Increase the Dose....

I saw this quote the other day, and while it pertains to life, I found it to be particularly important for dairy farming as well: " A Physician once said the best medicine for humans is love. Someone asked him what if that doesn't work? He smiled and said....Increase the Dose!"

The same can be said about cows and calves on a dairy farm.  We have emergency veterinarian care at the dial of a phone, medicine on hand for almost any possible ailment, skilled employees to find sick cows and we feel prevention is the best cure.  Even with all of the technology and medicine, the best medicine we can give is our love for our animals.

The other day one of our employees came to the rescue of a cow having her calf.  The calf was 45 days premature.  While the calf was born early, it was alive, and that little bull calf fought with all of his might to stay alive.  We worked hard to give him the very best care that we could.  With as much love as possible, we fed him multiple small meals each day.  We gave him medicine to help his lungs develop and antibiotics to keep away any infections.  As hard as we tried, however, Mother Nature was not on our side.  This little guy was born without the ability to pass manure.  As much love as we gave him, we knew that he wasn't going to make it.  At two and a half days of age, the little bull passed away.  I can't help it, every time I lose a little calf, I cry, even if there was nothing I could do, other than increase the dose of love that they received.  With all the wonders of modern medicine and technology, we will still have sick animals and we will still lose some calves, but at the end of the day I know that I gave the best medicine first...love, and if that didn't work, well I always increase my dose.

Wordless Wednesday: Princess Kay

Our county dairy princess Kelsey Sellner, who will be running for Princess Kay of the Milky Way next Wednesday!  We wish her well as she represents the dairy farmers of our county!

Princess Kay....our calf !  Born on the same day that Kelsey was named a finalist...she's so big now!

Importance of Taking a Calf to Town

Glenwood, daughter of Glencoe...scheduled to head to town tomorrow for a visit!

Tomorrow we are taking our little calf Glenwood to town...to be part of a celebration for dairy month and a fundraiser for the local food shelf for June Dairy Month.  I'll be the first to admit that it's a hassel getting ready to take a calf to town.  First I had to pick the best calf to take to town.  It had to be a calf that would be friendly, is in good health, and will behave.  Glenwood was a great canidate for this, she's one of my favorite pets.  Then, today, I had to give Glenwood a bath.  After a little light scrubbing and some suds, she's a sparkling calf!  And she smells good too!  I put her in her own personal pen in the calf nursery, where she got extra bedding (to keep her dry and clean until morning).  I prepped by putting together feed, water, and milk for our trip to town.  Just like a child, she's going to need some snacks for this road trip.  I washed a special halter for her, becuase we want her to look her best.  The trailer needed a little cleaning, so we got that taken care of as well.  I have extra straw in the trailer, for a safe, comfortable and dry ride to town.

It's a lot of extra work, but it's definitely worth it.  To see the faces of the kids tomorrow, lets me know a little hard work makes a HUGE impression.  Talk about a conversation starter with parents!  Last year we had great questions about our calves, their mothers and the care we provide them.  As always, I was willing to answer all questions...and I am looking forward to some great ones tomorrow!  So HAPPY JUNE DAIRY MONTH!  Off to bed, we have a BIG day tomorrow!

Thankful for St. Anthony!

Meet Trooper a.k.a. Runaway!

