Milking

Afternoons have been warm and it's been so nice! It's a little muddy in the barnyard, but that is nice because the snow and ice have been melting.

Echo and Sadie love lounging around in the sunshine.

I thought you would like to see the milker in action so I took some videos this morning of what I do in the barn every morning.



Echo usually bangs on the door until I let her into the barn in the morning. She's ready for her breakfast, and she's ready to get milked.

I clean her off really well.
No one likes dirt in their milk!

I don't milk Echo by hand because it would take a long time, and it's easier to keep the milk clean if I use a milker.



The milker is attached to a vacuum pump. You probably have a vacuum at home that you use to clean dirt off the floor. This one is a little different because most vacuums can't get wet on the inside.

I really like our clear tank! I can see how much milk is inside.

When I'm all done milking, I let Echo out of the barn.

I also let Sadie out of her stall so she can spend the day with her mom. Echo loves to clean Sadie as soon as she gets outside. Sadie likes it, too.




I don't mind winter, even when it's cold and snowy. I don't mind the warm weather in the springtime either. I get to listen to the birds chirping while I'm working. I love that!

The chickens lay more eggs now that we have more daylight, too. The dogs are shedding their winter coats. And the goats are getting ready to have their babies!

It's so warm that we'll be shearing SideKick the sheep tonight. He'll be happy to have someone take off his winter coat before it gets hot outside!

Lots of changes happen in the spring! I'm pretty sure I can handle them all. How about you? Do you think you can do new things, too?

A Growling Cow, and Trimming Horns

Matt took JJ's stitches out on Saturday. She still has to wear a cone because she won't leave the scar alone yet. I think another week and it will be healed enough that she will leave it alone.

Echo hates the cone on JJ!

I'm sure you have heard a cow mooing. Have you heard a cow growl when they aren't happy?



When I first heard that sound I didn't know what it was. It sounded so odd, and I had never heard it before. Maybe Echo was sick again? Maybe she was hurt?

I ran out of the barn to check on her, and realized that she wasn't sick or hurt! She was just warning everyone that something was wrong with JJ. What a funny sound!

Last week we had a scare in the neighborhood. There was a cougar roaming around on our street, and the street to the west. One neighbor saw it on our street. And another one heard it! Yikes!

We made sure Echo and the other animals were locked in the barn to be safe.

No one has seen or heard the cougar in a few days. I'm still locking all the animals up at night just to be sure. A cougar can easily kill a goat or a calf. I'm sure the cougar is just hungry because it's winter, but I don't want to be the one that feeds it.

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Saturday we trimmed horns on SideKick, the sheep, and Teancum, the buck goat.

Echo banged off her horn a few months ago and I was so happy that I found it in the barnyard so I could let you see what it looks like.

Saanen goats have tenacious horns! Even when we remove them when they are 5 days old, they often still grow back as scurs (not full horns)

Teancum's horns were growing into the back of his head so it was time to trim them,



We use a wire saw to trim horns. It's pretty fast, and it isn't noisy like an electric saw. The animals don't like it when we grab their horns and trim them, but it doesn't hurt them. It's just annoying for a few minutes.

Horns grow just like your fingernails. Most people trim their nails when they get too long. We trim the horns on goats, sheep, and cows when they get too long, or when they start growing in a way that will cause problems.

This is Teancum's horn.

Teancum has shorter horns that aren't growing into the back of his head.

We don't trim sheep horns very often, but SideKick's horn was starting to curl around and grow into his face. His horn wasn't attached very well so once we started using the saw to trim it, it popped off.

You can see the place where we started sawing his horn.
No, SideKick wasn't hurt when his horn popped off.
No, he wasn't bleeding, either!

Echo's horn shell popped off last fall. I found it and I've been saving it because I thought it was interesting to look at.

It didn't bother her when it popped off. No bleeding, and no problems at all.

This is the side that the horn shell popped off.

The horn on the other side never attached to her skull so
it never grew. It moves a little bit because the skin around
the horn is what holds the horn in place.

When she was younger, neither of her horns were attached to her skull. When she was about 2 1/2 this one attached itself to her skull. I think the part that popped off was the part that wasn't attached when she was younger.

I don't think her horn will grow a shell again.
I think this was just one of those odd things that happen once in a while.
It's interesting to see the smooth area that used to fit on top of the attached part of the horn.

I hope you have a wonderful week learning more new things!

Lots of Snow and JJ Gets Stitches

What an eventful week!

We had a snow day. I hope you had fun staying home that day. I went to work at Nuttalls, which was open despite the snow. I don't mind driving in the snow because I grew up driving in the snow. It was fun to drive when there were hardly any other cars on the road.

I also love the snow because I can't hear the highway that is so close to our house. The snow quiets all the noise from cars and trucks and busses. Even the ambulance and fire truck seem quieter when there is snow on the ground.

I also like staying at home, snuggle up in a blanket by the fire and read a good book. But that isn't what happened on Monday.

Not only did we get a lot of snow, we had a lot of wind. 

Look at the snow drifts that the wind created around the barn.

