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Jen Qualk

@jenqualk

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Cows make me happy. Biz:@qualkphotography

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Story time.
We have a chicken lovingly named, “Garage Chicken.” She lays her eggs in a special place, right on top of a bunch of wrenches. I have no idea why she loves this particular place…maybe she wants to be alone, away from the hustle and bustle of the coop.
As I was driving past the garage, I noticed that she was waiting around for me to open the door for her. I thought about stopping to let her in, but I was already running behind on my morning cow checks. I thought to myself, “I’ll let her in when I get home. She’ll be fine pecking around for a bit.”
Our garage has many doors, as you may expect. Two large sliding doors, three garage doors, and one “man” door. On a normal day, Garage Chicken enters through the sliding doors as her preferred spot is not a far walk. She has been known to stand and wait at the man door to come in that way too, and that requires her to go through yet another door to reach her nest. She’s not your average chicken for sure!
When I arrived home, I walked right to the garage to open the doors, but she was no where in sight. Guess she went to the coop after all! I slid the door open and heard her calling to me. She had just laid an egg. I asked her, “How did you get in here?!” I thought maybe she found a hole somewhere.
Then I saw it!
Hubby’s garage door was open. Garage Chicken had found a way to lay an egg in her favorite spot!
I have had multiple conversations with others about animals.
Some say they can’t reason, think, make decisions, love, grieve, problem solve, etc. I have seen them do all of these things AND more! Truly they amaze me every day! Garage Chicken shocked me! She problem solved her way around getting to her nest before I could get home and left me a beautiful egg to boot.
Have you ever witnessed animals doing things others say they cannot? I would love to hear your stories! by @jenqualk

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a day ago

This is another one of those videos that deserves a permanent spot on my feed. Early today, we had to bring home a few of the herd for their “one bad day” appointment.
This group has been off our farm for most of the summer. I check on them daily…making sure they have fresh water, minerals, and that they are still where I left them. 🙂 My plan, always, is to tame ALL of the cows. Especially when they’re not physically on our farm. Makes things a lot easier for everyone.
They were high up on the hillside grazing when we pulled in with the trailer. After a few calls, this crew came running right to me. In fact Ginger nearly ran me over, but juked right at the last moment. 🫣 I wasn’t even a bit scared that they would hurt me.
So, we brought 4 home today and left 8 to pick up later this year. I’m confident that when we head back to bring them home, they will come running right to me. by @jenqualk

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20 days ago

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a month ago

Spa day with the best hoof trimmer around! by @jenqualk

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4 months ago

I cannot begin to explain how happy this makes me! This may seem like a regular cow video I share, but it’s so much more. About 2 weeks ago, we trailered 9 of our cows to a neighboring farm. For one week, the cows were fenced in a small paddock to get accustomed to their new surroundings and to also eat the grass that had grown. This particular pasture cannot be maintained by brush hogs. Cows are really good at lawn-mowering pastures! 🙂
Everyday I drive to check on their water supply and make sure they’re behaving. Just last week, we let them have free rein of the field. I have no idea how many acres are there - it’s a giant field of grass. Grass for days. Grass that will last them ALL summer! I do get a little antsy giving them freedom. What if they run from me? What if I can’t catch them? We really don’t have an easy way to catch them by the way!! A little stressful for sure! So, I do what I do best. Tame them! I have recently gained the trust of the most skittish steers we own - Moe, Larry, and Curly. Curly was the most standoffish with me. He is now my best customer! ❤️This morning, while filling water, I walked to check on them. When they saw me walking towards them, to my surprise, they started walking towards ME!! They didn’t run OR spook. And I did not call to them. This may not seem like much to you, but this is HUGE. On so many levels, this makes my life easier. I know that they will continue to trust me and follow me as the season continues. And when it’s time to bring them home late summer/early fall, I know without a doubt I will be able to catch them, load them up, and bring them back! by @jenqualk

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5 months ago

Today, we celebrate May 4th, by letting our bull out to start the breeding season. May the bull be with you. by @jenqualk

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5 months ago

Had to do a remake with all the goodies hubby brings home from work. As you can see not everyone likes fruit snacks and some have preferences of what they eat. 😅 I’m missing a few cows though. Maybe I’ll do a third remake! 🙂 Stay tuned! by @jenqualk

