My farming days are quickly coming to an end..........a couple pics.

[quads]

Hey quads, change is about the only constant there is! Make the most of it!

Indeed Dennis! Indeed!

Its funny, being a city boy (originally from Queens NY) I never thought a dairy farmer would become attached to their cows. I assumed they were viewed like edible farm animals and just were not emotionally valued. I would probably get some what attached, but I guess I thought they were too much of a pain to maintain and the farmers exploited them for all they were worth.
Thanks for opening my eyes.

It's kind of hard to explain, but when you live your work, your work lives through you. sorry but that is about the best I can explain it. Most times when you talk to any dairyman he/she will say it IS their life, and when something like this comes along, that forces them to quit (health reasons, death, financial) they are not quitting because they want to, but because they have to. the heart is there, but they cannot continue for those reasons.

Exactly! As far as becoming attached to the cows, it helps that we had a small herd, never more than 50 head. To me they were all like big dogs. For most people a cow would not make a very good pet, but for me a cow is an ideal pet! In my opinion much better than a horse. I am a beef eater, but in a lifetime of farming I never ate one of our cows. Many of them over the years were sold for beef, but I would never eat a cow that I knew. HA! If that makes any sense.....

 

[grunex125]

yeah.I know what you mean.....we had Brown Swiss up until I took over the farm six years ago when I started buying a few mixed breeds to up the production a bit to combat the 9 dollar milk scenario. When we were all Swiss, Mom never wanted to eat one of her "friends" . Mom and Dad went to the Brown Swiss state sale one year and she even bought a cow because she had beautiful eyes.........LOL

 

[simple.serf]

Hey quads, change is about the only constant there is! Make the most of it!

Indeed Dennis! Indeed!

Its funny, being a city boy (originally from Queens NY) I never thought a dairy farmer would become attached to their cows. I assumed they were viewed like edible farm animals and just were not emotionally valued. I would probably get some what attached, but I guess I thought they were too much of a pain to maintain and the farmers exploited them for all they were worth.
Thanks for opening my eyes.

It's kind of hard to explain, but when you live your work, your work lives through you. sorry but that is about the best I can explain it. Most times when you talk to any dairyman he/she will say it IS their life, and when something like this comes along, that forces them to quit (health reasons, death, financial) they are not quitting because they want to, but because they have to. the heart is there, but they cannot continue for those reasons.

It's interesting, because my wife and I are starting to farm (we've both been involved with farms and farming for a long time), and i buy all of my equipment at estate sales and auctions. None of the sellers want to quit. ever. I don't always like getting equipment in this fashion, but I have come to see it as a way that we can keep farming in our area. We see the family drama playing out at some of these sales and it is sad. Part of my family is the same way, they only think of what they can gain and not about what is the right thing to do.

It's a shame but people don't know where food comes from anymore. This weekend was Maple weekend, and while I was running the evaporator yesterday, my boss was trying to explain to people that when you drill the hole, maple syrup doesn't just come out.

I wish you all the best with this, man. And a couple of calves do make good pets

 

[Eatonpcat]

Both of your posts almost bring me to tears, The empty barn thing kills me!! Hope things work out for you!!

 

[quads]

Thank you. Things will work out. They always do somehow.

 

[billb3]

I know the silence of an empty barn, too.

I'm the fourth generation on this one and I've been tasked with removing it all. Piece by piece.
I've got one last barn to tear down that was turned into a garage and trying to finish it is s like snuffing out a candle.


I sure do miss it though.
Glad to have experienced as much of that life as I did.
I keep a small portion gardened and that's as much of the "farm" that I can afford to keep "alive" as it were.
Some day that candle will blow out too.

 

[skyline]

Quads,

Nice pictures, no doubt they will give you great memories for years. Sorry for your loss.