Runaway Ralph

Most of the time, when we have a cow who is past the age of raising a good calf, she will be sold.  On the other hand, if she's been with us a long time and has carried a name, there's a good chance she will simply be allowed to die and be buried on the farm.  

This little cow was brought home to be fed last winter; her feet were making it difficult for her to walk and winter would have been hard on her without additional feeding.  Her ear tag number was 622, which meant she was born in 1996, making her sixteen years old, or 112 in human years.  And since she has a story to tell, she was never put on the trailer when others went to auction.  A few weeks ago, she surprised us with this pretty little heifer calf, which is just as spry as a calf from a young cow.

Now for her story: 

When she was just a tiny calf, Popa went to check the cows, and she got scared, jumped up and took off running away from the rest of the herd.  He followed her, thinking he'd probably never see her again, but finally found her in the neighboring pasture, over a quarter of a mile away, all tuckered out and resting.  He carried her back, setting her down now and then to rest.  She was given the name, Runaway Ralph, from the children's book by Beverly Cleary, and was called "Raffie".  Over the years she became one of our very best cows.  So, she's living out her old age in luxury, eating grain every day and loved, just because.

Charlotte