Beasts of the Northern Wild
January 3, 2022 by Anthony -
Our particularly wintry December has transitioned into an even colder and snowier January.
The team has been busy shoveling paths around the Chimp House, endlessly plowing the property’s driveway, and entertaining the chimps (who are unanimously choosing to lounge indoors during the current snowstorm).
Yet another daily chore has been making it out to the winter paddock to muck the barn and provision the sanctuary’s bovines with fodder. Earlier today, caregiver Sam could barely see where she was driving the John Deere as the wind sent snowflakes whipping past her face. On top of all this, her snow shovel went rogue, somehow came to rest on the Gator’s gas pedal, and almost sent the whole rig fish-tailing into a snowbank. While laughing about it afterward, Sam said the ordeal was worth it to see the cattle happily munching on their grain and alfalfa.
Even though their seasonal paddock is covered in a blanket of fluffy snow, the rescued Jersey cattle have been making their own paths across the frozen terrain, thus ensuring that they can reach all their preferred shelters. During one of yesterday’s brief moments of clear sunshine, I served some hay at the furthest barn to entice them to stretch their legs. Unsurprisingly, they had already blazed a trail up there and almost beat me to the far gate.
Here are some photos of the Moo Crew and their surroundings:
Meredith, Nutmeg and Betsy wait for hay at the paddock gate
Betsy munches on some grass hay
A dark-eyed junco perches on the old paddock fence
Meredith hesitantly follows me across the pasture with her usual skepticism
The bovines trudge up the hill
Honey, the herd’s matriarch, looks back to check on the others
Honey sniffs around for the grain bucket
Mule deer cut across the pasture right before sunset
The view from the upper limit of the property
21 Comments
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Oh how I love the Moo Crew! They all look so fluffy with their Winter coats, stay well my dears :heart::heart:
Their winter coats are the best!!! Thanks, Caroline!
Such beautiful photos, thank you Anthony.
Thanks, Pamela!
Sam, I bet that was quite a little jolt of adrenaline right? I recall some pretty fun times on little David Brown tractor. Sometimes a bit scary. I was a bit of a daredevil. 😉
As we’ve come to anticipate, Great photos Anthony!
I think Sam has recovered from the Gator debacle. Once you realize where it can and cannot go, drifting around corners in the Gator can be a lot of fun, too!
Just look at the size of that boy!!! He’s enormous and dwarfs the girls. Lovely photos…..stay warm and safe.??
Thanks, Carol! Nutmeg is still an absolute house, but he’s in better shape than he was and seems a lot happier! He looks especially large next to Betsy since she’s petite for a Jersey.
In that one photograph, Meredith has a look that seems to say, “Okay, I know that we earn our board and keep fire-wising this land, but, are we also expected to snow-wise all this, too?”
Haha, fortunately we have the tractors to handle some of the snow; the rest will have to wait until the spring thaw. In the meantime, the cattle will just be responsible for their own foot paths! I’m sure they’ll be excited to see some greenery in a few months.
Love seeing the Moo Crew! It always amazes me when I see Nutmeg, he is so massive. Meredith and Betsy look so petite next to him. Beautiful photos. Happy Sam’s Gator fiasco didn’t cause any harm, whew. Wild mule on the loose!
Yes, isn’t Nutmeg a big guy! It’s so hard to judge from the photos!
Kathleen and Betsy- it’s tough to tell thier relative sizes from the zoomed-out picture of them walking up the hill, but the three of them at the gate is a more accurate portrayal of their frames. Nutmeg is a titan.
I just think this is somehow whow life is intended to be, as long as you have companions to help you do the work of maintaining it. So lovely and peaceful.
I definitely appreciate all the snow and I even enjoy it sometimes! If we weren’t responsible for driving to work and it didn’t prevent the chimps from accessing Young’s Hill, this snowstorm would be my ideal weather. 🙂
Love the photo of the Junco. They are my favorite winter bird and I wait for them every year. I’ve been happily watching them around my feeders.
We love them too! They love hanging around the barns and foraging around the cattle.
Brrrr…great pics of the hungry and cold-hardy moos. Thanks for the addition of the Junco and the mule deer! I adore Juncos, too, as Laurie does. It was a great surprise treat to see that photo.
Thanks, Marya! Yes, I wish I had my longer zoom lens on me for the juncos, but I did my best with my 85mm! I’m glad you liked it. 🙂
i love them, i love them, i love them!!! The Moo crew always brings a smile to my face! whoever says Cattle have no personality have clearly never met the moo crew!!!!
They do have a lot of personality and it includes quite a bit of attitude! 🙂