Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[farmerjan]

Have you ever used the "slap shot" tubing on a syringe?

To do what????

 

[Ridgetop]

For giving shots to flighty animals that jump around. The needle goes in one end of the tubing and it attaches to the syringe so if the animal jumps the needle stays in and the tubing keeps the syringe from pulling out. I have one but can't figure out how the dose would go through the tubing and into the animal instead of the med just remaining in the tubing! Obviously, I have never used it. LOL

 

[Baymule]

Onion juice kills ringworm. If you have a blender, liquify a couple of onions, mash through a strainer and you get onion juice. 2-3 applications and ringworm is gone.

 

[farmerjan]

Interesting about the onion juice...
When we work them through the chute it is a once, maybe twice deal... and the ringworm is usually all around their eyes, ears, nose, poll, neck area. We use a curry comb if they are flaky, then iodine on a rag rubbed into it, then the oil rubbed in on top of that.
Head catch stops 90% of the shot giving problems. We use a bar under their neck so they cannot put their heads down and it also keeps them from flinging their heads around even more... and it keeps them on their feet and not trying to kneel as some will do when they get caught up in it. I cannot imagine trying to deal with a flexible hose with a needle at the end... the shots are all subq, so very short needles also... most are 1/2 or 5/8 inch length. Quick jab under the skin.....

Woke up to a foggy morning... temps only down to 42 so most all the snow is melted. It is still foggy out there now. Supposed to be a few showers off and on today, then rain for the next 24-36 hours... tapering off some on Friday and again more on Sat into Sunday.
Nothing like what @Baymule got though... 1-3 inches is what they are predicting. Going to stick the rain gauges back out since temps are supposed to be in the 60's the next 2-3 days and back into the mid and upper 40's over the weekend.

Going to head up to the calves....

 

[farmerjan]

It has been a damp day but the temps feel downright warm compared to last week's near zero nights.

Snow is 99% gone and it has been a foggy, misty wet all day. Got all the way up to 55... I did put the rain gauges back out so will see what all it does. We are not supposed to get anything like what @Baymule got. I honestly would rather the cold and snow... guess I don't dislike it as much as I thought... just the bone chilling single digits. But at least we could get around out there...

One farm texted and said to wait til early in Feb... It will be a busy month as have 2 others that want to wait also. And the cotton pickin Old Farmers Almanac is talking, snow in Feb...
Tomorrow is supposed to be low 60's and Friday upper 60's...

Muddy, slick in the fields out there... hard to get around to barn with the calves... don't want to go sliding down the hill in the wet and tear up the field or tear up the vehicle.
Thinking I might start weaning off the bigger calves... cut back to 1 bottle a day for them now..... or maybe 1/2 bottle twice a day so they don't try to knock me over... They are pushing 10 weeks old now... the twin heifers are nearly 6 weeks and the other set are just 4 weeks. Those 4 will be on milk for at least another month or longer since they are smaller and need to keep growing. They are all eating grain really good though.

 

[Ridgetop]

Good news on the calves.

 

[Baymule]

What does the Old Farmers Almanac say about Texas in February?
Please so more ice, no snow and no more floods!

 

[farmerjan]

My almanac says slightly cooler than normal, and slightly higher than average precip..in Feb..... I do not like this Harris almanac as much as I like the "old farmers almanac" that we used to get up north. Haven't seen that one this year. But they were about on it for January so far. Says areas of TX....heavy precip 18-21 and 28-31 warming 25-27, cooling off 29-31... they are a few days off for you but still.... some freezing rain in the northern part of TX. Feb is more cool early (normal going into longer days) with some higher precip and steady rain 5-8. 11-14, 21-23 and end of month 27-29. Some severe storms in the south. Again, below normal temps and above normal precip in March...

 

[farmerjan]

It is muddy out there but actually better than I expected. According to the rain gauge, we have not had much... it was a misty damp day, but there is only .2 inch in the gauge... The surface of the ground is drier than last night. I didn't have much trouble getting close to the barn this morning either.
Fed the calves, blocked off the creep gate and gave the bottle calves both "pens" since it is getting muddy going in and out the opening in the side I have kept them in. It will give them some more room to get some exercise and not concentrate the hooves making it as muddy. I also took off their calf coats, since it is in the 60's and not supposed to get below the high 50's overnight. Tomorrow is supposed to be near 70... so they certainly do not need them and no sense in them getting overheated... If they get wet, oh well... won't hurt them. They got into the bunk feed for the grain too...

We have a break in the rain, and it feels really like spring time... the radar shows more coming in this afternoon... heavier than we have seen... I am not glad that you guys got so much down south and all the problems, but I am glad that we are not going to get as much since it has been "wrung out" before it gets here.
I really am sorry for all the rain down south... I am thankful for what we have gotten, we are getting out of the drought conditions, only considered abnormally dry right now... and these next couple of days ought to help get us out of that.

Going in to find something for lunch. Didn't eat any breakfast so I am now hungry...

 

[Ridgetop]

How long can wrapped hay rolls stay out in rain before the hay loses nutrition? Worried about how soon we can get the hay inside the barn in Yantis. They are sitting on rolled side not flat.