Because I grew up in town, even though I now live in the country, I still tend to look at animals as pets rather than just animals. I'm getting better and certain aspects of farm life no longer phase me. It's just that I get this little pang for awhile when we send a cow to the sale barn.
We sent one just this morning. She was one of the older cows in the herd, had developed a slight limp, had a high SCC number, wasn't bred, and wasn't producing as much milk as she used to. Still, for some reason, I've become attached to that particular cow.
Perhaps I was attached because she was one of the first ones I could always pick out when I first started milking. She just stood out in my mind. Maybe it was her placid temperament. (In other words, she went into the parlor first without complaint, had a nice big bag with large straight teats, and didn't kick at you or the milker.) It could just be that I liked that cow for no reason at all. For whatever reason, it was still bittersweet to say goodbye.
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