Sunny Saturday

I went for a walk on Saturday to enjoy the beautiful spring-like weather we were having.  I snapped a couple of photos to share with you.

All three dogs walked with me.  These two belong to Christopher & Paige.  They are named Odie (white one) and Eli.  This stick was so big it took both dogs to carry it I guess!  Our dog, Rufus, was a bit camera shy. 

 

The cattle are enjoying the nice day.  We are lucky to have this coulee to feed them in as it provides a lot of protection from the wind.

Andy's Week 32/52: Here a Chick ,There a Chick

No, Andy is NOT out looking for a girlfriend!!  Our son got himself some chicks.  Those of you who know me know my opinion about owning chickens!  After helping take care of hundreds of them while growing up, I don't care to ever own another one!  Lucky for me these are up at the feedlot (about 1/2 mile from the house).

They are kind of cute though.  These will grow up to lay eggs.  The 'kids' didn't order the meat variety birds because they claim they don't know how to butcher them.  I foresee lessons in their future as I have butchered many chickens.  Homegrown birds make the best eating.

 



Snack Time

Getting a drink

Andy checking out the chicks

Andy finally got the chance to go out to the barn to see them.  I don't think he was too sure about those noisy, stinky little peepers.  He stayed a safe distance away!

(Sorry about the dirty floor.  I know I should have waited until Christopher put down fresh newspapers (or coupons as was the case here!), but I was not going to wait around that long.)

Calving 2013 (Part 1?)

We will pretend that I fulling intend on writing more about calving season and call this entry "Part One"!! 

I just don't think I have shared anything about calving this year.  It is basically the same every year, but still, it is our business so I should share something, right?

Today I was helping Brett with some of the chores so I snapped a few photos to share.

This little guy would "graze" inside of the bale feeder for a while then jump out to wander for a while and then go back in the bale feeder!  For a little while he even was chewing on the twine string that is hanging from the feeder.  It is fun to watch these young ones at play!  In a few months he will be quite big and we will have him for sale as a bull.  Maybe I will remember to post a photo when he is bigger and for sale - remember 0735A  (that is his number).

This guy entertained me for a while (it doesn't take much when one is running on little sleep!).  He kept grabbing his tail to chew on!  Calves have sharp teeth so I would have thought it might hurt, but perhaps it was more sucking than biting!  He should go find his mom to eat -  not his tail.

Here are two of the dogs that run around at NoDak Herefords.  Eli is the black one and Lori is the white one.  Eli belongs to Christopher and Paige but he spends most of his time at the ranch (especially during calving season because he gets so dirty & stinky!).  Lori is our White German Shepard.  She loves attention from anyone and everyone.  She has gone deaf in the past few months but still enjoys running around and playing - especially with Eli.

0520A was born just minutes before I snapped this photo.  This was the first time it had stood up so it was maybe 15 minutes old.  In this photo the calf is looking for mom's udder to get some of the very important first milk called colostrum.  Colostrum is vital in the newborn calf if it does not get any it likely will not survive.  Colostrum contains the antibodies the baby needs to grow "big and strong".

Well, that was a little bit about what happens on the ranch at calving time.  I don't take photos of the routine stuff - like putting bales in the bale feeder or feeding silage.  I suppose I should really do that sometime too.  If you ever have any questions about what we do here or something I have written about, feel free to ask and I will do my best to explain things to you.  Thank you for stopping by.  Be sure to leave a note so I know you were here.