A BBQ Offense.....

Well my two McCormick-Deering 10-20's were delivered the other day! After unloading them, we had to push the 1927 into the barn for "safe keeping".
It has spent the last 25 to 30 years stored inside, so I figured it should keep living indoors, just to be safe.

We hooked up the tow/push bar to the front, and a come-a-long (otherwise called a "cable puller") to the rear, and proceeded to climb the hill toward the open barn doors. Everything went fine, and she found a nice, comfy home along the north wall of the barn.

I had left just enough room behind for a "bed room" for the calf, and a good amount of room in front for the momma cows to come in, turn, and stick their neck into the stanchion.

Now, BEFORE the tractor got in there, the cows actually had LESS room to get into place to be milked. So, you'd figure, having the front end of the tractor there wouldn't bother them......

Well, Friday morning - the very FIRST day we milked after parking the tractor - the first cow was Clover, she came into the barn, sniffed at the tractor, then turned to stick her head into the stanchion where her breakfast awaited her.

All was well.

Until....

Before we could reach up, and lock the headstall, good 'ole Clover backed straight up, sidled her hind end up to the radiator of my 10-20, and -

Let a nice, juicy cowpie fall all over the front end of my new prize!

I hollered "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?", but it didn't faze her in the slightest - she continued  - happily, I might add - laying it on thick!

She is one LUCKY cow - I should have broke out the BBQ sauce right then and there! The NERVE of some cows! To top it off, she actually wanted SECONDS for breakfast! I finished milking her, then told her to get outta my sight before I changed my mind and put her in the freezer. Dang cow...

THEN, Saturday (or - more appropriate - SaTURDay...), I go out to milk, hook Clover up (since she always seems to be first) to the milker, then decided to turn the crank handle on the tractor, to see if all the valves moved. I grab the handle, shove in on it - and it refuses to slide into the frame hole, and engage the "dog" on the crankshaft!

On closer review, I find a nice chunk of now FROZEN cow poo adhered TIGHTLY, to the crank handle, keeping it from sliding through that hole in the frame! I actually had to CHISEL the stuff off of the handle! I'm pretty sure Clover laughed when she figured out what I was doing...

Stupid cow....

Gonna have to get a tarp over the front end so she can't do it again.

Because I KNOW she'll TRY....