Cold Winter Touches The North Country

Of course I knew it was coming, yet still I was surprised to see the frost all over the Rugosa roses when I went out to do the morning chores:

 The leaves were frosted and the magenta buds were covered with icy crystals:

 Some of the flowers had wilted to the point of being unrecognizable:

 Fergus and Seamus watched me from their frosty yard as I began the morning chores:

There were only two open Daylilies left, and they were wilted and covered in ice:

 And the grass crunched underfoot as I walked to the barn:

 Sadly, the sunflowers, which had put on such a late season show, were done for the year:

 I walked the little horses out to their corral and discovered that their stock tank was covered in ice. Remy and Blue were not amused, but I figured it would melt once the sun was fully up:

The cattle were hungry and collected at the barn, demanding grain:

 I let them have some, then shooed them back outside as I carried hay to the horse corral. Most of the cattle followed me to the corral, hoping to steal that armload of hay. I guess they did not want to eat frozen grass:

 I tossed the hay in for the horses without giving the cattle any of it. Ruby knew what to do, and immediately went for a breakfast of warm milk:

Baby Pictures Galore!

With two calves now in the field, things are both livelier and cuter. Rocket used to be the baby:

But now he's growing up and looking more like a bull each day:

He's still curious and cute, but now that Lucky has joined the herd, Rocket no longer gets people's attention:

I found Lucky, at one day old, hiding in the marshy far corner of the field. I tried to lift him up and out of the water, but he went limp until Rosella came over to put a stop to my meddling:

Then he got up and began following his mom:

Rosella was willing to move slowly, even stopping to allow Lucky to poop. Babies on colostrum produce a black, tarry poop, which is evidence that they are getting what they need for a good start in life:

And speaking of babies, take a look at the gigantic Rocket, nursing from his mom. He's nearly as big as she is. Is it any wonder that Scarlett is so skinny and run down?

Poor Scarlett is a great mother and gives her all to her calves. In Rocket's case, "her all" is too close to being literal. I've been pouring grain into her to help keep up her resources:

Even at only one day old, little Lucky could keep up with his mom, Rosella, with no problem:

And sometimes, when they're on the move, Rocket joins in the parade:

Lucky must have been thinking, "Hey, aren't you the guy who stuck the tag through my ear?"

"Yep, I'm pretty sure you're the one."

The Red Poll Ladies

All the cows had been successfully artificially inseminated (I hoped) except for Scarlett. She calved on August 1 and hadn't come into heat since then. But one morning it was abundantly clear that Scarlett was in heat. I called the A.I. man and we locked her in the squeeze chute. That's his head behind her and she looks blurry because her head was moving. It's not uncomfortable for a cow, but they don't like being locked in place. Anyway, it appears to have resulted in a pregnancy:

Out in the yard, the cows have trace minerals, salt block and fresh, clean water:

And speaking of water, my first stock tank appeared to be leaking and I couldn't find the leak to patch it, so I put it out on the road with a "Free" sign on it. I bought a more expensive brand to replace it, but it leaked also. I returned it to the store and brought home another, but it leaked. I finally bought a bigger, 150 gallon tank, thinking that maybe the cattle were just drinking that much. Finally, I discovered that the water was siphoning back up the hose and back down the water hydrant. I installed a check valve and the problem was solved. As it turned out, they weren't drinking much water at all:

I took this photo to illustrate the classic, Red Poll white tail tassel. It's not really white, but it is clearly blond - and quite noticeable once you know to look for it. Red Angus and other breeds usually don't sport that lovely, blond tail tassel:

The cold weather has increased the ladies' appetites, and I've had to chain the pipes of their stalls to the wooden supports to resist their massive eagerness to get at the food:

I walked out into the south field one fine afternoon to take photos of my six individuals. The first cow was Gracie:

And then Amy:

Scarlett and her calf, Rosella:

And Jasmine. But when I tried to photograph Violet, my brand new camera broke and I had to quit for the day. I sent the camera in for repair and began using an old camera, but that whole process took several days:

I usually feed the cows before letting the chickens out for the day - and this is why. But if I give them a second feeding in the afternoon, we all have to contend with pushy, nervy, ravenous chickens:

One evening I saw Rosella nursing, just inside the fence:

When I walked closer, she pulled her head away and showed that she'd smeared milk all over her face. There she stood, looking annoyed with me, with her muzzle covered with milk and her tongue protruding from the corner of her mouth. it was a comical sight:

And one more chuckle at Rosella's expense. She was trying to get her aunt Jasmine to play one afternoon, but Jasmine just wanted to take a nap. The persistent calf kept butting heads, once hard enough that you can hear them collide on the video. Jasmine was quite patient with it all, though. I think she'll be a good mother next spring: