Shirley the inflatable cow creates Christmas magic for Beach community

BEACH, N.D. (KFYR) – A rancher’s work is never done. Even on these cold winter days, there is lots of work to do. They’ve got to check cattle and make sure their herd has food, water and shelter.

Ranch kids start helping with those daily chores early in life.

Harper and Reagan Tescher are like many farm kids, growing up checking cattle every morning.

But the cows they’re checking this time of year are a little different from the animals you’re probably thinking of.

Still, we think their daily routine of caring for creatures that are dear to them is good news.

This isn’t your typical cattle drive, but these aren’t typical cattle.

Jordan Tescher and his daughters are rounding up inflatable cows.

It all started three years ago, when Shirley the inflatable cow escaped from the Tescher’s home. Every Christmas season since, Shirley has been on the loose in the town of Beach.

“She moved around!” exclaimed five-year-old Harper Tescher.

Jordan first started moving Shirley around to make Harper smile.

“I just knew it would be fun for Harper and that’s all that mattered,” he said.

His idea quickly got the community’s attention.

“People love seeing it,” said Jordan.

And these days, everyone in town is keeping an eye out for Shirley. The herd has grown; Shirley has a couple of sisters in town who look just like her, and then there’s Annabelle.

“That’s her Scottish Highlander sister,” explained Jordan.

“She was sick yesterday,” added Harper.

So, it makes sense that on this day they find Annabelle at the pharmacy.

“She’s on the mend,” said Alyisa Steele, a pharmacy tech at the Beach Pharmacy. “She is staying warm in here.”

Jordan never thought he’d still be moving these cows three years later, but he says it’s become a bit of a tradition for his community and for his girls, who love cows — inflatable ones and real ones.

“Reagan loves cows. She’s in the cow suit six days a week. She loves feeding cows. She loves seeing the cows in the tractor and the skid steers, whatever you can do with cattle,” he said.

For this girl dad, sharing his love for ranching with his daughters is a dream come true.

“It’s the best thing ever. I love it,” said Jordan.

And he loves seeing the smiles these cows bring to his daughters’ faces.

“I just do it for the girls,” he said.

There is a Facebook page called Shirley’s Shenanigans where Jordan and other people post pictures of Shirley and friends. You can follow their adventures there too.

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