Doing things the right way

It’s rapidly approaching that time of year when we have a chance to see how our breeding choices worked, in person. I have started cow herd checks twice a day and moved our first one into the calving pen last night. As of this morning, there hadn’t been any action, but it is imminent. The cow, 26A, or Rosie as she is commonly called is one of our best cows and several of you have had the opportunity to meet her. She frequently serves as our ranch ambassador because she has the temperament of a big black lab. If saw our Christmas picture two years ago, with the cow in a Santa hat, you’ve seen a picture of Rosie. She's a great cow and her calves have played a big role in our herd. Rosie's 2005 calf was a new momma last fall, she gave birth to an exceptional heifer calf. Rosie's 2006 bull calf is pictured below, he sold into a Kansas herd as a sire last spring and Rosie's 2007 heifer calf is our banner photo on the blog. As you can tell, she is very important to us, and I am excited to see what this year will bring.

Rosie's 2006 calf, CCA Fairplay Lad 6263, at the Lazy H Bull Sale in Hays, KS, last spring

She isn’t officially due for another week, along with another of our heifers which was artificially inseminated on the same date, but I have a hunch neither will last that long and I have a feeling there are some long nights ahead for me over the course of the next month. Ordinarily, the cows, particularly the older ones will take care of things on their own, but we have quite a few younger cows calving over the next six weeks who are in need of watching. Temperatures have been below normal for this time of year, so it’s important to make certain the calves are dried off as quickly as possible and up and nursing within an hour or two.

That’s where I come in. I generally try hard to stay out of the calving pen unless there is a problem and it has been a pretty rare occasion when I have been needed. We have one cow who is reluctant to allow her calf to nurse at first, so she will need watching, and there are always the odd situations where I have been able to help, particularly when it’s cold and there is a danger of frozen ears or tails such as we had two years ago when the cows picked the only stretch of -20 weather we have seen as their calving period. But for the most part, my job is to dip the newborn calves’ navels with iodine, give them a vaccination and get a weight and leave them be. In fact, despite the fact that we have had a couple of handfuls of calves born on the ranch, I have yet to see one delivered. I’m pretty certain the cows don’t really want me a round for it and wait until I leave the barn to do their thing, but with a dozen calves due this year, I think this might be the year that I get to see it firsthand.

Anyway, calving season (which I optimistically refer to as spring) is here and we should have new calf pictures up on the blog within a week or so, but I’ll let you know when we get them posted.

Spring is also bull sale season in our business and it keeps me very busy at work since the first quarter of the year is when we do probably 50 percent of our business. So there’s always lots for me to do in the spring. Soon I’ll be heading to Hays, KS, for the annual Lazy H Ranch spring bull sale. This will be the first year we won’t have calves in the sale, so I am simply going as a spectator. However, it’s always good to see friends, meet new people and catch up on the news in the field. I may cover the cow business on a daily basis, but mine is mostly a desk job and there is a gap in knowledge for us between what ranchers are experiencing and what we hear in the office. My trip to Hays fills some of those gaps and I look forward to it every year.

One of the big topics of discussion in the cow business recently is the video that was filmed by the Humane Society of the United States at a cow processing plant late last year. I’ve seen the footage and it’s awful. If you have a weak stomach, don’t go looking for it, nonetheless, I am sure some of you probably saw it on the news over the last few weeks and I wanted to address it. The video was a big topic at the NCBA convention in Reno last week and I have to tell you that not only was I personally appalled by the footage, so were all the other cattlemen I spoke with.

It’s simply not the way animals are treated on 99.9 percent of operations. That said, it only takes one to give the entire industry a black eye and frankly I, and many others I know are tired of it. I am hopeful that the plant will be decertified and shut down. Harvest of animals is never a pretty business, but it’s part of the deal that we make when we get involved with animal agriculture and I, along with almost everyone else in the business go to great lengths to make sure it’s done humanely. We take pride in our herd and know those animals work for us, we also know we owe it to them to take care of them as best we can. Those that don’t, don’t belong in the business.

I guess what I am saying is that, if you saw the video, please know that it’s not representative of the way the industry works. If you still have concerns, feel free to give me a call some time and we can discuss it one-on-one. There are ways to ensure that animals are handled properly and I believe it is a growing niche that we intend to be a part of.

The result has been that our natural beef business has doubled each of the last two years and this year looks like that growth will be even bigger. We have been receiving some very good feedback from our customers and the word of mouth advertising has been fantastic.

