Some pics of the cows and Lady!

Went out to spend time in the pasture today.  Sadly I found the little bull of Candy Apples late yesterday very sick and hardly able to move.  He and one of the other bull calves got Mange Mites during all the rain we had last month.  I thought I caught them both in time with treatment but apparently I didn't treat the little red one soon enough or he had another issue.  We tried tube feeding and medicines but he was too far gone and we had to put him down today.  

I know that is life and it happens but I hate to see anyone or anything suffer.  He was in a lot of pain and I know he is better off.  I hope to see that sparkle in the eyes of her next calf and I will know his spirit came back to us.  

Due to this odd infection I am on full alert and checking the cows everyday.  Usually by this time of year I can let them go for days at a time without seeing them but I do not want this to happen again.  So we are trying to catch the little ones as soon as they are born and administering treatment for flies, worms, lice, mites, and any other parasites, as well as tagging them.

Here we have Maine's little boy.  He is growing really fast and is looking great.  I followed him across the entire pasture for 15 minutes before he stopped long enough for me to get a pic.

Dam: Maine Anjou  Sire: Charolais x Angus

 While he was running he caught the attention of his momma who came running and bawling and in turn the rest of the herd headed down to see what was going on as well.  If you look closely at the pic you will Notice Mario is leading the charge on the left!  He is like a playground monitor!

Cows heading to the creek for a drink.

 I thought this was a good pic of the herd showing last years calves mixed in with the cows and a couple of the new babies in there as well.  Gives you a good idea how fast they are growing.

Cows and calves headed to the creek.

 Lastly we have Lady.  She is due to have her piglets any day now and the longer it goes the more Bossy she is getting!  She was demanding feed again and went as far as to try to climb on the walk way to get me to go get it.  I hope she has them soon as I am anxious to see how many she has.  Berkette will be the last one if she is indeed bred.  I am not very hopeful though as she only had three for her first litter and doesn't look like she is carrying any, let alone filling up with milk.  I will give her three more months and if she doesn't have any she will have to go. 

I hope everyone has a good week.  The last one here on the farm has been a rough one and I am ready to put the last three weeks of work and everything else behind me and move onward.  However, I am thrilled that I already have more calves and hay to date than I did all year last year and I want to finish the summer strong!

Kenny