Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[farmerjan]

Cold, raw, damp, chilly, cloudy, ... did I say cold and raw and damp?????

It was down to 41, only up to 48 today. We got a little bit of misty damp sprinkle like weather for about a half hour... but the air stayed really just RAW.
Got most of the cows and their fall calves in the barn, to work the calves through the chute, banded the bull calves and blackleg shots to all... then got them moved out to the field on the hill... There were about 3-4 calves that did not come in, and we put their momma's back out there plus all the ones that have not calved yet. There are 3 with older calves in the other field, that will get brought in and then put out with this group. Then, the ones yet to calve, and the ones with the new, little ones that did not come in, will get moved to another pasture for the winter... across the dirt road from me at Grant's field. I will be moving the 3 (from snyder's) heifers that calved early, up to the farm with the ones we just turned out... between the ones yet to go there, there will be 30 or 31 out there all together.. Then with what is left to calve at the farm, about 20 +/- and the rest of the heifers from snyder's, there will be 28-30 at grant's across the dirt road, "behind my house"....That will keep my orphan from the jersey, with the group of first calf heifers so she can continue to snitch off whomever she is getting extra milk from. She does not try to steal off the 3 with the older calves, but off some of the ones with calves closer to her size.

Then, we will be moving 5 cows with calves that will not be getting bred back, to snyder's for the winter... when their calves will get weaned off, the cows will be sold. One has next to no milk, and that is the one they are supplementing with a bottle for now... the one that prolapsed with her calf, and 3 old cows that were designated LAST CALF.... let them raise up their calves and then they will get sold.... Plus move the 4-5 heifers he has at the barn that are too young to get bred, up there and they will all get fed some grain over the winter as a supplement, along with the 12 bwf her x heifers I have there.. And the 2 holstein heifers until they get sold...hoping they are both bred. If the market collapses, I can always calve them out and then put calves on them, but they have to be there where I can get them in to work with them.... hoping they are bred and get sold...

So, been making a new list of the ones we moved out, and will add whomever we add to that group...

Got to get the 2 holstein heifers in the barn/catch pen at snyder's in the next day or 2 so they can get moved to the barn... and if possible, going to move the big longhorn x steer there to go in with the steers DS is feeding, so he can get some grain before he get's butchered in January. He is no problem to get in, but he will not stay in for long... he wants out as soon as he eats the grain he is enticed in with. We figure he ought to settle down at the barn in the lots with the new fences and coming in to get grained everyday.... The one she has on her now will probably just get sold in the spring since I won't need another beef so soon. Plus, no sense to feed him... and she will be calving again in the spring, so she will need a break. We sold the black one she had last year so she could have a rest for 2 months or so...

The one heifer that got over with the "18" , has gone across and is in with the 9 that are going to get bred. DS said you can't tell which one she is from the rest, so she is going to get bred with them. Not going to fight to get her out of there... she might be a little younger, but that's life.

Tomorrow is the 500+ cow herd in the afternoon. going to load all the boxes and stuff in the car in the morning. Already put bottles in the trays for the farm for Thursday afternoon, so I have a couple of empty boxes so we can put the bottles in them in number groups... and not have to try to take empty bottles out to put full ones in the slots... I like to have 3 empty boxes to take and then we take the bottles out of the other ones, and use them... and it gives me space to get them all into numerical order when I go to pack them...

DS is going to finally go down in the crawl space/cellar area, to put the hot water heating element in the tank... one is burnt out... and to figure out what we need to do to be able to hook up the small "milkhouse" heater to keep the pipes from freezing this winter... Not going to deal with having a pipe freezing and bursting and having to turn off the well pump to keep it from spraying water all over the "cellar" and all that like last year... only a year late to get to this project. I can get down there, but cannot climb out with these knees.... it had a dirt incline, then you can practically stand down there in part of it... I just want to have enough heat to keep it from freezing down there over the winter. Will set the heater to like 55 degrees, and however much/often it runs, well, that is better than frozen burst pipes...

Then, we will go to the farm and test... and it will be 10 or later when we get home... I have to drop off the meters for the farm for Thursday, so will probably do that tomorrow morning. They set them up... and they just changed their parlor AGAIN.... so now will use 20 meters... but I have 2 double 8's, that I do, and a double 10 and a double 12 so not going to be any big deal.... but just more meters to take....

Put feed in the chicken/turkey feeders again, so don't have to deal with them tomorrow..... just have to get them up on the pressure treated boards before the other ones start to rot... definitely before winter...
Need to get the chicken coop off the trailer that is still sitting here... grrr and go get the other one that we were waiting for them to get their water and electric lines run and ditch filled in. I don't want to be waiting forever to do that.... thought that this one would at least be off the trailer by now...

I need to go to bed... so I can get a bunch of stuff done without rushing tomorrow....

 

[drstratton]

Cold, raw, damp, chilly, cloudy, ... did I say cold and raw and damp?????