I am so thankful for St. Anthony!  I am Catholic, and we have a patron saint that we pray to when we are searching for something that is lost....St. Anthony.  My grandmother taught me that if you lost something very dear, that you should continue your search but make sure to pray to St. Anthony to seek more help from God.  Today I needed St. Anthony. 
We had a VERY busy morning, as a result my usual schedule was a little off.  I was late to the calf barn to feed my babies.  Like always, I started feeding my "kids" only to find that my darling calf Trooper was missing from her hut!  Never fear, this happens from time to time.  When my calves get hungry waiting for me or if they just got fed and want more, they sometime jump right out of our huts, no matter how many twine strings I tie on the cross bars!  Nevertheless, Trooper was missing and it was lunch time!
Knowing that I was there to feed her, I would have expected to see Trooper come running out of the corner of grove (we have a wooded area where the calf huts are located for shade), BUT....Trooper never came for lunch.  Oh No!!!  What to do!  I stated searching frantically for her.  I looked in all of the logical places: in the grove, in the weeds, in the ditch, in the barn...no where to be found!  Oh no!!!!  What to do?!?!  I called Jonathan, he told me that it was no big deal, she'll show up, but I didn't know what to think.
Previous calves have runaway as far as the neighbors yard and Grandma's backyard.  So I searched everywhere, including the CRP (nature reserve/grassland) across the road.  Could someone have come in and snatched her???  We do live close to the road....but that would be crazy in the day light!  I talked to the rest of the family, to find out she was just around the barn an hour before I arrived.  She HAD to be around here!  BUT WHERE?!?!?!  I had to take a break, I was exhausted! 
Jonathan joined me in my search later on.  We decided to think outside the box, search in a larger area.  He took one side of the farm and I took the other.  I looked in the woods, behind the house, around the sheds and approaching the fields, when I got a call....
"I found her!" HE FOUND HER!!!!!  "Oh Thank God! Where in the world was she?!?!" "In the machine shed! Checking out the tractors!" "Oh that little stinker! I could just kiss her!"  We swiftly moved her back to her hut and fed her.  She was starving!  I love Trooper, but I am thinking she's up for a name change, something like "Runaway" seems more fitting.....

Babies, Babies, Babies!!!!

One of our many baby calves, this is Hauney.

So it's been a little while since I posted a blog, and it's not from lack of trying, but from lack of sleep.  I think we have spent the entire month of January on "Baby Watch".  We knew we were expecting a large number of calves this month, but you never realize how many there are until they are all born and ready to eat!!!  So our tally (so far...I have one more cow due with a set of twins for this week)...

• 33 calves since Christmas from 29 cows.
• 18 heifer calves (girls)
• 11 bull calves (boys)
• 4 loved baby calves still born (I always miss my lost ones!)
• Currently feeding 27 calves on milk!!!  Lots of hungry babies to play with!

Even though we have so many calves, I can assure you that we are not skipping over our chores or doing a poor job.  Each calf is important, just as important as their mothers.  We strive to give each of them the best care possible, even if that means some short sleep nights and early mornings for us.  I have been doing the 3am checks for calves this entire month.  I am certain that I am checking my dry cows (expectant mothers) at least 10 times a day, waiting for the next little blessing.  Cold Minnesota weather has also offered a challenge.  It is critical that we move the calves quickly to get them into the warm nursery.  It's also equally critical that we get our cows to the milking barn after calving.  Both cows and calves are moved to prevent them from experiencing frost bite in these frigid temperatures (-10 to -20's last week).  February looks to be a lighter calving month, and a much needed break for this active dairy farmer! Stay tuned for more pictures and videos from the calf barn!

Update: Cows are back on track!

It's been a little bit since I blogged about our cows and how they have been doing, so I thought I would take this chance to post an update.  Well as you read in CSI: Dairy Farm Investigation, we had a little bump in the road.  After that post we had all of our forages tested.  We test our silage, haylage, hay and straw about once a month to make sure that we know exactly how much protein, energy, minerals, and vitamins are in each.  We build our diets around those forages, and supplement with grains to fill out the rest of our cows' nutrient needs.  The tests came back in a couple of days and we learned that not only had our corn silage increased in energy, but our haylage was more digestible, and our alfalfa hay had more protein in it.  All 3 factors caused our cows to get upset stomachs.  Too many treats for them, and their diet was out of balance.  So we fine tuned the diet once again, and after about 2 weeks on the new diets, we can say the the cows are back on track!  They haven't gained back all of the milk they once had, but that's ok with us, their health is far more important!  It's great to walk into the barn in the morning and see them all chewing their cuds so diligently! (we know we made the right choices then!)

Other than working with the new feed changes, we have also been busy welcoming a number of new calves to the farm.  Be sure to stop by our Facebook Page to see new pictures of our new baby calves!  The mother cows are doing great, and the baby calves are thriving.  I checked the calving list tonight, and we have 14 more to be born this month, including 2 sets of possible twins!!  I can't wait to meet them all!

Minnesota's Winter Weather has also been a challenge for us.  We have been constantly bedding in our cows....to keep them warm and insulated from the cold.  We have also been working move and remove as much snow as we can, since it snows here almost twice a week.   Needless to say, we are experiencing a traditional Minnesota Winter, and all the joys it brings with.  The forecast for the coming week doesn't sound too much more promising, but we can look forward to March....and thawing! 

