Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Today, as part of our Valentine’s Day series, let’s fall in love with Betsy and Honey.
I wanted to share about Betsy and Honey together because they are the bovine moms of our sanctuary pastures (Betsy is mom to Nutmeg and Honey is mom to Meredith) and they are both foodies. But what I love most about these two wonderful bovines is their personalities are so very different!
If you find your heart bursting with love after today’s video, you can become a bovine buddy by visiting the link here.
Today is Honey‘s 18th Birthday! To celebrate, Diana brought over a basket of special treats from the chimp house, plus some pears from our very own orchard.
The cattle recently underwent their biannual foot trimmings. To trim our cows’ hooves, we utilize the services of a professional trimmer who brings specialized equipment that lifts the cows onto their sides and briefly restrains their legs. If their feet are in good shape, the trimming takes less than a minute per foot and the cows are quickly back to their normal routine.
Here, Meredith gets medications and vaccinations before being released from the chute:
Facilities and Grounds Technician, Teresa, adjusts Honey’s halter while the trimmer works on Honey’s feet:
Most trimmings are uneventful, but during Betsy’s trim, we discovered an anomaly in the medial claw of her back foot. It turned out to be an abscess—a fairly common injury, but one that would normally result in lameness. Betsy had showed absolutely no signs of discomfort whatsoever. She is one tough cow!
The abscess was opened up and drained and Besty was given medication and a bandage tough enough for a cow (is there anything duct tape can’t do?):
Dr. Erin conducted further exams, complete with x-rays, in the days following. Here, she utilizes standing sedation in one of our barn stanchions to safely treat Betsy’s foot:
After getting Betsy’s hoof cleaned up and examined, we attached a block for her comfort. Blocks are wood or polyurethane prosthetics thay are applied with a high-strength adhesive to a cow’s good claw when they have an injury which may be painful—this allows their weight to bear on the good side of their foot and relieves pressure on the painful side.
Radiographs of Betsy’s foot showed the possibility of bone changes near the abscess, so Dr. Erin felt a trip to the Washington State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital was warranted, just to be safe. Besty was loaded into our trailer for a trip to Eastern Washington for the afternoon:
The team at WSU, led by Dr. Olivarez, is highly skilled at bovine medicine and, just as importantly, they are incredibly caring and compassionate:
Once in the hospital, Betsy’s is led down an alley and into a stall:
Similar to a foot trim, she is then tilted onto her side:
Besty was given a thorough examination and treatment. Thankfully, the pathology was determined to be limited to the hoof and the vet team thought that with a little rest in the barn and proper follow-up care, she would heal just fine. She was then given a new hoof block and bandage:
The folks at WSU thought that Besty, age 18, might have been the oldest cow they had ever treated in the hospital.
When we got back to the barn late that night, Betsy was immediately greeted by her long-time herd mates who very clearly missed her:
We are hopeful that Betsy will be able to rejoin the girls in another week or so. For now, she is happy to eat her extra feed without any competition from her bossy friend, Honey:
This week the cattle had a pedicure appointment with the hoof trimmer and a check-up with the Doc. So for today’s blog Dr. Erin shares an update on the bovine girls!
Dr. Erin
“Thursday was hoof trim day for the sanctuary herd. Like all healthcare interactions with the sanctuary residents, I both look forward to these opportunities to improve their health and well-being and dread causing any stress to these animals that we work so hard to provide with a peaceful and comfortable life. I arrived at the sanctuary bright and early Thursday morning to secure the girls were in the “Bud Box”, which is a small pen within the upper paddock that they exit via a narrow lane leading to the trimming chute. My plan to entice them into the box with a yummy breakfast of alfalfa hay (a treat generally reserved for very cold weather days) and some grain was witnessed mid-fail by Krissy, and pre-veterinary student Carly Ledbetter who came to help. Thirty minutes into my plan, when the trimmer is about to arrive, all three cows are standing at the opposite end of the paddock from where I want them giving off strong “not today doc” vibes.
Autumn with Honey
You know how last week in our Be Mine series, I said that Betsy was easy to get to know because of her gregariousness towards humans? Well, today, let me introduce you to her cow opposite in that respect – Honey Cow!
If you want the quick and delightful overview of all that is wonderful Honey, watch her Fall in Love video that Grace made last week, then read on:
Honey was likely born in 2007 and we choose to celebrate her birthday on November 10th.
(Allow me to pause here and skip ahead a bit to tell you that, shockingly, Honey Cow only has three Bovine Buddies currently – Monica, Jackie, and Jennifer (thank you to them!!). So, if you are looking to add a cow friend to sponsor (and why wouldn’t you, for just $10/month?!), I definitely recommend you read on and choose Honey for your Buddy!)
