The Farm in Winter: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

For most people winter is exciting for about a month or so (snuggling up by the fire, Christmas, the first big snow), but after that, it just gets old and cold.  Winter can be especially challenging on a farm.  Here's a glimpse of the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to farm life in winter.

The Good
The farm is really pretty at Christmas with all the lights.  (Unfortunately, I can't seem to get a good picture of that.)  It's also pretty when there's a big snow.

The snow-covered farm.

Animals in the snow.

The Bad
Last year, we lost a calf.  The boys wanted a bottle baby for a pet, so we bought a miniature Zebu calf.  He was tiny and adorable!

The boys' bottle baby calf.

His delivery was delayed (and almost didn't happen) because he got "down" for a short spell.  He seemed to recover, but after we got him, he never could maintain a body temperature.  To make a long story short: It was a disaster!  We struggled to keep him alive for two months, even keeping him in our laundry room for a few days.  Eventually, it was clear he wasn't going to make it.

Had he been born in the spring or summer, would he have made it?  Who knows.  But the single-digit temperatures certainly didn't make it easier on the little guy!

A lot of farmers experience loss in the winter, usually with babies.  It's not only an emotional loss but a financial loss as well.

The Ugly
The farm overall is just ugly during the winter months.  The ground is sopping wet, the animals look like wild beasts with all their thick scraggly hair, and everything is brown and gray.  It can be down-right depressing!

Here's an example of the ugly.  (Okay, the hideous really...)

A temporary pig shelter.

Since we moved the pigs to the garden spot to prepare it for spring planting, they were left without access to the barn.  In a pinch, the hubs constructed a temporary shelter for them.  It was super nice looking at first, but within two days, the pigs had knocked some of it down and torn it up.  It was fixed several times, but they kept doing the same thing, so we left them to suffer at their own devices.  (Disclaimer to PETA members: The pigs seem to love it; they're all huddled up in there together enjoying the good life.)

So there it is, a look at farm life in the winter.  I can't wait to post some pretty pictures this spring and summer!