Kimberly's Adventures

Broken grain cart. Makes life interesting…. (at Hawthorne...

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 14:41:39 -0500

Broken grain cart. Makes life interesting…. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Sitting on the Lake Shore Limited Amtrak in route home from a...

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 14:19:13 -0500

Sitting on the Lake Shore Limited Amtrak in route home from a Midwestern holiday vacation, I watch departing passengers unveil their cars from the thick layers of snow fallen in their absence. (at William F Walsh Regional Transportation Center)

First significant snow of the season calls for a walk to the...

Sat, 01 Dec 2012 16:04:52 -0500

First significant snow of the season calls for a walk to the falls. (at High Falls Conservation Area)

Selling lamb and heritage way fed pork for @ravenandboar at the...

Sun, 18 Nov 2012 14:49:51 -0500

Selling lamb and heritage way fed pork for @ravenandboar at the Williamstown Holiday #farmers market. #farm, #pork, #lamb, #tshirt, #certified humane, #sausage (at Williamstown Holiday Market)

Letting the cows out for possibly the last time.

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 17:54:18 -0500

Letting the cows out for possibly the last time.

National Farm Bill Day of Action

Thu, 15 Nov 2012 13:54:10 -0500

National Farm Bill Day of Action: An Urgent Message Message from the National Young Farmers...

Cheddar Cheese Make (and other creamery info)

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 20:54:11 -0500

Another one from the “Drafts” folder. I never finished describing how cheddar is made...

Nimbus and calves in the loafing barn. (at Hawthorne Valley...

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:34:00 -0500

Nimbus and calves in the loafing barn. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

I discovered the post below in my “Drafts” folder. I...

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 21:52:00 -0500

I discovered the post below in my “Drafts” folder. I must have typed it toward the end of January and felt it was never finished. Here it is as I found it, because the photos are still just as wonderful. Just as a side note, the lone calf in the photo, Lucy, is now dark brown or even black, and the calf born just after I arrived, Nettle, had a terrible cough all winter and died sometime over the summer from parasites. Many more calves have been born in the days since and Noodle, Nettle’s mother, has freshened again, truly bringing light to the fact I have been at the farm for nearly a year. Cows have a nine month gestation period like humans and she had these calves about 11 months apart.

The original post:

Baby Cows! Calves, you might say…

As you may know, these little ones are the wellspring of their mother’s milk production and therefore new births are very exciting and essential events in dairy farming.

During my time at Hawthorne Valley, four cows have freshened, meaning gave birth and came into their milk, and that four new calves have joined the herd as well. The first of these was Nettle, a heifer (girl) born to Noodle on Saturday December 3rd, within 24 hours of my arrival.

Then, although Moon spent an entire month requesting to stay in the maternity pen rather than her stall during milking, her bull calf, Montana, did not arrive until January 12th. Although last spring I helped deliver two misrepresented Nigerian Dwarf/Alpine kids when I just happened to be in the barn as a series of three goats decided to freshen in the same day, Montana was the first calf birth I ever witnessed (and it was also a difficult one). After walking back from dinner at the Creek House, across the creek and pasture, I went in to check on Moon in the barn and there were about eight people in there and Moon with a little head and two hooves protruding from her vulva with some very large ears. She had stopped having contractions and was given something I can’t recall to induce the contractions. Then as she started contracting again they had to twist his body and pull on his front legs to get him out. She has a small hip cavity and he was a large calf. After birthing, Moon wouldn’t stand up to feed her calf. It turns out she had an imbalance of calcium and magnesium in her blood or milk fever (see below from Treating Dairy Cows Naturally by Hubert J. Karreman) so she was given supplements first in her mouth then under her skin. Once they kicked in she stood up and took on her role as new mom. Her calve was called “Moo” for the first few days of his life, because male calves that we plan to castrate and keep as steers only receive the first three letters of their mom’s name. Moo learned his first name quickly, but Andrew, the herdsman took a liking to him and decided to keep him as Montana.

Next in line was Lucy, the solo calve pictured above. Lucy belongs to Leek and was named such because she was born while Lucy and Lucy were milking with Andrew in the afternoon of January 25th. If you haven’t noticed the trend yet, each calf is given a name beginning with the same letter as its mother so that it is easier to follow family lineages.

The last of the calves born since my arrival (unless Hyssop gave birth overnight) was Liquorice, born to Logan.

Time for Reflection: One Year of Adventures.

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 21:37:00 -0500

The leaves have changed and fallen, the ground was coated in snow for half a day this week and the...

In lieu of the upcoming holiday where we give thanks for food...

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 19:56:00 -0500

In lieu of the upcoming holiday where we give thanks for food and family I would like to share this song that celebrates the communion of many generations over food, drink and the tales of old. This is a band that I don’t believe exists anymore, but whose songs really touched me when I saw them perform at the 2008 Wobegon Idol performance of Prairie Home Companion.

Two hours of wood stacking for a neighbor with Lauren on a...

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 13:49:00 -0500

Two hours of wood stacking for a neighbor with Lauren on a beautiful day! (at County Rt 217)

A place to calm the mind and release the anxiety (at Hand Hallow...

Sat, 10 Nov 2012 13:19:24 -0500

A place to calm the mind and release the anxiety (at Hand Hallow Conservation )

The view while mulching garlic. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Thu, 08 Nov 2012 17:07:15 -0500

The view while mulching garlic. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Sunset. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Thu, 08 Nov 2012 17:06:27 -0500

Sunset. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Cow spine. (at Nature Institute)

Thu, 08 Nov 2012 11:41:28 -0500

Cow spine. (at Nature Institute)

First snow of the year. Tomorrow’s Columbia University...

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 20:11:36 -0500

First snow of the year. Tomorrow’s Columbia University farmer’s market depends on the drivability to the city. Today’s was canceled due to the impending weather systems. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

With forecasts for lows in the 20s all of next weekly we chose...

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 22:17:14 -0400

With forecasts for lows in the 20s all of next weekly we chose to harvest extra greens, like these crates of lettuce, that likely will not make it through a series of frosts. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Removing tomatoes from the greenhouse to plant winter crops. (at...

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 08:46:40 -0400

Removing tomatoes from the greenhouse to plant winter crops. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Post Halloween pig food. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)

Thu, 01 Nov 2012 07:45:44 -0400

Post Halloween pig food. (at Hawthorne Valley Farm)