Bouffant Blonde

There’s never a dull day on the farm. The dogs and I were talking to our neighbor when a young calf decided to come over and play. That would have been fine if Mama Cow had been on board with the playdate. She was not. I gathered the dogs and we started toward the house. The calf decided that would be a great time to chase the dogs. Yes. You read that right. The calf was chasing the dogs. When the dogs scattered, the calf focused on Abby. At 93 lbs. and jet black, Abby does look a little like one of the black calves. I’m not sure the calf realized the difference. Unfortunately, Mama Cow grew increasingly agitated. The calf chased the dog and she chased the calf. Pretty soon a few more mama cows got involved. Try as she might, Abby couldn’t seem to outrun or outwit the calf. When Sammy, the Australian Shepherd, tried to help, a few of the cows turned on him. With the cows beginning to stampede, I decided to cut through another field and head toward the closest gate. Abby d...

Little Bit was having a really good day. He'd walked around quite a bit, especially for a tiny little calf who was only three days old. There were lots of other calves, some weren't much older than Little Bit. But he was the youngest. His Mama was very proud of him. Little Bit liked being in the big pasture. He especially liked the cool spot he found under the trees. The rest of the herd moved to a different pasture. Not Little Bit. He was enjoying his nap and he refused to get up when his Mama called him. Mama stayed with Little Bit for awhile, then she joined the herd. Little Bit wasn't afraid. It was quiet and peaceful where he was. Every now and then Mama would come back to check on Little Bit but he still wouldn't get up. Then the lady came out to see about him. He'd seen her before. She had a nice voice and she seemed to like little calves. She told Little Bit to get up and he did. Little Bit wasn't exactly scared of the lady. She spoke nice word...

Little Guy was really sad. Granddaddy said he had to sell some calves and Little Guy didn't want him to. Mama said Granddaddy just couldn't keep them all and they had to go to new homes. So Little Guy, Sunshine and Miss Lady Bug headed out with Mama to help Granddaddy. It didn't take long to get eight calves loaded on Granddaddy's cattle trailer. The calves were scared. Little Guy wanted to cry but he didn't want Sunshine or Miss Lady Bug to think he was a baby. Even though he was the baby. Granddaddy got ready to leave. Little Guy and his sisters went into the house with Mama. It was time to cook lunch. They'd barely gotten started when there was a big commotion outside. Little Guy looked out the window. Uh-oh! The calves were loose in the front yard! Mama rushed outside. Little Guy, Sunshine and Miss Lady Bug followed closely behind. Seven of the calves went back toward the pasture. One headed toward the highway. Mama went after that one. Little Guy deci...

The five little girls were all the best of friends. They'd been born within two months of each other and their moms all spent a lot of time together. They had fun playing in the pasture under the watchful eye of the nearby adults. Late every afternoon they headed up to the house for a snack. One day there was an older man and woman there. They talked to the man who took care of them. The little girls weren't worried. Their mamas wouldn't let anything happen to them. Besides, the man and woman seemed nice. They smiled and laughed. That was always a good sign. The next day wasn't so good. The man who took care of them separated the girls from their mamas and forced them into a trailer. Before long they were headed down the road. It was really scary! When they finally stopped they were beside a house they'd never seen before. They saw the man talking to the couple who'd visited the day before. Then they heard another voice. A woman appeared beside the trailer...

Little Guy is pleased to announce the birth of a new baby calf. Her mama is Big Deer, a very large cow with very big horns. She doesn't like Little Guy at all. Little Guy makes sure to go the long way around her most of the time. Gran had thought Big Deer might be about to have a baby. Granddaddy said no. Mama thought a baby was coming soon too. Granddaddy said no. Big Deer doesn't listen to Granddaddy at all. She had a baby calf anyway. Mama found the new calf. It was lying next to Big Deer. She asked Granddaddy about it. He thought Mama was crazy. He thinks that alot. He figured Mama just thought she saw a baby calf and it was really an older calf. Nope. It was a baby. So while Granddaddy was still trying to figure it all out, Mama went and got Big Deer some sweet feed. New mamas -- even the ones who have been new mamas lots of times -- get sweet feed after they have a baby. The little girl doesn't have a name yet. Mama usually does that sort of thing. She just ha...

