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farmerjan
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Well, Betsy's calf is a heifer... I was resigned to it being a bull, until we got it caught up and brought up to the barn... so surprise... and it is a nice one, not huge but just nice. Betsy seemed a little "wobbly"... not exactly, but being an older jersey, she would be more prone to milk fever, so I did not milk anything out of her... we got her calf up the hill, she didn't see DS put it on the back of the truck with him, GF drove up the hill, so did not follow very far with me calling her... so they put calf in the barn lot and then came down and I drove up the hill, calling her and they "herded" her up the hill... she was not going to come in the gate at first, then did... and went right to the bunk... then checked out her calf... I fed her a couple qts of grain... enough to give her some energy, not enough to throw her gut tract out of whack .....and filled the bunk with a full sq bale of hay... and she seemed fairly content. Wasn't wobbly on her feet so I left her be... her calcium levels ought to "level out" and hopefully she will not need anything for milk fever... Will know alot more in the morning... I will have to haul her water for in the lot tomorrow...There was some in the tubs from the other day, so she will not go thirsty but needs fresh tomorrow...
Da@#... my little truck is not running right... well, I can take some 5 gal buckets with lids, on the back of the diesel I guess... Going to have to get after DS to do the spark plugs on the truck... as usual, there is always something more pressing with her to hurry and leave and not get things done here for me....
At least got the new replaced battery in the forester so I can drive that up around the field and not the outback... Gotta decide what to do with the explorer exhaust thing tomorrow...
They left after she was in the pen.... and were going to take the load of hay to deliver to the one customer....... so, one less thing to do tomorrow... Monday.
DS has to have his beef at the place by 8 a.m. He is taking the heifer at the barn that has been getting fed some... she didn't carry a calf twice... so is fat.... then is going to get the baler and stuff in the barn since they didn't come up from her house/ and the birthday party... until late... and he knew it was essential I get the cow and calf up to the barn... I could have gotten the calf in the car and gone up the hill... but Betsy would not have wanted to come, and it might have taken her until the morning to hear the calf hollering for her and finally come up, if then... here again, I need my little truck to put the calf in the back and she might have followed me up there...
I just thought..... Hmm.... I will see if I can get the 4wd ranger out and take the water up there in a couple of barrels and couple of buckets for her... since the forester has the battery, it is out of the way of the older ranger...and I can get it out of where it was parked... the forester was behind it and the tree is in front of it...
DS also is taking the old bull tomorrow to Winchester, 100 miles north... near where I used to test the 200 cow registered jersey herd several years ago.....where he will get on the trailer to go directly to a slaughter plant in PA... no running him through the sale, or getting beat all to pieces by other bulls in a pen. We will take a bit of a hit on the price... but we have had him 10 years and he was mature when we got him... so 14-15 yrs old??? and DS said he just feels like this is the fairest way to make his end a little better... Bulls are bringing 1.75 to 2.10 lb and the guy said he will give DS 1.50.... he will weigh about 1600 lbs ? ... they will weigh him there at that stockyard and then load him directly on the trailer to go to kill.... we have 2 more we are going to sell, but they will go through the normal channels at the stockyard here closeby... competition for them will help the price... and they don't have the same sentimental value to DS .... One is only a couple yrs younger, so about 11 (got him in 2016 as an 18 month old?) and has been a good bull; semen test was okay but some degradation,,,, and the other is not real old, probably 6-7..got him in 2020? but he throws real small calves and they do not grow very fast... so are small when they get weaned off. He is also a big bull... weighs near 2,000 and stays fat... which is good... but he is too big and heavy to use on heifers where you would want smaller calves... and he is not working with the cows, with what we want in calves.... With his size, his prospects are limited... and it is time to replace him...
So, I am going to talk to DS in the morning... and if I can get a couple calves... maybe I will go with him and we can stop on the way to or from, taking the bull... and get the calves... it would be on the way pretty much... few miles off the interstate...
So, after getting Betsy settled in, I came home and took water and filled the waterers in both the chickens and turkeys... filled feeders.... and they are done...
Will call the farm tomorrow... see if I can get 2 calves... and will get them on her... and will watch and see how she does. I can always supplement with a bottle if I have to... better to get 2 holstein bull calves so there will be a pair to sell in the spring next year... unless the other farmer happens to have 2 jersey bull calves born... but that is unlikely.... he has 4 or 5 jersey heifers due to calve in the next week or so... the other farm has alot more milking and a bunch that have calved or due to calve... We'll see what they say...
