Cows

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RVMommaTo6

RVMommaTo6

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Joined
Aug 5, 2018
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Location
Rochester, NY
I've spent weekends at my camper (TT) for the past 3 years. We're on an 8 acre property with a creek and some woods. Directly across the street from us are cows. I see them but I have never smelled them or heard them or noticed them in any way except seeing them. Sometimes the kids will walk over and pet them, but that's not my thing. This morning, I woke up to them mooing up a storm. I looked out the window and didn't see anything unusual. I finally decided I would walk over and see if maybe one was having a baby or something. I got dressed and when I walked outside, the farmer (whom I've never seen) pulled up in a tractor so I didn't head over. He dropped off some big bundles of hay, they started eating and I haven't heard a peep since lol, turns out cows must moo when they're hungry!
 
If you haven't smelled them, you must not be downwind of them. Hopefully, the wind doesn't change direction  ;D
 
My family has a cattle ranch with a couple of hundred head of cattle, they most certainly do moo when hungry, they also moo when they see someone bringing them food, moo when the weather changes, ....
 
Tom when I first saw how close the cows were I wasn't thrilled, but in the 3 years we've been here, I haven't smelled them once. That was my biggest concern.
Isaac, the tractor pulled up and they swarmed it, they definitely knew what that meant lol. There are about 10 cows there, I can't imagine hoe loud it would be if there were hundreds. It was so loud I really thought one was hurt or something, I assumed having a baby actually lol
 
Our neighbors behind the house usually have a steer or two through the spring and summer (it disappears in early autumn*), and the one this year was apparently very lonely, since it bellowed often, usually where it had found human activity on regular occasions at certain spots along fences on both sides. We've rarely encountered much of this in the past, but he was almost predictable about when he'd bellow, though sometimes he'd surprise us.


*This year a couple of sheep replaced him, perhaps for the grandkids' FFA projects.
 
You want to CAREFUL around cattle.  They have temperaments from tame to agressive.  If with calves ESP. Newborn they can be very protective and charge.  If they not used to people on foot they may perceive you as a Predator.  They also ---for as large as they are ---have the ability to move very fast.  So with your children be cautious.  All this from experience just be careful esp. With your children.  Oh and on the lighter side hope you never Come across some that have been fed turnips as those you will smell from a field away!!!!  We have experience with that.
 
I have smelled them... and also shoveled the political promises they leave behind growing up on a dairy farm... Bovine (Bulls are the male bovine, we had those too) Stuff.

Could be worse. half the farm was Swine.
 
Your cow story brought back a memory.  We were traveling north from Florida and decided to visit Plains, GA right after President Carter left office.  I guess that folks didn't find Carters hometown to be worth visiting because the local campground gave up and allowed cows to graze the property.  I asked the owner if he was still open and he allowed us to stay for free.  Early in the morning we woke up to calves bumping into the camper and once outside we had to step carefully.
 
Oh I never thought anything of the kids petting them!! They seem so harmless other than their massive size. I'll have to be more careful, thanks for the heads up! They're fenced in, so they don't come across the street lol, but if one approached me I would probably run lol baby cows are cute, but the big ones are, well, big lol
 
Two semi-related stories. We were camped in a pop up with two kids at Doris Campground in the Wichita National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma. Woke up one morning to odd sounds. Looked outside and found bison wandering through the campsite. The closest one was perhaps 5? away, almost at the door! The kids were thrilled, and we watched them from the big screened windows of the pop up for about an hour as they grazed through. I have had bison get close to our campsite at Antelope Island State Park in Utah, but the ones in Oklahoma were the closest we were had.

The other was from my DH, an Oklahoma farm boy (sheep, cattle, grain, hay). A young teenage cousin from Connecticut had come to visit, and she was enthralled with the calves. DH, his brother (a bit of a bully even at 12 or 14), and cousin walked into the pasture and the calves, being calves, started trotting over to see what was up. Kevin?s brother yelled ?It?s a stampede!? Poor cousin was so scared she ran away screaming and pissed her pants. It was a really mean thing to do, and Kevin?s brother just thought it was hilarious as he retold the story for years and years and years.
 
I have one cow story. I was in the Salinas California area and read about a great birding spot online. It was at a dairy farm. I followed the directions and parked where I was suppose to park and got out and started looking for birds. There were cows everywhere and cow poop every where. I immediately noticed that the place smelled really really bad. I walked about 100 yards and the smell kept getting worse. Finally I could not take it any longer and literally ran back to my car. Did not get one shot. Did not see one bird. But holy cow (bad pun) I will never forget that smell.  :eek:
 
We lived across the street from a dairy farm in Vermont for 7.5 years. Almost never had a smell except when they were "spread it" on the fields. Drove by many farms where the smell was present, one where the smell would gag you. A lot depends on on the farm manages the waste particularity the "pond".


 
As anyone who lives in rural areas knows, liquid manure is very effective in producing what we call ?country air? around farmlands. We also know to give a wide berth to the trucks and tractors hauling it. This wisdom apparently has not been acquired by city folks.

I once watched a luxury convertible pull very close to one of these trucks at a stop sign, and was rewarded with a manure car wash as material sloshed out when the truck pulled away. As bad as it smelled, it was the funniest thing I?d seen in a long time.
 
My sister was on the way to visit a friend in northern Vermont, 2 young kids in car seats in the back.  Dirt road, and came across a "honey wagon"  Forget the actual details, but windows were open and the car got a hefty dose of liquid manure, inside and out.  She freaked a bit and took her kids to her friends for a quick wash.  Car was almost a total loss but insurance company finally arranged to replace all carpeting and seats as couldn't get rid of the smell otherwise.
Always give the honey wagon a wide berth.
 
Born and raised in South Central PA's dairy and poultry country.
Cow patties in the field, basically just fermented grass and water, have a tame, almost "sweet" smell compared to chicken or turkey manure, which has a strong ammonia component.
Back then, air pollution in cities was a lot worse than it is today. When we'd visit relatives in Pittsburgh or Cleveland, I couldn't stand the way the air smelled: Sooty, smoky, sulfurous. Oddly enough, when those same relatives visited us, they had a similar complaint.
D-n-R has it right: Always be careful around any hoofed animal. Just because they won't eat you doesn't mean they're benign.
 
I am amazed you didn't hear or smell them for three years. I grew up in dairy and pig country, we were always aware of their presence ::). I was about 8, we were visiting some relys I didn't know well and was dressed in my best Sunday go to meetin clothes. My older cousin took us down to the pasture and got me on one of her father's cows who didn't take kindly to the idea. She sat down and I slid off into fresh you know what. Our stock dropped when we returned to the house. We had to leave in my grandfather's spotless car, mom was livid!
 
HappyWanderer said:
I once watched a luxury convertible pull very close to one of these trucks at a stop sign, and was rewarded with a manure car wash as material sloshed out when the truck pulled away. As bad as it smelled, it was the funniest thing I?d seen in a long time.
Click to expand...

Friend of my dads patrolled his line fences during Deer Season.> Found where the hunters cut the fence (Fixed it) tracked the  car (A convertable with the top down covered with a bit of brush to make it hard to see... like that caused an issue) and went up to the barn and hooked up the "Honey Wagon"

I won't bother typing the rest.. You can imagine it better than I can type it.
 
Cows may stink or not.  They may be aggressive or not.  But they are always delicious when properly prepared.  :~)
 
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