Field trip- farm visit

We took a trip to a dairy farm on Tuesday with almost all of the students (the two girls who were left behind to work at the "new" farm were selected by not doing a good job the day before), Most of the students rode in Victor's blue van and we took three of the girls in our car. We picked up Maria in Zaporosia along the way, since the farm was located south of of there. It took about an hour and half to drive there.

The owner of the farm came to visit our farm/school after we were on television news a couple weeks ago (we have had a few people show up here since then, or even contact us on facebook) and invited us to come for a tour. He would like to hire one of the students right now to care for calves, but we decided that they should finish the program first. He said he knew which one he wanted, we are pretty sure it is one of two boys he talked to the day he came. The second year students will finish in the spring, so we are excited to think they will be able to find jobs!.

The tour

There were lab coats and booties to wear

 After they got into the protective booties and stuff, or most of the students anyway, we headed over to check out the silage pile. Then we walked past the big heifers, you will notice the farm has cattle with a lot of Simmental blood (a beefier breed) but has been breeding Holstein recently.

 The dry hay is chopped with the small yellow machine in the photo. The students were really interested in the vertical mixer, since we have one coming in the container from Canada (which we hope to get soon) Less wheelbarrow pushing in the future.

the feed mixer

 Some of the first year students were talking with Garry about cow confirmation while looking at the dry cows, since they are studying cattle judging in class now.

Most of the students were really interested in how the automatic manure  scrapers worked in the dairy barn, which we saw next. The calves were housed in the same barn.

What are the boys watching? where the manure goes to.

Then we saw the feed making building

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 They have sheep "for amusement" he told me, he speaks some English. The students tried to got closer when they saw the sheep but they ran away fast when a dozen students rn toward them.

Run! They are chasing us!

I had been looking for sheep, since we'd started the tour,  I had spotted their manure scattered everywhere on the ground at the farm.

small heifer facility

We saw the shed with the small heifers and bulls and then toured the milking facilities before they finished milking the cows. They had two milk tanks (coolers) in the equipment room we saw first.

The students took turns going down into the milking parlor, while the rest waited in the corridor. Again, the students were interested to see it because this is much like what ours will be like once it is installed, now that we have electricity at the new barn.

 We checked out a barn they are currently working on renovating for milk and dry cows I think with calving pens on the side. Garry was interested in the the windowed roof gables they built into the old Soviet style barns, which brought in so much light.

everybody pose!

Then we headed into upstairs over the milk parlor to the office, where the students were very interested in the computer program they had for the cows, they promised to get Garry a copy it is free software in Russian but can change to English, he said.

I said that they were interested in the computer program...

Around four o'clock our hosts offered the students some refreshments, fifteen minutes later they were gone and we prepared to head home, as some of the students needed to be at work helping with the evening miolking by seven pm.

Garry, Maria and most of the students- two had walked to the gate already

and with our hosts

Thanksgiving dinner

Here are a few photos from Saturday evening's Thanksgiving dinner with our larger trade school family in the village, a couple kids ate later because they were working, even though Garry said they could come at five and eat anyway, without fines (when they miss work there is a fine, attendance really improved last year when this was adopted.)

Most of the students worked in pairs to make something for the second annual feast and the group home parents cooked too. We had it at the "new house" this year.

Here's Kolya showing off his chocolate cake he made.

Garry carving the almost 8 kilo turkey (the biggest he could find to buy)

Me (Teresa) with Valera and Nikolai

 We sang happy birthday to our Max Rudei, who  is 26 today.

even pumpkin pie

Valera with his group home parents, Ira and Andrey

Helping the babushka

Here are some photos I took on  Wednesday and Thursday this week, sorry, the camera batttery died before they lit the fires to burn the cornstalk piles. .

Leila 

Julia 

Some of the students volunteered to help the lady next door with her garden, she had asked to hire them to clean up her corn planted at the back of her garden before it is plowed.

It took two cold afternoons starting at five pm for about an hour. Garry bought more rakes for day two. We may do more cleanups for babushkas in the village.

This week: students at work in the barn and school

Leila washing off cows before milking

Here are two of the first year students helping milk the cows. The students have about four shifts per week, working at the old barn (where we are now milking cows) or at the new barn (where we hope to be milking them before the end of the year in a parlor). Currently there are heifers and dry cows over there that the students feed and water and watch over the premises during the day.

Vika attaching milking machines

Andrey at the computer

Last week we started having class in the classroom addition to the new barn. It's roomier than the old summer kitchen classroom.

Garry having foot-trimming lessons with the 2nd year students

Julia using the electric hoof trimming tool

first year students taking a test on the reproductive system of cows

Walking over to the new barn