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6 months ago

Meet our newest addition to the dairy herd, Missie. She came from a farmer friend. Missie was a “green” cow. She had never been haltered, brushed, or loved on - the way I “love” cows. My daughter did an amazing job training her to be haltered, led, walked and tied. Her hard work has paid off in dividends!
After calving on Friday, Missie is a completely different cow. I know it has a lot to do with her boot camp, and I’d also like to think that Missie is happy to keep her calf. I totally understand that in the dairy world the calves must come off their moms. At our farm, she’s one of three and that allows her to raise her calf by her side. Missie is in LOVE with her baby. And it warms my heart to hear her call to it, clean it and nuzzle it with her nose. She is a great mom!
Daughter and I had the pleasure of watching her calve right from the window. From her water breaking to birth was 30 minutes. It was a textbook birth. Missie immediately turned and cleaned the calf - she cleaned it so well that the calf started to slowly roll down the hill. We watched from a distance and decided it would be best to intervene. Poor thing had rolled twice but was determined to stand up anyway! I picked up the slippery, slimy calf and walked backwards to the barn. Missie followed hesitantly. I walked as fast as I could with the calf thrashing in my arms. Once we were at the barn, the calf wanted to nurse. Daughter tied Missie and together we were able to get the calf to latch. That evening after hubby got home, we milked Missie for the first time. There is no way the calf can drink all she has to offer at the moment. We were able to milk out almost 2 gallons of beautiful, yellow colostrum. Missie was so amazing for us. It has taken a few days to get use to her new routine, but things are going well so far. Last night, Missie ate an apple out of my hand for the first time. It totally made my day! 🥰
Missie gave us a beautiful heifer. We named her Mae and she weighed in at 75 pounds. by @jenqualk

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6 months ago

He’s a happy boy! Kobe was born in 2024 and will provide for two families in about a month. by @jenqualk

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7 months ago

These videos deserve a permanent spot on my feed. Living my best life getting mauled by some of my favorites. I rarely leave the farm. I’m happiest here. by @jenqualk

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7 months ago

I have been sleeping in until 5 since we dried up our milk cow. Haha. I realize that 5 is not sleeping in to some. 😅
Hubby woke me around 450 to tell me that Grace had calved. I shot out of bed and immediately got dressed. Nothing like a new calf to get my adrenaline pumping! I was so worried that the calf would be born during the rain that was predicted. I don’t like that I worry so much about things I cannot control. Once again, God made me realize that He has it all worked out, and the calf made its entrance before the rain started! The calf was standing but Grace would not follow as Hubby carried the calf. It was dark and the other mommas were in the way. Grace knew where we needed her to go, so I told Hubby to walk the calf into the barn. He started directing the calf to the barn and Grace followed along nicely. She was probably thinking, “Hey, my calf has four legs, it can walk!”
Once everything settled down, the calf wanted to nurse. Hubby was able to break one teat open but the calf would not latch. Grace has very large teats and sometimes it’s hard for a calf to latch since their mouths are so little.
Later that morning, I heated up some colostrum. It had been about 3 hours since the birth and I knew the calf needed this crucial miracle milk. The calf drank around 2 cups and then wobbled towards Grace’s udder. Grace stood completely still as I helped her calf latch. In just about 10 minutes the calf had successfully latched on 3 of the 4 teats! I was so proud of Grace. She’s really turned out to be a wonderful momma cow. Grace had a black and white faced heifer. We named her Gwen and she weighed 80 pounds. by @jenqualk

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7 months ago

And today, we had our first loss. Bettie (cow 13) had her third calf. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, I found it deceased. I cannot explain how this broke me. I know that there will be loss in farming and I always *think* I can handle it. I never can.
Last night after tending to Cricket’s calf, I noticed Bettie was heading off by herself. This didn’t cause any level of concern. This is normal cow behavior.
Sadly, I found her lying next to her calf early this morning right after sunrise. The calf was cleaned off and Bettie was talking to it in her “low moo” mom voice. I pet Bettie and told her what a good momma she is and that I was sorry. In a few minutes a few other mommas came to Bettie. I truly think they were giving her space and time to grieve. They knew the calf was not alive but didn’t want to stress her. Some of them sniffed the calf; one nudged it with her nose. Animals mourn and they know loss. Don’t let anyone tell you any different!
I loaded Bettie’s calf into the quad and dutifully, Bettie followed right along. I let Bettie have another moment with it and then drove through the gate. When I looked back, Bettie was standing at the gate as she watched me drive away with her baby. This is the part that completely breaks me. EVERY TIME!!
We will attempt to bury her calf later today. I’m hoping we will be able to break ground.
Bettie had a beautiful little heifer calf. I so wish she would have lived. If only I could have intervened in some way. I am completely heartbroken. by @jenqualk

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8 months ago