Around The Farm

Ever so slowly, the grass turned green - and Blue is happy to see all that fresh food growing:

Remy is happy about it too, and the two of them wander around, clipping the grass and not allowing it to grow taller. The grass is beginning to win, though, and getting longer by the day:

The lawn is growing too, and I had to clean up all the soggy old hay which had fallen during the winter when I was unwrapping bales:

And when the spilled hay was cleaned up, I removed rocks and smoothed out the place where the 88 big, round hay bales had been stored. I won't seed it, but rather wait for the grass to grow naturally:


I called the large animal vet to come look at Violet. He said he'd be out in the afternoon, so I called the cows in for grain and then trapped Violet inside the barn. She was nervous, and we had to wait for several hours for the vet to arrive:

I got her in the squeeze chute when he arrived and he checked for a mummified calf. He wasn't sure that was what he felt, but he assured me it was not a viable calf. In addition, he felt two large, fatty tumors inside her:

The tumors might not be troublesome, but they also might be caused by Bovine Leukosis Virus, which could have caused the tumors. He took a blood sample to test for the virus but the results were negative. He also gave Violet a hormone injection to cause her to abort the mummified fetus, if indeed that's what was in there, but so far I've seen nothing. Stay tuned for further developments

On a happier note, I caught Amy nuzzling and licking Blue. I watched for some time and decided that they were truly displaying affection:

Also, the apple blossoms began to pop at the end of April. I hope I'll soon be posting photos of the apple grove in full bloom:

Our Daffodils also began to bloom at the end of April. I know that seems much delayed to people in warmer climates, but spring comes late to the north country:

It was only in the 50s (F), but Blue and Remy thought it was a bit too warm and lounged in the shade of the barn. They still have their winter coats but are shedding rapidly:

Now confined to the barn at all times, I'm sure the chickens miss their free roaming days - and the foxes miss their easy meals. I will soon have to let the hens out once, however, so I can clean their room: