I have decided to share this funny story with you, Mark will kill me but it will be worth it!!

I recently went to Melbourne for a concert and a couple of days of girl time with two friends, shopping, hanging out and did I mention the food.  Mark stayed home to watch the farm and do his milking at the goat farm, with him and my friend's husband joining us on Tuesday.  Well late on Sunday he rang me to say that Freddie Mercury was missing, a promising young RED bull calf.  His dam Bohemian Rhapsody was in their paddock not two distressed and not with a particularly full udder, Mark thought the calf must have been missing for a few days.  Frantic calls all over the neighbourhood, with people looking everywhere for our calf and Mark spending 5 hours in the cold wind in paddocks, he was still missing on Monday morning.

I rang Mark to see if there was any sign of him, only to get the big NO and I thought it would be a good idea to run all the mobs through the yards.  Mark was getting angry with me then, saying do you think I am silly there is only one black bull calf in the big mob, the only problem is Freddie is RED.  Mark had spent two days looking for a missing black bull when he is in fact red, a few swear words were said, but boy did I laugh along with all the passengers on the busy Melbourne tram that I was on at the time, Freddie was in the paddock with his mother all that time.  No wonder she was not upset.

We will not let Mark live this one down for a while.

Well it always happens when you have to be away from the farm for a couple of days, that one of the cows decides today is THE DAY!  Kadina Irish Hebe had a discharge just as Mark was getting on a plane to fly to Melbourne to meet me on Tuesday 22nd February, thankfully we have the best neighbours and Ian came across to check her for us. She delivered a large polled black bull unassisted, her tenth bull calf!!  A heifer would be nice, but with her age we are running out of years for us to get one, maybe next year, I am going to try some Seaweed meal in her food before she is joined next time.

Then Kirup Park Diamond Cut who was a week overdue, sure to be a bull, presented us with a polled red bull calf on Friday 25th February.  She did not dilate enough and had to be helped at the end, mother and son are both doing fine. 

Both of these calves are sired by Blueprint.

KP Classic Crystal has calved and given us a heifer, that has made Sue happy, she thinks she only gets bulls.  But the colour is a bit tricky, she looks dun to me, but not having many dun calves born, I am not sure.  Her coat is definitely brown, the pictures below were taken when she was just 45 minutes old and so still wet.  What does anyone else think?  Mark reckons she will go black, time will tell!!

We have had our first calf born to the Kirup Park girls, with KP Broadway Babe giving birth to a polled black bull in the early hours of the morning on Valentine's Day.  Both are doing well.

I am placing bets who will be next KP Classic Crystal or Kadina Irish Hebe, they are both ready to calve, so the race is on.  I also think KP Diamond Cut will not be far behind them.

Will keep you posted!!

Unfortunately a number of people attending have had to change their plans, so it has been decided to postpone the Field Day to a later day to be set by the Dexter Promotion Group of Tasmania committee.  Another deciding factor was that wet weather is forecast for Saturday when we would be doing mainly outdoor training.

If this sort of training interests you let me know so that we can consider a date most suitable for everyone.

At least I got a wash bay built, there has to be a positive to everything!!