Monday I was cleaning stalls and dragging manure through snow drifts.
It was hard work dragging the wheelbarrow through the snow. 

I also had to bring hay in from the barn through the drifts.

I had a great workout that day!

Some people like to go to the gym to workout. I like to go out to the barn.

The wind had been blowing so hard that night that we
also had snow inside the barn!

Sadie and Echo don't mind the snow.
Look how big Sadie is getting!
She is too big for her coat!

She doesn't mind.
She's a happy calf.

Are you wondering how her horns are healing?
They are doing just fine!
The scabs are about ready to pop off any day.
She'll be better than new because she'll
never grow horns.

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JJ got hurt this week.
We're not sure what happened.
We think she may have tried to squeeze through a gate and cut her leg.

Heather cleaned it all up and put some
ointment on it to help it heal.
The yellow is the ointment, not infection.

The vet wasn't open until the next day so Matt
took her to the vet for stitches.

She's getting antibiotics to fight off infection. It was a big wound, and she lives on a farm. There are lots of germs here. She is also getting some medication to help with the pain. I imagine a wound that big is very painful.

She's resting a lot.
We keep a cone on her because wounds also get itchy when they start to heal.
She'll chew out the stitches if we take the cone off.

No barn work for JJ for about 2 weeks. She is supposed to stay inside and heal.

No herding the cows or the goats. No chasing the chickens back into the pen.

Someone asked how many chickens we have on the farm. I took a video of the chickens coming out of the coop this morning. They haven't been too happy about all the snow lately. Much of the snow was melted in the chicken pen today so they happily came out looking for food!



How many chickens? Did you see the rooster? He was the 7th one out the door this morning.

I counted 20 chickens and 1 rooster.

Did you make it a great week last week? Guess what! Every day is a 'do over'! We get to try again every day.

Lambing Season

You might think that there are four seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn (Fall), and Winter.

Sometimes farmers and ranchers add another season that has nothing to do with weather. Sometimes we have 'lambing season' or 'calving season' or 'kidding season.' Lambing season is when lambs are born, which usually begins in January. Kidding season is when the goat kids are born. Big ranchers and people who take their goats to shows usually plan to have their kids starting in January, too. Calving season can be spring or fall depending on what works better for the rancher.

My friend has a lot of sheep. She loves sheep! She loves making wool into yarn and knitting. She raises Navajo Churro sheep. They come in many colors, and that's one of the reasons she loves them.

The brown ewe (mama sheep) had a white lamb.

Do you see all the funny spots on the ewes' backs?
It almost looks like they have been partially sheared.
They haven't been sheared at all!
Those are the ewes that don't mind the lambs walking all over their backs.

My friend keeps her lambs and ewes inside for a few days until the lambs are strong enough to go outside in the cold. They are born with wool coats, but it takes them a few days to get used to being outside because their coats are not as wooly and thick as their mom's coats are.

My friend's cow also had a calf last week.

This little heifer was born January 23rd.

She was doing fine for a few hours, then my friend went out to check on her and she was dead. That's so sad! Shorty, the name of the mother cow, isn't very easy to milk so my friend was beginning to think it was going to be a lot of work to have to milk a cow that's friendly, but not trained to stand and be milked.

Sometimes calves are very energetic and like to run and jump before their body is ready for it. This little calf was running and playing soon after she was born. She probably ran into the wall and broke her neck. 

Shorty is a good mama, so my friend and her son decided to try something.... 

They decided to get another calf that was the same age as the one that died.

Sometimes cows are very good mamas for their own calves, but they won't take care of any other calves.

Shorty surprised them and adopted the new little calf! My friend doesn't have to milk Shorty every day because the little calf is getting all the milk he can drink!

I love it when things work out so nicely! 

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We were out of town for 5 days last week. We have the most wonderful family take care of our animals while we're gone. They do all the chores and they do them just like I do them when I'm home.

Their daughter tried to feed Sadie a bottle. The dad tried to feed Sadie a bottle. Everyone tried to feed Sadie her bottle in the morning!

But she wouldn't take a bottle from anyone! The little girl was so sad that Sadie wouldn't take the bottle because she loves taking care of baby animals.

I thought that Sadie was probably done having a morning bottle. Sometimes calves are done by the time they are 2 months old.

Nope!
When I got home Sadie was running all around her stall excited to see me!
She was ready to have a bottle of milk from someone that she knew.

Sadie is back to drinking about 3/4 gallon of milk every morning. Silly calf! She was probably hungry but she isn't used to strangers yet.

I'll need to work on that. I'll have friends and neighbors come in the morning so they can feed Sadie, too. I want her to get used to being around lots of people, not just me. That will help her be a better milk cow.

Look how big Sadie is getting!
She gets to run and play and drink as much milk as she wants.
She's a happy, healthy calf.

She loves to run around and play while I'm doing chores.
I think she missed me.

The goats missed me, too. River came right up to me and wanted pets and scratches, so did Lilly. It was fun to be gone for the weekend, and it's fun to be home again.

I love watching her run and play! 

