Hey! Hay!

Alan arranged to have some big round bales of hay delivered to the farm. They were supposed to arrive this morning, but they arrived yesterday evening! Good thing Alan was ready! I supervised the job with camera in hand.
 
I took this photo of Junior on one of the bales as he helped supervise the unloading process. He's such a good HELPER!

The hay arrived on a big trailer. Alan used the tractor to get the bales off of the trailer. He puts a big long metal spear on the front of the bucket of the tractor and uses that spear to poke into the center of the bales. He then lifts the bales from the trailer and places them on the ground. Each bale weighs about 1,000 pounds... sheesh! That's heavy!

Once the trailer is empty, the next task is relocating the bales to a place on the farm where they can be stored.

The cows and donkeys were so EXITED to see new hay! They were mooing and braying and carrying on the entire time Alan was moving the hay.

Next week the vet is coming out and we're going to do some vaccinations and, uh, some "pocket picking" on some of the boys on the farm. Butthead (one of the big bulls) as well as Billy and Fitz (the two jack donkeys) will get their pockets picked. And once again, I'll be supervising the scene with camera in hand. Well, that's the plan anyway...we'll see how well I do.
(pocket picking = castration)

Comments

[Nancy]

Your cat looks just like our Cat Sargent Pepper. He is all Black.

Take a look at my blog under Pet's or look here at this link

http://jeansinkyhugs.blogspot.com/2007/04/pets.html

And you'll see just what I'm talking about.

Love your photo's!!

[Beth M]

Pocket picking = ROFLMAO!!!!!!!!

[Stamper Gail]

Lollie is going to be in heaven with all that yummy hay! I love all your photos of farm life Anna.

[Anna Wight (SweetMissDaisy)]

Hi Kristy!
It's either that, or eat him... and we don't want to do that! =) The vet will administer pain meds and anesthetic to do the procedure, so pain will be as minimal as we can make it. Most people don't have a vet do it. The bull is not one that we'll use for breeding -- turns out he has bad feet, and we don't want to pass that along to his babies. (Nor would anyone else.)

We want to let Ribeye (the calf born here earlier this spring) grow up to be a bull so we can use him for breeding. And too many bulls on the farm is not a good thing since they have to be kept separate. And BULL = CRANKY. =)

Hopefully the pain is minimal.

Thanks!
-Anna.

[kristy]

Pocket picking--haven't hear that one before but it's clever.

A question--why are you castrating a grown bull? Castration is generally done while they are calves. Isn't sort of akin to circumcising an adult man? Much more painful?

[Juanita]

Man and machine...so sexy, huh??? Junior is very handsome, I love his wide eyed look.
I love "pocket picking" because it's a much better word than what it has replaced, you're so kind in every way!! TFS.

[Sheila Powell]

Junior is adorable--I too never heard it
called pocket picking--too funny. I wish
I lived closer to you I would definitely
come out and visit--I love the farm life
also and would love to see all your animals
and the beautiful outdoors you have!

[Claire Daly]

Awesome photos, especially of Junior :) Looks like he works hard!

[Dotty]

LOVE the picture of Junior, he sure appears intensely focused on the job. I have never heard the term "pocket picking" either - oh my, camera in hand? are you sure??

[Cheryl K]

Your farm pictures are always wonderful! That's a new term I haven't heard of before-"pocket picking"? I will have to ask my DH and boys when I get home, I'm sure they will get a charge out of that. The terms I usually here on our farm are dehorning and de****ing. This is also done by a man that specializes in those jobs, never thought of the vet for jobs like that.

[kathryn scaletta]

you are too funny!! your post description is hilarious. Made for a good morning chuckle but the smiley face topped it for me :-)

[kathynruss]

Pocket picking! Oh my! Just so long as you don't have Rocky Mountain Oysters on the menu when Alan's done!

I helped my brother figure out how to move one of those bales once upon a time near Ft. Worth. We needed to move it to the side of a fence where cattle were. Wrapped a big chain around it in such a way that when you pulled on it, it fell over onto the end of the chain attached to the jeep. Then bro slowly drove jeep about 20 feet through a gate. It was my idea and it worked!

[mary]

pocket picking...that is hilarious! Never heard of it before! your accounts of farm life are entertaining...love all your creations, and the photography is to die for!

[Viv (VivLyn)]

Junior looks so sweet! You are going to be photographing the pocket picking?? I can't imagine!

[diane mcvey]

Great post! Loved the pictures and the info about next week! My husband is a Vet, I don't know that I've heard that term, and I must ask him if he has! Too funny...I had to castrate a bull and baby pigs in college...I felt sorry for them!!! Oh, and love the picture of Junior :)

[Elizabeth Royalty]

oh my goodness, little junior looks just like my little Miko (but I guess black cats have a way of looking a lot alike, huh? LOL!). Thanks for the amusing story, and good luck with the "picking......" :)

[Colleen]

Wow...pocket picking??? Never heard it called that before...how funny! Good luck getting some good photos..(I think?)

[Chris Hauck]

Oh I love that term...pocket picking. And you'll be taking pictures of this? Oh my.....I hope you have a good zoom on the ol' camera. I'd hate for you to get kicked. Beeeee careful! I am such a city girl I guess. Your stories of the farm make me interested in seeing what it's like to have so many animals around. Those bales of hay are ENORMOUS!
Chris