Spring?!

Signs of spring are finally here.  We can see green grass here and there, my irises are coming up, the gophers are out, and we've had quite a warm up the past couple of days.  It was 60 degrees yesterday and almost 70 today.  That means the waterways have taken off.  Makes me wish I was a kid out floating toy boats.  I always loved to go tromping around this time of year through the slush and the water and float things through culverts.

Water over the road.  The culvert finally opened so it doesn't look like this today.

A couple of days ago M decided it was time to load up some cow-calf pairs and take them to a pasture near Richland.  We had the three in the barn, one pair in the corral and four in a pen that we were keeping an eye on because a couple of the calves appeared a little under the weather.  One of those pairs belongs to a friend so we didn't want to take them and kicked them out into the calving pasture.  M was sure we could fit eight in the trailer so we went out and brought another pair in.  We sorted the calves off and put them in a pen in the barn so we could load them first.  While M was backing the trailer up to the barn one of the cows stuck its head through the gate of the pen and managed to pull it open so the calves got out.  Then one of them spun around and hit the latch on the gate out of the barn and that gate came open and out they went.  Thankfully, they couldn't get out of that pen.  So, we got them all back in and started loading the calves.  The alleyway was full of snow so we were going to load through the barn.  We pretty much had to load each calf individually and then I had to try to hold them in the trailer while M pushed another one in.  We finally got them in and secured and M said "the calves are hard, but the cows will be easy".  Not so much.  They had too much room to maneuver and as one got in the trailer another was coming back out.  So, we went to plan B and decided to load them through the alleyway.  The ground is still a bit soft with some water puddles and as M was trying to get the trailer backed up to the alley the pickup slid into a mud hole and we had to pull it with another pickup to get it out.  Finally, he got backed up to the chute, and we started trying to load the cows again.  I was holding the gate of the trailer and counting the cows as they went by.  There were only five on and it didn't look like there was anymore room.  It was a very tight fit to get those eight big girls on there, but we finally did it.  It's kind of odd to not have any critters in the barn.  Every morning the first thing I did was go see how the babies were doing.

It feels good to save a life.  This girls was near death when we brought her in.

I always think it would be so much easier if we could just explain the plan, let them know they are going to a better place and ask for cooperation.  Yes, in a perfect world.

This morning we sorted out seven more pair and got them all loaded with no problems.  Yes!  We'll probably do the same tomorrow.  It'll be good to get as many to drier ground as we can.  The sickness seems to have run its course and all the babies are feeling spunky.  I may soon be able to remove the syringe that has had a permanent spot in  my coat pocket. In another pocket I've been carrying a tube of a probiotic paste.  One day someone asked if I was carrying a Jell-O shot.  Yeah, it's black and probably tastes like dirt.  Yum!

Yesterday we went to a bull sale.  It's been a lot of years since I had been to one.  M got the bull he really wanted but paid more than I thought he would.  It appears the price of bulls is up like everything else.  Bulls are not my favorite things in the world, and I always think there should be a better way.  We only need them for a few weeks but have to deal with them all year.  They've got quite the life.

With the nice weather thoughts are rapidly turning to farming.  J hasn't been able to get his drill out of storage yet but they have the sprayer out and a new (to us) drill on its way so they have lots of projects to work on to get ready to plant.  We were concerned about the break in seeding for the new baby, but it could be here before we even get started.

I finally left the insulated coveralls at home and it wasn't long before I ditched my coat and really felt like I could be out in shorts.  I'm ready to dig in the dirt and hope M gives me some time to do it.  Love, love, love spring!

I'll have flowers before long!!

I Feel Sick

While we haven't lost any more calves, we've been doctoring a few.  We seem to have a lot with scours and we treated at least one that appeared to have pneumonia.  Every morning and afternoon we make a trip through the herd to look for any that have droopy ears or appear lethargic.  Most of the ones with scours are still too lively to catch easily, and M doesn't really feel like diving off the 4-wheeler to grab one, although he did that yesterday.  We've never had scours before so it's a new and disturbing problem.  After the bad winter/spring of 2011 we had lots of pneumonia but no scours.  We just have to continue to be vigilant and hope nice weather arrives and maybe helps the situation.

We had more snow overnight with wind.  I didn't sleep well with the wind howling, thinking of the poor babies getting wet and cold again.  Thankfully, it didn't get too terribly cold.

Every day my trek through the yard is on a different surface.  One day it was slush, the next ice, and today was snow that was squishy with mud underneath.  It occurred to me that I should have been counting consecutive "mud days".  M asked yesterday if I thought it would ever dry up.  I said yes.  He said, "soon?".  I said no.

