Moo-ey Monday

It’s Monday again. I know this because my computer said so. Otherwise, it is just like every other day. We usually do a fairly decent job keeping track of the months though…usually.

EmmaLouMae is looking pretty darn wide and it is now beyond any doubt that DollyMoo is also going to calve very soon. I have to get them into a routine of coming in twice a day so I don’t have to drag my carcass through the 20-acre field to find them and drag them up to the house. There is an Akaushi bull out there right now. These are very rare and very expensive bulls. They were imported from Japan, where they are a Japanese treasure. They are remarkable bulls.   Akaushi meat is superior to other breeds of beef. Unlike most red meat, the meat is actually better for you than turkey or bison, it LOWERS cholesterol! It is high in monounsaturated fat, which once melted, remains liquid at room temperature. So, the Akaushi beefsteak is heavily marbled, exceptionally tender, and heart healthy. It’s a break thru in the beef industry, using cattle that have been cloistered on a Japanese island for over 150 years. The few restaurants that contract for this beef charge $95 for a filet. Amazing.

Anyway, the boss was able to acquire some of these amazing bulls and as I mentioned, one is in the pasture to breed next year's nurse cows. It gives me the willies to have “Quasimoto” giving me the eyeball when I go out to check my little Jerseys. But, I digress.

Randyman went out with the 4-wheeler and a bucket of grain to bring the girls up this morning. He made many attempts to woo them with grain, trying to push them with the 4-wheeler and every other trick he could think of. I surveyed the scenery from our backyard, appreciating how nice it is to live hours away from any town…or any neighbors for that matter. An hour later, there were still 6 cows and a bull at the bottom of the field and Randyman came back…alone. They just aren’t used to Randy’s ‘cookin’.

Meantime, 25 chicks arrived with the mailman today. He brought them all the way in from the post office in town, saving me 4 hours of driving, so I gifted him with some soap. They are VERY noisy. Much noisier than 7 chicks were. My plan was to put them outside in the greenhouse, but the weather has been so cold, I wound up keeping them in the living room again. A big cardboard box will have to serve as their temporary quarters until I can no longer bear having them in here, or the weather stablizes…whichever comes first. Darn.

After spending some time with the pups, I headed back out to see if I could encourage Dolly and Emma to come up into the corrals. They were only halfway down the field by now, so I waded through grass above my waist, and lost track of the pups. I was afraid they left me to go patrol, and I had visions of Quasi-moto (the bull) doing a tap dance on me in the tall grass where I wouldn’t be found until it snowed. I hollered, begged and pleaded, shaking the bucket at two apparently deaf cows who refused to look at me, unlike Quasimoto, who wouldn’t take his eyes off of me. 

Then the pups showed up, working their way in behind Emma. She finally turned my way and saw the bucket, and stood looking at me blankly.  I finally gave up, exasperated. I headed back towards the corrals, only to find Dolly and Emma following me, with the pups bringing up the rear.  I am still not sure how the pups got them to do that. They are not herding dogs, they are livestock guardians. But they are independent thinkers, unlike other dogs, who take their cues from man. These highly intelligent animals never cease to amaze me by the things they do.  No matter. Sweet success. 

Is this not one gorgeous Mama? She has that 'bloom' about her. Due July 17, but will probably go sooner.

And let us not forget the lovely EmmaLou...first time mama! Due July 1st and hope she doesn't go sooner!

I love my cows. I love my dogs. I love Randyman. Life is good.