Supposedly there was a brand new, still wet, calf at the farm so they didn't tag it... left the cow alone to clean it up and all....
There is one more heifer at snyder's that is really close... she is really uddering up... I expect in the next couple days... then the last 3 will be a little bit...
I'm going to quit for the night... need to wash my hair and go to bed... Lots to do tomorrow....
Da@#... my little truck is not running right... well, I can take some 5 gal buckets with lids, on the back of the diesel I guess... Going to have to get after DS to do the spark plugs on the truck... as usual, there is always something more pressing with her to hurry and leave and not get things done here for me....
At least got the new replaced battery in the forester so I can drive that up around the field and not the outback... Gotta decide what to do with the explorer exhaust thing tomorrow...
They left after she was in the pen.... and were going to take the load of hay to deliver to the one customer....... so, one less thing to do tomorrow... Monday.
DS has to have his beef at the place by 8 a.m. He is taking the heifer at the barn that has been getting fed some... she didn't carry a calf twice... so is fat.... then is going to get the baler and stuff in the barn since they didn't come up from her house/ and the birthday party... until late... and he knew it was essential I get the cow and calf up to the barn... I could have gotten the calf in the car and gone up the hill... but Betsy would not have wanted to come, and it might have taken her until the morning to hear the calf hollering for her and finally come up, if then... here again, I need my little truck to put the calf in the back and she might have followed me up there...
I just thought..... Hmm.... I will see if I can get the 4wd ranger out and take the water up there in a couple of barrels and couple of buckets for her... since the forester has the battery, it is out of the way of the older ranger...and I can get it out of where it was parked... the forester was behind it and the tree is in front of it...
DS also is taking the old bull tomorrow to Winchester, 100 miles north... near where I used to test the 200 cow registered jersey herd several years ago.....where he will get on the trailer to go directly to a slaughter plant in PA... no running him through the sale, or getting beat all to pieces by other bulls in a pen. We will take a bit of a hit on the price... but we have had him 10 years and he was mature when we got him... so 14-15 yrs old??? and DS said he just feels like this is the fairest way to make his end a little better... Bulls are bringing 1.75 to 2.10 lb and the guy said he will give DS 1.50.... he will weigh about 1600 lbs ? ... they will weigh him there at that stockyard and then load him directly on the trailer to go to kill.... we have 2 more we are going to sell, but they will go through the normal channels at the stockyard here closeby... competition for them will help the price... and they don't have the same sentimental value to DS .... One is only a couple yrs younger, so about 11 (got him in 2016 as an 18 month old?) and has been a good bull; semen test was okay but some degradation,,,, and the other is not real old, probably 6-7..got him in 2020? but he throws real small calves and they do not grow very fast... so are small when they get weaned off. He is also a big bull... weighs near 2,000 and stays fat... which is good... but he is too big and heavy to use on heifers where you would want smaller calves... and he is not working with the cows, with what we want in calves.... With his size, his prospects are limited... and it is time to replace him...
So, I am going to talk to DS in the morning... and if I can get a couple calves... maybe I will go with him and we can stop on the way to or from, taking the bull... and get the calves... it would be on the way pretty much... few miles off the interstate...
So, after getting Betsy settled in, I came home and took water and filled the waterers in both the chickens and turkeys... filled feeders.... and they are done...
Will call the farm tomorrow... see if I can get 2 calves... and will get them on her... and will watch and see how she does. I can always supplement with a bottle if I have to... better to get 2 holstein bull calves so there will be a pair to sell in the spring next year... unless the other farmer happens to have 2 jersey bull calves born... but that is unlikely.... he has 4 or 5 jersey heifers due to calve in the next week or so... the other farm has alot more milking and a bunch that have calved or due to calve... We'll see what they say...
Supposedly there was a brand new, still wet, calf at the farm so they didn't tag it... left the cow alone to clean it up and all....
There is one more heifer at snyder's that is really close... she is really uddering up... I expect in the next couple days... then the last 3 will be a little bit...
I'm going to quit for the night... need to wash my hair and go to bed... Lots to do tomorrow....
