Cattle behavior

Yesterday I rotated the cattle from the north pasture to the south pasture.  I had sprayed 99% of that pasture to get rid of weeds and it was time to rotate the cattle.  As I carried their salt blocks across the middle pasture the cattle came running when they saw I was walking to the south pasture gate, which I had already opened.  I turned and watched the initial cattle as they approached me.  They ran around me, with Panda in the lead, naturally.  I turned and continued to walk on when all of a sudden one cow's head hit my upper leg hard.  I was walking on the path and cow #8 apparently wanted me out of the way.  I had a few choice words for cow 8 and, even though I was holding the salt blocks, I moved and blocked her access to the gate.  She ran here and there to get around me.  Naturally as I was still carrying the salt blocks, and other cattle were coming by, I couldn't eventually stop her.  But she got the idea that I was not happy with her behavior.

I am trapping pocket gophers in the south pasture.  I figured the cattle may mess with my metal rods holding the traps in place so they coyotes don't steal any more traps.  This morning - yup - I found three of the five rods bent or knocked over.  I did catch one pocket gopher in a trap that the cattle didn't mess with.

I removed all the traps from the south pasture.  I'll have to wait until I later rotate the cattle out of the south pasture before I reset the traps to catch more pocket gophers.  I noticed a few fresh dirt mounds in the middle pasture and set three traps there.  By evening I caught two more pocket gophers.

In the evening I noticed the irrigation shed door was closed.  With the recent hot weather I left the door open so the pump doesn't over heat and shut down.  I have stuff in the doorway so the cattle don't do inside the shed.  Since I don't have my rods holding traps for the cattle to play with, they decided to knock over and removed the stick I have holding the door open.  Then they closed the door.  Tomorrow I will see if they do that again.

I still have to spray weeds in the middle pasture.  Spraying now is not the best time as Spring and Fall are the best times.  But with all my acres, spraying when I have the time is what I have to do.  This year I want to spray 100% of the property.  It has been a few years since I sprayed 100%, and since I am still in the multi-year spraying mode, going a few years of partial spraying is allowing the weeds to come back in force in some areas.  Lots of yarrow is going to seed now.  Spraying probably won't kill the yarrow as the plant is going dormant.  When I see yarrow I spray it, but the goal is to pull the yarrow weeds and collect the seeds to dispose of, whether or not I spray the weed.   I have spent part time pulling yarrow and today I think I got rid of 99% of yarrow from the middle pasture.  The rest of the weeds can be sprayed and killed, though in July it takes longer for the weeds to be affected.

Still moving irrigation pipes twice a day.  I am heading back across the hayfield and over half way on the return to the beginning.