barns and the animals they housed

Cows

Years before I was born, we had milk cows in the barn. You had to get up by 5 AM and start milking the cows. The cows had to be cleaned, and the milking machine before you could milk them, or the man who picked it up would reject the milk. Cows would swat you in the face with their tails or maybe step on your feet. If a cow got mastitis, the Vet had to come, and you could not sell her milk as it would ruin all the milk in the milk truck. They took samples of your cows’ milk, and if you were the one that destroyed the milk, you paid for all the milk on the truck. The cows were a lot of work. Milk had to be stored in a milk house with a stainless steel tub that the water rotated around, constantly keeping the milk cold. My grandmother would store jello in the water in constant motion, which stayed nice and firm.

Feeder Cattle

They were kept in sections toward the back of the barn, surrounded by a fence. I would walk up to them and pat them on the nose. I liked the cattle but was young and knew enough to keep my distance from them. My Father would put up silage for them to eat that was held in a silo until it was fed to them. They also had grain and hay to eat.

Sows And Piglets

Sows are very protective of their piglets. Before you go into their sleeping area, you must know everything there is to know about sows and their piglets, or you could get injured easily. Moving sows and piglets is hard work and dangerous. The pigs had a big water tank with a kerosene heater that kept the water thawed out in winter. They had food bowls in their pens.

Horses

My grandparents had horses in the barn that did the farm work. They were hitched to a plow, planter, cultivator, and more. A good team of houses would work in perfect unison and understand its owner’s commands. I had several horses that lived in the barn as a teenager. I would ride them on the road with my friends or by myself.

Hay And Straw Bales

My Mother would drive our 560 Farmall tractor with the Massy Harris 33 baler back of the tractor and a hayrack. My Father had the hay or straw in windrows, and it had dried entirely before we put it up for hay or straw bales. We would grab the hay or straw with a hook on the end of it. I could stack the bales four high, and then my Father stacked them up higher until the hay rack was full. We stored most of the hay in the barn’s hay mow, and the straw was stored in another building. Years later, we only put up hay for my horses to eat. We cut down the grass in the ditch across from our house and the grass in the pasture. My horses loved the hay.

Chores

There are always daily chores on a farm for the women and men to get done. Chores have changed drastically over the years but still have to get done promptly. Growing up in the country is a true blessing.