Post by Selden on Jan 29, 2008 6:52:53 GMT -5
Thank you, thank you, everyone, for your support and good wishes! I am very excited. The "shortest" pregnancy ever! ;D
One of the dogs woke me up at 2:30 this morning to go out and when I saw it was 0° F I put my coveralls on on top of my jammies and drove the mile to the barn. I had to leave Hughie out last night (not enough stalls unless I put the sheep in with the turkeys, which I did all last week, but I had read a weather report that last night was supposed to be "mild." ) Anyway, I never lock my animals entirely out of the barn and so I'd left the run-in stall open, which meant the barn was colder than usual, and I worried about dear Hope.
When I shone the flashlight on everyone they were startled but fine. I looked to see if Hopie were shivering, but she was fine. Her top coat was damp (her mother has the licking habit!) but her skin was dry. She got up and bucketed around, not eager to have me pat her, so I'm guessing she's full of milk and full of beans. YAY!
Sally, I'll try to post a photo of her in natural light in the next few days. I have to somehow get Hughie out of the barnyard first. The flash makes her look lighter than she is (at least in the gloom of the barn). She seems a cafe au lait color, more chocolate than the usual Jersey, and appears to have black points and a short dorsal stripe. The hairy udder is very nice protection, and I hope Hopie gets it, but when milking in edema conditions it's tough knowing that you're always pulling little hairs. Poor 'Tika! (In fact, I croon this to her as I'm working away at the hairy black beachball roped with veins, my hands slathered in Bag Balm. I have too many memories of my own eye-popping engorgement with baby #2. "Poor 'Tika, Tika, Tika.") By the way, Hopie will have a white udder. Her belly skin is not black like her mama's, nor, I think, her tongue.
I had hoped Hughie might have a career as a clean-up bull but I'm not having any takers at the dairies within an hour's drive, and the cattle dealer 2 hours away has not returned my call. If nothing turns up I'm going to have to send him to slaughter. The school is sending 2 young Hereford cows (it's a real shame) and Hughie can go with them if I can get him safely out of my rented barn yard (no real way to load an animal that doesn't lead -- believe me, my own barn will be better in this regard ) and up to the school to mingle with them for a day or so before all three would be loaded for the last ride. I hate to send ol' Hughie in a truck (I much, much prefer the "butcher at home" option), and I'm fully aware that I could keep him another sixty days and get Katika re-bred "for free" -- but given my circumstances, and the fact that I'm going away, I am deathly afraid that he would become dangerous and I'd have missed my only opportunity. So even though it promises to be difficult I'm going to try to get him on that truck. Sigh.
One of the dogs woke me up at 2:30 this morning to go out and when I saw it was 0° F I put my coveralls on on top of my jammies and drove the mile to the barn. I had to leave Hughie out last night (not enough stalls unless I put the sheep in with the turkeys, which I did all last week, but I had read a weather report that last night was supposed to be "mild." ) Anyway, I never lock my animals entirely out of the barn and so I'd left the run-in stall open, which meant the barn was colder than usual, and I worried about dear Hope.
When I shone the flashlight on everyone they were startled but fine. I looked to see if Hopie were shivering, but she was fine. Her top coat was damp (her mother has the licking habit!) but her skin was dry. She got up and bucketed around, not eager to have me pat her, so I'm guessing she's full of milk and full of beans. YAY!
Sally, I'll try to post a photo of her in natural light in the next few days. I have to somehow get Hughie out of the barnyard first. The flash makes her look lighter than she is (at least in the gloom of the barn). She seems a cafe au lait color, more chocolate than the usual Jersey, and appears to have black points and a short dorsal stripe. The hairy udder is very nice protection, and I hope Hopie gets it, but when milking in edema conditions it's tough knowing that you're always pulling little hairs. Poor 'Tika! (In fact, I croon this to her as I'm working away at the hairy black beachball roped with veins, my hands slathered in Bag Balm. I have too many memories of my own eye-popping engorgement with baby #2. "Poor 'Tika, Tika, Tika.") By the way, Hopie will have a white udder. Her belly skin is not black like her mama's, nor, I think, her tongue.
I had hoped Hughie might have a career as a clean-up bull but I'm not having any takers at the dairies within an hour's drive, and the cattle dealer 2 hours away has not returned my call. If nothing turns up I'm going to have to send him to slaughter. The school is sending 2 young Hereford cows (it's a real shame) and Hughie can go with them if I can get him safely out of my rented barn yard (no real way to load an animal that doesn't lead -- believe me, my own barn will be better in this regard ) and up to the school to mingle with them for a day or so before all three would be loaded for the last ride. I hate to send ol' Hughie in a truck (I much, much prefer the "butcher at home" option), and I'm fully aware that I could keep him another sixty days and get Katika re-bred "for free" -- but given my circumstances, and the fact that I'm going away, I am deathly afraid that he would become dangerous and I'd have missed my only opportunity. So even though it promises to be difficult I'm going to try to get him on that truck. Sigh.