Daisy the milkcow

We had a milk cow called Daisy, she gave almost 6 gallons of milk and day. Her bag hang clear to the ground. It was so big she waddled when she walked and running was a site to be seen as it would throw her back end from side to side. She was Guernsey cow and a sweet heart except………..

Daisy loved the garden and if there was anyway she could get out and eat the garden she was all for it.  When Daisy ate the garden she would become sick with bloat. We would have to keep her on her feet at all costs until we could get the stuff to drench her.

When you drench a cow you have to put a hose down her throat into her stomach and when it hit the stomach there was no doubt you were there as the smell and gases that escaped were horrible.  If you don’t drench her she would go down and bloat up like a balloon and you would have to take a knife or an instrument made for that purpose and stick her in the flank to let out the gases or it would kill her. We would then pour a gallon of mineral oil down into her stomach to keep her from bloating again.  She hated it!

The kids job was to get sticks or anything close they could use to keep Daisy on her feet. They would keep her on her feet until we could get the tube and the mineral oil ready. She got where she hated those kids if they did not have something in their hands and she would chase them.  I don’t know if she would actually do anything to them as she never caught one. She only chased them if she was in the garden.

One day we were sitting on the lawn getting ready for a BBQ and we hear this bellow and here comes my daughter running full out yelling, get a stick Daisy was in the garden and of course when she saw my daughter she took off after her.  My daughter goes out the long driveway with Daisy in hot pursuit. Daughter yelling, Daisy bellowing and her bag causing her backend to go from one side of the driveway to the other as it swung back and forth, they turn north on the main road. The weed Mullin grows alongside the road and they are quite tall. My daughter grabbed one as she went by and turned around and faced Daisy with that weed. Daisy looked at the weed, turned meekly around and walked as calm as can be like an old cow that doesn’t have any life in here.

A day of drenching was saved as Daisy was caught in the garden before she had time to eat enough to be sick. Everyone hated to hear “Hurry, Daisy is in the garden”. Probably would have got rid of that ole cow but she gave so much milk and I swear half of it was cream.  We made good money selling the extra. Everyone loved Daisy’s milk.