Last year, we made the switch from grass-fed, grain finished this year to straight grass-fed and it was very successful. It means that our cattle are lighter than industry average at harvest, but I think it makes for better tasting meat. The steaks are smaller, but are more tender and juicy than those from the store.

One of the reasons is that our cattle are raised without any growth promotants or antibiotics. Animals which may need medical care are treated and once they recover are removed from the system and sold back into the commodity feedlot chain. Let me state that there is nothing wrong with store-bought beef, we simply choose to do it differently because we think it’s the right thing to do.

I would have to say that every cattleman I have ever met takes as much pride as we do in their herd and they way they do things. In fact, I think it's far too much work to do it if you don't love it, there are easier ways to make money, if you have been a Ranchland News reader, I am sure you know what I mean. Anyway, in addition to the news for the week, I wanted to share a little of our philosophy and insight into the inner workings of Cherry Creek Angus.

Thanks for checking in, I hope this letter finds you well, wherever you may be.

The times that time doesn't fly

Good morning to you all.

After a week in Reno, or at least most of a week, I am finally back home. I was out west covering the annual National Cattlemen's Beef Association. And, although it was a good, productive week, I have decided I hate being away, particularly this time of year when there is much work to be done. I don't travel much any more, but even that little bit is disruptive. The worst part of it is that it's not just disruptive to me but to everyone around me and we found out last week that Wyatt is impacted perhaps more than anyone. The little guy had a pretty rough week and I felt slightly guilty that Amy had to deal with it on her own. Her came down sick with a sore throat and a cold late and the week, so he was even more grumpy than usual. But regardless, that didn't stop his growing process. Up until recently, he has only had a vocabulary of just a few words, mostly cow, cat, mommy and daddy. But you can get a general jist of what's being communicated. Well in the past week that has all changed. His vocabulary has increased and although it is mostly parroting what we say, he has probably tripled his word portfolio. On my second day out, he was walking around the house shouting daddy, daddy, daddy, followed by his "I don't know" shrug, which is awfully cute. So needless to say, this week was an exception to my life which seems to fly by, with the second hand sweeping faster each day. Time did not fly while I was in Reno.

On the upside though, I did have an opportunity to meet some excellent cattlemen, attend some good ranch management seminars and make some contacts in the business and one of the things I have learned is that the cow business, perhaps more than any other these days is still first and foremost, a people business. So, although it's tough to be away, I'm glad I made the trip. I also managed to avoid losing any money at the tables, not because I won, but because I ended up being too busy to play.

So I got back yesterday and in the afternoon, the three of us piled into the truck and took a drive to take advantage of the beautiful sunny weather we've been having for the last couple of days. The temperatures have been in the upper 50s with bright sunny days here on the ranch. We worked our way out east on the gravel roads to explore some of the areas we hadn't seen yet. There are some very big, very scenic ranches to the north east of us and it was a fun afternoon of exploring, if any of you have a chance to make it out this way and want to explore, it's definitely worth the time.

Today it's back to work in an effort to get ready for calving season, which could begin as early as late this week. First calf heifers tend to drop their calves early, sometimes as much as a week or more early, so we will be in that window on Valentine's Day. My chore list is about as long as my arm and it starts with my least favorite task, which happens to be mucking out barn stalls. Fortunately, they're not too bad, but it's frozen, so it will take awhile to get the job done. I also have fence to fix (a weekly chore here) hay to move, straw to buy, and snow to shovel. So as you might have guessed, the old clock is winding back up on me and I'd best get to work.

I hope this note finds you doing well, wherever you may be.

Welcome to the Ranchland News

Good morning to you all!
As you can see, I have finally decided to resume my Ranchland News writing. I’m not sure that I’ll be able to get it done on a weekly basis, but I’ll give it a shot and will try for "regular" updates from the ranch. In an effort to make it as user friendly as possible, I’ve also decided to publish it in blog format, one, so I don’t accidentally leave anyone off the list and two, so it might perhaps reach a wider audience. I’ll also be able to include photos and other tidbits a little more easily. I hope you like the format and if you have suggestions for improvement, please feel free to send them my way. I always look forward to hearing from you.

On with the show...
It has been cold and windy here lately. The good news is that the weather pattern is feeling decidedly spring-like, so although I know we have a good bit of cold weather ahead of us, I can tell that spring is on the way and that’s a good feeling for all of us here on the ranch. As winters go, this one hasn’t been too bad yet. We’ve had our fair share of snow and cold, but it started late and has come in manageable amounts. It’s been far better than the winter before.

