Bee~ Journal of then...

[Beekissed]

Yeah....she is a hungry hungry hippo right now! And she is just bulging...you would think she is preggers!

It was kind of nice having her and she has never attempted to harm us in any way, so I think she is a great cow....if a little overzealous when it comes to food!

 

[Blackbird]

Are you sure shes not bloated? LOL.

Might want to give her some baking soda.

 

[Farmfresh]

Now you guys leave poor Blossom alone.

She is simply eating for four now.

 

[Beekissed]

She's not bloated....judging from the enormous smelly burps she can emit. AND she is still eating! No sign of bloat here.

Hmmmmmmmm.......maybe that's what is wrong with me? Maybe its merely bloating........

 

[Beekissed]

Sold T-Bone and Jerky today at the livestock sales. Eli took them and said it looked like they found a nice home with a lady who was buying some sheep and other calves.

Didn't find a beefy baby to stick onto Blossom this week but may try again next week.

My tiller finally arrived by mail.....

Oldest son found a job yesterday and started today!

Still raining here every day, so hay prices will skyrocket due to folks not being able to get their hay in and a lot of it ruining in the fields.

Yard is nice and green, apples doing well, garden starting to do well but the weeds are winning until I can till and mulch.

Lambs are doing well and seem to be very content. Blossom is peaceful and bucolic in her orchard pasture, back to nursing one big princess. She sure is a beautiful calf with excellent conformation. I'm thinking of dealing with the farmer who owns her sire and seeing if I can get Blossom bred back to him....it looks like an excellent pairing.

Miss you, Aly!

 

[Farmfresh]

I am sure you made back your money on the calves and they are both better for a visit to your house and a little Jersey cream!

I think a "re-match" would be a GREAT idea for Blossom. Where does the bull owner live and how would the date take place? Would you have to transport the cow to the bull or could you possibly "board" his bull for a couple of days?

Then there is the possibility of A.I. - that is what my cousin always used when she was raising Longhorns. She is also medical minded (now she is a doctor and chief resident at a smaller country hospital). She paid to have her cows A.I.ed the first few times - basically GRILLED the person who came out to do it for all of the information she could get, did lots of research and then started doing her own A.I. when she was about 17 years old!

She said it was so much easier to just buy a straw of semen than it was to deal with a stupid bull and transport to dates...etc. Plus she always had pretty grand results.

Using A.I. she was able to breed to some pretty outstanding Champion stock that she would have otherwise been unable to.

I know Blossom has no need for a Champion (unless it is a Champion Jersey), but A.I. should be worth considering, since you are a nurse and Blossom is so gentle.

Just stirring you up with ideas!

 

[freemotion]

It is my understanding that AI is so common in the cattle industry, that it is cheap (relatively) and easy to find someone who does it. With horses....whew! Even before the stud fee was purchased, you'd break the bank with all the fees. But when I was a kid, my dad had our cow bred using AI, so it must've been cheaper than live cover!

 

[Beekissed]

I considered AI when I was thinking of keeping her, but have dismissed that notion now. The sire of Shade lives about 13 miles away and, though I don't like the transport idea, I think it would be a great selling point to be able to display Shade as an example of the mating. She is extremely beef typical except her small head, which gives her a feminine, pert look. Her backline is razor straight and her conformation is wonderful, so I'm hoping that a cow bred back for the same results will bring a better price.

If I were keeping her, I would definitely just use the AI each year....cheaper, less hassle and my boys learned how to do it in their Ag classes. They could teach me and I have no doubt of being able to do it. Maybe with the sheep?

 

[freemotion]

Well, with sheep, you'd only need the glove to go up to your elbow, not your armpit!!!

 

[Dace]

Hey Bee....what type of job did your boy get and did he enjoy his first day?