Red Poll Cattle

Jasmine is the sweetest natured cow and likes to lounge in the grass:

Scarlett is the most reliably productive cow (along with her daughter, Rosella):

And they are all living a good life, a well fed life, a life of ease:

Rosella's little bull calf is cute and healthy, but I've been reluctant to name him. I finally decided to call him Winston:

And the herd often hangs out on the waste hay near the horses' corral. Apparently they still consider the horses part of their herd:

Violet is an attentive aunt to the little calf:

Jasmine and Scarlett were hanging out together in the springtime sun:

Rosella and Amy kept each other company near the stock tank, where there is also mineral supplement available:

Gracie opted to keep company with the horses:

Rosella and Amy moved over by the gravel road:

It is shady there, and the waste hay from winter feeding has accumulated to such a depth that it is soft and dry, a fine place to take a nap:

Scarlett is due in early August:

The Red Poll Girls

I continued carrying a bowl of grain out to Jasmine since she wouldn't come into the barn with the other cows. I wanted to be sure she got extra grain and mineral supplements:

 Jasmine is so tame that she usually welcomes petting:

Jasmine eventually began coming into the barn, but once in a while, one or two of the cows simply stayed outside. I used to let them go without grain when that happened, but now I'm trying to be sure they get plenty of minerals and vitamins, so I carry out a bowl to those who don't come into the barn:

 And the red haired ladies are still spending most of their time on the east side of the barn, where the building offers them respite from the west winds:

 They look like snow monsters since their fur insulates so well that the snow on their backs doesn't melt. This picture was taken right after I'd cleaned the barn floor and there was fresh hay put down. They wanted to eat it and refused to exit the barn. I had to walk in there and push them out. An occasion like this is where the less friendly cows come in handy, as they will leave the barn when I simply get too close. The friendlier cows need pushing or a slap on the butt:

 Amy is rather a friendly girl also:

 They all remembered their stalls from when they used to come in for grain - all of them except Jasmine, who seems dazed and confused much of the time. Of course once in a while, a cow will enter the wrong stall and then a struggle is possible:

 Jasmine again, on the east side of the barn near the bale feeder:

 Scarlett, easily identified by the white patch on her udder. One downside of uniformly colored cattle is identifying them at a distance. I've learned to look for certain identifying features. Also, you can see Blue and Remy over by the stock tank:

 Gracie was watching me as I refilled their mineral feeder and cleaned the snow off the salt block:

 I can find the cows at the bale feeder day and night, all winter long. If I ever find a cow missing, I'll panic and go on an immediate search:

 On this cold day, the wind was from the north and the sun was on the south, so they collected on the south side of the barn:

The Red Poll Girls In The North Field

The cattle spent more than two weeks in the north field. That's six large cows on nine acres, keeping down the vegetation while allowing the grass in the larger south field to recover a bit:

I have been carrying them out bowls of grain twice a day. This was a morning feeding as the sun was behind us, in the east:

They were in the north field when the Shadbush began to bloom in the woods behind the field:

Gracie appears to not be pregnant although I've certainly been fooled before. I wouldn't want to breed her now anyway because the calf would be born in the worst of winter. So I wait and watch:

I carried them over a trace mineral salt block but they didn't have access to granular minerals in the north field. To handle that problem, I began sprinkling the minerals on their bowls of grain before carrying them over:

And there's a hundred gallon stock tank in the north field, fed with fresh water from the barn via a pipe under the road. I have to turn on the water inside the barn and then run over to the door to watch so I can turn it off before it overflows. As you might guess, I've forgotten a few times and soaked the ground around the stock tank:

Another morning shot, with the rosy light of dawn illuminating their red coats:

And the chickens try to steal whatever grain they can. The cows usually don't allow that but they do spill grain while eating and the chickens make sure none of that is wasted:

A peaceful scene, and a popular one with local people driving on the gravel road. The cattle are close to the road and I see lots of people slow down or stop for a better look:

Scarlett had to defend her grain from ravenous chickens:

But Rosella was too lazy even to stand up. I carried her bowl over and set it down where she could reach it. Gee, you don't suppose these cows are spoiled, do you?

And to end this post on a gross note, here's part of raising cattle - Yellow Dung Flies. They show up wherever cow manure is found and I looked them up to learn about them. They live mostly on smaller insects but also consume nectar and dung. The males spend most of their lives on dung but the females forage for small insects on vegetation, returning to the dung to mate and to deposit their eggs. The larvae begin their lives eating the dung. For all their gross appearance to us, they are an important part of the balance of nature: