Thursday, Thanksgiving-The heifers were on their best behavior and there were no new calves! We were invited for dinner at Bruce's cousins, only about 6 miles away. After morning milking Bruce did some feeding, then came in and showered and we headed to dinner. His cousin also farms so they totally understood when Bruce left and was back home by 2. We need to get bedding made and the weather forecast for 3 sunny days has produced about 2 hours total of sun in the first 2 days. Bruce came home and raked the shredded corn stalks into windrows. Doing this really speeds up the stacking process, and we need to make quick progress with rain in the forecast. Jim and Jen came so my office is currently a guest room : )
Friday-Everything was on the fast track today. Bruce started stacking while Jim continued to rake. By noon Bruce had 16 stacks and Ed came to take over so Bruce could eat dinner. Before they were done there was a phone call letting us know there was a new calf in the barn so Bruce went out and gave it the roto coronavirus vaccine and put him in a hutch. While Ed stacked Bruce and Jim took the plastic cover off , let the corn silage unloader down and got it ready to go in the silo here at home. In 5 weeks it had only settled 2 feet. They needed to open that silo because the dump trailer that we have been hauling corn silage from Ed's with had a wheel bearing go out. After that they filled a feed box for the lower heifers with feed from the bag. Jim took over stacking later in the afternoon so Ed could have a break. Jim first suggested I could run the stacker and they could do other things. Over the years I have done a lot of stacking, and for many years, I did all of it. At this point it's in my best interest physically to protect my neck and shoulders so I can milk, and I suggested if I stayed home there would be more food. The guys decided that was a good trade. Ed stacked again while the guys ate supper and then Jim continued to stack while we milked. The stacker ran nearly 10 hours straight and everyone was excited by the end of the evening that the entire 20 acres had gotten stacked, with an initial count of 68 stacks ready for cattle bedding. The day did end in the most unusual way though. Over the years we have broken the back window out of the tractor 3 times, either with corn or rocks thrown while stacking and once the haybine threw a rock. Jim came home, parked in the shed, shut off the tractor and the lights and was walking away from the tractor when he heard the back window "explode" and glass fall! Something must have cracked it earlier but it held together that long. These windows break into pea sized pieces so there is glass everywhere.
Saturday-Everything was wet when we got up due to light rains over night. That kind of timing always makes long days like yesterday feel more like a home run! By the time we were done milking Bruce had made a bunch of phone calls to set up the plans for the day. By noon a load of protein was delivered. We weren't sure we would have enough to make it to Monday so we ordered it on short notice. We usually get a discount for ordering early but today we just needed it. At about noon the other 5 heifers we purchased were delivered. The first group was pretty laid back and cooperative. This group wasn't exactly excited about dealing with us or our plans but we managed to get them all in stanchions and no one got hurt. They usually settle down pretty quickly once they realize there is good food available and I am just glad we didn't get hurt. It is pretty hard to argue with a 1500# animal that basically says "NO, I don't want to", and sometimes it takes awhile for them to decide to cooperate. After dinner Bruce ran to town. The first stop was the vet clinic to pick up some antibiotics to finish the treatments he has started. The last animal we treated was the DA heifer and given her stress load to date, it was no surprise. Tonight a heifer that hasn't freshened has us concerned so she got treated too. So far we have treated 12 cows and all of them have responded very quickly to treatment. Bruce is thinking now that the nasal treatment we gave them the other day should be helping soon.
Sometimes it is really nice to live in a small community. Bruce needed to blow out the water lines in the pasture so they didn't freeze and break over winter. The weather forecast says we need to do that now, but when he called yesterday to get the compressor we sometimes rent, the business was already closed. He managed to get ahold of one of the family members at home this morning who said "oh sure no problem, I'll prop the door open for you so you can get in when you come and get it ". Then she called back a little later and said" I called the police station and told them not to shut it because sometimes they go around and check doors and my luck they would close it on you". I guess it helps that they've known each other for over 40 years! It's a large compressor so Bruce pulled it home with the truck and then started blowing out the lines. It is pretty simple to do. Bruce just takes the 4 wheeler out and opens the valves on the end of the line and then connects the air hose to the water line on this end. For a very short period of time there is a big water geyser, and then he is done. He has to do this in 3 different places. The bad news is it was misty/rainy while he did it. The good news is Mike got a 4 wheeler ride, quite possibly one of the last for the season. As of tonight the water lines are all blown out and the pasture is ready for winter. Bruce was nearly home when the 4 wheeler ran out of gas. I was driving the truck and pulling the compressor so I stopped and picked him and the dog up. He went back with the pallet forks on the skid steer and brought the 4 wheeler home. While we were blowing out the lines at the other place Mike spent his time snooping around. As we discovered when we brought him home he had also rolled in something disgusting so he got a full bath tonight after we got done milking. I think he would like baths better if we could figure out how to do all the scrubbing without water!
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