A Collection of Misfits...

Today was herd health day at the farm.  Every 3-4 weeks the vet shows up to check the health of our new fresh cows, vaccinate cows and heifers, dehorn calves, pregnancy check cows that were bred, and check any cows that we need to have examined.  Today was an excellent herd health! We had a a good report on our fresh cows, vaccinations went well and most importantly we had a number of cows that were confirmed pregnant!  When looking over the list of cows that were pregnant, I decided that we had a small collection of misfits.  It was interesting reading each name and thinking about that cow's life history.

Cows varied in ages, but each was a misfit in their own right.  First we had a 12 year old cow, Terry, who is the oldest cow in our herd.  She has had numerous calves, and again, is pregnant and due in July. Terry isn't the prettiest cow in the barn but she milks well and has calves...she stays healthy.  We love her a lot.  Second on the list was Zhilgen.  She's a special heifer because she beat the odds.  As a heifer she had a serious surgery.  The vets told us that she wouldn't be able to have a calf someday, but we bred her anyways, got her pregnant and she successfully delivered a heifer calf.  After that, we were told that she couldn't have another calf, but after a couple tries, we are successful!  Third and fourth on the list were 2 cows that delivered calves months ago, but due to their high milk production they were not able to become pregnant.  After many tries we finally got them to conceive, even one with twins!  Fifth and sixth on the list were heifers that had many  tries as well, but we got them pregnant.  Finally, was Yevette!  Yevette was a heifer that was born 33 days premature, and against all odds she survived!  With a lot of TLC from Jon and I we nursed her, got her to grow, and now....she's pregnant with her first calf, due in July!  We are so proud of Yvette and how well she is thriving!

After Herd Health, I walked through the calf barn and saw another misfit!  On Thanksgiving Day we welcomed 2 new heifer calves.  These girls were very fortunate that we had our Thanksgiving Dinner at Grandma's house, which is next to the dry cow lot.  We were able to rescue them from the frigid weather, preventing frost bite.  The first calf, Izzy did great from the get-go, however, the second calf, Thankful, wasn't doing so great.  Thankful wasn't able to stand up, her legs were deformed, her ligaments were weak and unable to support weight.  We nursed her and nurtured her.  And finally today....6 days after her birth....she stood for the first time!!!!  I was so proud of my little calf, I gave her a hug!!!  Thankful was also a misfit, but with a little dairy farmer care she thrives.  Dairy farming is all about saving the misfits....they are worth the time and effort.

It's a Girl!!!

Finally!!!  We can report that we have a heifer calf!  We had 9 bull calves in a row, and from the looks of things, we were thinking that this too would be another bull calf.  Cow #312 was due 7 days ago, typically when this happens, it means that it's going to be a bull calf (male).  Not always is this the case, but typically if a calf is born late, it is a bull.  2 days ago, we decided that #312 waited long enough to have her calf.  We decided to go ahead and induce her delivery.  We gave #312 medication to begin labor on Wednesday at 2pm.  On Thursday at 1 pm #312 finally began displaying signs of labor.  We watched her very closely.  She progressed slowly, but after 3 hours we decided it was time to intervene.  We walked #312 from the dry cow yard to the calving pen.  #312 needed a little help to deliver her calf, so we hooked up to give a pull with each of her contractions.  At 4:30pm on Thursday, we successfully delivered a beautiful HEIFER calf!  After almost a month, we finally had a heifer on our farm and she was beautiful!  We had to check her twice just to make sure we had a heifer, and I quickly named her "Autumn".  #312 went to work cleaning Autumn off, and we worked to make sure #312 got plenty of warm water to drink after such hard work.  After an hour we moved Autumn to her new, freshly bedded stall and we moved #312 to the milking barn.  #312 literally ran to the milking barn!  She knew exactly where she was going.  She found her feed and water waiting for her, as well as all of her friends!  It's so great to see a fresh cow doing so well!

What to see #312 licking off her calf? Check out our video below!

Warm March Weather

Oh this Sunday was wonderful. Even though it was cloudy, foggy and rainy...the snow is melting and the temperatures are rising.

This morning we were greeted with a cow in labor. #97, who is 6 years old was in the process of calving, we decided that since she started before we found her that she may need some help. We assisted her labor and delivered a beautiful baby heifer calf. We named her Tracy. Within an hour Tracy was up and running around. We quickly milked #97, fed Tracy, and made sure that #97 was eating her morning meal of TMR (total mixed ration). Seems like we only get heifers on Sunday mornings, which make us late for church, but at least we have an excellent excuse.

We got to church, went out to eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant, and returned to the farm to finish feeding the rest of the cows and heifers. Rest assured no animals ran out of feed, since we usually feed extra on Saturdays to make sure that the milking cows, heifers and dry cows have enough feed to let us enjoy church and a nice "day date". After swiftly feeding the animals, we went home and enjoyed a lovely walk outside. Though brisk, the 35 degree temperatures feel like a tropical paradise compared to a few short weeks ago when it was 35 below zero instead.

This weather is giving me the "itch" to play in the dirt. I am eagerly looking forward to planting my garden and planting our first field of corn. Spring-like weather also gives me the energy to tackle last minute projects at home, before I would rather spend my time outside in the garden. I managed to fully clean the kitchen this weekend and living room. I don't know how much more I will accomplish since we have a busy week scheduled on the farm, but we will see, with this new energy I may still find time. And I am so thankful to have my computer back!

Congrats for surviving this Week of Winter!

Oh I couldn't be more excited for warmer weather than what I am right now! In case you didn't notice, I haven't posted a blog in over a week. There's a GOOD explanation for that-we were taking care of our cows the best that we could in some pretty miserable Minnesota weather. At last count we put in 3 16-hour days, 2 15-hour days, and 3 12-hour days. It's been tough, no lie about that. Our biggest challenge was just making sure that all of our cows, heifers and calves were protected from the wind and snow. Frost bite is just as dangerous to cows as it is to humans....we take the winter very seriously. We bedded in all animals everyday with lots of extra straw, thereby keeping them dry and clean. We moved cows that were due to calve in the coming days, into a heated pen to assure us that any calves born would be warm and frost-free. Accidents do happen, where cows are not smart enough to stay out the wind and decide to have their calves out in the open, in a snow bank, and in the wind-those calves usually die. Knowing this fact-we didn't want to take any chances-we want all live calves, so mothers got moved inside. We used special teat creams/lotions in the milking barn to protect teats on cows and heifers that could be at risk of freezing as well. The temperatures dipped below -30 a couple of times over night, but wind chills were out biggest enemy: -45! Add some fluffy, fresh snow and we had a good mess on our hands. One night we were even unsure if we could make the 7 mile trip from the farm back to our home since most local roads were closed...but we made it.

It's days like those that I really wonder how animal rights activists can accuse us on "not caring" for our cows!?!?! Seriously!?!?!? If I didn't care for my cows, I would have stayed at home, wrapped up on the couch with a warm blanket instead of sporting 5 layers of clothing and a ski mask to care for my animals. Those days were really hard on us mentally. Jon and I asked ourselves often-"Why is it that we are doing this?" We do it because we love our cows, and we strive everyday to give them our very best-they deserve it! Farming is not easy, but we do it because we know how important it is to grow, raise, and produce safe, quality, wholesome food for the world. So, I guess to rest my case....say thanks and congrats to a dairy farmer today....especially if they survived a week of winter like we did.

And, be grateful for the +30 temps coming this week!

Another Saturday Night at the Farm

It's Sunday, and I am recovering from another Saturday night at the farm. It was a good day yesterday. We had nice weather, temperatures in the 30's and sunny. The snow melted, and the heifers played. We had 2 heifers calves born in the afternoon, and I had some time to head to town to start my Christmas shopping. I came home to do evening chores. On the last group of cows in the parlor I had a "bad event". I was prepping or cleaning the teats of a new fresh heifer in our barn. She's a little feisty and started to kick at me. But instead of hitting me she hit the mature cow next to her. The mature cow tolerated this kicking for a little while and then she couldn't take it any more, she fired back. The mature cow tried to hit the heifer but misfired and hit me, when I wasn't even looking.

