Bizarre Bovine Behavior

Sure, he looks innocent enough here. But just watch:












Such a creepy smile.








I'm beginning to think he's turning into a giraffe!

This Week

Sorry my postings have been so inconsistent - the cows have taken over my life! But things (specifically Tess...) are finally settling down. She's finally trusting me again, and actually going into the stanchion to be milked. It sure beats milking her in a stall when she's trying to spin in circles! She's giving a lot of milk now - 6 or 7 gallons per day, in addition to what the calf nurses. I'm slowly working my way back into the cheesemaking, so most of the milk for now is going to our friend's pigs. But I did make butter today! It was quite pale for Jersey butter, but then again our grass hasn't come up yet. Give it a few months and it will be golden, even orange. I let the cream culture (sour) overnight to give it a bit of tang, then churned it in our KitchenAid stand mixer as usual.

The (still nameless) calf is doing very well. He is astonishingly active - I've never seen a calf run so fast and buck so much for so many hours a day! I'll have to get a video.

My mom would like to point out that in the back of this picture, you can see Cheerio the horse. Cheerio is our Quarter Horse mare, and she just celebrated her 13th birthday. I'm not sure how celebratory this occasion was for her, however, since she had to wait an extra minute while my mom made us sing "Happy Birthday" to her. She had eyes only for those carrots.

Coming this week:
Update from the greenhouse
Photos from the NW Flower and Garden Show!
My new orchid purchases
AND... my new chickens!

Birth of a Calf

This is pretty much how we found Tess at 6:30 in the morning, though there was just one hoof out. I had checked on her at 3:00 am, when she looked just the same as the night before.




And within an hour, he was out!


She jumped up and immediately started licking him. Fortunately the sun was just beginning to come up - it was freezing.


Within 10 minutes he was already attempting to stand up, and 20 minutes later he stood all by himself.




Just 45 minutes after birth, he was ready to explore his new world.


And then he got flattened, but we won't think about that...


He now lives in the stall most of the time, and I let him out three times a day to nurse. If the weather is nice, I can leave him out in the pasture with Tess.

The New Calf

The sun was out for all of 20 minutes today, during which the little calf got to run around outside with his mom. Because of the cold and wet I have to keep him in the stall, but I let him out to nurse four times a day.
He seems to be doing just fine after his stepping-on three days ago.



I've been milking Tesla twice a day, in addition to what the calf takes. She gave about 10 quarts at each milking so far, but once the swelling in her udder goes down she'll start producing more.
By Friday her milk will have transitioned from colostrum (super rich, high-protein milk with antibodies for the calf) to normal milk.



She's constantly mooing to him and licking him (a bit too much, judging by his expression!)







We're still trying to think of a name for him. Somehow it keeps coming back to Flap Jack...

Baby Calf is Here!

Tess had her baby - a bull calf - at 7:30 this morning. Unfortunately she stepped hard on his abdomen soon after - we had our vet out and he gave the calf painkiller and antibiotics. We still have to wait and see, but he seems okay. We have seen him poop/pee with no blood, and he is 100% active and alert and he has nursed, so he just might make it. I'll keep you updated.


The first two photos are from this evening, so you can see he looks alright.

Happy Cows

It's not even February yet, but the grass is already starting to creep upwards and we've seen the sun three days in a row! By my definition, it's Spring!
We fixed up the fence yesterday, so now the cows are back on 80% of their pasture - and quite happy.


Iris


Tesla/Tess (the new cow), due to calve in only 3 weeks




I don't think she can get any bigger...

Cheese

One of the nice things about milking at 6 in the morning is that, by the time I'm done, it's not too late to go back to bed! I don't often do it, but it was unavoidable today. Makes me feel like a cheater of a milkmaid though.


Iris, looking majestic.


Iris, looking more normal.


New-Cow. She becomes concerned when I take her picture.






But not for long.

I made a batch of mozzarella today - the first with New-Cow's milk. It tastes fantastic, but I need to modify the recipe - the texture wasn't quite smooth enough. I also have some cream souring for cultured butter and tomorrow I'll make a wheel of cheddar-style cheese, or feta.

No-Name Cow

We picked up my new cow on Monday morning. Still no name, but a lovely cow. She is settling in just fine, happy with Iris and the bountiful fields of grass. I think she enjoys the island life.
Thankfully she dropped in production with the long drive - I've been getting 6-7.5 gallons each day. Still a ton of milk but better than 10 gallons. My hands and forearms actually aren't too sore!
And she's great with hand-milking, considering she has been milked by machine her whole life until now.






Help! Look at all that milk!

Today

Preparations for my new cow are well underway. I spent a large portion of the day clearing out all the junk that had accumulated in the milk room over the past two years and pressure-washing the stall and milk room.
And just in case I have trouble milking 10 gallons of milk per day by hand, I pulled out the milk machine (not touched in six years), took everything apart, scrubbed and sanitized it, and reassembled it with all new tubing and inflations. I just hope I don't need it!

And I also made a small batch of oatmeal, milk, and honey soap (with vanilla and cinnamon). It's been a while since I last made any, so I accidentally added the lye too fast and the milk immediately curdled and burned. Yuck. The second try turned out a little better! These bars should be ready in four weeks. I plan on making a lot of milk soap in the coming weeks and selling it. If you're interested, just email me!

My mom and I have been riding a lot in preparation for a 12.5 mile competitive trail ride on Saturday. Yesterday we rode through the trails and on the roads to the beach - 10 miles. The sun came out as we reached Tramp Harbor, and by the time we were galloping down the beach it started to get fairly warm. So it was quite refreshing when we turned around, and started riding in the water. The horses went in almost to their bellies, and we could watch the fish swim and crabs scuttle around. A couple times I had to steer Cheerio out of the path of a jellyfish. What a great time!

Got One!

I found a cow!
We'll be picking her up next Monday.
She is a registered Jersey, not even 5 years old yet. She calved in March, and is pregnant with another calf due February.
She's sweet and very friendly, doesn't kick and doesn't mind being milked by hand.
I just hope my hands don't fall off the first week she's here! It's been two years since I last milked a cow. Or worse - we drown in a flood of milk. She's giving a lot of milk - more than I ever dealt with before - on the scale of 10 gallons per day. But hey - more milk equals more cheese!







She needs a name. Any suggestions?