October 25, 2016
Touchdown Chickadee
By John & Joan Maxwell
Cinnamon Ridge Farms
It was a cool, clear, and crisp Sunday morning. Everything was going well at the Cinnamon Ridge Dairy barn. Cows were milked and turned out. Quick Rick, a Sunday employee of Cinnamon Ridge, was on cloud nine after his great performance last night on the local gridiron. With every breath, Rick gave the blow-by-blow of him shooting through the gap and rushing for more than 140 yards. Meanwhile, our four-year-old cow, Chickadee, grazed with her herdmates, waiting to go back into her stall in the barn.
Chickadee’s reputation as an escape artist was well known. Getting herself loose at the Mississippi Valley Fair had been topped only by her letting other cows loose. All the farm gates had to be double latched and doors securely locked, or Chickadee would soon be wandering the farm somewhere, seeing what other kind of trouble she could get herself into. Good thing her sassiness was counterbalanced by her tame and friendly disposition.
After putting down the last shovel full of feed in front of the stalls, Quick Rick looked up and announced, “I can get the cows in myself.”
I replied, “Ok, if you need me, I’ll be out back by the silos.”
As Rick let in the cows, the first few girls came into the barn very calmly and went right to their stalls. But then, just as Quick Rick had his back turned, Chickadee sauntered in, head high and looking for trouble. Rick turned around. At the exact same moment, Rick and Chickadee spied the open door on the far side of the barn that led into the silo area and ultimately into paradise: a large hayfield. In that moment, they both knew what was going to happen. Off like sprinters from the starting gates, the two of them raced to the open door. Chickadee nimbly wheeled her four hooves around the corner and narrowly slid through the doorway, leaving Quick Rick in her dust. Still running, the two—one after the other—charged full throttle by the silos and into the hayfield. Just as Rick was about to grab Chickadee’s collar, she put on a burst of speed to keep him in her shadow. The race continued as Chickadee led Rick in a huge circle and back towards the silos. Knowing the territory expertly, she navigated to the silos. Round and round they went, each time Rick getting close, but not close enough. After several laps, Quick Rick had had enough. He stopped and turned toward the barn to finish putting the other cows in. To his utter surprise, Chickadee (laughing, I’m sure) followed him into the barn and went right into her stall. Without a moment of hesitation, she started eating her feed and gave Rick the look: “Gotcha.” Touchdown Chickadee.
Come back and score another touchdown at our store, enjoying the freedom of farm fresh food. I want to thank everyone that visited our farm store this last month.
