Moooo
Sometimes my blog is too perky. Seriously. Farming isn’t always fun. What happens when the calves run away? How ‘bout when the tractor breaks down when the heat and humidity are unbearable? Well…um…we deal with it. Below are two photos of me working when the temp is well over 90 degrees. Thankfully, there wasn’t much heat coming off the engine under my feet, but this was not Disneyland.
My boss has a sense of humor, and taunted me with my camera. Mosquito bites, grease, oil, and dirt mixed with a healthy dose of sweat. I’ve been told it builds character. Let’s hope so.
I have a knack for wiring and electrical gizmos, and was able to get the tractor feeling better.
On another subject:
Calves recognize the mooing of their parents. It’s how they stay together if they get lost in a mall or something. The bottle calves decided to make a run for it earlier this week, and broke out. We caught a glimpse of them making their way through a field, lush with green wheat that is waist high to me, and well over Moogie’s head. As we saw the calves running through the field, I moo’d at them loudly. They stopped, and turned towards me. Charlotte said, “Keep doing that, they are responding!” Yes, I was the guy standing on top of an ATV mooing at the top of my lungs as the sunset unfolded behind me. This was not my major in college. I have no formal training. However, I have spent a fair amount of time mooing at Moogie, and have forged an odd connection. Later, I overheard phone conversations,
“Well, Alan moo’d at them and they responded for little while, then took off again.”
About twenty four hours later, we were moving the herd to another pasture. I was flying through the field on an ATV in an effort to round up the cattle and get them headed toward the gate. As I entered the field, the herd started to move quickly away from me, which is the goal. All except for one little calf who came to me and mooed loudly. I moo’ed back, and knew Moogie had come home. He’d managed to make his way through the fences and joined the herd in the pasture. His two sidekicks arrived shortly and also made it clear that they were ready to go back to the barn, lounge around on fresh straw and enjoy some cool water. Running away on the hottest day of the year was not a smart move.
I’ve never seen anyone grab a calf by the scruff of the neck and lead them around, but Moogie followed my pull. He was hot, dehydrated, hungry, and glad to be home. Some cool water and a stern talking to from Charlotte, then the three bottle calves settled back into the barn. Soon we will mainstream them and turn them in with the herd. Until that day, we will keep a close eye on our rebellious little ones, and I’ll continue to moo. It’s what I do.
