Our First Downer Cow

When we went to milk this evening, Reese was lying down, chewing her cud. She watched as I approached, and put her head to the side in her petulant toddler act when I slipped the halter over her head. I tugged gently, and she rose to her knees, then suddenly toppled over, so heavily and dramatically that all four legs waved in the air for a moment. She landed with her legs upslope, and she didn't get up.

This was quite unexpected. I tried prodding her so she would stand up, but she is a good bit heavier and quite stubborn. I called Phil.

He was quite concerned. He had gone to a vet clinic, after all, and learned about downer cows. They don't have long to stay down before they die. Very serious. She had acted so normal, and I had seen her "fall" four times before. Maybe she really is sick?

I ran back to the house for the homeopathy book and treatments, and I got some aloe pellets, which usually tempt Reese to plod along. She stretched her tongue out, but didn't move. I lifted her head: she squirted out the backend.

Phil and I tried to flip her over her backbone, but she kicked right before we reached the tipping point. We pulled her around. While Phil looked up anything that might possibly match her symptoms, I pushed Arnica pills in her mouth, opened her mouth to feed her aloe pellets by the handful, and tried to figure out if she was at death's door. (If she hadn't looked quite so healthy right before I put the halter on....)

She staggered to her feet, and stood there, swaying. It looked like a light breeze would knock her over. I turned to leave, expecting I wouldn't milk her small udder this day. But she followed me, so quickly that when I reached the electric line, without having attached her lead rope, she walked through the (live) electric wire in order to access the grass on the other side.

So much for our cow "at death's door." The rascal.

Other than cow drama, we had a fun day. Despite my nightmares all night that the canned tomatoes didn't actually seal, they were all fine when I checked them in the morning (I tried pulling the lids off, just to make sure.)

I checked the bees, and they are doing fabulously. The Celadon hive is moving up in to the upper level, and the Celestial hive is sucking down the sugar syrup and flying about purposefully. Both hives had pollen and wax in evidence, so they are still growing and changing.

Phil had the boys help with weeding. They cleaned up the raspberry/asparagus patch and ate some berries.

And then I helped them clean up the asparagus patch.

Then Phil took them down to shoot the Cricket, our little .22 rifle that we all love. Joe, happy to be where the family is, rolled around in the beautiful, tall grass, growing where a hay bale sat over the winter. He was pleased with his amazing pressing down ability.

Then he climbed up a cattle panel and showed off his dare devil abilities.

What a silly guy.

When he got done with that, he went over the Bitsy, who Phil had tied up. Every time the boys shot, she would race to the spot where the little dead animal should be, and she grew more and more distressed that she couldn't find any. So Phil tied her up. Joe sat just a bit beyond reach, and she would try to shake, and he would laugh.

Jadon and Isaiah would alternate shots.

One would shoot, carefully eject the shell from the chamber, then both boys would run to the target and admire the holes.

Abraham shot twice, but didn't get any hits, so he just handed bullets to his brothers.

When we headed home, Jadon eagerly volunteered to carry the Cricket, and practiced bringing the gun up to his shoulder as he walked. It was fun to witness.

After that, the older boys took the pruning shears and made pathways and mazes through the 7' tall weeds along the swales. They were very pleased with their secrecy.

Isaiah found a little watermelon, about the size of a Navel orange. We were pleased to see some fruit!

I found our first ripe tomatillo. I don't use a ton of tomatillos in a year, but they make a nice green salsa. I like that they split their skins when they are ripe: it gives them a really ready look.

The lower pasture animals all look great.

Charlemagne grows nicely: he is so shiny and healthy, it's a joy to see him.

Catherine is about as wide as she is tall. Looking at her today, I wonder if she's dropped: her roundness doesn't seem quite as tight as it did.

And Snowman is sleek and huge.

He has a nice face, I think, but after my run-in with Fern, I'm more cautious, and I don't get too close to him. (Or her. That may have ruined her forever, which would make me sad.)