I told you recently that we are spending time on my Sister and Brother-in-Laws ranch in Texas. I thought you might be interested in meeting some of our neighbors.
This is Bella and Ringo. They are currently our nearest neighbors. They are very curious and visit the fence line behind our camper to find out what the heck is happening back here. They are kept as guard animals. They bray loudly to sound an alarm and they can attack a coyote or dog that enters the flock. Roscoe also brays loudly to remind us when it is breakfast or dinner time.
This is the flock of sheep in the next pasture. They are registered Gulf Coast Sheep, an unusual breed.
This is Dos, their ram. He is quite handsome. He is also good natured, although I keep an eye on him when I am in the pasture helping with feeding.
The cattle are a bit further from us. I often feed them their evening meal so I have gotten to know them up close and personal.
Graycie is the guard donkey who lives with the cattle. She is a big girl sometimes in her heftier days referred to as the Assapotamus. She doesn’t mind as long as you feed her carrots while the cattle eat their feed.
This is my new boyfriend, Bo. He is the bull. He is young and not fully grown but fully functional. He is friendly (still be cautious around him) and eats cattle cubes out of your hand when you arrive for the feeding. In fact, he has a special moo at feeding time that sounds oddly like, “CUUUUUUBES” !
His girls:
Dotty, named for her….spots.
Annie. She was orphaned.
Josephine. She likes carrots (many cows don’t) and she is not above asking for them…forcefully.
Esther. Named after the swimming star, Esther Williams. She likes a good swim in the pond.
Lucy. One BIG cow with horns no less. A redhead named after Lucille Ball.
The Babies
Chuck. The less he hears about why he has this name, the better.
Polly. Esther, the swimmer’s calf. Pollywog?
Cookie. The color of a gingersnap. A sweetie. Looks like her daddy. Mom is Dottie.
Those are our critter neighbors…not counting the cats but there are so many of them that that is a whole ‘nuther post!
Enjoying the ranch life.
Related articles
- Winter Chores… (feedyardfoodie.wordpress.com)
- Drought shrinks Texas cattle herd by 5% (star-telegram.com)
- The Little Longhorn Herd (georgeweaver.wordpress.com)
I enjoy nothing more than meeting the critters. Faces are my thing, and I loved these charming faces! I’m in Victoria, Texas. You chose a good time to visit since it’s so cold everywhere else. Thanks for the pingback. I’ll be visiting more.