Monday, March 12, 2012

Say...that's not a milk cow

So we have Angus cattle, and they are not "milk" cows, they don't get milked by a machine or hand twice a day, we don't make our own butter/cream/etc.  But this last week, I saw one of our cows get milked.  So this momma cow ( I named her Muhammad Ali --you'll see why), was making all this racket when I came home the other day.  I thought she had gotten stuck in a fence or between some trees or something, she was tearing her head back and forth going ape-sh*t.  Well I walk over and she's head-butting her little calf--which is normal to get them on their feet. Unless...you're head-butting the calf into timber and it gets stuck and you keep pummeling it until it really can't get up.  I run back in the house---J--we have a problem.  We go back out there and he has to pick it up and get it out into the clearing.  Well Muhammad was still was head-butting it--poor little calf.  So we haul the little calf into the barn, and mean Mama-bear Muhammad follows after us.  She is not letting this little girl up so she can get some milk.  Then J's Dad comes over and brings his calf-bottle and feeding tube.  Hmm.  This out to be interesting.  I really don't know if I had ever seen a cow being milked before, especially one who wasn't used to a guy being all up in her business.  Then we get to feed her (I named her Gertrude--she's so cute).  It was all very interesting to me.  She's one of the few girls we've had--most of the calves we've had this year have been boys.  Hmph.  I didn't get a pic of Muhammad Ali  and Gertrude, but here's a pic of Borus and his friend--aren't they fine looking bull calves? 


1 comment:

  1. I've milked a cow and it's very different than beef cattle. I think milk cows enjoy the attention and the emptying of a full udder.

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