I'm having a hard time remembering what I did yesterday, so please forgive me for not keeping you up to date.  Where to start? 

It's been a wild and crazy time.  I have been working on the vineyard and at this point I have two more rows of grapes to prune.  My face and neck are pink and my nose is RED!!  It is nice to have beautiful days to prune considering what it could be like, in Oklahoma.  We are expecting three days of heavy rain so that will really help to kick start the growth.  We are hoping that Pat can get the new addition to the south deck finished before the rain.  It is going to be so big!!  I can't wait to get it done.  Container gardening is the purpose of this new deck.  I'm ready to get plants started and growing. 

I have been putting it off but I have to let you know that River didn't make it.........   On Friday he didn't eat his morning bottle but ate the afternoon bottle great.  Then the evening bottle he only ate about half a bottle.  Saturday morning he didn't eat at all.  I took the cows to the vet and when we got home I got his afternoon bottle ready and went to feed him and he was gone.  It was a very bad day.  I don't know for sure what happened.  Was so sorry to lose him.  He was a wonderful little guy and will be missed. 

The trip to the vet was very hard on the girls and me.  I got Gabby and Rosie in the trailer but Clover Bell wouldn't get in.  So I took the two little girls.  I just couldn't be there when they were being worked on.  I didn't want them to associate the vet with me.  So Pat watched over as they were worked on.   Gabby was dehorned, not that it is a painful process but it is a scary.  Good news, she was preg checked and is two months along!!!  YEAH!!!!!!! Can't wait until October!!!    Then it was Rosie's turn.  I got her tattooed.  I was going to get her dehorned but she didn't have enough horn to get it done right now.  I don't know if she is really going to have horns.  We'll see what happens.    When we got home, after I had dealt with River, I noticed that Rosie was limping.  I don't know if it happened in the trailer or at the vet's.  She was very sore and I could tell she didn't feel good.  Gabby was also sore.   I think it was the squeeze chute.  My little girls are so small not at all like normal cows.  Anyway they limped around when we got home.  Not sure I'm going to take them back to the vet.  It's not his fault.     NOW Clover Bell, that girl is looking at a really difficult time coming her way.  She has become a REAL bully toward Gabby.  Yesterday she charged Gabby with her horns and ran Gabby into a feeder and hurt Gabby's leg.  I have put Clover on craigslist to sell her but I don't think that is going to work.  That means Clover is going to be dehorned.  I think she will be going next week. 

GOOD NEWS!!!!  The south deck is coming along and should be finished soon and the grapes will be pruned by the end of the week.  I let the family that I got River from that he passed.  I know he was special to them and I wanted them to know.  I got a suprise email that they had a replacement.  God is good.  River's family was given a year old buck and they don't need him so they offered him to me.  He will be perfect.  I will get him next week. 

Well I think I have you caught up for now.  If there is anything else I'll let you know. 

Happy Spring and Daylight Savings Time!!! 

I wanted an out cross on the goats.  I picked up a registered buckling goats last weekend.  He is so cute.  Still a bottle baby.  He is black with a white spot on his head.  He looks like one of the bucklings I sold this year.  I saw his daddy and he is a very handsome guy.  I think River will through LOTS of color.  He should be ready to go by August. 

Had a bit of a heart ache the other day.  I have kept Rosie up when I let out the two older cows.  I was going to be home all day so, decided to let out Rosie with the big girls.  OMG, it was so scary.  Rosie started running. the big girls chased her and they all were heading for the "grand canyon" on the place.  I could just see all three going over and losing all of them.  There was nothing I could do but watch.  As they were getting close Rosie turned back toward the house.  She didn't stop though she just kept running.  After about an hour they stopped to eat.  I could hear Clover Bell's bell on the road toward the gate.  I  got in the car and started the great cow round up.  I would have taken the horse but I'm not sure he isn't a "cow" horse and I couldn't hang on if he started doing the cow thing.   LOL  So in the car I went.  I found them in the trees on the road heading for the gate.   

I turned the car around and headed them toward the house.  Sounds pretty easy right, wrong.  Had to get out of the car climb up the enbankment and try to turn them to the house.  They are so use to me and know that I won't hurt them that they just aren't that scared of me when I yell and through my arms.  So it was a slow process.  (VERY SLOW)  Finally I got them on the road and headed for the house.  They had been running and eating so they were thirsty!!  So right to the water at the barn they went.  I got them in the cow pen and locked the door.   No more exploring for Miss Rosie.   

We have started the enlargement on the deck.  I found the cows in the pool yard.  That is kinda scary because if they get up on the pool deck they "COULD" fall into the pool!!!  EEEEEEKKKK!!  Then today I saw a goat on the upper deck, for those who know how the decks are.  I am going to have to keep the goats locked up until we get the deck finished.  It will be worth it in the end but for now a real unconvince!! 

I'll try to get pictures of River and Rosie up on the web site so you can see how Rosie is growing and watch how River is going to grow. 

Bringing you up to speed.  When I got Clover Bell the oldest of my Dexter heifers she was suppose to calf in two weeks and that was in August.  I had pretty much decided that she was not pregnant. 

Then I noticed in the first few weeks of January that Clover Bell's bag was growing.  Could it be that she was getting close to having a calf??  It was January the 13th, Friday the 13th and I had an appointment in Norman.  I checked Clover Bell before I left.  She had a slight discharge.  Could it really be that we are going to have a baby, dexter cow!!!  How wonderful would that be.  woot woot!! 

I got home late in the afternoon and I didn't see the cows.  They like to go to the North pasture up in the trees.  I thought I should get things ready if we did have a baby.  

