“We’ll take the moisture any way we can get it.”
That frequent comment has been aired by many in recent weeks.
Wetness came in the form of widespread snowfall, and benefits are being applauded, despite actual precipitation far below white inches of ground coverage.
However, with the good comes the bad, in more ways than one. Road hazards following the snowflakes created havoc, and longtime thawing will make muddy conditions for feeding, and deteriorating for pastures.
Dramatically changing weather conditions seem to detrimentally-affect otherwise generally-logical-acting livestock, which proves costly to owners.
As the blustery conditions continued following weathermen predictions, it was often difficult to see, with the only concern to make sure every head of livestock had adequate feedstuffs, and extra bedding, if possible.
Getting snowbound in drifts, which can accumulate in minutes, is nothing to take lightly, so we did our best to get everything cared for in quick order, in case Mother Nature would try to trap us.
But, when snowfall quit, and the sun again shown, careful counts of momma cows and babies were made.
Nobody was apparently missing from the first herd. But several recounts indicated one short in the next smaller herd.
A buzzard was the revealing sign of a problem, and closer inspection exposed a calf half destroyed by wily coyotes. No mamma was around, but indications were that there had been birthing trouble, and the newborn never saw the light of day.
But, the count was still shy, and eventually, a black cow was found tucked away in a thicket on the hillside. Of the jillion-and-one places to give birth, she’d selected a steep, slick place, where the newborn obviously slide down into a wet spot below tree limbs, with no chance of survival, despite motherly-instinct then trying to assist.
Into the next pasture, count was again short, but one second-calf-heifer came out of the draw. Trailing her hoof prints ended with another lifeless calf, and no apparent reason for non-survival.
“It was caused by the weather,” one could blame. Whatever, losing three calves in a day is tough on the pocketbook, but that’s the way Mother Nature operates, obviously.
Reminds us of Jeremiah 21:8; “Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death.” Likewise, “God brings death, and God brings life.”
+++ALLELUIA+++