Animals On The Farm

This first picture is of our goat, Honeysuckle. As you can tell by looking at her udder, she is ready and wanting to be milked. She kidded last April and still gives us over a gallon a day. Her momma was a big milker and we are hoping her daughter will be as well. They are also very easy milkers. You hardly apply any pressure to the teat and the milk just flows right on out.


This is a picture of one of our milk cows and our 2 heifer calves. The 2 calves are going to the butcher this weekend. I will try and get a better close up of the heifers. They are really looking good. The milk cow is a purebred jersey. I like the honey colored jerseys better than the dark ones. This one is named Molasses. She was honey colored when she was born and slowly turned dark brown. She is from an old line of jerseys that have not been bred up to today's standards. She does not give as much milk as current day dairy jerseys, but she is bred to be a grassfed cow. We bred her and our other milk cow to an Angus bull and we got the 2 heifers you see. Our other milk cow, Buttercup, is coming home this weekend. She has been at a friend's house getting bred. My husband is letting me try one more time for a honey colored replacement for Buttercup. I have been praying that she will have a heifer calf this next year.

This is a momma Shetland and her spring ewe lamb. The momma's name is Charity. You can't tell it from this picture, but in certain lights her wool looks almost like a light apricot color. She has a beautiful fleece. Her daughter's name is Grace. Grace has been very skittish and would not come anywhere near a human. I have been feeding the sheep a couple of peanuts when I go out there. Grace is now eating a peanut or two out of my hand.


I had my camera with me this morning and I saw my fall display. I tried to get both dogs in the picture, but Belle would not cooperate. Star is such a good girl. She just turned 9 last week. She has been the best dog ever. I told her to get up on the hay bale and sit. She has her "do I have to" look to (which includes her ear position). She has such an expressive face. Even though she didn't want to, she hopped up there for me. She does not know that she is famous out over the internet. My husband shares Star stories and pictures at work. We have lots of people who want Star updates. =)

When I went out to chore this morning, the air was very crisp and cool. The low last night was supposed to be 28. My son came down in shorts and a t-shirt and his hat on. He brought some wood in for me dressed like that. He went to work that way. I really tried to raise him right. =) I went out late enough that most of the frost had already worn off the grass. There was a crow convention being held either in our woods or just beyond them. They were not very happy about what they were discussing. You should have heard them hollerin' at each other. I have no idea how they get any business done. They all talk over the others. We also have a young rooster learning how to crow.... poor boy. I thought it was a little girl yelling. I was trying to figure out where she was and who she was. Turns out he was practicing for his recital. I think I saw some of the young hens laughing at him, but it did not seem to bother him or deter him from his practice.