Honey, as we’ve explained through Betsy and Nutmeg‘s Be Mine blog posts, is mom to Meredith. Like Betsy, she was used in the dairy industry before being purchased for use in the reality TV show Utopia. In fact, Honey gave birth to Meredith during the filming of the series. When Utopia was cancelled after just two months, Betsy, Honey and Meredith all went to Farm Sanctuary’s shelter in northern California (you can read more from Farm Sanctuary about how they ended up at that sanctuary here, a profile of Honey from Farm Sanctuary here, and a mention in the Hollywood Reporter here). They were soon joined by lil’ baby Nutmeg (who is now big baby Nutmeg 😉 )
Honey and little Meredith at Farm Sanctuary:
Honey is a fan of alfalfa, and she also likes to lick up salt and mineral supplements. We have these in block form for the cattle to lick whenever they want to, and we also add loose salt and minerals to their grain in the wintertime when they are relying on dry hay for nutrients rather than grazing.
In the winter, when the temps drop, the cattle start to get a thicker coat of hair. On Honey in particular, her longer hair develops a wonderfully luxurious wavy pattern.
Like Betsy, Honey is very curious:
Unlike Betsy, Honey is somewhat suspicious of humans and has a certain disdain to be touched by them. I would venture to say that one of her favorite activities is looking scornfully at people. She will definitively let you know when you have invaded her personal space with a shake of her head or a head butt.
I’ve mentioned before that the more “difficult” animals, the ones who have to be won over, always seem to find a big place in my heart, and this is certainly the case for Honey Cow.
I love that she’s sometimes annoyed by my presence! And I love even more that I can now touch her or brush her head and, though she still acts annoyed, she usually doesn’t stop me.
Once again, I encourage you to choose Honey for your Buddy!
Here’s a bonus photo taken during our deep freeze this winter. Similar to when we exhale in the cold and there’s a cloud of our warm respiration, Honey’s exhale created a nose halo of face frost.
Please join Betsy, Honey, Meredith, and Nutmeg for lunch! During the colder months, we supplement the cattle’s diet with grass hay, oat hay, and alfalfa. During the warmer months, other than the cattle’s other supplements that we provide, caregivers generally allow the cattle to roam and graze on whatever their hearts desire. In this video, Nutmeg and Meredith are eating some apples from the apple tree in their pasture, Betsy is munching on some willow near the pond, and Honey was just getting done grazing on some grass.
Here are some bonus photos from today!
With the weather holding out with temperate conditions, Negra’s group had a nice lunch forage on Young’s Hill.
Negra
Burrito and Foxie
Foxie
Missy
Here are some Bonus-Bonus photos!
Burrito
Foxie taking it easy
Annie making her bird noises
And Jamie taking notes
Recently, we added Sprout Pencils to our Amazon Wish List as a new type of enrichment. These pencils have a capsule full of seeds where the eraser is supposed to be. When you are done with them, you can plant the pencil and different types of plants are supposed to grow. There are still some on the Wish List if you would like to help us stockpile some of them for the chimps!
Today our beloved Honey Cow turns 15! At CSNW, caregivers have been getting to know this sassy golden cow for the last 4 years! A very special thank you to Paulette Wrisley for sponsoring today in Honey’s honor.
Honey is easily recognized as the lightest “honey” colored member in her small herd of fellow Jersey cattle.
From front to back: Meredith, Betsy, Honey and Nutmeg:
Honey is also known for being the sauciest member of her herd. She has no patience for the hugs we would ideally like to give her. Occasionally we can get away with a few scratches or a little brushing, but in general we respect Honey’s wishes and give her the personal space from humans she seems to appreciate. I think if Honey could plan an ideal birthday party for herself, she would like a bale of hay delivered to her barn and to be left alone with her family, and that’s just what she got today!
Here are a few of my favorite photos of Honey taken by my fellow caregivers throughout the seasons!
While on a walk with Jamie, I observed Burrito and Missy following each other on the logs and then start to wrestling. It made me think about when I was young playing king of the sand dune with my brother. I asked the rest of the staff if they had ever played this game when they where kids, which of course they had! Some of their variations were: king of the mountain, king of the hill, and king of the log! The object of the game was to be the last one standing and then you were pronounced king of the object you were standing on, said log, mattress, or hill and then you have bragging rights for as long as you rein! Today, for Missy and Burrito it seems as though no one holds the title but I see a rematch in their future!
Time has flown by! Can you believe it already been 4 years with our wonderful bovines!
Honey and her gang:
Honey:
Meredith:
Nutmeg and Betsy:
