Week 36

The sick cows are still alive. Number 38, the red cow,  is still sick. She is just beginning to recognize that she has a calf, but I was unable to get her udder functioning again.  I tried all week, but only got one quarter to work.  She will be culled after the waiting period is over  for the antibiotics we gave her.   The first cow we caught is much better overall, but she also lost an eye.  We have no idea how it happened.  Perhaps she got a splinter when she made us jump onto the wooden corrals or when she picked Mark up and dumped him in the water trough.  All we know is one eye is now opaque and blind.  She is nice again, but unfortunately she'll have to be culled as well.   Both calves nurse on her, but she doesn't have enough milk to sustain them, so we are still bottle feeding. 

Good thing is that I had help this week. 

You might remember her from a post about 4 years ago or perhaps you remember her from even farther back when she was a guest blogger.  Her family is  part of a Christian Meditation Center in Asia and they flew across the pond for a bit of a visit.  The time they spent here was wonderful.  Kenya, is my kindred, as she loves animals and loves the ranch.  Her face just glowed the whole time she was here. She told me that usually she wakes up twice in the morning, as she goes back to sleep after her first wake up.  Here, she said, she gets right up because she is so excited.  She beat me to the barn every day and fed all the animals and gentled some kittens  and a new group of piglets.  Seeing the place through her eyes renewed my love for it too. 

It was great having a house full of kids around as it gave me an excuse to go swimming,

 

groom horses, 

and ride them.

 

 

The oldest also got to fulfill one of his lifelong dreams of riding an ATV. 

 



 

The littlest was a bit too young for our many adventures, but he did seem to enjoy lots of little dog kisses,

 

and a sister kiss or two.

 

 

 I enjoyed remembering and experiencing the innocence of childhood this week.  I just had to drink a bit more coffee to keep up with it. 

 

Godspeed, dear friends.