Cow Quirks (and a note to Solomon)
(*Solomon...I keep trying to get to your blog, but it won't let me log in, no matter how many different passwords I try, or how often I try to enter them. Once I get a new password it rejects it when I try to enter it...sorry)
One tends to think of cows as...well...just cows, doing their thing; grazing, chewing their cud, giving milk. It never occurred to me before I came here that cows could have so many different personalities and quirks. Some of them, no matter how long they have been milking, will kick the milkers off every time they come in the barn. Some of them, when they are out in the dry lot, won't bother to come into the corral to eat. "Just grass or hay for me, please."
Then there's this one we have. She's a first calf heifer, been fresh (milking) about 2 months. For the first maybe 6-7 weeks she does fine. Then suddenly last week she starts hacking and yakking in the feed bunk during the milking. And every time she hacks, she throws up her feed. Hubby has had them do this before sometimes for a feeding or two when they first start milking, but never had one so consistent about it. It's so gross. She yaks up just about all of the feed he puts out, and he only puts out about half rations for her now, and messes up the bunk so none of the other cows will eat anything. So he has to shovel it out. He makes her wait to be the very last cow in the barn.
Well, there it is. Another gross post from down on the dairy.
One tends to think of cows as...well...just cows, doing their thing; grazing, chewing their cud, giving milk. It never occurred to me before I came here that cows could have so many different personalities and quirks. Some of them, no matter how long they have been milking, will kick the milkers off every time they come in the barn. Some of them, when they are out in the dry lot, won't bother to come into the corral to eat. "Just grass or hay for me, please."
Then there's this one we have. She's a first calf heifer, been fresh (milking) about 2 months. For the first maybe 6-7 weeks she does fine. Then suddenly last week she starts hacking and yakking in the feed bunk during the milking. And every time she hacks, she throws up her feed. Hubby has had them do this before sometimes for a feeding or two when they first start milking, but never had one so consistent about it. It's so gross. She yaks up just about all of the feed he puts out, and he only puts out about half rations for her now, and messes up the bunk so none of the other cows will eat anything. So he has to shovel it out. He makes her wait to be the very last cow in the barn.
Well, there it is. Another gross post from down on the dairy.
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