kdolu Look, not every day on the farm is calf kisses and cow scratches. Though I tend to post a lot of cute photos of me and the family hanging at the farm, there are days that aren’t so pretty. Employees can screw up, your husband might tick you off, the cows might test your patience. It is farm life, a variety of things can go wrong at anytime.
I know, I know…it is part of the gig and you gotta roll with the punches. Blah, blah, blah.
But, ya know what, I ain’t feelin’ that today.
Maybe it is because I’m a little tired .
Maybe it is because I am a little PMSy.
Maybe it is because a few of my cows are acting like a-holes today.
Or perhaps, and this one is my favorite, it is because I just got splattered in the face with manure and it is running down my shirt.
The point is I’m a little cheesed off and the cows have certainly been testing my patience today. Here is the deal, cows do what they want. They don’t always follow direction and they certainly don’t listen to you when you politely ask them to get up and walk into the hoof trimming chute. Nor will they willingly swallow a calcium bolus when you tell them that it is good for their health and that they need it.
Nope. Not gonna happen.
They are going to fight you; swing their heads, run the other way, maybe kick you. Essentially, it is a cow version of a temper tantrum.
Where am I going with this? I am keeping it real and am telling you that sometimes I yell at my cows. Yup. Sometimes I lose my patience and I might holler, I might scream.
C’mon, be honest. You have experienced this with your kids, right? They won’t get out of bed, they fight you when you try to give them their medicine, they ignore you when you ask them to clean up their toys. God forbid they eat their vegetables at dinner! Then, just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, you discover that your kid decided to paint you a wall mural using your Urban Decay Naked2 pallet (really expensive make-up).
Admit it… you have lost your shit a time or two. You have yelled at your kids.
It happens with animals too. And though I might get angry, just like you do with your kids once in a while, I never cross the line into abuse. No matter how frustrated or angry I get, I would NEVER use excessive force and intentionally hurt any of my animals. Nor would you with your kids.
Why? Well, for one, because we know it is wrong. But we also understand that they are animals, they are kids; they don’t know any better. They are just out there doing their own thing and don’t always understand that we are trying to help them and care for them.
Even on my bad days when I would rather be in bed with a bucket of cheese fries watching Disney movies, I treat my cows with respect. I continue to care for them and give them everything they need to live a long and happy life, even when they act like turds.