The cows have been eating really well lately. Grandaddy and Little Guy have picked a lot of peas. Mama and Sunshine have shelled a lot of peas. That means the cows get to eat all those pea hulls. Cows like to eat pea hulls. Grandaddy went out and fed the cows some pea hulls. He also had some corn husks. Cows like those too. Then Miz Pecoluar came to get some more peas to shell. She's really nice. She brought back her pea hulls from yesterday. She knows how much the cows like them. Gran took the pea hulls out to the cows. When Mama finished shelling peas today, she gathered all the hulls and headed out to the barn to give them to the cows. She had two large buckets of pea hulls. She grabbed a stick, the two buckets and then headed toward the troughs. The cows headed her way. One light colored cow got really excited and came up to Mama. She wanted to eat from the bucket. Then a dark red cow with long horns got involved. She didn't want the other cow to have any pea hulls. S...

Mama was not a happy camper. The cows with the two youngest calves were in one pasture. Everyone else was in the other pasture. And Grandaddy didn't seem to care. It was all that little cow's fault. This was her very first baby and she couldn't seem to do a thing with her. The calf went where she wanted to go, which frequently was where Grandaddy didn't want her to be. Little Guy helped Grandaddy get the calf out of briars and bushes several times. That meant that Skittles, the other cow with a newborn, had to stay with her. Skittles was unhappy. Why should she be put in time out? She always knew where her baby was and kept him in line. Skittles was experienced. This was her eighth calf. Mama called all the cows to come around. She opened the gate. Most had come through when Gran said it was time to eat. Right now! Mama left the gate open so everyone else could come through. The cows like to be in that pasture at night. It should have been simple. After supper, ...

Little Guy Loses a Friend Little Guy ran as fast as he could back to the house. He shoved open the back door. His nails clicked on the tile floor as he hurried to the family room. Gran was sitting in her recliner. Little Guy launched himself into her lap and hid his face against her shoulder. "It's not fair," he cried. "Why did Little Blackie have to die? He wasn't sick at all. I liked Little Blackie!" Gran patted Little Guy's back and tried to comfort him. He sobbed and sobbed. He heard Mama coming into the house. She leaned over and lifted Little Guy into her arms and held him close. "I know it hurts Little Guy," she said softly. "None of us expected Little Blackie to die. We don't know why it happened." "I want Granddaddy to fix it," Little Guy said. "I want Little Blackie back!" "We all would, but only God can bring someone back to life. This is something Granddaddy can't fix." Mama s...

Cows Are Really Noisy Little Guy put his paws over his ears. It didn't work. The cows just bellowed and bellowed. He wanted them to just shut up already! Little Guy had a headache. He was going to go tell his Mama on those noisy cows. Mama already knew. She had a headache too. "I know how you feel, Little Guy," Mama said. "Blackie woke me up at 7 a.m. calling for breakfast to be delivered to the back fence area." "But Mama why won't they just give up," he asked. "Granddaddy has spoiled them rotten. They think I'll give in. Of course, I did feed Buddy. He never said a word. He just stood at the gate and watched me paint the rocker. He has really good manners. The cows could learn a thing or two from him." "Buddy is really nice," Little Guy agreed. Buddy is the bull. He weghs more than 2,000 pounds. Little Guy weighs 38 pounds. Little Guy is really glad Buddy is nice. "Are you going to feed them so that they'll be qu...

Granddaddy likes to give sweet feed to cows that have new baby calves. The cows are very happy about this. It makes Granddaddy very popular. They lined up at the gate hoping he would forget who had the youngest calves. They all like sweet feed. Mama offered to feed the cow with the newborn. Granddaddy took a bucket filled with sweet feed and headed toward the barn. Mama put sweet feed in another bucket, closed the gate and headed down the alley. The alley is a narrow stretch between the yard and the garden. It's wide enough for a tractor. The cows use it as an access alley between pastures. Little Guy wanted to meet the new calf. Granddaddy didn't like him to meet the calves but Mama understood he would be really, really nice. Mama called the cow and held the bucket up where the cow could see it. Little Guy gave his best smile. The cow trotted toward Mama. Her baby followed closely. Mama set the bucket down and the cow's head disappeared inside. Her baby looked at Little Gu...

