Beef and Chicken Farm Tour

A baby cow sucked my finger, and let me tell you, a calf has got some serious suction.  I haven't spent much time, or any time at all, really, being overly concerned for the comfort of cows during milking, but after feeling what a calf can do I'm not going to worry about the toughness of milk cows udders.  Whew!  That's one less thing, anyway.

I stopped by my friend Joe's family farm this week to see our chicken adventure in action.  The 48 young chickens are growing heaps.  They are nearly two months old now, and they have a least two more months before the roosters are butchering size.  Half the chickens are black and white striped Plymouth barred rocks that lay brown eggs and the other half are called Easter Eggers that lay blue-ish eggs, which are probably a mix breed Americana.  The Easter eggers are crazy colors - white, black and white, brown and black, all combinations. 

Joe and I have similar chicken rearing philosophies  - chicken tastes better if it gets regular hugs!

 

While we were at the farm, Joe gave me a farm tour and I got to meet some of the cows and the adorable new born calf.  The ladies in this photo are all very pregnant and kept in this field near the barn until their babies arrive.  They all seemed wary of me, but I admired their girth and the awesome view from their pasture.  Rolling hills dotted with cattle, barns, and silos as far as the eye could see!  I'm not sure if pregnant cows appreciated the calming scenery, but it seems like a pretty ideal situation.  

 

The chickens are being fed organic feed milled at a local store.  I just spent $63 on a hundred pounds, which doesn't last that long, and is much more expensive than regular non-organic feed.  According to my chicken partner's math projections, and I will have to take his word since I try not to do math, we will have nearly $15 dollars invested in each bird by the time they are four months old when the roosters will, hopefully, be big enough to eat.  And this doesn't include the effort it takes to care for them or the work involved in butchering.  This really puts grocery store prices into perspective.  The folks who sell the tiny, locally grown, organic, free-range, and frequently hugged chickens at the local co-op for $14 dollars aren't making a killing.  And what are they feeding those monster birds that you can get at Kroger for $5.99?