Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Update on Stitch

Stitch did well through the night.  This morning she went outside as usual. Until today, Ed has had to walk outside and encourage her to stand up and walk into the barn. She wasn't really interested in eating at all, so she didn't really care about coming into the barn. Here is the picture Ed texted me this afternoon. Stitch was the first one at the barn door waiting to come in!  Hopefully she's on the road to recovery! Our next project is to get the skinny little Jersey cow we just bought looking healthy & happy! You can see her standing behind Stitch. We don't do Skinny  Cows at this farm! 

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Surgery

My husband & sons have decided to convert our farm into an organic dairy. That means we have had to buy some more cows to increase our herd.  One of the cows we bought became sick right away. We called the vet & he had us treat her for milk fever.   We've had cows with that before.  They have low calcium levels after giving birth.  We give them some IV calcium & they're better.  But this cow wasn't getting better & she stopped eating.  So we had the vet come back & check her.  He found that she had a twisted stomach.  That's fatal for a cow. So, Ed, Andrew, Kelly & I got to help with the surgery.  Right in our barn! It was fascinating to watch.  He sedated the cow so that she was drowsy, but still standing. Then he numbed her side, cut a slit & stuck his arm inside & fixed her stomach.  She just stood there like nothing was happening! She felt nothing at all! Then he stitched her up & gave her lots of penicillin.  She was already trying to eat before we left the barn! Saying prayers that she recovers! We've named her Stitch!

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Petey's New Home

Early birthday present for me! My bunny Petey  has a new summer home! It's right by the chicken yard so he has company, & it's the first time he can really play safely in the grass.   The ramp is going to take some getting used to though. He has a nice nest in the top that's filled with straw in case it gets cold at night. That's a lot of getting used to for a 10 yr old bunny!