Little Guy is in trouble. It's not his fault. He just wanted to meet the new calf. He gets so excited whenever a new calf is born. It's another playmate and he wants to introduce himself. He promised not to upset the Mama Cow or cause the little calf to run. Just because it had happened before didn't mean it would happen this time . Granddaddy was a little stressed out. The temperature was really cold and he worried that the new calf would freeze. It was the Mama Cow's first baby. She seemed to be looking after her baby but you never know for sure. Little Guy figured he could add a little insight if Granddaddy would just let him go and see for himself. Granddaddy said no. Little Guy and Sunshine were banished to the backyard. Little Guy begged and pleaded but everyone ignored him. Mama carried wood into the backyard. He pleaded with her but she sided with Granddaddy. Little Guy could go in the house but he couldn't leave the backyard. He pouted. He waited. Sunshine...

Once upon a time Sunshine was just a baby. Mama used to carry her everywhere. Sunshine isn't a baby anymore. She's so big Mama can't even lift her. One day when Sunshine was a baby, she and Miss Lady Bug went with Grandaddy and Mama out to the barn. Sunshine wanted to be a big girl, so she walked all by herself. Grandaddy wanted to put out fresh hay for the cows. Mama's job was to guard the gate as Grandaddy used the tractor to move rolls of hay from the fenced enclosure to the pasture. Miss Lady Bug was the suspervisor. There were no cows around when the operation started. Then the cows heard the tractor. They rushed from the Big Pasture to the pasture by the barn. They wanted the fresh hay. The cows scared Sunshine. They were so big and she was really, really small. She was afraid they would step on her. Mama called Sunshine but she was too afraid to come to her. Mama couldn't leave her post in front of the gate because the cows would go in and create havoc among ...

Little Guy was really, really upset. All the cows and the big bull Buddy had come around from the Big Pasture to the Small Pasture by the garden. They did that every day. Except today they forgot the baby. The new baby calf who is only eight days old. He fell asleep and nobody woke him up when they changed pastures for the night. The poor little fellow was crying for his mama. He ran up and down the fence, looking desperately for a hole to get through. Little Guy tried to show him the gate but the little calf was too big to fit under it. Little Guy was too short to reach the latch. The calf's mama stood against the fence in the Small Pasture. She ignored her baby's cries. Her gaze was focused on the house. Waiting. Little Guy knew what she wanted. Food. Grandaddy usually gave her an afternoon snack. But Grandaddy was gone to the Senior Citizen Halloween event at the civic center. Who was going to save the baby? Why was he mama ignoring him? Little Guy heard the back door open a...

Little Guy was so excited. A heifer had given birth to her first calf. Now she was a new mama and Little Guy had a new playmate. Oh, Boy!! Grandaddy had been keeping a close eye on the heifer. Then the neighbors called. In the pasture right next to their house, the heifer had laid down and was about to give birth. Grandaddy rushed out. He got there in time to see that mama and calf were fine. The neighbor was taking photos of the newborn with her camera phone. Then one of the other cows got jealous. She wanted attention too. So she came over and knocked the new mama and tried to take her calf. Grandaddy got really mad. He made the cow go away. The heifer was so scared. She got her new baby and away they went until they got to the fartherest corner of the pasture. Grandaddy tried to give the new mama some sweet feed. Cows always like sweet feed. She wanted no part of it or him. It hurt his feelings. He left the bucket with the feed anyway, climbed on his red buggy and went back to the h...

Little Guy loves to help. He trots happily beside his Granddaddy when they head to the garden or check fences. He sniffs weeds and brush for critters. He exercises baby calves. He is a very busy boy. The other day was no exception. Granddaddy planted watermelons on the bank by the house. Mama loves watermelons. Little Guy thinks they taste yucky. He much prefers cookies. The only problem with the watermelons is that they are really, really small. Mama cut five watermelons at one time. She and Gran and Granddaddy ate and ate. They didn't share with Little Guy, Sunshine and Miss Lady Bug because they don't like watermelon. Afterwards, Mama scooped the leftover watermelon from the rind and placed it into the refrigerator so they could eat it another day. She put the small watermelon rinds into a bucket and headed out to give them to the cows. The cows love watermelon almost as much as Mama. Little Guy rushed to help. He scooted through the gate and pranced happily toward the cows ...