I heard Jake singing his way to the barn.  He is such a hoot, I call it singing but it's more like a moan.  As he walks down from the north he mummm, mummm, mummm. It's really funny.  Gabby was following him but  NO Clover Bell.  Could she have had a baby up in the trees, how will I get it down to the barn, will she let me get anywhere near the baby?  Then I saw her coming out of the trees.  She was walking funny though.  She took 10 steps stopped.  I noticed that she was holding her tail funny too.  Was there a baby hanging out of her south end.  It seemed like it took forever but she finally got to the barn.  Then I had to get her into the stall.  As she was coming down I ran to the hay stall and got some fresh straw for her stall.  She went right in and laid down in the straw.  It wasn't long before she started pushing I checked her and saw two hoofs and a nose, everything was as it should be.   It looked to me like the legs were black.  I didn't care what color it was, IT'S A BABY!!!  I wanted to stay and watch, give moral support but knew she would not be comfortable so I went to the house to get a coke.  I text Valerie to let her know we were having a cow!!  Her response was "What?", then she called.  I explained what was going on and she was on her way.  She told her boss "we're having a cow".  What could he say but "Okay". 

When I got back to the barn there was a slick bundle of calf on the straw.  Clover was cleaning it up.  It was a dun!!  I was so excited that it wasn't a black.  Woo Hoo!!!  

Valerie got here and we watched Clover clean up the sweet little one.  At this point not knowing for sure what we had a heifer or bull calf.  We were finally able to get our hands on the calf and IT'S A GIRL!!!  A heifer, A DUN HEIFER!!  Also I didn't feel any horns, was she polled? It couldn't get any better or could it!!  I have decided to call her Rosie.  So I emailed a picture of Rosie to my Dexter expert Sheila.  She emailed back, "are you sure she isn't RED?"  After I stopped jumping up and down screaming RED, SHE'S RED!!!   Sheila said her nose looked awful pink.   On Friday the 13th, I had a RED POLLED HEIFER!!!

Clover has been a wonderful mother.  Rosie is growing like a weed. She was only about 35 pounds when she was born.  

I'll try to do better about keeping you up to date!!

This morning when I went out Megan had lost her plug.  All the big animals got breakfast and milked Berrry.  I feed the bottle babies and Megan still had progressed. 

Megan started pushing and it took about 45 minutes for her to get the first kid out.  Within minutes the second one was on its way.  I got those two cleaned up and put under the heat lamp and went to get the bottle stuff to feed these two and by the time I got back the third was on the ground. 

She had two large boys and a very small girl.  They all seem to be healthy and doing good.  That gives us six babies in all.  four boys and two girls.  I'm so glad to have two girls.  That way I can find homes for the boys and the girls can keep each other company. 

I'm feeding the babies five times a day.  8am Milking and feeding all the animals, bottle feed the babies and make sure everyone has water.  Let the chickens out and makes sure they have feed and water.  11am now warm the milk and bottle feed the babies   2pm warm milk and bottle feed  babies  5pm Milk and feed all the big animals and bottle feed the babies. Get the eggs and put chickens to bed.    8pm.  warm milk and bottle feed the babies.    My day in the barn is done.    In the time between feedings I try to get other things done.  Not really getting much done right now. 

I hope the little boys find homes soon.  It would sure help with the time bottle feeding and save on the milk. 

I'm going to try to get some rest before the 5pm feeding. 
I love baby goats.  It's a good thing, right!! 

This morning when I went out Megan had lost her plug.  All the big animals got breakfast and milked Berrry.  I feed the bottle babies and Megan still had progressed. 

Megan started pushing and it took about 45 minutes for her to get the first kid out.  Within minutes the second one was on its way.  I got those two cleaned up and put under the heat lamp and went to get the bottle stuff to feed these two and by the time I got back the third was on the ground. 

She had two large boys and a very small girl.  They all seem to be healthy and doing good.  That gives us six babies in all.  four boys and two girls.  I'm so glad to have two girls.  That way I can find homes for the boys and the girls can keep each other company. 

I'm feeding the babies five times a day.  8am Milking and feeding all the animals, bottle feed the babies and make sure everyone has water.  Let the chickens out and makes sure they have feed and water.  11am now warm the milk and bottle feed the babies   2pm warm milk and bottle feed  babies  5pm Milk and feed all the big animals and bottle feed the babies. Get the eggs and put chickens to bed.    8pm.  warm milk and bottle feed the babies.    My day in the barn is done.    In the time between feedings I try to get other things done.  Not really getting much done right now. 

I hope the little boys find homes soon.  It would sure help with the time bottle feeding and save on the milk. 

I'm going to try to get some rest before the 5pm feeding. 
I love baby goats.  It's a good thing, right!! 

As the book says the girls kid about the same time every year.  So far true!!  Berry was at seven and she was real close. 

Around 6:30 pm  Was waiting with her and I remembered that last year we stayed with her then went to the house to get warm came back out and she had a little one cleaned up.  So I decided to go in for a minute and low and behold when I went back out she had a boy on the ground and mostly cleaned.

I got him and took him to the milk barn, I didn't want him to be alone in the barn where he might get cold.  Last year Berry had one so I just thought that was it this year.  I was wrong!!  After I got things all cleaned up and milked Berry to feed the little guy, I noticed she was not finished.  Bingo, a little girl came.  She was bigger than the first little boy.  So I got her all cleaned up and fixed up a place back in the big barn for the two babies. I noticed that Berry was laying down pushing again.  I went to her and this one was coming out wrong.  It was back feet first.  I had to help her a bit.    That had to be it three, two boys and a girl. 

What a night and I'm in here and need to get back out there to see if Megan has had any kids. 

Going to sleep in the cabin tonight, Pat has gone to work and I want to be close to the barn. 

Need to get out there and feed the babies and check on Megan.

She lost her plug and IS in early labor.  I'll keep you up to date. 

Time to get back to the barn