The Red Poll Girls - I Get A Lesson In Photography

The Red Poll girls have been enjoying their summer - everything, that is, except the biting flies. I've tried spraying the cattle with fly spray, but they run away from me, clearly not understanding the potential good it might do them. On the other hand, I haven't seen any solid evidence that the spray really is doing any good. But otherwise, it's been a peaceful, comfortable summer with a lot of greenery for a cow to eat:

The calves play while the cows either search for green goodies to eat or just lounge about, chewing their cuds:

I walked across the field to join the cattle as they relaxed near the county road. Annie and Gladys stood up as I got near, stretching their legs and backs in case they'd need to flee from this two legged interloper:

But they didn't need to flee. Taking a cue from the older and wiser cows, they each kept a wary eye on me, though. I might be a dangerous character. After all, I did tattoo and tag their ears:

Cud chewing is a major occupation:

Loretta began playing while Amy, her mom, watched to see what I was up to:

Now, lest you think that keeping cattle is an idyllic hobby, here's a bit of reality, with Annie pooping and Gladys peeing. These animals are veritable eating and waste making machines:

I don't know why the cattle were standing on last winter's old, rotten hay when they had free access to several green fields. Perverseness, probably, just as in humans:

Do you remember the "cows in the mist" photo which my neighbor took? I liked it so much that I decided to take my camera out for a misty close-up the next time we had a foggy morning. After a night of rain, a foggy morning brought me out with my camera and a bag of apples with which to lure them:

I kept snapping photos as I got closer and closer:

Until I realized that the closer I got, the less fog I saw. There was, after all, less mist between me and the cows:

So I began backing up, putting more distance between the cows and me. When I got back to the house, I simply cropped the picture to obtain the desired effect. I learn something new every day: