RANCH LIFE

OOPS, WHERE DID I GO?

7/12/2022

Wow, I can not believe I haven't posted since February. Time really flies. I think my lack of blogging may be due to the fact, that this drought is just sad and demoralizing. The dust and wind never end.

February led to March and we moved cows on the dry desert. We decreased the number of cows that we wintered out this year. The ones we had out did surprisingly well.

We got a skiff of snow on the range in April, and it was pretty cold for most of the month.

April led into May. It was time to bring the cattle home and get the calves processed.

We had a great branding crew again this year.

More branding pictures at: https://www.facebook.com/highdesertranchwife/

Along with getting all the calves processed in May, we also AI, (artificially inseminate ), our heifers.

Then just like that it was June. I don't think I even took a picture. I'm sure the cowboys were busy.

And now it's July. We started weaning early this year. The cowboys start well before the sun is up to beat the heat.

I've enjoyed taking these early morning pictures.

In September we will start preg-checking and unfortunately we will probably have to sell more cows.

We have great help in training.

Keep praying for rain.

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MUCH NEEDED SNOW!

2/23/2022

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Finally, we have gotten some snow. Our dry land needs this so badly.

The heifers hunkered down in the ditch to stay warm.

This little guy looks a little grumpy about the weather.

The weather doesn't stop the work from going forward. It's shipping day.

The heifers don't stop calving just because it storms. In fact, they seem to need more help.

The snow is beautiful and we are so grateful for it.

Our friendly Bald Eagle keeps an eye on us.

The cold and snow isn't fun at the moment, but we'll take it.

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LOOKING BACK ON 2021

12/31/2021

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Yes, this was January 2021. It was dry and dusty. We were moving cows on the North range.

What a dry dusty year it started out to be, and continued on that way.

February; The heifers were calving.

We got just a tiny bit of snow. All and all we had pretty good calving weather, even though we could have really used more moisture.

The days still got a little chilly and the desert was sparse.

Cattle on the desert in March.

Mid March we got a small amount of snow. We moved cows to new pasture.

March weather was unusually warm. Poor Gaucho.

We had an early branding in April.

It was kind of a cool day and we had a dusting of snow on the mountain.

In May we had more brandings. It was dusty.

In June we took some time to enjoy our family.

In July we weaned our calves. We weaned early this year due the drought and lack of feed.

We took a little time to do some relaxing and exploring.

On August first we had an unexpected rainstorm, causing some flash flooding.

In August we had early morning starts as we finished the weaning and sorted through our cow herds, weeding out the old and toothless cows.

In September we just tried to keep cows in feed, alternating meadows and fields.

In October we had a cold snap with even some mountain snow. It didn't calm down the dust for very long though. We moved cows onto new feed.

The vet came and preg checked our cows. We vaccinated and dewormed them.

Some really cool dude and his dog were out on the prairie in November.

We took our first desert herd out to the range for the winter.

Now it's December. We brought the heifers home from the Parker Place out North and from the Flat. We waited to bring them home until we had a good strong head wind. It was a bit cold.

I also got a new pony this year. I will train her like a big horse and get her ready for my grand babies.

We'll see how she does in 2022.
Here's hoping the new year will be a good one. Stay tuned.

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THINNING THE HERD

10/4/2021

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As I've mentioned before, we are in a terrible drought. This means we have no choice but to thin down our cow herd numbers. One way we are doing that is by mouthing, (checking teeth), in our cow herd, at least in the older cows. If they don't have good teeth, then they won't be able to graze well, especially where the feed is more scarce and short.

We catch the cows in the chute, the cowboys look at their teeth. This isn't as easy as it sounds. The cows aren't always very willing to say "cheese".

The cows are loaded into the chute by a cowboy on horse back. This takes a good horse and a skilled and quiet hand.

The cows that, "make the cut" are turned back in to the meadow.

The old girls with no teeth, or poor teeth, are loaded on a truck and will be sold. I know it sounds cruel, but it isn't. It would be worse to see an old cow starving all winter because she doesn't have teeth to eat.

This was last month, and still very hot out, so we always started in the early morning. And of course in the dust.

We have started the next step in thinning the herd. We are preg-checking. The vet comes out and checks every cow to make sure she is pregnant. If not, she too gets sent down the road. It's just the way life is on the ranch.
Stay tuned for pictures of this process.

