Udder pictures and pretty pictures

 Evening photos of Ava. Getting better udder pictures. But couldn't resist some Pretty portraits. I do love her. Some of the pictures are very similar...

Ava Doll

Back story: 
AIed October 17th. Confirmed bred via milk sample and sonogram. 
Moved here (8 hr or so ride) December 20th or so.
First week of February: Had clear red mucus hanging from vulva.

Never seemed to come into heat.
I wanted to get her to the vet for a hoof trim and prep check before we dried her off. But didn't get it done. So dried her off a little late if she will calve. (beginning of June)
 
She never felt hot or seemed to have mastitis.

Now as of last night her udder has changed. it is an obvious change but not even. She is not warm to the touch at all. But I have read that it can be mastitis. Or just uneven udder development. I don't know. 

Due date should be August 1st if she is still a go. What do you think? I also wonder if she is too thin?

Above is what I posted to a dairy cow forum I love. I had to post pictures here as I only know how to post pictures there with my phone. It made me go down memory lane. I visited one of my old favorite blogs. Made me wish others weren't deleted. And made me yearn to post here again. We will see how it goes and if the want to blog stays. I have missed blogs for so long. But Most are too sterile/professional for me I can't stand it. I get the recipe or info and run. I want home blogs to come back. So I again hope to be that for someone else.

Above is my Moo Moo Ava. I love her. Though we can't just lay in the pasture together like I could with Jocelyn. I pray either she or another cow will fill that for me one day. Ava is a big and beautiful Brown Swiss. Patrick says entirely too big. ;)

 

Closing our Farm

For months I have been wreastling with my farm in my head. It was my dream forever. I wanted it so badly. I loved it whole heartedly for a long time. But the last couple years we have done a bad job at it. We cant keep the yard up. Let alone garden and tend animals to the degree I want to.
   I have almost sold the animals so many times. But my heart still wanted them. I wasnt ready for it to end.
  But I am not sure why I have held on so long to this. It isnt a good fit for us. We just cant keep up and I feel like things go undone or I am nagging myself or others to do it. I feel the farm has cost us kindness and love for each other. I no longer want this long list of chores to nagg at me. I no longer want to not do fun things. I want us to have time to fully enjoy life. Not can, garden or milk cows.
   We are tied to home milking. We even buy all our dairy products at the store besides milk. My family prefers store bought cheese, sour cream, yogurt, ice cream. And most of them dont drink milk anymore. So it is a huge task to keep up with milk.

 I no longer try. I no longer make anything but coffee from the cream. Or gravy. Otherwise it all goes to chickens as sour milk. That is such a waste. I am wanting Fawn to be where her goods are cherished. And I am sorry that isnt here.

I am no longer clueless to why I am done farming. And I am mostly totally fine with being done. A farm should serve its people. Ours doesn't serve us. We prefer the grocery store. Even though I dont want to. It is just the reality of it. We cant afford to hobby farm. So we have to move on.
  So everyone is for sale. I plan to only keep the dogs. Astrid though is 9 or 10. So she will only be around a little longer. And that makes me saddest of all.

I dont know what we will do. I dont know where we will go. I just know I am done here. Totally and completely.

Em

Fawn

Tonight we opened up the pasture to the full thing.(had to fence in the bees so they DIdNT knock them over)  Fawn went straight for Poison Hemlock. She ate. Then ran to grass and ate. Then got sick. Then repeated a few times. We kept trying to get her to quit. But end up just putting her in the smaller area. 

   Which also has poison hemlock in it but I've never seen her go to... Dumb. I don't get it. 

 PH can be fatal. And often is. I'm hoping she expelled it all. A small amount will just make her feel sick. (Can cause birth defects as well but she isn't bred yet)  here's to hoping. And I need to get rid of the hemlock somehow. I've never seen a animal eat it. Until last week Stella did. But only a couple bites. Then I saw her avoiding it. Fawn just dug in repeatedly. I don't understand. 

   I'll be checking on her shortly to see if she is having any issues. I'm half worried about it. I don't think she kept enough down to react. But I'm not certain either. Grrrr. 

Also. On my phone which takes nice pictures I can only post pictures. If I type it crashes. And the app is no longer in use. So I can't re download it. I'll try to remember to get on the iPad to add descriptions.