It was down to 41, only up to 48 today. We got a little bit of misty damp sprinkle like weather for about a half hour... but the air stayed really just RAW.
Got most of the cows and their fall calves in the barn, to work the calves through the chute, banded the bull calves and blackleg shots to all... then got them moved out to the field on the hill... There were about 3-4 calves that did not come in, and we put their momma's back out there plus all the ones that have not calved yet. There are 3 with older calves in the other field, that will get brought in and then put out with this group. Then, the ones yet to calve, and the ones with the new, little ones that did not come in, will get moved to another pasture for the winter... across the dirt road from me at Grant's field. I will be moving the 3 (from snyder's) heifers that calved early, up to the farm with the ones we just turned out... between the ones yet to go there, there will be 30 or 31 out there all together.. Then with what is left to calve at the farm, about 20 +/- and the rest of the heifers from snyder's, there will be 28-30 at grant's across the dirt road, "behind my house"....That will keep my orphan from the jersey, with the group of first calf heifers so she can continue to snitch off whomever she is getting extra milk from. She does not try to steal off the 3 with the older calves, but off some of the ones with calves closer to her size.

Then, we will be moving 5 cows with calves that will not be getting bred back, to snyder's for the winter... when their calves will get weaned off, the cows will be sold. One has next to no milk, and that is the one they are supplementing with a bottle for now... the one that prolapsed with her calf, and 3 old cows that were designated LAST CALF.... let them raise up their calves and then they will get sold.... Plus move the 4-5 heifers he has at the barn that are too young to get bred, up there and they will all get fed some grain over the winter as a supplement, along with the 12 bwf her x heifers I have there.. And the 2 holstein heifers until they get sold...hoping they are both bred. If the market collapses, I can always calve them out and then put calves on them, but they have to be there where I can get them in to work with them.... hoping they are bred and get sold...

So, been making a new list of the ones we moved out, and will add whomever we add to that group...

Got to get the 2 holstein heifers in the barn/catch pen at snyder's in the next day or 2 so they can get moved to the barn... and if possible, going to move the big longhorn x steer there to go in with the steers DS is feeding, so he can get some grain before he get's butchered in January. He is no problem to get in, but he will not stay in for long... he wants out as soon as he eats the grain he is enticed in with. We figure he ought to settle down at the barn in the lots with the new fences and coming in to get grained everyday.... The one she has on her now will probably just get sold in the spring since I won't need another beef so soon. Plus, no sense to feed him... and she will be calving again in the spring, so she will need a break. We sold the black one she had last year so she could have a rest for 2 months or so...

The one heifer that got over with the "18" , has gone across and is in with the 9 that are going to get bred. DS said you can't tell which one she is from the rest, so she is going to get bred with them. Not going to fight to get her out of there... she might be a little younger, but that's life.

Tomorrow is the 500+ cow herd in the afternoon. going to load all the boxes and stuff in the car in the morning. Already put bottles in the trays for the farm for Thursday afternoon, so I have a couple of empty boxes so we can put the bottles in them in number groups... and not have to try to take empty bottles out to put full ones in the slots... I like to have 3 empty boxes to take and then we take the bottles out of the other ones, and use them... and it gives me space to get them all into numerical order when I go to pack them...

DS is going to finally go down in the crawl space/cellar area, to put the hot water heating element in the tank... one is burnt out... and to figure out what we need to do to be able to hook up the small "milkhouse" heater to keep the pipes from freezing this winter... Not going to deal with having a pipe freezing and bursting and having to turn off the well pump to keep it from spraying water all over the "cellar" and all that like last year... only a year late to get to this project. I can get down there, but cannot climb out with these knees.... it had a dirt incline, then you can practically stand down there in part of it... I just want to have enough heat to keep it from freezing down there over the winter. Will set the heater to like 55 degrees, and however much/often it runs, well, that is better than frozen burst pipes...

Then, we will go to the farm and test... and it will be 10 or later when we get home... I have to drop off the meters for the farm for Thursday, so will probably do that tomorrow morning. They set them up... and they just changed their parlor AGAIN.... so now will use 20 meters... but I have 2 double 8's, that I do, and a double 10 and a double 12 so not going to be any big deal.... but just more meters to take....

Put feed in the chicken/turkey feeders again, so don't have to deal with them tomorrow..... just have to get them up on the pressure treated boards before the other ones start to rot... definitely before winter...
Need to get the chicken coop off the trailer that is still sitting here... grrr and go get the other one that we were waiting for them to get their water and electric lines run and ditch filled in. I don't want to be waiting forever to do that.... thought that this one would at least be off the trailer by now...

I need to go to bed... so I can get a bunch of stuff done without rushing tomorrow....

You have soooo much on your plate... boggles my mind...lol But, I'm slowly learning.

I hope you can get your coops set up soon.