need tips on a few things

[Ashley]

So today is work outside day in the freezing cold. I was laying in bed last night and think of all the things I need to get done in the barn before spring hits and the barn really really floods. I need to get the center ready to bring in fill to put it at the right level so it stops flooding every year and soaking my round bales. This year is going to be far worse with all the snow we have had.

That said, I need to split wood. Never done this before and last night it wasnt going to well for either of us. Any suggestions?

Also in the spring I am going to be building a pen inside the middle of the barn so I can get a few calves to steer and raise up(oh the neighbors are going to hate me even more than they already do!!!) I am going to get a couple of watusi calves so was trying to determin what to build my pen out of. I already have the big post for the corners but wasnt sure if I was going to build the pen out of wood or use heavy gates. They will be butchered around the age of two. Whatever I build it out of it will be lined with plywood to cut down on the wind as the front of the barn is open.

We have a kitten that suckes on everything. It drives me nuts. HEr mom left at about a month of age so we bottle fed her for a few weeks, then offered her formula in a bowl after that. This was done up to about 3 months of age. She is about 6 months now. She will try sucking on us at night, she will suck on the blankets so much so that when I cover up I can feel the wet blanket on me. How do we break this?

I am so ready for spring can anybody tell?

 

[Mona]

Ashley, I cannot help you with the cows problem at all, but I do have a couple comments for the other things you asked about. The wood splitting...make sure you have a good, SHARP axe or even a wood splitting maul. They have a heavier and bigger/wider (dull) end to give more pressure with each swing you make, making it easier to split the wood. Make sure the wood is DRY...green wood does not split well. Hardwoods like ash are also easier to spit in the extreme cold than softer woods such as poplar, birch etc. Just make sure the wood is well seasoned and dry, because that makes a world of differnce! This wood splitting will not be good on your shoulder though!! Also, put the piece you plan to chop, on another piece of larger wood to help bring the height up a little. You need to get a real good swing in! On larger pieces, do not try to split with a swing to the center! Try more for an outside edge to get it cracked, then turn the log around so the other side is facing you and do the same to that side. Then it will split down the middle.

As to your kitten's sucking problem, he is likely doing it to comfort himself. We had a cat that was out "tomming" just after he was neutered and before he lost the urge. He was about 9 months old I think, and he went missing for about 8 or 9 months! When we finally found him many miles up the road, he was down to about 1/2 the weight he was when he left, and he came back with this sucking habit, only he never sucked on all kinds of things, he sucked his own nipple!! It looked so stupid to see this full grown cat doing this, and he did it all through the rest of his life, and he lived to nearly 16 years of age!! I asked the vet about it, and he said he picked it up to comfort himself in the stressful time that he was away "missing" from home.

 

[Miniv]

We bottle fed a kitten many years ago....actually "eye dropper fed". He died at age 17 and was still sucking on my husband's finger at night. Sorry.....can't help you about breaking the habit.