As winter approaches, this farmer's annual war on ice is getting started. It might seem that a cattle farmer's first concern in winter would be keeping her cattle warm, but most cattle would laugh at the cold (if cows could laugh). As long as they have a place to shelter from bitter winds, most cows will stay warm.
Owning or borrowing a bull would seem to be a requirement to create calves. Blain, a Scottish Highlander bull, had bred all but five of my Highlander cows before I sold him in August. I still have Larry, but he is an Angus bull, and I don't want to mix the breeds. So who would impregnate my “open” (unbred) Scottish Highlander cows? Make that: How would we impregnate those cows? By artificial insemination (A.I.).
I always wonder why some parents want to buy a young, untrained pony for their child. I was reminded of this lapse of judgment when I saw this funny sign at a riding stable: For Fast Riders - We have fast horses. For Slow Riders - We have slow horses. For Those Who Have Never Ridden - We have horses that have never been ridden.
In this pandemic year, having enough to eat has been a challenge at times. We're not done with the pandemic yet; maybe having a stash of meat is wise. Aside from having enough to eat, there are other reasons it makes sense to buy a quarter, half, or whole cow.
A business of any size needs good middle-managers, and here at Miles Smith Farm, we have a donkey who has promoted herself to "petting-zoo supervisor." She leads a crew of adopted critters who act as farm ambassadors. Because of their small size and gentle natures, they connect with children and adults better than 1,000-pound cows.
Weaning is that special time when I get to bond and snuggle with this year's calves. To make the separation less stressful for the calf and its mom, we sequester the calves in the front of the holding pen, separated from the moms by a metal gate. Each cow can see her baby and know he's OK. Each calf can sniff his mom, but because they no longer have access to her milk, we dish out high-protein feed and plenty of hay. The calves have learned to eat hay and grain by watching Mom, so there is no danger of starvation.
