Allie gets a haircut! Clipping Cows!

Clipping cows:  What does that mean??  A haircut of course! 

There are a few reasons for a cow haircut:

1. Grooming - It's nice to clip a cow in the spring to get her thick winter hair off.
2. Looks - A cow may get clipped for a show or to show her off to visitors.  A clipped cow makes her look more attractive.
3. Both!

Clipping a cow is just like shaving a dog, except with bigger clippers.  It would take forever to clip a cow with pet clippers.  The clipping process is not painful for the cow at all.  To make sure it is a safe process for both the cow and myself, I like to put them in a "clipping chute."  The chute ensures that the cow stays in one spot AND gives me the flexibility to get every angle.  It also gives the cow the flexibility to drink water and eat during the process.

Clipping is not necessarily fun for the "clipper." Hahah.  Usually when I'm finished, I am covered in hair.. in MY hair, in my nose, and down my shirt!  Definately need a shower afterwards.  The worst is when its really hot and humid.  Yikes! 

Here is a video of one of our cows, Allie, and the haircut process! I clipped her in April to get her winter hair off.



Plans this weekend? See Wisconsin's largest dairy - UP CLOSE!

Sunday, June 26th is the Fond du Lac County breakfast on the farm.

Why is this special?  This year it is going to be at the largest dairy in Wisconsin.  At this dairy, they milk 8400 cows that produce 78,000 gallons of milk a day!!
What a great opportunity to see what a modern and the largest dairy in Wisconsin looks like!! I have toured the dairy before but will definately but taking advantage of this great opportunity on Sunday.  You should too. 

I always like watching the cows go around on the "carousel" where they get milked.  They LOVE to ride the moving milking machine and cannot wait to get on.

Date:  6/26/2011

Time:  8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Location:  Rosendale Dairy

Address:  N8997 County Highway M, Pickett, WI, 54964-8925

Directions:  All traffic will enter the parking from the south. Traffic will follow Hwy 23 to Hwy M - North. Ample parking will be available at the farm - rain or shine!

Activities:  See Wisconsin's Largest Dairy Farm - UP CLOSE and PERSONAL! Farm Tours, educational displays, Money Raffle, Kiddie Tractor Pull, Petting Zoo

Additional Information:  More information and a map can be found at www.fdlac.com.

Cost:- Adults - $6 in advance; $7 at the door

           Children - Five and Under FREE

Website:  Rosendale Dairy
Here are a few videos about the dairy.

Thirsty Thursday: Milk a cow ONLINE!

I'm sure many of you have never milked a cow before.  Go online and play this game that walks through the steps of milking a cow.  How many gallons did you get in a minute?  I got 16! :)

Interactive Game - Milking a cow!

Then see how it goes from the cow to your grocery store!

PS - a little addicting! Yikes!

So... cows get pedicures?

TRUE!  Cows get pedicures!  Well.  Kind of.  They dont get to sit and look at Cosmopolitan magazine while a professional rubs their legs, trims their toenails, and paints a design on their toes.  :)  Not saying I do that... ok maybe I do.. dont tell....

But cows do get their toenails trimmed.  As you can imagine, you need a pretty big toenail clipper.  The trimmer doesnt use a supersized toenail clipper, he uses a grinder to slowly trim the toes.  We trim our cows twice a year.  If we didn't, their toes would be crazy long!  When a cow has long toes, she has problems walking and it is very painful for her.

First, the cow walks into the chute.  Then a door closes behind her and two rubber straps come up on her belly to keep her stable.  Next the chute is lifted about 3-4 feet into the air.  This minimizes bending for the trimmer.  The legs are stabalized so she doesn't kick and she's ready to be trimmed!  The trimmer will work on one side and then move to the next. 

Here are a few videos of hooftrimming day.  The chute they are in looks kind of scary but its really just a bunch of hydrolics and metal designed to keep the cow comfortable and the trimmer safe! 

Miss Olive gets a pedicure

#282 gets a pedicure

Its very important to really analyze and reshape the toes.  The trimmer is a trained professional and can tell how healthy a cow is by the bottom of her feet.  Here is what the toes look like after:

Those are some good lookin' toes!

Thanks Mr. Hooftrimmer for letting me stalk you today! :)  Olive especially appreciated it. :)