kdolu Whew! What a morning at the farm! It seemed to take FOREVER! It was a very chilly morning in Wisconsin, and I was freezing my butt off! I’m home now, trying to unthaw my toes and dreading having to go back outside for chores. Ahhhhh, Your Egg-o is Preg-o the life of a farmer.
Today was Herd Health day, which means our veterinarian comes to the farm and examines some of the cows. Herd Health takes place every other Monday in the palpation rail. A palpation rail is a long, gate system designed to hold multiple cows at a time. The cows simply walk into the rail one at a time and wait to be examined by Dr. O.
The cows and I were in the palpation rail waiting for the doc
Most of the cows that are checked are pregnancy checks, but we also look at cows that recently had babies and cows that may be sick. Dr. O uses a rectal ultrasound machine to determine pregnancy or to identify any internal abnormalities. We preg check our cows three times throughout their gestation with the first check taking place 28 days after insemination. The results of today’s herd check were positive; a lot of pregnant cows and all were in good health!
Dr. O used the ultrasound machine to check a cow
Time to go back outside and take on the frigid weather. While I do love my job, tomorrow’s post may be about how miserable farming in the winter can be. Is it spring yet!?
