But, we have been busy cleaning the barn, rescuing a down cow, unfreezing a water tank and keeping the coyotes away!
It snowed the last few days, but today is an absolutely gorgeous day. Snow on the ground and blue blue skies. Couldn't ask for more prettier weather.
A sweet little calf to make you smile.
These next pictures are gruesome. But, this is what coyotes will do. This is why we don't like them. I think we have eliminated the alpha male. Coyotes are opportunists. They wait until mama beds baby down and they come in and snatch them!
This cow must have been having a problem calving. Most likely a backwards calf. Some times a nerve in mama's back will get pinched and she becomes paralyzed in her hind end. Like her back legs will fall asleep and she can't stand up. The coyotes came in and killed her calf, and chewed up her bottom! I stayed with her until Cameron came with a horse and the trailer arrived. She survived and we loaded her up in the trailer and got her to the barn and doctored up. She is not standing yet. But she is eating and drinking.
Today's snow and blue skies! I got a new ipad mini, so these pictures were taken with that.
A frozen water tank. We thawed it out, turned the water on, and Mississippi Mud! Not really. Its manganese. The well water at the corrals full of manganese. We drilled a new well a few years ago, and it now has manganese also.
Thanks for stopping by.
I am glad you showed what them varmints do. This is the real world.
ReplyDeleteIs there anything you can do about the reddish water? Does it taste like mineral?
That baby looks like it has a dirty face. So sweet and eager to please.
Bob and I want an ipad too. You will have to explain it to me. LOL
It is so nice to have a bright sunny day. Beautiful here too. Finally!!!
M
There's always lots to do and something to cause problems.The snow makes things look bright and clean.
ReplyDeleteThey used to have a bounty on coyotes. Some county cattle associations have them here on both wild dogs and coyotes. It sounds mean but many feel if the dump a pet near a farm someone needs it. There are more feral cats in Iowa than people. Love that first calf.I have thought about getting a pad for my grandson.
ReplyDeleteI love the markings on the little calf. Randy will tell you that I'm a sucker for the little black/white faces (or, in this case, brown/white face) I, too, think it's important that you showed what the coyotes have done. Good luck with continuing to alleviate that problem.
ReplyDeleteSo so sad what happened to the little calf :( I feel so bad for the mother.
ReplyDeleteLooks mighty cold. Love the picture of the calf. Sad about the other one, but I guess that is just part of ranch life. I am still deciding if I want to get an ipad or a windows surface. I will wait a little longer and just keep comparing between the two. Hope you are doing well.
ReplyDeleteI HATE COYOTES!!! I can't stand them...GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! (I love that cute little face...still I HATE COYOTES!!!!)
ReplyDeleteLinda
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I always get a thrill when I see a coyote, but if I had them doing this to my cattle, I would not blink my eyes at shooting them on sight. Roger and his buddy go coyote hunting, and his buddy traps them...also my brother in Tennessee traps and snares them and it is just unbelievable how many he has caught.
ReplyDeleteBTW, that baby is adorable!
Cheri,
ReplyDeleteThat is a sweet little red white face!
We all have days like you described. We get up in the morning, drink a cup of coffee, step outside and have no clue what greets us. Especially during calving season.
Predator issues are not a big issues for us. We see a few coyotes and shot them when we can. We have big sheep flocks that border us on the east and west. After watching Alaska: The Last Frontier I realized that cattle producers do have more predator issues than I thought. I can't imagine protecting my cattle from bear, mountain lion or wolf attacks. The later two might be a reality for us someday.
Your big blue sky pictures are heartwarming.
If you've ever read my blog you know how much I despise coyotes. We will begin our spring calving season in about two weeks and hubby has caught two of the nasty beasts and he's hoping to catch the female that belongs to one of the yearling coyotes snared. The other was a huge male but no more!! The baby is adorable and I'm anxiously waiting on ours to arrive. Stay warm and keep posting as I love reading about your ranch.
ReplyDeleteRita
Having good water is a never ending battle around our neck of the wood, too. Our county pays a full-time trapper to keep the predator population down, but they can't shoot the wolves. They have re-introduced the Mexican Grey wolf on our mountain, and folks lose cows left and right to them around here.
ReplyDeleteDamn coyotes! Glad you are only dealing with them and not wolves, too. Well I hope to heck you aren't having to deal with the wolves. What devastation. Loving your pictures! Keep up the great work.
ReplyDeleteOh that poor little calf. And the mama, I'm so glad you able to help her. What a job you have!
ReplyDelete