Bred in the Bone

Farming-it gets in your blood, it's bred in your bones. You hold it in your heart and it holds you. 


This story is a great example of how it takes you in to its soul and never lets you go.

Losing Small Dairies

Are the days of small dairy farms over for most everyone but the Amish.....the answer is probably.

Oh, No

John Bunting, who is perhaps the dean of dairy bloggers,  certainly a man who knows more about the dairy industry than almost any one I have ever met, is seriously ill. Prayers have been requested. 

A Sunday that was Monday

 Sassenach left over from Sunday Stills

Worked my morning off yesterday because of green grass and our too-small, inch-and-a-half milk pipeline. The girls are working hard with all the lush new feed and they make so much milk that they flood that skinny little line.


All the milkers fall off, and the cows kick and jump on them, and you have to dump the vacuum trap, and milk runs all over the floor, and there is a mess. 


On and on and on. It can happen several times per milking.


However, if someone spends the whole milking in the milk house, thumb on the pump switch, turning on the transfer pump every time a new surge of milk gushes into the receiving jar, you can get through milking without any drop offs.


I appointed myself Sunday morning pump switch engineer in chief and, with the company of my iPod, spent a fairly peaceful morning. However, the rest of the day was pretty much a Monday, only dressed up nice for the weekend.

Lucky jumped the fence Saturday night and bruised her udder, requiring much treatment both morning and evening. Plus Velvet finally decided that she can walk, but not well enough to make it out to a stall to be milked by machine. Thus the kids put a halter on her and tried to get one of the bull calves to take care of the job. However, the calf wasn't hungry and didn't cooperate, so they haltered her and hand milked her.

She is such a pet that she just let them do it, but with all the doctoring and all, we didn't get out of the barn til after nine PM. The boss was grateful that we did all the work on Saturday while he was off being an auctioneer, so he was going to buy everybody pizza for Sunday supper. However, by 9 they all wanted to go home or go in the house and crash.


So I made tuna sandwiches. Maybe tonight we will get the pizza.


Pretties seen for Sunday: Boss and I walked up in the day pasture to bring down the cows for night milking. Sun was on its way down and glinting off the river to the north, surrounded by trees like a sapphire on a sea of green. In all the years I have worked here and all the trips up the hill I had never seen it like that. It was blindingly beautiful. The land will surprise you that way ....new lovelies every day.


Then Jade and I were holding gate while the boss brought in bales. A set of turkey vulture septuplets sailed down over the barnyard and the same setting sun gilded the lighter parts of their under wings with golden fire. Who would think that a close up of such ugly critters could be so stunning? We stopped to watch them teetering back and forth until they headed west to their roosts on the mountain.


All in all it was a normal day of up and down and good and bad.....that's farm life for you. Insane but beautiful.

Pasture

The Kateri Shrine right across the river

Can't get enough of it. The grass is sparse because it has been so cold and dry, but we turned the girls out for the night last night just the same. How they are enjoying it, lined out all over the hill in the pink and gold of the morning sun. I love to watch them graze...I think any farmer or rancher gets a deep down satisfaction from watching their animals eat. I love to stand in the barn last thing on a winter night and listen to our ladies rustling through their hay...it brings a great sensation of contentment and comfort.

I keep one ear awake all night during pasture time though, when they are turned out, listening for hooves where they don't belong, the phone ringing, mooing in strange places or the sound of grass being torn up beside the garden pond....all signs that the cows are out. That is NEVER good news, but especially not at night.

And I forgot to do this the other day, but JB put up a really great post about a talk he heard that you really should read. It is right here. So much of what is drummed into us night and day about the food we eat is bull...and that is putting it nicely.

Now, off to invite the girls to come down off the hill and into the barn for some nice tasty grain and an appointment with the milking machines. Have a good one.

Monday

Fence line oak up in the heifer pasture

I am losing track of all the calves I swear...at least one more heifer and a cute little Jersey bull born over the weekend. I think poor Liz has twenty on buckets. 


Last time we had a Jersey bull calf we were offered the opportunity to sell him to a certain individual who...oh, never mind...it was the religion of peace and all, but the way they handle baby calves is distasteful, even if most of our animals eventually end up as beef.


 Instead we gave him to some folks who have a Jersey farm...well in the end they paid us for him, but not because we wanted them to. He was well bred and is used now on their farm to breed registered heifers. Kinda nice, because it means that Liz's herd prefix will be out there a little. This guy will probably go the same way or become a steer and go out to Fort Plain to keep a certain Percheron company. Too bad he was a bull, because he is put together real nice.

Yogurt and the Mailbox Price

Interesting article here, written by Sherry Bunting. Thought provoking.

And so...

My dear old Etrain died. She was old, but a favorite, the gentlest cow you could imagine. She has been written about here many times as you will find if you search for her name. I know, don't think, but know, that she liked me too. She looked to me specifically for food and petting and sweeping off of the old hair with the broom. If I brushed on her neighbor, Lemmie, she would swing her head at me, to let me know she wanted a turn. I am going to miss her a lot, no two ways about it. 


However, it is an incredibly beautiful day and I am going to go outdoors and look for something to do even if it's wrong, as the boss would say. 


The vet was here yesterday and she said that it has been a tough winter all around despite the mild weather. March and April are always the worst months, as the cows are the farthest away from green grass. One of our vets calls grass, "Doctor Green", and she isn't far wrong.


There were so many birds singing this morning that it took me a minute to separate out all the threads of sound to see who was who. I am so ready for spring I could capriole like a baby goat.

Feeding

We start out with a great big bale. 


We pull off forks full of hay until we have an itty bitty bale. 


The itty bitty bale is taken inside. 


Everybody eats.


All is well.

Thursday

There is word of snow, anything from a major storm to something going on way south of NYC. Not gonna worry about it. 


Bookkeeping seems to be done for the week, writing is pretty much done for the week. We have a logger fella working in our woods in hopes of enough income to pay the taxes. Cows are shedding like it's their job. I groomed on Lemmie for about two minutes yesterday and got enough hair to cover the floor. They go outdoors every day, but evidently she doesn't see fit to groom herself.
Boy is still laid off and home. Liz is off to the far, far north today on her job. The kids have all been doing a lot of things to make life better around here....a lot...I won't go into detail, but many worries are off my shoulders because of the three of them. Liz even took my heavy outdoor work shirt home and washed and dried it last night just to be nice. I don't know what we would do without them.

 Above, geese on the river

Below, a curtain of ice up in Canjo, a teaser for this week's 

Sunday Stills

I generally like Thursdays, as I usually am done with the books and writing and can actually be a farmer for the day. Dunno how this one is going to go, but I guess I will head out to find out. Take care

Ocean-View Dispersing the Herd

I was shocked to read that Ocean-View Holsteins in Windsor, California will be selling their over 600 cows on May 2. The farm is a true icon of Holstein cattle, having bred such famous bulls as Ocean-View Sexation, Zenith, Zander and many others.


Liz was lucky enough to visit the farm and meet the owners during a college field study to California to learn about farming there. She loved seeing Zandra and other well-knows cows.

Mandy, an Ocean-View Zenith daughter and two-time junior champion at Altamont fair, 

being milked in the fair parlor.

Here at Northview we have many daughters of bulls from that farm, including Liz's retired show cow, Mandy (Ocean-View Zenith), and Becky's Lemonade (Ocean View Extra Special), Camry, same sire as Lemmie, and several others.


I guess there comes a time for all things to end, but we will miss Ocean-View and their beautiful cows and high-transmitting bulls.

Heifer Wrasslin'

**Alan took this last summer with his phone and I stumbled upon it yesterday while cleaning out my inbox. I believe it is the Kingpin daughter, Bayliner, down below the barn yard gate, having escaped in order to eat box elder trees. I don't know what it is with that family, but they all will do whatever it takes to get to the darned things and eat them....and personally they could eat every single one on the farm right down to the roots and I wouldn't get mad.

We had three springing heifers, Rosie, my milking shorthorn show heifer, and one open heifer to bring into the cow barn yesterday. (Well actually we had several open ones, but they didn't cooperate.) 


At first they didn't even want to come down off the hill at all. They didn't want to be driven. They didn't want to come when called. They wouldn't even come down when they heard the skid steer which brings their food to them.


After waiting for a while (in the bright, crisp sunshine, not too much of a punishment) I went and got a bucket of grain. 


That got their attention.


We kind of wanted to bring all of them down and put those that are not springing up to calve in a pen in the back of the barn where can keep a better eye on them. However, Shamrock, the Jersey, Rio, a milking shorthorn, Cevin and one other Holstein wanted nothing to do with us so they are still out.


Getting the others down to the barn was only part of the equation. Getting them first into the barn was one project, then getting them into stalls or the pen, depending on how close up they are to calve was another.


It was good to have Al home. He caught some with a halter and just pulled them in and put them where we wanted them, and tolled the others with that trusty grain bucket. Liz got back from work and helped too, so although it took quite a while it went pretty well.


 Nothing like young folks to make a job go a lot easier.


Now we will have to watch them close to make sure they can handle their new locations safely. Cows can be pretty godawful dumb sometimes. I'm glad they are in though, because we need to watch the close ups real closely.

Same Old, Same Old

It is kinda hard to find anything interesting to write about these days. We certainly keep busy...yesterday the boss fixed stalls to bring some heifers into the cow barn. We moved calves, cleaned as always, dragged in hay off round bales and fed it out. Bought another load of round bales (ouch), and prayed for green grass and soon.


Alan has some time home from his job...as the newest guy on the roster he has to wait his turn for work. He is handy to have around and helped the boss replace a stubborn stall divider the beef steer wrecked and rebuilt Mandy and Blitz's tie rail. Since Blitz had worked the rail loose enough that she could step right up into the manger and steal feed from Broadway and Dalkeith across the barn, it was a much needed repair.


These are all things that are engaging enough when you are doing them, but they don't exactly make for thrilling reading later....it's all right by me though. I would rather soldier along doing the boring jobs day after day than run around coping with crisis after crisis, which is a pretty normal situation on a farm, especially when there are animals involved.

Surprise

Kitteh, lying in wait for something
Please click to enlarge any of these

Sitting at the kitchen table this morning getting outside the first cup of coffee when Liz walked in.

Scaring the heck out of something and making it run away and slip on the ice

No surprise as that is how the day usually goes. 


Except that I hadn't heard her truck. I usually hear her truck...before the dog does in fact. He sure is getting old.


I didn't hear the truck because she came in really, really, really early and milked ALL the cows by herself (except Lemmie, because she didn't know what I am doing with her) and fed the babies.


Wow, that sure is a great surprise.Thanks Liz!


And last night the boy dropped in with a half a dozen hilarious stories about life in the big city and pretty girls and all those young guy things we miss when he is gone.

"Something" track. I would say possum....what was that kitteh thinking!

So anyhow, I had time to go out an look at some tracks and take some pics. Brave kitties out there last night...but kinda stoopid!

The Things You Learn While Moving Heifers

The electric fence gate is indeed "hot". If you touch it while wearing thick rubber boots and gloves and standing on snow, you won't get grounded completely and knocked on your *ss. However, liquid fire will run over your skin and you will cuss in the general direction of the guy who built such a tight d*** gate! Ouch!


When you worry and agonize for months over how you will move a certain recalcitrant heifer with big horns and a bad attitude, from heifer barn to cow barn....... When you sweat and plan and lose sleep fretting over what she will do......


She will walk quietly, almost exactly where you want her to go, and stroll into the barn and let you lug her into a stall with only the most minor of disagreements.


As if to say, "Ha, fooled you, didn't I?"


And the best cow moving item I have ever found is an old worn out canoe paddle. I always keep something on the porch with which to direct cow traffic. I can't count the number of times I have looked out the window to see cattle coming at me where they don't belong. Or heard hooves and moos out of place. It does not pay to chase them unarmed, as they will laugh and leap around you, kicking up their heels as they race away.


However, as with any tool sequestered by the lady of the house, all my fiber glass sorting sticks became "walking" sticks (as in walking away..I have a walking hammer too) and are over at the barn. When the time came to move an animal recently there was nothing on the back porch to choose from but a hoe and the canoe paddle.


 I chose the one that fit my hand the best and carried the fondest memories. Much to my astonishment cattle respect that paddle. And do not challenge me when I carry it. Must be because they can see it so well and it makes me look wider (amazing) and more dangerous.


Anyhow, farmers love to recycle and I am going to recycle that old paddle!


**Thanks again for your prayers and thoughts. Dad had a good day yesterday and took two walks and ate hit meals. I think that is excellent progress.

Cheese and Dairy in the Mohawk Valley

Area business people are making whey while the sun shines.


The boss and I are lucky enough to know all these fine folks and to have served with them on various boards of directors and such over the years (sometimes it was pretty exciting too).


 Kudos to them for bringing real economic development to the valley, while embracing its unique rural nature. Much of what little I understand about milk pricing I learned from Mr. Spencer back in the day......

Last Night When I Came In

The stars were out last night when I came in, clip-clopping slowly across the ice in my Yak Trax, like a sharp shod work horse going back to its stable. They were not quite Adirondack bright, but pretty darned clear and cold and shiny for being so close to town. As cold as it was I shut off my flashlight for a few minutes just to watch and listen...as I do most evenings year round, testing and tasting the waters of our wild Northview fish bowl...


The night was exceptionally quiet as if all the smart creatures, even the cars and trains, had gone to their dens to snuggle up out of the cold. It was good to know that our work was done, cows fed and milked, heifers double fed against the cold, cats hiding in the barns and the pony tucked up for the night. The boss bought us takeout for supper so I didn't even have to cook.


There was one bright greenish object in the sky, just off the zenith. Could have been an exceptional star or maybe some man made thing cruising around up there with the ancients. I was too lazy to look it up when I came inside and besides a lot of research sites were as dark as that cold night sky...not that I blame them a bit. Maybe Orion was playing baseball instead of stalking around with his bow, hunting trouble. Maybe he hit one out of the park and it hung there shining against the dark. Could have been, who knows with Orion?


He tends to stomp across the heifer barn roof early every morning and I worry you know...he is pretty big and heavy.


Anyhow, this morning dawned with a frozen crescent moon and an ice skin over everything that is going to defy those Yak Trax I fear. Time to do it all again and to dream of spring and greenery.

Shipping

Not far from the tree

A beef steer over to the processor today. And moving stock. And trying to get the Farm Side written. Should be an interesting day. Stay warm out there.

Organic Kids

Suppose we raised organic kids like they do organic cows. The slick marketers of organic goods will feed you all this stuff about better for the earth, (which considering that it takes more ground to grow organic stuff, seems like a bunch of bull hockey), etc. but what about the animals involved?


Organic cows do not get treated with antibiotics when they are sick. Their owners rely on topical, herbal, or homeopathic remedies. If cows don't respond to those treatments they die or are sold to someone who does use conventional medicine to treat them or sold for beef. (That's why they call farms like ours conventional...we do things the way regular people do.)


So suppose your "organic" little human comes down with a desperate case of pneumonia or some other serious bacterial illness, needs intensive care, and a conventional antibiotic, then what? Do you treat him with a herbal supplement...or do you sell him to the neighbor who feels it appropriate to treat children...or cows....with modern, tested, legal, safe medicines?


I know which way I would go, but then I am kind of conventional.


I try not to bash any kind of farming here on Northview, as there are far too few of us farmers left not to stick together. However, I am just plain sick of having organic dairy farming shoved in my face everywhere I look, as if it were the only answer to food production. I KNOW what happens to cows on organic farms that get sick. And if you have a pet dog or cat, you know that even the best cared for animals DO get sick  sometimes.......I would love to give you a quote on the topic from a trusted professional in the animal medical field with whom we regularly do business on what they think of the care of organic cattle but I don't have permission so I won't. 


However, we wouldn't think of expecting our children to get along in the modern world without modern medicine, so why do we act as if asking the same of dairy cows is practically a religious duty?


Every single farmer's bulk tank is tested for antibiotic residues every single time the truck from the company picks up milk. If there is a positive finding the FARMER pays for the whole tanker load of milk...not cheap! So there are no antibiotics in your milk no matter what kind of farm produces it. 


If you want to pay through the nose for organic products, which are generally chemically indistinguishable from conventional products, have at it, but you might want to think about the cows involved.

For the Love of a Cow

Liz and her retired show cow, Heather. Heather is 12 now. You can see that they are pretty good friends after all those years.