Friday, August 12, 2011

Every girl needs a brush!


Yep, us girls need a good spa treatment every now and then! And this is not any different for our cows.


At our farm we have a hospital pen, this is the area/pen at our farm where our girls with special needs stay if they are feeling blue. Normally the ladies will only be in there for a week, but sometimes they stay longer, depending on how or what kind of issues they have.

Because we want to pamper these girls a bit, they already feel “left out” because they had to move to a different part of the barn and leave their girlies and BFF's, we had a big and I mean BIG automatic brush installed!

Cows like to groom. They want to feel clean, and this brush is the perfect way to do that. Whenever a cow pushes the brush it automatically starts to swirl. Not only does it swirl, it also goes up and down, to the left and to the right. It is pretty nifty!  Sometimes they line up or are waiting in little groups until the ‘leading’ lady is done so they can take her place. And sometimes these silly girls go really nuts and while one will have her buttocks scratched, another one has her head up against it... at the same time...!


In the beginning we didn’t know if this brush was going work out. We had read about it but never seen it in action. But the brush is amazing! It seems that because of the cows curiosity always wins it over being scared of the big yellow thing, so every girl gives it a shot eventually... And they love it!

In the 3 years that we have the brush up and running, it never broke.  And so a couple of weeks ago, when I was bragging to a real nice gentlemen about that the brush was, “Soooo GOOD and it NEVER broke! Next day… what did it do…. It broke! “Yeah I jinxed it!”  So i am not gonna say that again!

It took us about 2 weeks to fix the thing and you should have seen the looks on our girls! They were NOT happy with us! After we put it back up we had not 3 or 4 girls waiting in line but 6 or 7! They were soooo content!


I wish we could have those brushes in every pen/group on the farm and so all the girls could groom themselves, that would be fantastic! But those brushes are worth almost as much as one and a half cow! So we are still dreaming about putting one in every pen… What we are doing now is putting a little brush in at the end of every pen. It is like two little brushes were you sweep the floor with, in an L shape, upside down (should have taken a picture…) and we hung it up at the right height.

Now the girls can still have a perfect shine on their coats, and feel mighty clean, even if they are not in the hospital pen!


...

54 comments:

Jill said...

I think I'd like one of those brushes for myself!

Crystal Cattle said...

Love it. Dairies always have such cool technology to increase cow comfort. I know my heifers love it when they are being washed or brushed so I can only imagine how much they like this.
www.crystalcattle.com

Melodie said...

That is so cool! What a great invention...I wonder if they make one for goats,lol!

Kjell T. Evensen said...

That is a beautiful Lady.
Great story. :)

Lois Evensen said...

That is so nifty! I know our Labs would love to have an auto brusher, too!

Mike said...

I can see the girls now. Tapping their hooves while discussing among themselves the nerve of y'all for taking the brush down.

TexWisGirl said...

that is awesome. love how you take care of your girls.

Sharon said...

It does sound like a wonderful invention! I can see most animals with short fur would love it!

Saimi said...

That is so COOL!! I've been to dairy farms before but I've never seen 'the brush' what a great idea!!

A Happy Cow is a producing Cow!

I love that you call them, 'your girls'!

Matteo Taffuri said...

Fantastico!!!

Cheryl @ TFD said...

The brush is a good thing and I bet they love it. I remember my dad way back when on the farm had a gunny sack, filled with something...I don't remember what, hanging from a tree branch so the cattle could rub up against it. I guess back in the day, you just had to make do! :D

don said...

Fine shots and a very informative comment. I've never heard of this, but it obviously is a huge hit! Your cows did primo treatment…well deserved I'm sure! Nice post.

Larkrise garden girl said...

What a pretty cow! I love how you take such good care of your cows. I am sure that is why they look so beautiful. Cheri

Gail Dixon said...

I did not know that cows like to be groomed! What lucky girls to have you caring for them!

Debbie said...

awesome story....you really do take such good care of those girls!! it is wonderful to read about this!!!!

Sultan said...

Interesting that cows like to be groomed. You learn something new every day.

TheCrankyCrow said...

You sure do know how to spoil your girls Leontien!! Love it!! And lucky, lucky, them....It must feel soooo good - can you imagine if you could never scratch your back?? Glad you came up with some "make-do's" for the other girls too! Happy, happy, Friday! Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin

Elizabeth Grimes said...

You sure do take great care of your girls! Thats so nice to read about.

It's me said...

Zorg jij maar goed voor je meiden !!!...liefs van mij....xxx....

Ellie said...

Great story, almost like pampering session for those cows. You sure look after them well.

Alica said...

I never saw one of those in action...I'm sure they love it!

Louise said...

Ahhh, a major difference between cows and horses. Horses would have a panic attack at the thing.

But, I'm glad that the girls enjoy it. Got to keep those good looks up, you know.

Dolores said...

