New Jersey is now almost two years old, but we’re waiting to breed her, because she’s still a little too small, frame wise - even for a Jersey.
Here she is hanging out in the new corral we built, enjoying the sunshine and the grass.
It finally feels like spring with the weather warm (it was in the 80’s this week) and the green growing thick. Here’s a look at one of our fields
This is also to be the house lot for Bruce Jr and his wife Darcy - third generation members of the Red Oak Hill Farm.
Here’s another angle of that field:
We’re looking to have the house built up here by the end of the year. This will allow us to help out more on the farm and be here if we’re needed for anything.
Molly is growing like a weed…we hope to have more pictures of here up here soon.
Spring is finally here and the snow is starting to melt. The list of things to do to get ready for the summer is a mile long. We’ve had a few births in recent months but only one heifer (See Daphne) who is a cutie. Winter was long as usual and the cows are anxious to get out again. Before we do that, we have to make sure that the fences are all secure and the path to the pasture is firm enough for them to walk on. Unfortunately we also lost Gidget. She had banged up her leg and the infection spread into her muscles. We did our best to help her heal but in the end, we didn’t want her to suffer so it was best to have her put down. Molly is still a piggy and growing more every day.
We had three young bulls in December and while they’re all very cute, we are a dairy and so we do not normally keep any of the them. BJ however was just so sweet and adorable, we decided to keep him. He is a black jersey bull and born in early December.
BJ apparently likes older women because he and Little Red are the best of buddies. They share a stall in barn and keep each other warm.
We had some exceptionally strong winds and thunderstorms this past weekend that blew the tin right off the barn! When you own a farm when something isn’t working or breaks, most of the time you either can’t afford to call someone to fix it or it’s just easier for you to do it yourself.
Here’s Senior hard at work:
We’re not sure, but we think we might have the first Wi-Fi equipped dairy barn in the area. The logical question seems to be: Why in the world would you need wireless internet access in a barn?
Well, to be truthful, at the moment there isn’t a pressing need for it. But having a background in the computer industry, we know that computers are everywhere. Most large farms rely heavily on computers for record keeping and reporting. We’re in the process of setting up a computer database that will have information about each cow in the herd. There is an office in the milkroom, which we will have a computer set up so that research can be done records can be updated and records printed.
We expect that also in the future, there will be a demand for internet access on farms. Inspectors, Milk Truck Drivers, even veterinarians will need to keep records on computer and will need to be able to file reports or results instantly. Handheld computers can also make herd observations and notes easy to keep.
Another thing we can now do is mount a wireless camera in the barn, perhaps near a cow that is ready to calve. Then we can keep an eye on her, without having to leave the house! We can also see if there are any cows loose, or check in on other activity down there.
The best thing about this was how cheap it was to do. I had purchased a wireless MIMO router which was connected to the cable modem in the house. The signal just barely made it to the milkroom, where I configured a Cisco Networks Range Expander, (Shown to the right) which essentially takes that signal and amplifies it. Should the time come when outsiders are hooking on, I can add more security features. Both pieces of equipment, after some patient waiting for a good deal cost under $40 total.
Our next step is to finished getting the office cleaned out and get the computer up and running.
At the farm we try to put the cows out every day to graze and for some exercise - weather permitting. So it’s a real treat to have such nice weather in early November. The cows take full advantage of the time to soak in the sunshine and enjoy the fresh fall air.
