill was another item - practically GLOWING green. I gulped, cleared my throat, and said "Then there's that grain wagon....", my voice trailed off, "guess I better count that".

It was about time I wised up, so I managed to change the subject. I dunno what to, maybe the weather, price of gas, etc, etc. It didn't really matter, as long as it wasn't about green paint.

Since that afternoon, as I've been working around the place, I've run across even MORE green stuff. One I only count as HALF John Deere, my Letz grinder, because JD bought the company.

I DID manage to get rid of the old JD STX38 lawn tractor I had. It didn't even scare the grass, the lawn just laughed when it saw it heading it's direction. Ah well, it was cheap...

I need rehab or something - maybe better meds, I dunno. I'm just here to confess and admit to the shame I feel.....

God help me, I've become my worst nightmare....