It was a beautiful Spring Day and the kids and I went up to Pam's (our neighbor who has our cows on her pasture for parts of the season) to watch Daddy catch cows for market.
We also had to castrate two bull calves before they got too big and unruly to catch.
Connelly has always been a ca;f whisperer, so he had a go with this little guy.
Close, but he never did touch or pet this one.
Everyone else was waiting for the big moment. Lael has the elasticator and rubber bands in her hands in the photo above.
Christopher John and Pam are watching all the men trying to catch the calves...not an easy job.
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OK Lael hand over the tools.
The elastic bands are tight...I mean really tight, and as they give the bull calves a pinch, they cut off the blood supply to the animals testicles and they fall off within a few weeks. Though this is surely unpleasant for the calf, it is better than an unruly testosterone laden 2500 lb bull within the year. We spend too much time with the herd to want to risk the unpredictable behavior of a bull.
The children all understand this, they have been with these animals from birth, they understand where all their food comes from and that eating meat means taking a life. Unlike some adults, the kids have no baggage about this issue, they love the cows, and recognize their importance to our farm..
Finally the calves are on their way to castration and the two animals that were going to the butcher were loaded.
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