Sorry cant do my watch this Wednesday

Tuesday 3rd all in D9 11.30

 Very windy today. We could see the boys running around from a distance and two were locking heads. They walked towards us as we walked down and then suddenly Jet and Jura started to full on run at us. Jet was in the front. He stopped when I put my arms out and firmly said stop - but I have never seen them do that before. We slowly and quietly moved away and watched them. Jet and Jura again locking heads with Jet almost pushing Jura over on a couple of occasions and then they did a bit more running. Jeans ignored it all and grazed close by.

Not sure if they were frisky because of the wind but they were in a funny mood today!

Monday 2nd Nov Jeans and Jura in I5 and Jet in J6 then Jura in Jet in J6 11-11.20am

 All seen looking well and busy grazing. Jura and Jeans together and Jet was a bit further away but by the time we found him Jeans had joined him.

Had a stroke and they all looked fine

Sunday 1st November - All 3 seen

At 14:20 this afternoon, the boys were resting beside the westerly set of tank pits, near ///stand.couriers.hawks. Youngsters 282 and 283 were lying under the cover of a tree, while youngster 278 was slightly more out in the open. All three were happy to be approached and enjoyed plenty of strokes and rubs while relaxing and chewing their cud. The boys were damp from grazing in the fog, which had persisted throughout the day. Although there was no rain, the air was so saturated with moisture that you could feel the fine droplets of fog on your skin while spending time with them.

They were all looking very comfortable, so I intended to leave them to rest peacefully. However, one by one, they gradually got to their feet and came over for more fuss. Before long, they had gathered around me and were taking turns to lean in for lengthy neck and back scratches. They clearly loved the attention, shifting positions to ensure I reached all their itchy spots before rewarding me with affectionate head rubs. All three were happy, relaxed and looking well.

By 15:10, they had set off to graze, gradually moving east towards the area behind the eastern set of tank pits. They took regular breaks from grazing to come back over for more attention. Youngster 278 loved having his neck and chin scratched, extending his neck right out to make sure I didn't miss a spot. Youngster 283 thoroughly enjoyed long back scratches, while youngster 282 just wanted to stand close and have the sides of his neck stroked.

I said my goodbyes just after 15:45, leaving the boys peacefully grazing on heather and leaves from silver birch trees near ///keen.sues.hook. While grazing, they had come across a large pile of spent bullets lying in the heather, which I collected. I was just approaching the ammo compound when I heard a loud noise behind me. Turning around, I found all three boys running after me! After putting the bullets through the ammo compound gate, they all enjoyed some final strokes, with youngster 283 lingering for extra back scratches. I bid them farewell at 16:00, as they headed southeast to graze some more.

Before leaving, I went to check the trough. Other than a couple of handfuls of leaves floating on the surface, it was still looking clean. I removed the leaves, leaving the trough clean and ready for the boys to use if they stopped by later.

The cattle were all good today.

Sunday 1 November 26. (12:50 - 13.25). All Three Seen in D5/6. All Well.

 Initially found Jura just inside the scrub woodland, only a few yards north-west of the ammo dump compound.  He was heading west.

I found Jeans about forty yards further west.  He was only a few yards north of the track heading SW from the compound  gradually making his way west.

I then started looking for Jet, but the "No-Fence" was messing about.  When it came back to life, I could see, (own eyes) Jeans in one of the lower tank pits on the S side of the track.  The "No-Fence" was showing Jet and Jura in the thicker gorse/bracken/rhodi on the northern side of the track, but now further away from it.  I spent some time scrambling about in there looking for a sign of Jeans, but only kept seeing Jura. 

As could see, (from N-F) that these two were still slowly heading west-ish, I left them to it and went and watched Jeans in the pit scratching her neck on the pit edge, where I could at least stand up straight!  After about eight minutes, I ventured north of the track again opposite the lower tank pits, where the scrub is lighter.  I watched as the moving tree tops came closer and closer and I could hear the sound of them coming toward me through the thick scrub.

Eventually Jura popped out, followed a short distance behind by Jet.

As I came back onto the track by the lower pits, Jeans was just leaving the pits and was making his way south. I did not check the trough, as Gordon did yesterday and drinking puddles were plentiful

All three appeared well today, although none were interested in any attention from me.

 

Just a reminder, I am in Northumberland from later this week and so will be unable to check on the cattle either on Friday 6 or Sunday 8 November.

Saturday 31st October - All 3 seen

At 14:15 this afternoon, the boys were grazing among the gorse bushes east of the corral, near ///reap.start.goofy. Youngster 282 spotted me approaching and wandered over to greet me, welcoming me with a loud moo before leaning in for the first of many neck scratches. Youngsters 278 and 283 soon came over to say hello, happily accepting plenty of strokes and rubs. Afterwards, the boys gathered around me in the bracken, where they relaxed and chewed their cud. One by one, they stepped forward to enjoy lengthy neck and back scratches.

By 15:10, the boys had drifted towards the corral, stopping to enjoy leaves from the silver birch trees along the way. Again, they gathered around me, content to chew their cud as I fussed over them. They were incredibly affectionate, each offering the sweetest head rubs after enjoying long neck and shoulder rubs. One of them remained with me at all times, while the other two alternated between grooming themselves or each other and having playful little fights nearby. After a while, all three crossed the path and moved into the woodland to the west, where they continued to rest. Despite the sunny afternoon, they seemed to prefer the shade, presumably to escape some of the flies.

By 16:00, they had begun exploring the bracken just north of the first set of tank pits. They seemed particularly interested in the lush grass and other vegetation growing beneath the bracken, carefully picking their way through the undergrowth in search of the tastiest mouthfuls. They still wandered over to spend some time with me, positioning themselves for back scratches as they continued their browsing. Around fifteen minutes later, they ventured out into the heather near ///youths.glove.slows to continue grazing. After a final round of strokes and rubs, I said my goodbyes at 16:30, leaving them to graze peacefully.

Before leaving, I went to check the trough, which was once again covered in pine needles and leaves from the tree above. I gave it a thorough clean and made sure it was full of fresh water for the boys to drink if they stopped by later. There were still plenty of puddles around the site where they could find additional drinking water.

The cattle were all good today.

I am away next weekend. So will be unable to check on the cattle on Fri 6 or Sun 8 Nov.