Developments on the job front: a girl was fired for not showing up, so I'm working her shifts this weekend. Including the 3 AM Sunday one.
'SCUSE ME?!!
Moving on.
I'd just like to take a moment to point out how large cattle really are. When driving by a pasture, it's easy to assume they're not all that big. But my friends, things change when you're in the midst of them, goading them with phrases such as "Walk up, girls! &*$%ing MOVE, ladies!!", knowing they could squash you through the fence like a cookie cutter if they wanted to. And being at eye level with the knees of those who aren't particularly happy that day? FANTASTIC. Promise.
Let's not even talk about the Brahman crosses. Here's a little agricultural math from a Southern gal:
Angus (British breed)
+
Brahman (Zebu breed, native to the Indo-Asia area--very heat-tolerant [it's that big freaky hood] and pest-resistant)
=
Brangus. (Big fella. King Poppa. A beef cattle farmer's best investment.)
The Brahman-cross at our dairy isn't half-and-half, but there is undoubtedly a Brahman influence--probably crossed with Holstein (the stereotypical black-and-white moo-cow). She has floppy ears, and she's quite a bit more docile than the rest.
This is my job. I don't rag on your job blabber, so y'know...listen up. Y'might learn something.
For every iodine stain on my teat-dipping hands, there is quite a few perks:
One of these little cuties suckin on my finger.
If you've never had it happen, you don't know how endearing it is! Playing with the calves in their hutches before work makes everything better. If only they didn't bawl so whenever it's time to go to work!
Not running screaming yet :-)
They are menacing creatures up close eh? I'm sure I'm not the first to say it, but I think they have such beautiful eyes.
Posted by: Michelley-Shell | 01/26/2007 at 11:18 PM
Eh, not so much menacing as just "Hm...they could definitely fuck me up if they wanted to."
I agree about their eyes--I think cow eyes trump puppy eyes, even. :)
Posted by: Zola | 01/26/2007 at 11:23 PM
[this is good] Awww, cutest calf picture EVER!! And I love cows. This entry was awesome...I love the pictures. My dad told me about one time that my grandfather (whom I never met...he died before I was born) had this HORRIBLY mean Brahma bull that they had to *cry* castrate. He was going to do it himself so he PICKED the bull up himself and laid him on his side! All the way up! My grandfather was a huge man...I need to upload a picture of him...he was tall and about 350 lbs. But the mental image of a man hoisting a Brahma bull is just wild to me. The castration part squicks me out, but eh...there was alot about growing up on the farm that I probably would have gone, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!" to. lol
Posted by: kelli | 01/27/2007 at 06:33 AM
My grandmother's neighbor's bull Elmer had gonads the size of footballs. Two footballs. That'll give you an idea of size! She had banded Holstein. They are black and white but have a perfect stripe around their bellies. I had a baby named Ziegfried I loved playing with. He was Angus. We used to squirt milk right out of the teit at a row of barn kittens and they would open their mouths and try and catch it. We had milky kittens every morning.
Posted by: Dancing Bear | 01/27/2007 at 08:43 AM
Holy Christ!!! Was your grandad Paul Bunyan?!! That boggles my mind. But anyway, farm girls are the best ;)
Posted by: Zola | 01/27/2007 at 11:20 AM
Yep, we've got one heifer whose udders are so big, we can only milk two quarters at a time. She's a crossbreed too.
On the dairy back home (this is way back when, of course) we just had full-blooded Guernseys. They're the ones with the yellow milk, cuz of all the carotene they produce. But the calf that I got to halter-break for Block & Bridle was full Angus, and she was very sweet!
I love the barn kitties <3<3<3<3<3 The only ones I've seen so far are Spit and Billo--the latter of which likes to come sit on the parlor stairs and watch what's going on. <3 :D
Posted by: Zola | 01/27/2007 at 11:33 AM
[this is good] I want that baby cow to be my pet.
Posted by: agathafrye | 01/28/2007 at 01:31 PM
Precious, innit?!
Posted by: Zola | 01/28/2007 at 01:38 PM
[this is good] Wow! I think if I ever saw the #2 or #3 cow up close I would pee my pants! The #2 cow is especially scary looking! We have a dairy farm down the road from us but none of those cows look like #2 or #3! lol
Posted by: shellakers | 01/28/2007 at 06:30 PM
Yeah, Angus and Brangus are beef breeds, so I'm not quite sure why we have a beef crossbreed at the dairy. But I guess that's why I'm not in dairy management, eh?
Posted by: Zola | 01/28/2007 at 06:44 PM
[this is good] Silence has come :)
Posted by: Ira Harlan | 05/18/2010 at 06:59 AM