The April Blizzard
This snow really could stop any time. It wouldn’t hurt my feelings.
I felt pretty good about things when I went to bed last night. The cows and calves were tucked up against the windbreak and it wasn’t too bad there out of the wind. I tucked the horses away in the barn but had doubts about the necessity. It was hardly snowing anymore. Surely the storm would have moved out by morning.
We woke this morning to howling wind and lots more snow.
I went out first thing and fed Blossom. I forced the horses out of the barn for awhile. They need to move around a little, get a big drink, just get outside even of the weather is bad. Their bale is well protected here, out of the wind. I just put them in the barn because they’re wimps and it makes me, and them, happy. My mom keeps telling e that Smoke is an inside sort of horse. He’s never had to be outside in bad weather before! I’m trying to keep it that way.
I walked out and checked the bunch of cows and calves here by the buildings. They have the old horse barn to go in. It is called the horse barn not because my horses will ever be near it, it’s falling down pretty bad and way to dangerous for them, but because it was once the barn at an old country school down the road from here for the kids to put their horses in after they rode to school. I wish there was enough of it left to fix up. I love its history.
The calves were mostly in there, dry and warm and happy. That made me happy. Their moms weren’t quite as happy. They can’t get in that barn. But they were still sheltered and had lots of hay to eat.
When my husband finally got in from feeding the big bunch I asked him how things were out there? He just looked at me and asked why even bother to ask? It was awful.
They had put bales of hay right up against the trees. The cows can keep their bellies full and stay warm eating that way. Then the calves will bed down in the hay as the cows pull the bale apart. It’s nice for them to have a warmer spot to lay than in the snow.
I walked out and took Poppy a big bag of cake. There is a barn open that the cows could get in if they would. Forcing cows into a sheltered spot is like trying to make a horse drink. Has anyone not heard that wonderful Paul Harvey Christmas special? About the farmer who doesn’t want to go to the Christmas service with his wife and kids? He stays home and ends up trying to get some freezing birds into the barn where they would be warm. Here it is if you haven’t https://youtu.be/ddai8rkXWRs I miss Paul Harvey. I often feel that way about cows. which I realize is not the point of this story, but still.
I can lead Poppy to it even if I can’t chase the others into it. I dumped her bag of cake in there. Now the staying part is her choice.
You should build something with that old barn wood maby furniture