A Farmer Invented Earmuffs to Keep Newborn Calves Warm and the Photos Are Adorable

The ears are one of the body parts that are most affected by low temperatures, since they’re very exposed and have little blood circulation. When a farmer in the state of Wisconsin, in the US, lost her barn in a fire, she needed to find a way to keep her calves safe from freezing temperatures. This is how “calf earmuffs” were created.

We at Bright Side would like to tell you how this invention, that arose from necessity, turned into a growing family business.

The adorable photos of this invention went viral.

A dairy farmer in Ireland recently uploaded a photo of one of his calves wearing pink earmuffs and it immediately went viral on Twitter with nearly 30,000 retweets and more than 170,000 “Likes.” “So it turns out that earmuffs for calves, to stop them getting frostbite, are a real thing,” he wrote, and received all kinds of responses, many of them highlighting how adorable people thought the image was.

The invention was born an ocean away from Ireland. Its creator is a farmer named Holly Poad, who came up with the idea when she was looking for ways to keep her cattle warm in the harsh winter, after losing her barn in a fire.

Practical solution against the freezing cold

The incident occurred during a cold spell in North America that happened in early 2019 and was caused by the polar vortex that brought the thermometer close to 40 degrees below zero. Faced with these low temperatures, Poad decided to buy jackets and earmuffs and adapt them to keep her cattle warm.

To save money and improve the design, the woman asked her aunt, Kim Ewers, the owner of an embroidery shop, if she could make her a few earmuffs for her cows. The 2 decided to combine fleece with a water-repellant material on the outside, and adjustable straps that fasten using Velcro.

More sales than expected

The inventors decided to use bright colors so that the earmuffs could be easily found in the snow in case the animal managed to remove them.

Thus, with a little luck and a lot of ingenuity, a business was born: Poad began selling her design at $20 per pair. She published it on her farm’s Facebook page and on several show cattle social media groups, and orders started flowing in. “I thought we’d maybe sell 5, 10 pairs. I didn’t think it was going to be anything that big,” she said.

A family business

In order to keep up with the demand, Poad, her aunt, and her cousins have to work around the clock. They try to work on the earmuffs at night since they both have full-time jobs.

With the passage of time, the project took form and name: “Moo Muffs.” It even has its own logo and accepts orders online. With the arrival of another winter in the northern hemisphere, they are preparing to increase sales and currently working with a livestock supply company to help produce the Moo Muffs in the future.

What do you think about this invention? Do you buy any type of clothing or accessories to keep your pets warm during winter? Share with us in the comment section below.