It was also interesting today to see the different animal tracks in the snow.  Lots of deer tracks through the yard this morning as well as lots of bird tracks.  I also smelled skunk so they must be coming out of hibernation.  I have seen a few gophers (affectionately referred to as "those little bastards") so maybe spring is coming.  I need to start poisoning them while we don't have a dog to worry about.

Last night we went to the Friends of the NRA banquet with J and K.  It was nice to get out and see people and the prime rib dinner was great, but I was really tempted to stay home and have some quiet hours to myself!

Need Sun!!

I was so happy over the weekend that we missed most of the big storm and only got an inch or two of new snow.  That was short-lived as the storm continued into Monday with snow most of the day and into the night.  It was even snowing during the brief times that the sun was out!  Our temps have only been in the 20s.  So depressing.  I have to keep telling myself that it could be worse, like the 16" of new snow in North Dakota over the weekend or the 22" in South Dakota the weekend before.

We were so proud of ourselves for doing such a good job of saving the March calves, but the April ones have been more of a challenge.  We've had three die out in the pasture for no apparent reason and one in one of the pens.  It was fine the night before and near death in the morning.  We put it in the warmer and doctored it a bit, but by afternoon it was dead.  The poor things are just perpetually cold and damp with this weather.  Thank goodness things have slowed down to where we're only getting about one new calf a day.

Our barn is still full with the adopted cow-calf pair, the "twins" (that aren't really twins) and the one that was near-death that we saved and her mama.  It's kind of lazy and we have never seen it nurse on the cow, but it doesn't appear hungry and runs and bucks and we haven't given it a bottle for a few days.  I'm wondering if it robs off the other cows.  It's mother is difficult to nurse because she has such short legs and such a big bag that her teats are only about 8 inches off the ground.

It is looking more and more like we had triplets although we still don't believe that's the case.  That's a lot of calf for one cow.  No wonder she took one and high-tailed it out to pasture!  Of the remaining five cows in that pen, all have calved but one, and she's looking ready to give birth.  Number 720 deserves a "Mother of the Year" award for taking care of her own calf and one that isn't hers.

M spent all afternoon yesterday with the skid-steer cleaning out the shed in the back of the barn so we can move those animals outdoors where they can get some sun and fresh air.  We put new straw in so maybe they'll stay relatively dry for a day or two.

We are having partly sunny skies today so that is making us feel a little better.  Spring has to arrive sometime!

Who's Your Mama? (A Cow Conundrum)

We were having a new computer system installed at work this week so my boss needed me to work Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday while the setup and training people were there.  So, we were up early on Monday morning to check the cows before I had to get ready to go to my day job.  At that time, we had six cows left to calve in one pen along with three that had had calves the previous day.  When we checked on them there were three new calves and only one cow that showed any evidence of having calved.  Triplets?  Doubtful.  We put the one cow with the calf she was claiming in the barn as well as another cow that seemed interested in one of the other new calves.  We did another look-through for any sign that another cow had calved and there was nothing.  Always they have stuff hanging out their backside or at the very least some evidence on the tail, but there was nothing on any of the others.

I had to get home and get ready for work so after breakfast M did more investigating.  The second cow that we had put in had no milk so that ruled her out.  M brought the remaining cows in one by one to check for milk and any evidence of calving.  He left a different one in with the two calves and she let one of them nurse and the other one got a bottle.  The next day we brought in another cow but she just knocked the calves around as well as the other cow so she went back out.  Then a couple of days later the cow that was nursing gave birth.  Imagine her surprise, poor thing.  (We had a feeling that would happen).  So, she's taking one for the team and trying to feed her own calf and someone else's.  The list of culprits is dwindling as three of them have now calved.  That leaves two, and they both look like they're still pregnant.  Funny thing is, no one is talking!

We found a week-old calf dead in the cow yard so we brought the cow in, and she seems to be doing well with adopting our bottle baby.  I'm glad, because I think she was beginning to think I was her mama.  I don't mind feeding one for a few days but not in the long term.

Yesterday morning we found a new calf in the calving pasture that looked almost dead.  We brought it in and put it in the warmer and got some colostrum down it (with great difficulty).  The cow is very concerned, and the calf has perked up considerably, but it's not a very good eater so we hope it survives.  We also found a sick calf so brought it in and tried to feed it and gave it some antibiotics.  It's mother is being difficult so that doesn't help the situation. 

Our barn was getting full so we put new straw in the shed and kicked one pair out.  Another storm is predicted so we wanted to make sure we had room if needed.  We had been feeling like calving was going really well considering the weather, but lately it's gone south.  Thank goodness we only have about 30 of our own left to calve.  We also have some that belong to a friend, but they should be later, maybe when spring finally arrives.  We are both tired and crabby and need a break.....in the weather.....and maybe from each other.......definitely from the cows!

Water Diversion

It has been a busy week.  Thank goodness R was home to help us through a very busy calving time.  He headed back to South Dakota today, and we miss him already.

