12.10.23
I am tired today. When I read this Sunday story to Darrell in a wee bit when he gets up, I know just what he will say with a smile on his face, “Well, I wonder why?” Our little village Christmas bazaar was held yesterday, and I must say, for a small village not exactly on the beaten path, we are always so very well attended by shoppers. Folks come from near and far, some driving from John Day (60 miles away) and some from even farther such as Seneca (around 84 or so miles!) and beyond! Each and every person who stopped by to shop was so appreciated. As Darrell and I packed away what was left on my tables before heading home when the bazaar was over, my boxes felt considerably lighter than they did when we loaded them in the truck that morning. I truly feel blessed.
So today I will have a somewhat lazy day. Since I turned Heidi’s calf out with her Friday night and decided not to go down and separate them when we got home last evening, there will be no milking chore this morning. After a couple cups of tea for me and when Darrell gets up, we will sit leisurely by the fire for a while before I make our now ritual Sunday breakfast of hashbrown potatoes and a bit of sausage gravy. Then when all the outside chores are done and happy animals are munching away on their hay, I will unload my soap boxes, restocking some of my others in preparation for the last bazaar of the season next Saturday. With the house cozy and warm I may just sit in my easy chair and begin to peruse the advertisements in search of a new milk cow.
No, nothing has happened to good old Lass or Heidi, well nothing other than age has crept up on them! For the last couple of years, we have had Lass in retirement as she will no longer conceive even though she is in excellent health. She has been such a grand milking girl for us for so many years, she deserves to live out her life in comfort. Heidi, who has always been a cow who breeds back with no problem or issues, is still not bred back despite having our bull as her companion since late September. She will cycle just fine, and the bull diligently courts her. I mark down the breeding date on my trusty calendar then wait with bated breath to see if she clears the day 21 cycle. My heart saddens when once again the bull takes up residence by her side indicating she is open once again. This last cycle I was so confident she had conceived but then I noticed a drop in her milk production and drat it, yesterday morning, there was the bull paying great attention to Heidi once again. As daylight comes, I will check and see if this is still the case and if so, I will know my Heidi girl is once again open.
I will not give up on her getting bred but realize she may have hit that age when good producing milk cows become harder and harder to breed back. For some reason, I have a mental block when it comes to the age of my cows as in my mind Heidi has been a mere 7 or 8 years old for ages! Actually, when I checked my records, she is 11 and her mum Lass is 14 going on 15! Where does the time fly? Now 11 is not ancient for a milk cow, but once they reach the prime age of around 8 their ability to conceive quite often starts to wane. With Heidi being nearly 5 months into her current lactation and if by chance she were to conceive right now, that would mean she would not calve until next September. Good a cow as she is, she is not quite like her mum Lass with whom I was getting close to 4 gallons a day when she was 14 months into her lactation! So, the best I can expect is to be milking Heidi through April or maybe May. Hence my dilemma, be prepared to go a good few months without milk or find another cow who is bred and will be calving soon.
We have been so blessed over the years to have had some great milk cows. Has it always been smooth sailing? No, not always, but life with animals seldom is. Case in point was the last milk cow we bought, Blackie, of whom I wrote a story a good while back. What had promised to be another good addition to our milking girls, sadly turned into a heart-breaking challenge to keep her alive, a challenge we lost. So now we are faced with the age-old question, should I start looking for a new addition to the herd or not? After so many years of having fresh milk on the table, well over 30 years in fact, the prospect of resorting again to shop bought milk is not a pleasing one. I know, I will wait until Darrell gets up and gets his first cup of coffee in him then pose the question to him.
“Matey, what do you think about me starting to look for another milk cow?” I will ask, turning in my easy chair to face him, almost knowing without him saying it what his reply will be.
“Well, that has to be up to you Rose” he will reply. Ah, decisions decisions! Maybe a quick peek at the for-sale ads wouldn’t hurt…
(To be continued!)
