Our first cows

So, with the pasture fencing done and the cow shed started in earnest we went ahead and bought some cows.  We wanted to get one that was about a year old that we could butcher this coming fall and then possibly one more that we could try taking through the winter and butchering fall of 2014.  We found the big cow, Carmel, about 30 minutes away, and she is a mix of red Angus and Limousin.  She is probably around 700-800 pounds.  Fortunately we were able to borrow a livestock trailer from a family member and go pick her up early Saturday morning.  When we got home we fenced off a small area in our pasture with a single strand of electric to give her a smaller area until she got use to the area.

Here she is waiting in the trailer, she was pretty agitated!

As soon as we released her from the trailer she ran through the pasture and right under the electric wire.  It was a little too high, so  lowered it and we got her back in there once but she ducked under it again.

Here she is on the wrong side of the yellow electric wire.

Jennie and I were really nervous and were praying a lot as Carmel raced around the pasture.  I was sure she was going to try and blow through the fence and then we would have to shoot her.  She calmed down a little bit, but hid at the bottom of the pasture in some trees.  We had already setup a time to pick up some calves the same day, so we headed off to get those.  It was probably not a good idea to schedule picking up so many cows on the same day.

We had found two Brown Swiss calves on Craigslist, and the owner suggested that they always do better with a buddy, so we got both.  We hauled them home in the back of the van, which was a bad idea on my part.  They did not stay on the tarp as instructed and we now need to shampoo the carpet back there.  The hour long drive home was done with the windows down to try and overcome the smell.

The first night the little guy did not drink real great, but the next morning he did fine.

The halters we had bought barely fit the big guy and would not work for the smaller one.  So we ended up getting a rope halter for him that we can adjust.

We cleared out a stall in the barn, and put in a bucket for water, one for granola (calf starter) and an old milk crate that holds orchard grass.

Purely coincidental but the big cow is #17, and the little ones are #18, & #19.

We started out by just having the boys hold the bottles for the calves, but they kind of push every once in a while, which apparently is to help milk start flowing when drinking from their mother, but if you are not braced for it they could probably push you over.  So, after a week of bonding with them by holding the milk bottles I broke down and bought these wire holders.  It is still fun sometimes to hold the bottle for them.

During the day the kids take them out to a small fenced area just below the house. It borders the pasture and after a few weeks Carmel has finally noticed them.  The first day she spent quite a few hours laying just on the other side of the fence from them and just watching them.  

Here is Carmel at the gate and also in the cow shed where we have placed a mineral block.

She really is a pretty cow, as far as cows are concerned.

This is a sizable investment in livestock, unlike our chickens, so we are hopeful that it will go well.  We are going to try and keep track of the costs so we can see if raising calves from babies is cheaper versus buying a year old calf and just raising it through the summer.  We will probably need to purchase some clover and hay for this winter, but we are a little unsure of how much.  We already like the calves more, because we are working with them and training them to the halter so we can lead them around, and can actually walk up and pet them.

2013 Chicks

This will be our third year purchasing chicks from the farm store.  Currently we still have 9 older ladies from the first year, and 18 hens from last year, and now 24 chicks this year.  We started out with purchasing 15 chicks a few days before the annual 5 free chicks at Coastal.  The boys and I went in on the Saturday of Coastal Farms 5 free chicks to get the free chicks (free if you buy some food), so we then had a total of 20. However within the first week or so we lost two of the free chicks, not sure why. So the following week Jennie was going in to town and went by Wilco, and ended up coming home with 6 more chicks.

The kids have gotten better at spotting chicks that are having problems with poop sticking to their fuzzy bottoms.  This can build up and actually prevent them from being able to go potty, and ultimately kill them.  So, here is something that 5 years ago I would never of even guessed I would be doing, and that is taking a baby wipe dipped in warm water and wiping a chicks bottom.  They are never very happy about it, and their friends make fun of them when you put them back in because their back half is soaking wet.

 

 Chicks in a take-home box

Lily holding a chick with help.

We started with two water's, one feeder and one heat lamp.  There are marbles in the water to help keep them from climbing in the water and getting soaked.  We set them up on bricks to get them up higher and keep them a little cleaner, but they still need to have the wood shavings cleaned out daily.  We start them in our chick nursery.  But with 24 chicks they only lasted in there for about a month before they ran out of space.

It is fun to watch them fall asleep.  Sometimes they are standing and you can see their eyes close, and then the head starts to droop.  So cute!

They only stay cute and fuzzy for a few weeks before the real feathers start to come and they enter the awkward tween stage of some fuzz and some feathers.

Last weekend we moved them out of the nursery and into the other side of the chicken house which has a fenced 8'x8' run that they can explore the outdoors in.  The run is covered with chicken wire as well to protect them from hawks, and mean chickens.  

Cow Shed

Here are some pictures of our cow shed that we have been building to provide shelter during the winter and some storage.  Our neighbor loaned us his post hole digger, which worked great and made quick work of all the holes for the shed posts.

Ethan was sick this weekend so Evan was my sole helper.  Here he is measuring and marking on the wood where the ceiling joists should land.  Both boys are getting better with tape measures and learning how to build things.

We were able to use some wood that came with the barn for the small purlins running perpendicular to the roof joists.  Evan used the chop saw to cut the purlins to the lengths I needed and then Mia would hand them up.  Evan got every one right, and did not hurt himself!

 

We bought the metal roofing from a company that specializes in agricultural building roofing.  It was cut to our lengths and then my dad helped us by picking it up in his truck.

It took most of a Saturday to get the first half on.

Mia was taking some photos for me, here I am working on the second half.

Mia took this picture of the daffodils, which was a good picture, except for the orange home depot bucket in the back ground.

Can you guess who took this one as well?

Here the boys are racing to see who can get down the ladder fastest.

Here we are unloading gravel for the shed.

Here is the current status of the shed, there is still more siding to put up, a door, and rails inside to separate the storage side from the cow side.