The Orphans

Greetings! 

I can't believe that summer is gone and we are now into Fall again. It's been

a whole year since I left you, my dear, dear friends, and I have missed you all so much! My time here has been life-changing and rich as I have learned so much, not only about the farm and beef cattle but about myself and my God. I also have sought to contribute, encourage, and support the vision and direction of the farm and it's owners which has been a valuable experience as well. 

The summer was a wonderful time of learning and hanging out with the cows. They are such peaceful creatures. We grazed the cover-crops we had planted in the Spring and often I

was working in forages that were 6 and 7 feet tall! Driving through it with the Kubota ATV to set up fences was quite a challenge because it was easy to lose the little bit of directional sense I have! But the cows and steers loved the nutritious greens and were sleek and fat! Our hope is that by using cover-crops we have increased the ground litter (grasses that get stomped by the cows) and therefore the carbon in the soil, and have saved some of our pastures as stock-pile feed for this winter.

Between weather and animal variables farming is really like trying to manage

chaos! I've learned it's really easy to heavily graze a paddock. The trick comes in when you only want to graze no more than 30-40% of a plant and leave 30% of the plants in that paddock ungrazed, but still get high-density hoof and manure impact on the soil, and in the process make sure the herd has gotten enough to eat! Trust me, it's a whole lot harder than it sounds!

We are now in calving season. It's been a tough season so far with a number

of losses but it's always a learning process and we are trying to figure out what happened. I don't handle the losses very well... Doc says that he has observed that I am quite tender-hearted... that's an understatement!! 
We have two bull calves now who have been abandoned by their mothers. You might think the other cows would accept a second calf to nurse but they are not very accommodating! It's hard to watch

the little guys try and try and just get kicked away. They seem to be pretty crafty though and when the real calf is nursing they'll try to slide in and get a little milk too. Sometimes it works but they get rejected a lot. 

So, I have become a surrogate cow... and it is a noble calling! Call me a cow anytime you want and I'll say, "Thank you, I am honored!" I bring life and nourishment to these little guys and sometimes a

Trying to steal some milk.

little comfort. Their world is different from the other calves who have the security of their mother in the pasture. Yes, they have the security of being in the herd but they don't have a mother who calls to them when she senses danger or knows it's time for them to nurse. And of course, the powdered calf milk I give them I'm sure is not as good for them as the real thing.

These little calves also seem to have some built in knowledge too. They know they need to nurse from a cow so they reject the bottle I bring. They wander from cow to cow, being rejected again and again, and

getting weaker and weaker. The vultures circle. They know well the signs of one growing weak. And I stand, patiently holding the bottle that can save these little calves! I cannot force them, I can only offer it to them and hope they will want to drink.

I appreciate all you dear friends who have read my blogs over the past year and have been such an encouragement to me. I know some of you don't agree with the Christian faith and I respect your choice but, my heart beats for my Lord and these farm experiences have strengthened my faith. Just as I offer life to the calves, Jesus offers life to us. We have choice. He does not insist we accept or follow him but it is our choice. YOU dear friend are so precious to me and even more precious to the God I serve Who would love for you to drink the water of life He so freely offers. If you haven't already, I hope you will.

I love hearing news from you... it makes me still feel connected to the great people and place I left! 

Until next time...

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