All of us have been faring well thus far and life continues its busy pace, although that seems to be the way it’s going to be, I think we left the leisurely life behind quite awhile back although now I can’t remember where or when it was cast aside for the one we have now. With spring’s arrival, we are preparing for the new crop of calves which are due to come at the end of the month from our first two cows. The next set of five or six will come three weeks later and then the last two or three will stretch out into late April. We have breeding dates, but they didn’t match up well with the ultrasound collection last fall, so there is a little uncertainty with a couple of the later cows. But the positive news is that Gosar the Destructor (our bull) did his duty and we will have a 100 percent calf crop this year, our first in the three years we have been here. We’ll have an additional two calves in late summer, so our calves will reach an even dozen this year, with our eye on 15 next year, if we can add one more.

Right now, the cow’s biggest complaint is the amount of ice that’s formed on their foot paths. They seem to follow the same few trails around the house, to the feeding areas and back and forth to water, so those become pretty slick with all the freeze-thaw cycles we’ve had in the past week or so. I learned quickly to avoid the path, but the cows seem oblivious to the fact that if they stepped out of line into the fresh snow that their walk would be less treacherous. So, as a result they slide around a little on the ice. In addition to avoiding the cow trails, I have also learned not to stand on the downhill side of them. Having a 1,500+ pound animal sliding toward you as it flails to gain control of its footing is one of the more interesting things I have experienced lately. So now, I’ve learned to stand uphill from the herd.

I’ve been piling through some of our end of the year accounting and we’ve had a pretty fair year. We sold three calves this year, one who will make his living as a show steer, and two females in December who will be making their way in a Nebraska cow herd.

Our girls before the December 1, Maternal Building Blocks Sale in Brush, CO

Although the results weren’t as good as we had hoped, they gave us a solid starting point and gave us a set of goals to work toward. We also sold two beef animals this winter doubling our natural beef business from last year. Amy has taken the reigns on that side of the enterprise and done very well. In fact, we’ll be picking up our side of beef tomorrow. It’s always nice to pack away a year’s supply of meat, and we have heard from our clients that this year’s crop was very good and they are planning to increase their order next year. Needless to day, we are looking forward to seeing the quality for ourselves.

Anyway, as I said there is lots to do before the end of the month, pens to be cleaned, hay to be moved, cows to be rounded up, supplies to be ordered, etc. That’s all on top of the normal day-to-day routine, so the weekends for the next few weeks will be filled solid. Speaking of solid, that’s the state that our water lines have developed since the day after we arrived home from Christmas vacation. We had a run of -5 temps which started at the first of the year and it was enough to freeze the shallow spring line that feeds the stock tank in the pasture. It’s funny that it stayed clear the entire year last year, despite the bad weather, but this year froze solid in better weather. I have developed a lit of a love-hate relationship with the water system as those of you who have been regular readers have probably guessed. It’s a great thing when it works, but that’s only about 50 percent of the time. Renovating the stock water system is rapidly moving up my list of summer projects and it is now hovering in the top two or three. It’s actual position on the list is directly related to the number of days since my last soaking either from the hose that I have to string between the house and the pasture, or an actual dip in the tank itself.

So, needless to say, the water system is in need of a change. Although how I’ll accomplish that is another matter, since the spring line, which feeds that tank originates about a quarter mile to the south and runs under the house, yard, several fences and a barn. Stay tuned for the details coming later this year.

The cows are looking good and the three heifer calves we retained this year are growing nicely despite the winter weather. Fall calves rarely do as well in our country as spring calves, but these two are flourishing. We also have one late spring heifer that we kept which will bring us to 14 females and the bull. The remainder of the menagerie are also getting along fine. We are down to three horses on the ranch now. Sadly, the Human Hater became sick in December and had to be put down. But he was replaced with another young roping horse that Travis acquired, who we are very fond of. His name is Sam and he will be with us until sometime this spring before being shipped off for some professional training. Mr. Skinner is still the boss among the farm animals, but Sam, who is still learning his place is going to give him a run for his money in the near future. Henna is also doing pretty well, but she’s getting to be an old horse and this winter has been pretty tough on her. She is penned with the two alpacas so she isn’t forced away from the feed by the other horses. She was getting too thin and needed some extra help to make it through. She’s doing better now, but you can tell, especially in the early, cold mornings that she isn’t feeling fantastic and doesn’t have many more winters ahead of her.

