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.

 

[Baymule]

Your list of things to do is a long one. So is mine. I haven't even started yet. Running my SIL to the doctors takes a whole day. This week, 1 appointment on Monday, 2 on Tuesday, this morning i've got to go get feed, 1 hour each way, tomorrow is another doctor appointment and PT on Friday. I'm exhausted. At least I got a bale of hay set yesterday evening for the middle field, 30 sheep in that group.

 

[fuzzi]

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....

I was wondering about the coop, didn't see you mention it. Argh.

 

[drstratton]

Your list of things to do is a long one. So is mine. I haven't even started yet. Running my SIL to the doctors takes a whole day. This week, 1 appointment on Monday, 2 on Tuesday, this morning i've got to go get feed, 1 hour each way, tomorrow is another doctor appointment and PT on Friday. I'm exhausted. At least I got a bale of hay set yesterday evening for the middle field, 30 sheep in that group.

Yes, you are another one that boggles my mind.You all don't have much down time. Just hope you both find the time to take care of yourselves. Well, all of our ranching and farming friends here need to do that.
Seeing everything everyone does here, starts to give me the itch to want more animals. But I think winter will cure me of that...in the winter = 🌬🌨🌧

 

[Ridgetop]

.3rd pic of Jess, the longhorn...with her 4/025 steer calf in front and her 2023 steer that is going in the freezer in January..

Love the white color with black ears. LOL

We cannot do that as farmers... we take what we get whether it is the stockyard, or the beef packing plant....

Farming has always been bad for the farmers. Themiddleman with haulage capabilities could take advantage of the farmer/rancher. Isn't that why the old ranchers (Chisum, etc) starting their trail drives to the northern raiIroads?

So, you can probably figure that there will be a small drop in beef prices...

I doubt it. People are used to the higher pricesnow and will not realize that the cattle market has taken dip or that they are eating foreign beef. As always they will blame the rancher because we all know that the ranching just involves shoving cattle into a field where they eat grass and emit lots of methane gas to poison us. Meanwhile the rancher sits around in his Ponderosa or Big Valley type farmhouse waited on by his servants counting his cash and bribing the sheriff. Then his cowboys round those heplss cows and calves up to sell to the men slaughterhouse for ginormous prices ripping the American consumer. NOT! Beef may be high, but watch the sales and eat less. Ranchers and farmers deserve to get paid for their work and investments. They are at the mercy of weather, disease, etc.

and you will continue to see more and more small farmers go out of business as they age out... and land gets sold off for more "developments"...

That is sad but true Even here in Texas so manya big spreads being cut into small "ranchettes".

A shed to hang, gut, then pulls skin like taking off a glove (uses ATV to pull). It's slick

The one time we did our own skinning I used a trick I read about, you make a sliy in the skin around the rear legs as the animal is hanging head down. Use the hose and run cold water inside the hide between the skin and carcass. It inflates the skin away from the meat. We were only doing a small lamb, but it worked great. Then the skin pulls down like @MiniHorses said.

a few weeks of dropping prices, and there might be more available for more reasonable prices. but I am more willing to take a little risk on these cows... he tends to take more risk with these feeder cattle like the bull calves he bought a week ago.

You are more in favor of the cow/calf operation whie DS sounds like he likes the feeder side better. That is why working together you are successful. (When DS listens to his wider mother - LOL)

then NAFTA

NAFTA was one of the worst trade agreements that happened to this country... for some of the very reasons you stated @SageHill .

Hated Nafta plus with allowing foreign truckers to truck across the border we saw more accidents.

Haven't been on in a while so had to comment in a random and long manner. LOL

 

[Ridgetop]

SO --- first time cows you want an easy birth - so breed to an easy calving bull. That generation goes to freezer camp (of course unless one is really inclined to keep one or a few based on herd size) to help prevent the subsequent generation possibility of smaller and possible resulting difficult birthing associated with the unintended "downsize". Future breedings of that cow are to balanced or plus weight bulls.

Most of the dairies breed their first time Holsteins to Angus bulls for smaller calves. We used to go to the calf broker and buy the Angus x Holstein calves to raise in the Fair as veal calves. The little black calves put on meat better than the straight Holstein calves and did it on milk. The benefits of meat x milk genetics. Most of our hamburger in the US used to come from Holstein steers - they were cheap (lmost free back in the day) and were raised on grass, then some grain and mixing in the extra fat from the prime and choice beef breed caracsses and you couldn'ttell the difference.