This day was a magnificent 40 degrees F, positively balmy compared to the previous couple of weeks (with some more cold on the way). Ah, winter !!!
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See post below. This is where the cattle spend the night. They come in one at a time to the immediate left of where I was standing, and go directly to their respective stanchions, actually inserting their heads into the device, at which time John or Bonnie or a hired hand move the lever on the left clockwise to lock them in place. Notice the bedding (lighter) and the feed (darker), and the automated manure removal system. The temperature is probably in the mid 50’s when they come in, and warmer in the morning from all the body heat.
John and I talked about the cattle; he has literally spent all his life with this breed. The one story that I’ve been trying to wrap my head around was in answer to my question about coyotes – whether they ever bother the smaller ones. He said one morning a few years ago, he came into a pasture where about twenty cattle had spent the night, and saw them in a wide circle, heads facing out. It turns out a calf was born in their midst earlier that night, and with hungry coyotes on the scene, the herd had surrounded both mother and calf to protect them.
We are slowly moving towards a deeper understanding of plant and animal intelligence; the recent book “Braiding Sweetgrass” by Robin Wall Kimmerer, will nudge us even further along. She is a Native American botanist who considers plants and animals to be our oldest teachers. It’s a remarkable read, bridging as it does the worlds of myth and science, and as my friend Mike Hamer (who recommended it) said, ” it will bring a few tears to your eyes..”
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This was the scene late one afternoon in early January at Maple Breeze Farm, about two hours before dark. The temperature that night was headed toward minus five degrees, before the wind chill. It was about twenty at the time of the photo. The cattle (American Milking Devons) were clearly ready for the shelter of the barn, just out of view on the left.
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Though it was only a brief (and unexpected) squall that lasted ten minutes, it was the first time in a few years I have been out walking in a “snow storm”. The light dropped off considerably right before it came through, which should have been a clue to what was coming. Taken with my Samsung Galaxy S4.
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