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SPRING/SUMMER 2021 UPDATE

8/10/2021

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Wow, I can not believe I have not posted since March. It has been a hard, hectic, rushed and really tough spring and summer. Our continuous drought has made things very stressful here on the ranch. We have pushed ahead most of our work as much as possible. We started our branding in April, and brought cows off the range as early as we could. We had to wait until a little grass grew in the meadows. And now we have already weaned. Unfortunately, due to the drought we are forced to sell some cows this year. That is hard on ranchers, who have spent years and years building a herd of cows they are proud of and also attached to. We all have our favorites in the herd and we may see some of them head down the road this year.

We came off the desert in April and May. It was a dusty and dry spring, which has continued on throughout the summer.

We spent several weeks with several hard days gathering cows off of the desert range. Some cows found a little feed high on the hills and hiding in canyons and gullies.

We had our first branding in April. After last year not being able to have gatherings, this was great fun for everyone.

Branding season went well. It was great to see our friends again.

We have such a great bunch of friends, and they are such terrific help.

We moved cows and heifers often trying to make the feed last and not over graze any one meadow.

It's always exciting to see a stream of water.

It has been brutally hot, so the cowboys start every morning before sun up.

We just finished weaning our calves. This is usually started in a few weeks, but due to lack of feed and water, we needed to get calves off the cows sooner. Then we will sort through our cows and sell anything that is old, broken mouthed, (no teeth), poor udders or injured in anyway.

Weaning is over. It is always bitter sweet. The cows and calves adjust quickly.
And now the tough decisions are ahead.
Pray for rain.

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IT'S SPRING!

3/28/2021

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We have been in a terrible drought, so the site of a little snow in March made us all very happy.

Some days we are lucky enough to get some extra help with the cattle. Future cow boss right here.

Spring means new babies!

We have been moving our cows onto spring range.

The cowboys and cowgirls, are working hard. But maybe the horses are working the hardest of all.

This photo was taken by my daughter in law. What a gorgeous site. We really love and value our horses.

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WINTER WONDERLAND

1/9/2021

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A couple of weeks ago we went out on a frosty cold morning to corral the heifers.

It was cold. You can see the steam coming off of the heifers.

It was so pretty. I couldn't stop taking pictures.

That is steam coming off the cattle.

These heifers will start calving in a couple of weeks. As much as we need and want snow, we are glad that most of it has melted before the babies hit the ground.
Stay tuned for baby pictures soon.

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FINALLY SNOW!

12/28/2020

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Snow, it's been a long time coming and it's much appreciated. So much so that we didn't even mind getting a little cold and wet.

We had our youngest cowboy with us again today. Ranch kids are taught at a young age, that no matter the weather, the job has to get done. He was tough today and seemed happy to be there.

I should remind you that every time a take a picture I have to take my glove off, and it never fails, at least once in the day I drop it. I should explain how big of a deal dropping my glove is. For one thing, I am wearing about 42 layers of clothes and warm boots. I also ride a VERY tall horse and for those of you that don't know me, I am a whopping 5 foot 4. So getting off and back on does have it's challenges.

The snow was at our backs, at least until we went back for the truck that is.

Marlboro man

Good cow dog

My snowy horse.

My Gaucho,. He's really a good boy.

Well here I am, the look I have after dropping my glove.. haha.
Here's hoping for a much much better 2021.
Happy New Year!

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PRAY FOR RAIN

12/6/2020

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It's December and still dry as a bone. We had only one small snow storm in November, but it didn't amount to much.

We have had the cows in the fields as long as possible, but now it's time to take them out to their desert range.

The range is dry, but to my surprise, there is still feed on most of it. We have some amazing plants that grow on the desert, which provide great nutrition for our cows. Plants like white sage, (also known as winter fat), indian rice grass, curly grass (galleta), and sand drop seed, to name a few.
We will monitor the cows closely and move them about often so that we don't over graze.

My horse watching the cow dog anticipating a confrontation.

The next generation is in training. He will be a good hand soon.

2020 has been quite a year. Pray for rain and pray for for peace.

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HOT AND DRY 2020

8/16/2020

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It's been a tough year already. As if everything else going on in the world isn't enough, we have had terrible heat and drought in our neck of the woods.