Spring Green-Up

Grazing season and calving season have officially started! May 7 was the due date for calving to begin, but we already have 10 calves on the ground as of today. The grass is growing well despite getting frosted a few weeks ago. We started rotating the cows on May first, which is about normal for us. Here is one our 4-year-old cows with her new calf.

Last fall we built a barn over part of the corral. This provides a dry, sheltered maternity area to temporarily house cows and calves that have trouble getting going. Most of our cows birth and care for their calves without any assistance. But, when a cow or a new calf does need help, this barn will make it easier to provide the extra care.

The two-year-old cow below is the first to use the new barn. She was pretty tuckered out after giving birth and wasn't taking care of her calf. We brought her into the barn and helped calf nurse while she was in the head gate. After a few times, she and her calf figured things out and she is now a doting mother.

The sheep and lambs from our first lambing group have been out on pasture for two weeks, and the second lambing group is now in the sheep barn. Below you can see two of our rams, who live separately from the rest of the sheep flock until breeding season. They spent some time in the new cow barn over the winter and will be heading out to pasture soon.

Thanks for reading,

Leith, Mary Kate, Norah & Edith MacKenzie