Mishka loves the snow, too!

Make it a great week! I really think you can!

Snow Day!

It's never really a snow day on the farm. We have to get out and take care of the animals even when it snow.

I don't mind! I bundle up with mittens, boots, a coat and hat. I stay warm because I'm outside for at least 90 minutes.

I love the barnyard when it snows. It's so quiet! I can't hear the cars and trucks on the big road that is so close to our house. It's so peaceful!

The neighbor's horse has a coat on when it snows.
She takes really good care of her horses. They have a barn to get
out of the rain and snow, and they have plenty of food.

Our dogs don't mind the snow.
They have fur coats.

Did you notice a new dog in the picture? That's Surry. She comes to visit when her family is on vacation. She's a very good dog. She doesn't chase any of the animals, and she comes when I call her.

Echo doesn't mind the snow.
Part of a cow's stomach is called a 'rumen'.
It is like a big heater!
She stays warm as long as she has enough food and water.

Side Kick stays warm because he has a rumen and a really thick wool coat on!
Sheep wool is very interesting!
It is a little bit water resistant so the snow stays on top of his coat.
When it melts, it just falls off almost like having a rain coat.

The chickens have a spot that they can get out of the wind and snow.
So do the ducks, but ducks don't seem to mind the cold snow.

Ducks have a layer of fat to keep them warm.
Their feathers are waterproof, like a raincoat, so the snow doesn't really stick to them.

Sadie, the new calf, stays warm because I put a coat on her.
Her rumen is just starting to work so it's a little harder for her to stay warm.
She drinks lots of milk on cold days, so that also helps her stay warm.

Sadie had her horns worked on last weekend.
Not many people want a milk cow with horns.

We always remove horns from our animals because it's safer for them, and it's safer for the people that work with them, and the people that visit the farm.

We give Sadie some special medicine called, "Calf Calm." It helps her stay quiet while we work on her.

She's up and playing as soon as we're done!

Even when it snows I still clean up Echo's poo and move it to the back of the pasture.
In the spring there will be lots of people who want to put the manure in their gardens.
It's really good fertilizer!
Fertilizer helps vegetable gardens and flower gardens grow beautiful plants!

It's fun to see the animal tracks in the snow!
These are turkey tracks.
The tom turkey was heading into the cow shed to see if there are any treats.

I usually like the barn floor to be clean.
Not in the winter!
In the winter I always leave a little bit of hay and dirt on the floor
because the cement gets very slippery in the winter.
If I leave dirt and hay on the floor, it isn't very slippery.
I don't want to slip and fall while I'm working.

I'm not really sure how many chickens I have right now.
I'll count them this week and let you know.

Echo was born February 10, 2014.
How old is Echo?

Mishka's birthday is April 14, 2019.
How old is Mishka?

Thanks so much for your questions! I hope you write some more!

Have a great week and have fun playing in the snow!

Christmas 2020

How was your Christmas vacation? I hope you had a great time with your family. I had a wonderful time with mine.

Here's what my front room looked like for Christmas this year

Some years we have a 'living tree.'
A living tree is a tree in a pot that we'll plant in the spring.
Sometimes they look perfect!
Some years they are a little wonky.

Tim always puts his Nutcracker collection on top of the piano.
This year we put little lights around their feet so we can see them at night, too.

They are easier to see in the daylight.

We also have a small artificial tree by the nativity this year.

I really enjoyed sitting in the front room this year and enjoying the Christmas decorations. It was peaceful and lovely! 

It's still up. I'll be taking it down this weekend. Is your Christmas still up? I like to leave it up past New Years because I like to feel the Christmas Spirit right through the beginning of January. 

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Guess what..... Sadie never learned how to drink from a bucket. Echo taught her how to drink like a regular calf. She's hungry in the morning, but not hungry enough to learn how to drink from a bucket.

Not many cows can teach their calves to eat like this after
the calf has only been bottle fed for 2 weeks.
Echo is an amazing mama cow.

Every evening I put Sadie in the stall for the night. It keeps her warm and safe.

Every morning I feed her a gallon of milk in a bottle and let her out to spend the day with Echo.

Sadie stays warm because she has plenty of milk during the day,
and she wears a coat when it's cold.
She doesn't mind playing in the snow at all!

The back of our barn looks so peaceful in the winter.
I love looking at the snow on the pasture.

Chuck and Side Kick don't mind the snow, either.

Side Kick is in the stall this week.
Chuck wanted to play with him.
Side Kick isn't big enough to play with Chuck, so Side Kick got hurt.
He'll be fine in a few days 

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Did you make a Gingerbread house this year? We did! We made 4!

I forgot to take pictures of the houses. They were cute.

What do you do with your Gingerbread houses when you finish making them? Do you eat them?

We don't really like to eat they house. They are really fun to make, but they aren't as tasty as regular cookies.

Do you know who loves to eat our houses?

The animals do!

They don't get cookies very often.

It's a special treat for them!

I have a pile of questions from you. Thank you so much! I'll be answering some of them next week.

I hope you have a great week!