Happy Easter!

 

As I walked down the driveway to the mailbox just before dark, our curious pregnant cows stopped grazing just long enough to make sure I wasn't going to get close enough to interrupt their grass snacking time.  It almost looked like they were hunting for Easter eggs in the grass! 

 

 After a half inch of rain, a partial day of sunshine and the  temperature above 60 degrees for a couple of days, you can almost  see the grass growing. After experiencing last year's drought and continuing to deal with the shortage of hay and feed for our cows, it's truly a blessing to see the new grass and the contentedness of our cows. 

 

Easter, the annual church celebration commemorating Christ's resurrrection, coincides with the beginning evidence of spring in northwest Arkansas. The beauty of our world is a vivid reminder of God's perfect plan for each of us.

 

 From down on the dairy farm...

 

 

Happy Easter! 

 

Drought Grazing

Even though it has rained enough in Northwest Arkansas to green up the pastures and allow us to plant fall crops, we are still dealing with the effects of drought on our pastures,ponds and cattle. On our dairy  farm, the pregnant cows that are resting in the pasture waiting to give birth (also known as dry cows) enjoy a balanced diet that includes grain,eat hay from a hay manger, and graze on the pasture grass. The drought has created extreme shortage of pasture grass for grazing and in some cases, fifty percent loss of pasture grass.

With little grass to graze on since early summer, the dry  cows were standing for hours around the hay manger eating hay. When some of the cows began to develop problems with their feet, it became obvious that standing for extended periods of time was creating sore feet and lameness. We started drought grazing in July to limit  standing around the hay manger by unrolling a large round hay bale on the ground to allow the cows to eat the hay as if they were grazing.

Animal care is one of the most important aspects of a dairy farmer's job. Resolving problems that create lameness is important to the health of each dairy cow. Lameness decreases feed intake which in turn can decrease milk production,create other metabolic disorders, and increase reproductive problems that can lead to the need of removing the dairy animal from the farm.

 

                     Since beginning drought grazing, I'm not sure we have fooled the cows but 
                         drought grazing is preventing lameness and keeping our cows healthy!

Drought Grazing

Although  we were fortunate to receive a little rain this week, it was barely enough rain to cover the bottom of the rain gauge. Thankfully, the rain was accompanied by cooler temperatures and a reprieve from the oppressive heat of last week.


Just after the rain, I watched the cows reaching through the yard fence to snatch a bite of the green grass that had grown in the shade. A perfect picture of that saying--"the grass is always greener on the other side"! Drought has turned our pastures crispy brown.  Even though large round bales of hay are provided in hay mangers in the pasture, the cows are missing the green grass to graze that is usually available.  Drought conditions and what I call drought grazing,  have created a lot of fence building in many pastures this summer due to the cows reaching out for available green grass.

While we continue to wait for more rain and the return of green pastures for our cows, we are  making sure that all of our  dairy cattle are eating a nutritious diet and drinking plenty of clean water.

Drought or no Drought,

               we're  committed to providing high-quality milk!

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For I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.
                                           Philippians 4:11

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Rain and cooler temperatures made us all feel like we were on vacation yesterday. It normally takes ten minutes to bring our dairy cows from pasture to the milk parlor but yesterday's walk took forty five minutes because the cows were enjoying grazing on revived grass. I am so thankful for the soul refreshing rain that we have received and the cooler temperatures for our cows, my family, and our neighbors.