…not dark of night…can upset the timetable for embryo transplants once the clock is running. So under miserable cold and wet and muddy conditions, Veterinarian Tom Massey and grandson Church managed to successfully cut out and bring in eight cows that had been prepped. Eventually embryos went in six by bulls including Lakota’s P60 and […]
…for artificial insemination this year. And it’s a year where we seem to be focused on up-grading our regular herd. The first step is to get the cows in of course….and a new unrolled tasty bale of hay is a good appetizer. Over several days Church has ai-ed about 10 cows. The bulls he used […]
A Christmas gift for TDA 35… …his very own set of two-year old heifers! We start breeding our heifers about one month ahead of the main herd. That, and holding off until they’re 2+, makes it a little easier on young, still growing females. It also increases the percentage of successful rebreeding. TDA 35 is […]
A crisp fall morning on the farm…as Church does the early morning rounds of the pastures. The Blue Ridge in the background. David
…this veteran cow went to the farthest point of the farthest pasture to have her calf. Riparian areas are great—and we have them all over Thistle Hill—but it makes it tough to find new calves. The mothers are often no help…looking in a direction away from their baby, I’m sure to mislead us! This dam, […]
…not sure how Church managed to find this one in the dark, but he did! And he’s special too. His working number is 12 and he’s out of Church’s personal cow…a gift from his grandmother on our last trip to England. The original dam was Ashott Barton Tulip, purchased by Wooz and then taken to […]
…7, 8, 9! These three came in a bunch a week ago. But THF 7 was camera shy and we waited until we had pictures of all three. THF 7 and 8 are bull calves…7 out of a cow in our American herd; 8 is traditional English. So is 9…a smallish heifer. All three were […]
…a little heifer THF 11…weighing 70 pounds. She’s a three-quarter English calf and was an elusive little girl…still needs a tag. The ratio is still tipped heavily in favor of bulls though…8 to 3. David
…and son. The bull calf is now a week old and shows promise. He certainly has the pedigree: his grandmother was the great Tilbrook Cashtiller…who dominated English show rings for many years. And for three years running her bull calves topped the sales! We think the sire was from another well-known line, Champson Defender. But […]