Misty's Words

I've got a confession to make. It's a very difficult confession for me to make, because I always try to be so 'tough'. Hey, I'm a farm girl... I'm little but mighty... I can do anything... dynamite comes in small packages... etc, etc... But, I have a bit of a fear, and it's one that home security systems aren't going to solve...

At any rate, I'm afraid of our cows... a lot sometimes.

The cows on our farm out here aren't like the dairy cattle we had before. The dairy cattle walk along at a slow rate through the pasture with you, while you head to the milking barn, where they calmly walk into their stanchion to be milked. It's routine... they know the routine... and, for the most part, there's no trouble.

These beef cattle (Angus), well... they're not only HUGE, but they give me the 'look'. Seriously, I walk through the pasture, and I feel them watching me. My heart rate speeds up as I can hear those black bohemoths thinking, "C'mon Girlie, come a little closer, and I'll pummel ya." That's 'the look'.

Then, there's when they have calves. People, they send their calves to go lie in the tall grass and stay 'undercover'. You can just walk along minding your own business, and all of a sudden, a giant, black, full-of-muscle and attitude cow decides that you've gotten a little to close to her calf. You get 'the look', and she starts to move towards you... she's pissed... and then she lets out a loud MooELLER (That's cow speak. It's a cross between a moo and a beller.) to see if the kid in the grass is alright. Oh, and you may not think something that big moves very fast, but, trust me - when they decide they need to get somewhere (or intimidate the heck outta ya), they can move. Talk about your heart rate going up.

Listen, you may be laughing at me, but if you've seen a picture of me, I'm tiny. Don't get me wrong, I can hold my own. That's why I liked when we had sheep on the farm. I've gotten into many scuffles with the sheep, but I could always get back up and keep going. But, if one of these cows decides she's had enough of me and my camera... I'm toast... she could make me flat as a cow patty.

So... there's my confession. Don't get me wrong, I love farming... love having the animals... love working on the farm. But, when Hubs asks "Why didn't you run up on her?" when we are trying to move cattle... well, it's just cuz I prefer to not have people rate my bone crushing landing after she decides to knock me through the pasture. That's all...