One day we woke up to a couple of inches of new snow.  The next day we woke up to ice from freezing rain during the night.  Just when we see some improvement in the roads and pens we get just enough moisture to make it messy again.  I used to try to watch where I was walking, but I've given up.  I'm usually in poop up to my ankles (or deeper) or water nearly to my knees.  After the snow, the sun came out and we warmed up into the 50s.  That really started the water running.  M and R spent an afternoon putting in a culvert and building a crossing over it.  The calves sometimes don't like to cross the ditch with water running down it so this seems to be helping.  M had dumped some snow over the windbreak while cleaning out the corral and that was damming up the runoff making it run into one of the pens.  R worked on snow removal to eliminate that problem.  They tried to dig out another culvert, but it is still frozen so water is running over the road.  M also moved more snow in the calving pasture so those cows have more high and dry places to go.  We have lost a lot of snow, but we have a long way to go with 3-foot drifts in the calving pasture.

We finally made the decision to open up the pasture adjacent to the cow yard so those cows with calves can have more space, and more dry areas.  We thought about waiting until we saw what the weather was going to be since the forecasters kept predicting a storm, but it didn't materialize when they thought it might so we let them out.  The calves were happy to have more space to run.  They can still get into the windbreak if they need to.

We had close to 60 calves while R was here, and our pen of early calvers is down to six.  There were apparently a couple of fence jumpers since we found two calves that weren't tagged in the pasture this morning.  We did some investigation and found where we think the cows got out, but they had to jump another fence to get back in.  Odd.  We were perplexed for awhile.  One of our heifers had a set of deformed twins that looked like they were probably dead before she had them.  We decided to take one of our other twins and put it on her.  I felt really bad for the calf at first because it was a bit of an adjustment, but they are bonding now and he's getting plenty to eat!

The weather is supposed to turn cold (er) for the next couple of days with wind.  We are getting a new computer system at work so they want me to come in on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday for training.  I'm feeling bad about leaving M alone especially if the weather is bad, so we'll see how things go tomorrow.

We're still having a hard time dealing with life without Pete.  We expect to see him everywhere, and M is taking it really hard.  I can hardly remember the last time we were dog-less.  I hate it.....but life goes on.

I really wish Mother Nature would make up her mind that it really is spring and send us some nice, warm, sunny days.  We could use some brightening in our life right now.

Devastation (Losing Pete)

The day I hoped I would never see arrived yesterday when we lost our beloved Pete in an unfortunate accident.  Anyone who has ever met Pete knows what a special guy he was, and anyone who saw him with M knows what an incredible bond they had.  He was a constant companion, and M is completely devastated.

J got Peterbilt as a puppy and took him everywhere, in the truck, in the tractor, in the combine.  When we asked J how he picked him he said Pete was the one that was running around biting the other puppies' tails.  That should have told us something right there.  When J started dating K, Pete was left home alone a lot.  M didn't think that was good so he would bring him to our house.  Eventually, J moved to town with K and Pete moved to our house permanently.  Pete loved M right away because he got to do all the fun things with M, all the things he was bred to do, to be a cow dog.  And M loved Pete right back, took him everywhere and treated him like his child.  In fact, our boys have joked that he treated Pete better then he ever treated them.  Maybe a slight exaggeration, but there were times when I swore he loved that dog more than he loved me.

Pete was a bit high-strung and had some quirks.  I'll never forget the first weekend J left him with us.  By the second day I was calling him every couple of hours to see if he was home yet because the puppy was driving me crazy!  He had a strange aversion to tools, any kind of tools, hand tools, power tools, shovels, hoses, anything with a motor and would bark or get something in his mouth and go in circles.  We were never sure if it was noise that bothered him or what.  His need to have something in his mouth resulted in him inadvertently swallowing rocks and having to have surgery twice to have some removed from his intestine (along with a couple of bottle caps).  My brother would say he was retarded.  My reply was that there is a fine line between genius and insanity and sometimes he crossed it.  He was extremely smart.

J always said he wanted a dog who would fetch because Cruiser had no interest.  Well, he got a fetcher in Pete.  He'd play for hours and hours if he had someone to play with.  He loved kids for that reason.  He did not, however, play well with other dogs, especially in his territory.  Most of the time he just tried to ignore them.

We never had to worry about him straying too far from home.  He loved to go for walks with me but wouldn't leave the yard by himself, and we could leave him at the farm if we needed to, and he'd be right there when we came back although he hated to be left behind.  If we ever pulled out a suitcase he'd start pouting, and when we drove away he'd stand on the step and give us the most pitiful look you've ever seen, like he couldn't believe we'd go off and leave him.  And it wasn't easy to leave him.  We often wished we could call him on the phone while we were on a trip to let him know we'd be home soon.