I am fine, but as a result I have a very nice "hoof" shaped bruise on my forehead as well as 2, 4 inch long abrasions on my forehead and eye brow. I was a little shaken up. I did not fight back. Why would I? Contrary to some beliefs, we do not abuse our animals. It was not the cow's fault that she hit me, she was just trying to settle down the heifer next to her that still wasn't used to getting milked in the parlor. Sometime I think a helmet should be mandatory issue for milking cows, but most times the cows hardly ever fuss. We pride ourselves on having nice, calm cows. I work hard to play with the calves and heifers. Some night I can even play a game of "tag"---yes, tag with the cows. When they have to try something new, like milking, well they go back to their basic instincts-fight back as an animal-kick. It happens, very seldom do they hit us, but sometimes they do hit, BUT we NEVER hit back. The moment we hit back we teach them that we will hit them, teaching them pain. Peaceful cows are happy cows!-and they make a lot of milk too =)

Small break in the calving...

Today we enjoyed a small break in the calving for the week. On Tuesday we had a plethora of calves born...one heifer calf, one set of twins (1 bull and 1 heifer) and one little heifer that didn't make it. We were really sad about the heifer that didn't make it. Her mother was in labor overnight, which is not good for us-we live 7 miles from the farm so we can't check on our cows as much as we would like to. Some farms have closed circuit camera and some have people hired to watch cows calving 24 hours a day, but since we are a small farm we have to rely on our own abilities to check on cows. We missed this cow calving at 2 or 3 am, and she was having problems, the calf was coming out backwards. When we found her calving at morning milking, we rushed to her aid, but it was too late for her little calf. As a woman, I think I always take these moments harder than Jonathan does, but often I do catch a small tear in his eyes as well. It's always heartbreaking to lose an animal on our farm, whether she's young or old, it's hard to watch. That is why we work so hard to make sure that all of our animals have the best care possible and we can't wait to move to the farm when the opportunity arises-to keep a better watch on our girls.

On a happier note, the calf barn is busting with 4 bulls, and 3 heifers, and I am waiting for 4 more cows to calve before Friday. I can't wait for more babies, even though it takes me double the time to do my calf chores every day twice a day, I love caring for the little ones. They are full of discovery and amazement and I think that's what makes the job so fun! Hopefully I have more pictures of little calves, and I hope we don't lose anymore of our blessings.

Post #100! This day didn't go as planned :(

So this is my 100th post on my blog! I can't hardly believe that I made that many posts already, but I promise this one to be interesting....all about my day, another Monday that went unplanned.

The PLAN was to work on making bedding today, haul out manure, and make headway on our fall activities. INSTEAD....we had all sorts of chaos, good chaos, but chaos nonetheless. The morning began with breeding a heifer at the neighbor's farm. This took an extra 30 minutes out of our day, and meant we started milking later than expected, even though we got out of bed extra early. When we arrived at the farm we learned that the milking system wasn't working correctly so Jonathan started to work on that, while I hopped on the 4-wheeler to dry through the dry cow lot. We had a cow that was due to calve about 3 days ago. I went looking for the cow and found her, and she appeared to have calved, but there was no calf to be found. I started looking around the lot in a frantic. The calf was no where to be found, until I saw 2 little ears sticking out of the mud, wiggle. That darn new born calf had wondered her way out of the dry cow lot, where she could be with her mother and out into a big, deep mud puddle. She was fine and healthy, just very dirty! Oh dear calf! I loaded her up into the wheelbarrow and pushed her into the calf barn. Then we started her a warm bath. At first she didn't like it too much, but once she figured out that I was cleaning off all of that mud, she REALLY loved it! She was so cute. I dried her off and she was a lovely black calf. I hurried up and off to the barn to help finish milking. Now chores were about 2 hours later than planned. Jonathan and I hustled through feeding chores and ate a quick lunch. I headed off to haul manure from the heifer pens and Jonathan went into the fields to make corn straw stacks. After loading the manure spreader with my first load, I pulled out of the pen and through the open gate, slowly making sure the heifers didn't run out of the gate. I turned to look forward for a couple seconds and by the time I turned around I found that the heifers had pushed the open gate into the manure spreader and the gate got caught under the wheel of the manure spreader.....the gate was completely twisted and mangled!!!!! OH NO!!!!! I called Jon to come and rescue me! We fixed the fence and wasted another hour of our day. The sun was setting so I ran off to haul one last load of manure and Jonathan went back into the field. Wouldn't you know it, but Jonathan had a problem too! He broke the stack maker, and it needed to be fixed as well. Oofta! it's been one of those days! Just hoping that tomorrow is a better day ;) Either way we got the cows cared for, milked and we got to enjoy some AMAZING Fall Weather! So even though it didn't go as planned it still went well!

