Activity around our little farm - something other than guns & hunting

[txaggie]

Well my side job is helping my wife take care of her pets. My responsibilities include making sure we always have feed bins full, fresh hay and H2o specialist! LOL

This would be the year we have our own herd of miniature Herefords with our first bottle baby from 2 years ago being our herd sire "chance" named after our vet who saved him after mom abandoned him. First raised and bred heifer would poppy (georgetown is know for red poppy's so it was a fitting name) both were raised on our little farm. We would sell off the others and had to put one down due to age and health conditions. In december of last year we purchased 3 more heifers to add to our little herd.

Well we know 3 were bred and the due dates were getting close, June poppy would have her first calf and eventful first pregnancy to which I helped pull the calf and it was a little heifer. As much as she tried she simply wasn't able to get up and feed for herself so like many other times here we go to the vet who knows all our animals by name. As expected she would be fine and back at our place after a few short days growing to be a fine looking heifer calf. Now on to the new girls, Pattie was showing the signs and last nite with the lunar super moon whatever that thing was it kicked her in gear.

The wife comes running in this morning first light binoculars in hand and said come on we have a calf on the ground down in the bottom. We only have 10 acres and from the second story of the house we can see just about anything. Yep - baby calf already cleaned up, up and running and romping like they are supposed to do. We pushed them to the barn and penned them up so the baby wasn't sharing moms milk with Sunny because this particular heifer was a part time mother to her. LOL

Second calf of the season would be our second heifer calf and inspired by the moon Christy named her Luna. Good looking strong healthy calf. That's 2 down one more to go, looking forward to seeing what the 3rd will bring.

pics are of Luna

[Dino82520]

And your little herd increases at no cost to you. How big are they when full grown?

[txaggie]

well dino because my wife feeds them better than granny's fat lap dog we overlook the costs!

Our mini's will tip the scales full grown 800-1000lbs and will be anywhere between 40-50" tall at the shoulders. 

They will actually make good beef cattle for lowline and as i understand it were intended to be producers in drought areas and could thrive on less food. Don't quote me on that but that was my understanding of the intended use when making them years ago. My deal with the wife was if we have a bull calf we would set aside feed him out for slaughter. Well the first one we had 2 years ago was our current sir so you see how that went! LOL he became my wife bottle baby and he's just a big old baby and loves to play he has to be reminded from time to time we aren't head butting.

We will sell these heifers eventually when weaned to small farms like ours are novelty cattle. We do not really have a setup to separate bull from cow. We have a family that is interested in trading some genetics and we might do that as our cows get older. It's just something to do, we have a small ag exemption on the property and we run cattle.

[224KING]

So cool!

[TexWeatherby]

This is a nice thread. Be aware, it can be hard to turn them into beef cattle after you get attached to them! That's a good looking calf.

[Dino82520]

That was my original thought when the word pet was first used.

[Big Muddy rancher]

Hard to named them then eat them.

[danno50]

   Anyway you look at it, it’s a good example of paying it forward. Nice morning story.

[224KING]

Just in a 90 day feed out for slaughter I get attached to them.I never name them.

Whats worse is when you are unloading them into the kill pens the evening before slaughter and the look on their face when you go get in your pickup and drive off is heartbreaking.

[txaggie]

yep i hear ya, we had a show calf in covid that was set for houston and was a stud, sold him to a local processor i know personally in exchange for a half of his beef. He sent me pics of the quality of meat - the guy asked if i would feed another! LOL I said not for that price lol;

onces the get a name ur screwed -

[PARA45]

Outstanding, congratulations!!!

[zoniezonie]

Nice !!   I'm Jealous my wife won't let me have live stock she thinks they are pets if we eat them,  and I think it's rubbing off on me,  getting older and trying to eat less red meat.  I can get away with horses, mules, jackass ,  maybe a little goat to keep the weeds down,   anything else probably not.

[Dino82520]

I've often wondered how 4H students handle getting their prize livestock turned into dinner.

[txaggie]

Our 3rd calf was born this past thursday morning early when we got to the barn she had him cleaned up and still working on him to get up. He did so without any assistance, little bull calf named Crispin after a nice crispy fall morning. Left him and mom in the barn stalls for a few days now they are out mingling with the rest of the herd. He's a stout little shit built like his daddy, big pins will be make for a good bull for someone's herd sire if they so choose. We will wean them and look to sell them to families like ours. That's the hope anyways lol

Dinno I can tell you that walking your project to the truck after a stock show is hard stuff especially with cattle those projects here in texas (atleast) are almost a year in length plenty of time for attachment the countless hours of feeding, haltering, bathing, walking you name it creates a bond for sure;