The three of us humans are, as I mentioned, looking forward to spring when we can enjoy the outdoors. Not to say that we haven’t been enjoying the snow, but it does come in short doses. We have been doing a bit of sledding and get out as much as possible. Even Wyatt has been down the hill a couple of times, although he doesn’t seem to enjoy it as much as he will when he gets older. Amy and I started him out on a couple of the smaller hills, but after two trips down, he had had enough. Afterward though, the two of us moved on to our so-called "extreme sledding" hill, which lacks a little in length, it makes up in sheer vertical drop. For those of you who have been to our place, the extreme hill is the one behind the shop. It’s only about a 50 or 60 yard run, but it’s steep and fast when the snow conditions are good, which has been most of the winter. There’s still time to get in some decent sledding before the snow’s gone, so any of you that are considering a winter visit, now’s the time. We’ll keep the bonfire lit and the cocoa hot for you, just let us know.

Wyatt is growing up quickly and is really starting to talk using words that are understandable. He’s a big fan of the cows and is quick to point them out anytime they walk past his line of site. Especially since it's often too cold for him to be outside feeding or driving, still among his favorite activities. Instead, when I go outside, he’ll stand at the front window for long periods of time pointing out the cows, horses, dogs, cats and any other animal that happens by on his watch. He’s even working on the sounds the animals make. He’s good with woof, woof, which is applied to any animal he’s not sure of, and he’s working on meow for the cat. Quite frankly, I think the cat would rather that Wyatt forget about him, but I am certain that’s not going to happen. The minute Wyatt sees him, it’s a foot race to the kiddie gate. So far, the cat is 100 percent, but I’m not looking forward to the day that Wyatt gets a jump on him, or manages to cut him off before he can get over the gate....I know it’s coming though.

His next accomplishment looks like it might be potty training. He has his own facility that he’s taking an interest in and his daycare lady is also helping with it, so perhaps we can work him toward that goal pretty quickly. There is an unbelievable amount of literature available about how/when/why to potty train, but the consensus of all of it seems to be that kids will do it when they’re good and ready. From all of the information we have gathered, the only thing I might not have figured out is that you’re supposed to put boys on the toilet facing backward...Why? Well, I’ll let you figure that out. I guess it makes sense, but I can definitely see that leading to problems down the road. I guess only time will tell.

Amy is getting close to finishing her teacher certification classes and is doing very well. She has one last big project to finish up before she graduates in May. After that she will be a fully certified teacher, something that she has worked very hard to accomplish and for which Wyatt and I are very proud of her for completing. In fact, she only has a handful of classes left, so I know she is feeling like the end is near.

As for me, in addition to all the ranch work and calving season preparations. I’m trying to squirrel in as much as I can into my non-work hours, including a few hard lessons that I thought I’d share with you. I got a good one in last weekend. I learned that gasoline tastes really bad and you shouldn’t drink it under any circumstances. As you might imagine there are any number of gas tanks floating around here and I needed to finish draining the old gas out of one so it could be replaced with new and probably much improved gas. Now, you’d think that on a ranch there would be a siphon hose available for the task, but there was not. So I figured a good length of garden hose would be fine for the task. Now, in retrospect, I can tell you, it is not. Aside from the piece that I chose being too short, it was also too big in terms of diameter. So after realizing that I couldn’t get enough suction be being careful, I gave it a good pull and although I managed to get the siphon started, I got a good swallow of gas in the process. It was unpleasant in the extreme. Not to mention the fact that I had to now control the flow while gasping and choking on gas. I’m certain I didn’t swallow more than a tablespoon or so, but it was a bad deal and it managed to ruin most of the remainder of the day. I spent most of the day being afraid to burp, particularly near any open flame or heat source and let me tell you, gasoline...or perhaps the 27 tums, two glasses of milk, or one of the other items I consumed to kill the gasoline taste (none of which worked by the way) makes you very burpy. I seem to be fine now, having not suffered any ill consequences, by as a warning gas tastes bad and you shouldn’t use your mouth to siphon it. Trust me, it may not seem like it’s worth the drive to town to buy a real— made for the purpose—siphon hose, but it is.

I’ve also learned a great deal about air tools and the physics of flight, but perhaps I will save those lessons for another time. Until then, I hope this note finds you well and enjoying your day, wherever you may be.


-John and the Ranchland crew