This story is definitely amoosing . And I promise that’s the first and last cow pun I’ll use.
The cold winter months are a lot to handle. Harsh weather makes for some pretty dangerous conditions, and if our mothers taught us anything, it’s to bundle up and stay as warm as possible.
While we can don our hats, mittens, scarves, and coats to brave the cold, animals aren’t quite so lucky and are left on their own to try and stay warm. Most have their own ways of doing this through cozy hibernation, sporting massive amounts of fur, or maybe even flying south for the winter.
But others might need a little bit of human intervention when the weather turns and the snow starts coming down.
For most cows, keeping warm in winter isn’t that big of a deal.
In fact, according to Dr. John Campbell , head of the department of large animal clinical sciences, at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, older calves and adult cows have virtually no problem generating enough body heat to beat the cold.
It’s the newborn calves, however, who are most prone to catching hypothermia and frostbite because they don’t have the same ability to regulate their own body temperature when they’re first born.
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So how exactly are farmers supposed to make sure their precious newborn calves are kept healthy and toasty warm all winter?
Why, by using earmuffs for cows, of course. And yes, this is 100 percent a real thing. Please take a moment to compose yourself before continuing because this is one story that some people may find too adorable to handle.
All good? Perfect. Now, let’s take a look at these heart-melting calves.
Last week, a picture on Twitter showing one baby cow rocking a pair of pink knitted earmuffs went viral.
Twitter user @ThisFarmingMan_ shared the adorable post along with the caption, “So it turns out ear muffs for calves to stop them getting frostbite are a real thing.”
And of course, since we inexplicably can’t resist the sight of animals wearing human clothes, the internet went crazy and the picture got almost 200,000 likes.
As it turns out, cow earmuffs (or “moo muffs”, if you will) are a totally real and totally ingenious invention.
The pink pair pictured in the Twitter post are likely homemade, but a lot of places in North America actually market and sell these things.
For instance, Holly Poad, owner of Triple P Farm in Lone Rock, Wisconsin, came up with her own pair of “moo muffs” after her family lost their barn in a fire.
With winter fast approaching, they needed to find a way to keep their newborn calves warm and free of frostbite and hypothermia, she told KWQC .
To save some money, Poad decided to have her aunt make her a homemade pair of cow earmuffs, but with a few changes.
She had seen pairs made out of just fleece before and knew those wouldn’t benefit the calves in the winter. Snow or rain would dampen the fleece, virtually turning those earmuffs into ice packs on the poor cows’ ears.
So instead, she and her aunt, Kim Ewers, came up with their new design which had water-repellent material on the outside and fleece on the inside.
Although “moo muffs” began as a necessity for their own cows, this nifty invention has gone on to become a family business.
Poads and Ewers now have orders coming in from all over the country from fellow farmers looking to keep their calves safe and warm all winter long.
Their unique “moo muff” designs include bright colors so farmers can spot right away if a calf has rubbed the Velcro strap open or if another cow has licked the earmuffs off.
Understandably, people online can’t handle the cuteness of cow earmuffs, and the comments are excellent.
This calf definitely has the same energy as a kid who’s found themselves sporting a homemade hat while everyone else is wearing store-bought caps.
“But mom , all the other calves are wearing brand name ‘moo muffs’!”
The post also prompted other people to share their own means of keeping calves warm in winter.
If “moo muffs” weren’t cute enough, now try to resist awwing while you imagine someone hand-feeding baby cows bottles of milk while also reading them a bedtime story while lounging next to a crackling fire.
In a follow-up tweet , this same person revealed that they would also read the chicks books too because every baby farm animal deserves a bedtime story.
h/t: KWQC