The joys of dairy farming!

Today was one of those days, where you REALLY have to LOVE your job. It was a day where you really have to ENJOY the JOYS OF DAIRY FARMING....

This morning we dried off 5 cows (time for them to go on a 2 month vacation before they have their next calf). After that we noticed a cow that we gave medication to induce labor had finally started labor. After carefully observing her for a couple hours we decided to intervene, but not before we chased the cow out of the mud holes in the dry cow yard twice. We helped pull the calf, a bull calf, and momma cow was doing so well! After taking care of calf and cow, we moved on to a cow that had gotten herself stuck in the mud. Well, actually she was playing with another cow and it got a little rough. #55 fell down into a thick muddy hole, and couldn't get back out. We rushed to her rescue, using the skid loader to move the mud out the way and lift her out of the mud. Success! #55 was out of the mud, but she was also in shock. SO....we gave her some calcium for muscle tone, dextrose (sugar) for some quick energy, and some pain medication in case she hurt her leg....but one that was safe for her and the calf that she is carrying. We finished that up and got to chase a heifer that needed to be bred through another mud hole in the heifer yard! Seems like all of the cows were looking for those darn mud holes today! We got Lucy into the barn for breeding. We use artificial insemination for breeding, because it is safer for cows and people to NOT use a bull. Plus we get to use genetics from around the world on our farm to improve our cows. We bred Lucy.....next, move fresh cow (cow that calved) to the milking barn....and of course she found the mud on the way to the barn.....yikes! Next we found another cow in the dry cow yard that had an infection in her foot....she got a cut and thanks to all of the mud, she now had an infection....so we moved her to the barn to get a shot of Penicillin.

Sure sounds like we were treating a lot of cows, but we were merely working around the environment that Mother Nature provided us this week. 4.5 inches of rain and cool/cold weather makes for some muddy conditions outside. Cows are unfortunately not smart enough to stay out of said mud, therefore we tend to have cows that get into trouble. We are definitely looking forward to the day that we can put all of the cows inside a barn during the muddy seasons! Once we have the money you can bet that we will be putting up a barn ASAP! In the meantime we are working to keep the cows as dry as possible...

Oh yeah did I mention that Minnesota Winter is here! It's snowing outside as I type this! I can't believe it! 6 months of winter in this darn state! I am beginning to question Global Warming especially since I remember when it was 70 degrees in November just a few short years ago. Oh well, dealing with the cards we are dealt, and enjoying the JOYS OF DAIRY FARMING!

It's a girl!!!

I am proud to report that the baby calf that I was patiently waiting for last night was born successfully this morning at 7:13 am....and it's a heifer (girl). Unfortunately I was too tired this morning to make it to milking early to check on our cow 301. Fortunately though, my father in law was up and willing to help 301 out. She was trying to deliver a breached baby calf. Much like a human mother giving birth to a breached baby....my father in law had to manually maneuver the calf into the right position. Once in the right position it was time to help 301 out. My father in law and brother in law Chris worked quickly to hook up the OB chains to the rear feet that were coming out. Typically a calf would be coming out front feet and head first but this calf was backwards, and needed help if it was going to survive. If a calf comes rear feet first the risk of it not breathing is great...as the umbilical cord breaks in the birth canal cutting off oxygen to the calf until the head passes though-speed is of the essence at this point. Once the OB chain was hooked on, a series of gentle pulls helped 301's contractions get the little heifer out. Hence arrived 301's calf Judson! Judson is doing well and we greatly thank Steve and Chris for coming to 301's aid!!! It's awesome to have people around the farm all of the time that can catch animals in trouble and help them ASAP!

Mother in waiting...

