Night Checks

So far I have been out of the loop on the night time calf checks. We only have two cows hanging fire right now, Ricky and Aretha. Ralph and Liz have been taking turns going out at night and I have been doing the early morning and daytime checks, but they are getting tired and I can feel my turn coming.

Night checks are a misery. Even with the best of flashlights, the lumpy frozen ground is hard to walk on. Since we have been having folks prowling around, (see below) I am nervous going to the barn in the dark. I often take Mike and Gael along, although if there is a calf they are a pain in the neck.
There also have been a lot of skunks around whenever it gets above freezing and I am not much more enamored of them than the human kind.

Alan and I were counting up yesterday and between now and the end of April we are expecting 14 of our 56 cows to calve. That adds up to a lot of nighttime hikes. One of these days I am going to get a remote camera and put an end to all this fun. Oh, well, if you can get past the bogeymen in the bushes, it is nice out at night, quiet and clear. Guess I will live.
Farming
Calves