I'm in line.... I'm next...... I need a good brushing and a time 'away'..... sounds like a marvelous idea!!!
Hugs,

Nancy said...

It's like a giant shoe polisher, only for cattle. :)

Dreaming said...

I have never heard of this... how cool! Lucky cows! How funny that they line up to use the brush.

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Wow---I'd love one of those brushes just for ME.... ha ha You all take really good care of all of your girls... Thanks for a great post!!!
Hugs,
Betsy

Welcome to the Garden of Egan said...

I had no idea that cows loved that. Our poor girls got no such beautifying!
That is incredible.

I think cows just might be a little vain!

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh I love it your cows are having a great time. I love watching happy cows. B

Julie Harward said...

Farms have come a long way since I was raised on one! Happy cows..sweet! :D

Bob Bushell said...

A brush job hey?

Joani said...

Awesome idea. Who doesn't want a nice brush now and then. Thanks for sharing.

Deb from WhatsInMyAttic said...

I know just how they feel...I get grumpy when I can't get a pedicure! Guess all girls have their "thing"!

Sharon Lovejoy said...

I ALWAYS crack up when I read your postings, which I think is a big compliment. It feels so good to laugh!

Thanks for the stop by and comment. Yep, those maters are red and that tin tub makes a perfect table. She is a great scrounger for re use ideas and I love them.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Sharon Lovejoy Writes from Sunflower House and a Little Green Island

Arkansas Patti said...

I love how you pamper your puny girls.That has to help them feel better. Hope they don't learn to fake illness just for a turn on the brush.
I have never seen one of those. Wonder if a horse would use one.

trump said...

greetings from the Amish community of Lebanon,Pa. Richard from Amish Stories.

ann said...

I have seen our cows in the pasture rubbing against the shrubs in the fence line I need to tell hubby we need to buy one for our girls

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

That is so sweet. You can tell she is loving it!

acorn hollow said...

i am sure everyone has said this but I could totaly use one of those for myself. I can feel that nice brush going up and down my back ahhhhhh
I do not know about the girls with the goose berry patch cooking could you give me a link?
cathy

Jensamom23 said...

I had no idea! How clever!

Lisa Gordon said...

These "little" girls are absolutely precious. Love those faces. I have never seen a brush like this. What a neat idea!
I hope you are having a wonderful weekend Leontien!

Trio Angus said...

Love it! What a great idea! I think our cows would be jealous if they saw it!

*^_^* said...

Wonderful! Nice post!
Thanks for sharing, Leontien! You make my day!

Unknown said...

I didn't know cows liked to be groomed either.
The cows down here are for one purpose only as far as I can tell.
Steaks!!
Your dairy cows are beautiful.

Reena said...

You take such good care of your girls! I think I want one of these!

bon bon said...

that's awesome! never seen one of those before. i think if i were one of your cows, i'd be feigning an illness just to get in that line.

V.L. Locey said...

Oh that brush looks SO invigorating!

Cinderella said...

Leontien - if I read your comment right that you left on my blog, you are cancer free/in remission! I am so happy for you - may that continue every minute forever:)

Even cows need a spa day to feel pretty, clearly:)
I will say prayers and send good thoughts that you end up with the big brush you want in every pen!

Just came by this Sunday afternoon to say hello, to thank you for visiting my blog - and to wish you "Good Luck!" on the $300 dollar Cheesecake Factory Gift Card Giveaway:)

Robyn said...

Neat idea for the cows! My husband wants to get used street sweepers and hang them as a back scratcher for our beef cows.

BrendaC said...

Thanks for dropping by my blog @ WV Stitcher. I have been following your blog and need to drop by more often.That brush looks like it gets alot of use, whats the commercial say about happy cows living in California well looks like you have some happy cows in Indiana. Have a fantastic week on the dairy farm.

Paula said...

Thank you for the visit to my blog. The brushes are kinda like a cow massage. Bet they do like them.

Rose H (UK) said...

Hello Leontien!
our girls are certainly looked after and happy :o) I didn't even know those brushes existed....
Thank you for your sweet visit, and my crystal ball tells me you're happy and contented! (lol)
I certainly be back...
Best wishes from over the pond
Rose H
P.S.
I see you had trouble leaving a comment and had to go anon, are you using Internet Explorer 9? I've had to change to Mozilla as it's been driving me mad - the other remedy is to not check the keep me signed in on blogger, it seems to work ;o)

One said...

Each brush is worth one and a half cows? Goodness! I wouldn't have guessed. But I do know that my dogs always enjoy their brush too especially the female one.

Unknown said...

Neat post!!

Thanks for following my blog. I'm returning the favor!!!

Blessings,
Kathy

Rose H (UK) said...

Hi Leontien, welcome as a new follower!
Thank you for your lovely comments about poor old Charlie Hedgehog, they are appreciated.
I didn't even realise about pop-up comments until you said - I've altered the settings now, hope it'll work for you now :o)
Best wishes
Rose H