When we herded our cats calves the other day, Lucas was the designated dog of the day. Why? First and foremost, Lucas works quietly. If he was as barky as Elsa can sometimes be, the momma cows would turn back, ready to defend their calves, and forward progress would be non-existent. Lucas’ bark applies to when cows turn,…
Category: Dogs
A Ride
Lucas takes a ride in our calf cart… Details to follow tomorrow… Sorry, it is a busy day!
Eight Days and Counting
I’m excited… did I tell you that? And Elsa grunts and pants… and squeaks when she breathes at the right angle. She wants to go in the morning with Vernon, but I deny her that… thinking that jumping on a hay wagon is something that overly pregnant dogs shouldn’t do! She still goes on walkabouts…
Ten Days and Counting
Ten days and counting… Butcher’s Foothills Elsa, (United Kennel Club Registry, English Shepherd Club Registry, Canine Good Citizen, MDR1 mutant/normal, OFA Good, light shaded sable female, born 5/10/2004) is gravid, fecund, replete. Gravid is a great term for her. Heavy, burdened. Slowed by the extra weight, she rocks to achieve a standing position. Fecund. Prolific….
Spring Storm
A spring storm has hit the Cowboy State, with snow and below zero temperatures. That meant Vernon was kept busy checking the cows and calves… making sure a newborn didn’t “freeze down”. A newborn is covered in wet slime… so landing on frozen ground can actually freeze them down to the ground… like your wet…
Puppies
‘ve known for a while now… and I did post it on my website… but I’ll make the announcement here… We’re gonna have puppies! The due date is March 24th. I’m thrilled. Elsa is feeling… well… fat! Slowing a tad, too. I will get to enjoy them in good weather as opposed to her last…
Heifer Story
Sooner or later, you do a job long enough, something unusual will occur that makes the entire process glow with a new light… So it is with checking heifers… I mentioned before how I check the heifers sometime between 10 and 11 pm. There are no street lights. Moonlight and starlight exist in its phases,…
Heifers 4
Ah… the last of the video series… <sniff> Will you miss them?? I enjoy doing these, because they can explain things much better in some respects. Like most areas of expertise, it is easy to forget to explain simple things that we take for granted. Hopefully these videos have filled the gaps of my writings….
Heifers 3
So, we have gathered and sorted heifers, and now we do our night checks. I’m in charge of the 10:30 pm night check… I’m more a night owl than Vernon, so while he might have been in bed for a couple of hours already, I’m just finishing a craft or watching the news, or reading a book… and ready…
Heifers 2
What a wonderful springlike day… warm, snow melting everywhere… runoff turning the creek from clear to red… and more babies! Our cows have now started having babies as well, so within two weeks we’ll be surrounded by calves – bucking, playing, running wild with tails in the air! For now, I have the second video…