The Goonies

Last December I started to tell the unusual stories of each of the cows and calves in this colorful co-mingled herd.   I was sorting out the different family trees, weird relationships and bizarre personalities here amongst the two distinct cow herds that share this large farm property. The "Secret Lives of Cows" started with the story of dear Susan the ancient Jersey cow and Panda the calf.   Then the barn fire happened and other things took priority.   So I am going to try to return to giving a biography of each and every cow and each calf so that once all has been said, I can actually start explaining a few "secrets" that I have witnessed. These secrets explain some of the dysfunction ( just like in any family..) that sometimes has me standing with my jaw down to my knees. All in the name of education and good clean farm fun.

Today, let me introduce you to the group of 3 calves that I call the "Goonies."

All born last August.     Cute as can be. 

None are mine.    I never met the dad.  I assume he was a travelling Angus.
All were somewhat feral in the very beginning, they are much better now when they see me hanging out with the cows.

All nameless when I moved to town and brought my cows here.

No decent farm woman can allow animals to be nameless.

Keep your eyes on the calves, left to right:

Smudge has the smudge on her face,
Shorty is the black steer in the middle and
"Tiny Tim" is the tiniest black steer on the end

Each calf has their own personality and unique qualities which I will cover in the near future.

For now, I just want you to recognize them and look for them in all the past photos

and possibly think of more appropriate names as their stories unfold.

They are a handful, these three.

Can you pick out the ringleader?

They may look innocent and be the most adorable things to see in person, but I must tell you they can get into a mountain of trouble when you least expect it.

They are so small that if they weren't such a nice dark color they would of all been lost in the snow drifts from the snow storms we have had since January 1st.

To make it worse, the designated "babysitter" for these 3 decided to make believe she was on some beach in Hawaii this morning as the temps went up to 8 degrees and the sun came out:

The Goonies wear "Aunty Gwen" out.   

Now, which one of these calves do you want me to post about first?
Pick one.  And I will go take better photos and start revealing the true nature of these innocent looking cummudgeons.

UPDATE:

The sun didn't last long.
At 4 pm we got hit with an unexpected snow squall.
Gwen's "Day at the Beach" ended abruptly!

By the time I got home there was 1 inch of snow.
I may be skiing to the cows tomorrow morning if it does not stop.

Vermont weather....  always a fun topic of conversation!