He had quite the routine during the winter.  M would let him in first thing in the morning so he could eat.  As soon as we had had breakfast he headed to the door, ready to go to work.  He'd sit in the pickup and wait for us while it warmed up.  We often wished he could have started the pickup for us.  I know he would have if he could have.  He was so used to having M all to himself that when I'd get in to go along, I'd get quite the look, like "who said you could come".  As we drove off, he'd give M a hug by laying his head on his chest.  I'd get a hug on a rare occasion, but M got one every day, many times a day.


Pete loved working cows, sometimes rounding them up even when he wasn't supposed to.  He would show them who was boss most of the time, but once they had calves he was pretty careful.  He'd been rolled by an angry cow more than once so gave them a wide berth if he could when they had calves.  There were times when he'd take a long way around to get back to the pickup so that he wouldn't have to go through the cow yard.  He also tried to not get dirty which was funny to watch.  He'd try to pick his way around the mud, but eventually he'd have to give up.  He just knew that if he was dirty he couldn't come in the house, and worked really hard to clean himself up.  He generally preferred to be outside but would like to come in for a little while every day.  He wasn't supposed to be on the furniture but couldn't help himself sometimes because he wanted to cuddle and M wouldn't make him get down.  He'd try to avoid my look, like if he didn't look at me, I wouldn't notice.

Even though he had his quirks, he was the most loving, devoted companion and had such a personality.  His loss is going to continue to hurt for a very long time.  Damn animals sure can steal your heart.

Baby Pete

Taking a nap on the way to the field

"I know I'm not supposed to be on the couch, but I'm so tired"

"Scratch my belly"

"I love cuddling"

"Get off the computer and play with me"

Playing in the sprinkler

My happy face

One good dog

Rest in Peace, Pete.  We love you.

Easter Excitement

We had a super busy Friday and Saturday with 19 calves in 36 hours......yes, I was very glad R is home to help out!  There were a couple of calves Saturday morning while we were doing chores, but then nothing by the time R came over for lunch.  He and J went off-roading to get to a stack of weed bales so they could burn them.  R thought they would take the snowmobiles, but J thought it would be a pain to haul gas, etc. so he opted to take the pickup.  He loves to go off-roading with it and thinks he can go anywhere.  R said they did a lot more shoveling than he would have liked.

While they were off doing that, M went to check cows around 4:00 and all hell had broken loose with 8 more calves.  On Sunday morning we woke up to 2" of new snow.  Just what we wanted!  It was a bit weird to have fluffy snow that came straight down, some of it while the sun was shining!  We had to put one cow in the maternity pen and get her milk going since it didn't look like the calf was having much luck, but we didn't have any new calves.

We were headed to Scobey to M's parents' house for Easter dinner when the cell phone rang.  It was our neighbor, fencer Bob.  He is a gruff, old, independent guy who lives in a camper at the neighbor's.  He was originally hired to fence when our neighbor bought the place but has turned into a cow watcher and all around handyman.  He used to have a home in Chinook, but the house was falling down and he eventually sold the land, so I guess he's here to stay.  Anyway, he called and said he needed help.  If Bob says he needs help, he REALLY needs help.  He had gone out to feed his cats and slipped on the ice and fell and dislocated his shoulder.  I think he was attempting to drive himself to the hospital and decided he couldn't do it.  We turned around and met him where his gravel road meets the highway.  He wanted M to drive his car into town so he did, and I followed in mine.  We took him to the ER and waited while they assessed him and then went to our Easter dinner while they worked to get his shoulder back in place.  It was obvious that he was in a lot of pain, and he is a tough old bird.  I felt so bad for him.  We checked in a couple of time during the day, and they weren't having any luck getting the shoulder back in and had him pretty drugged up.  They eventually sent him by ambulance to Sidney.  In the meantime, his dog was sitting in his car in the parking lot so we took her with us.  He called us about 10:30 that night and said he'd be ready to come home in the morning.

M made a quick check and did chores Monday morning and then headed to Sidney to get Bob.  I was at work when they stopped to get a prescription for some pain pills on the way home.  He looked like he was back to his old self...except for the arm in a sling.  He's not supposed to do anything with that arm for six to eight weeks.  Like that's going to happen.  It might put a crimp in his fencing duties this summer.

R came home before dark to check the cows and there were no calves at all...the whole day.  M was a bit disappointed that there weren't any calves on his birthday.  I told R he'd better be ready for a bunch on Monday, and I was right.  I think we had 10 so we should be close to half done calving.  Now we just need some of the snow to disappear so we can kick them into a pasture.  We're starting to run out of room for everything.  And M wonders why I always say no to more cows.  We're just not set up for any more.

Looks like we should have above-freezing temps all week so the water will be running and we'll be dealing with mud.  Spring may be on it's way!