As I am typing this right now, I have enjoyed about 1.5 hours of being inside our home. Today we had 4 calves born from 3 cows and as of right now I am waiting for the delivery of calf number 5 for the day. Mother cow was starting to calve at about 11:30pm tonight. As a result I am staying up to head out and check on her. I am closely monitoring her progress to make sure that she has a safe and successful delivery for both mother and calf. This particular cow was given medication yesterday which has worked to help induce her labor and delivery. Much like in humans, if a cow goes too far her due date the risks of a difficult delivery steadily increase. This cow is 12 days past her due date, which isn't too uncommon with the sire of her calf, but we would rather be safe than sorry. She was given medication yesterday morning, with the hopes that she would have calved this morning, but she decided that she is waiting until tomorrow morning instead...so I wait, hoping for an easy care free delivery from a great cow! Out I go to see how she's doing.....

Pictures from the Preschool Tour!

I finally got some time to sit down and post some pictures. The preschool tour threw off our schedule at the farm just a little, and now we are working on planning the tour for the High School Ag class coming next Wednesday. I love pictures of kids seeing a dairy farm for the first time...and a picture is worth a million words. Also a HUGE thanks to the Dairy Princesses that came out to spend time with the kids on Monday! I know they had a blast seeing a real life princess in person!

Explaining to the kids that in the summer heat we run sprinklers, which are ALOT like water parks....so fun for cows too!

Kids enjoying snack time, cheese and crackers.

Dairy Princess Angie handing out stickers to the preschoolers-which say "I met a dairy farmer".-Those were awesome stickers!!!

Meeting Baby Joey. Those kids wanted to hug Joey so badly!

Talking about what we feed the cows to the little boys, so curious about the smells that they smelled.

Petting a cow for the first time. They weren't scared at all!

Snack time with cheese and crackers, and their new stickers.

Mmmmm...juice boxes :)

The best group picture we got at the farm!

Mainly, as you can see, 21 preschoolers and a baby calf are all hard to manage and get to stand still, oh well.

Bottle feeding calves with Dairy Princess Val. Kids LOVED this activity!

Bottle feeding with Dairy Princess Angie. Odessa enjoyed all of the extra attention.

HAY RIDE! The boys were huge fans of the hay ride, but we learned that only boys should drive not girls, like me ;)

Loading the hay ride to the calf barn.

Preschoolers meet Joey!!!!

Tomorrow (Monday) we will introduce 42 preschoolers to the wonders of a dairy farm. We started doing farm tours last year and have decided with the preschool teachers that this should be an annual event. In addition to leaving a lasting impression about dairy farming we are also having a blast with some great kids!

We have many activities planned for these excited kids. First they get to ride the bus to the farm with a County Dairy Princess. She will lead the kids in fun songs on the way the farm. Once they arrive we will check out the bulk tank and milk house. Our cow "Discovery" will be in the parlor waiting to be milked. I can't wait to see the look on the kids' faces when they pet a real cow! It's so cool! After that we will visit the rest of the herd in the bedded pack barn. Then we will load up on a hay ride to the calf huts. There will be the big surprise.....

These preschoolers will meet "Joey". Joey will be so excited to meet all of the preschoolers! Joey is 10 days old and will be fed by the preschoolers tomorrow. She will be very excited to run around and enjoy the special attention. During the summer we will track Joey's progress as she grows and enjoys life on Orange Patch Dairy. Each week I will try to post information about what Joey has been up to, as well as pictures and video. Our hope is that parents and kids alike will check in and see how Joey is doing. Here's a little background information about Joey:

• Joey is a Holstein calf.
• She is a heifer.
• She was born on April 30th, 2009.
• Her mother is a first calf cow (Joey is her first born).
• Joey's mom is named Judy.
• Judy was born 2 years ago.
• Joey was fed 1 gallon of colostrum for her first feeding after birth.
• Joey was fed milk from Judy for the first 5 feedings (2.5 days) of her life.
• Now Joey is fed milk replacer (dry milk which we add warm water to) twice a day in addition to calf starter (feed containing corn, oats, and protein pellets).
• Joey lives in a calf hut, which is placed in a grove of trees providing shade from the sun and protection from the wind.
• Joey's hut is bedded with chopped soybean straw.

We hope you will check in on Joey often in the coming weeks!