End of summer?

Good morning to you all,
I found myself awake and about much earlier than I had wanted this morning and it took me a little while to figure out why I couldn't go back to sleep. I think the light streaming through the shades this morning felt a little like fall. I'm guessing the my brain was telling the rest of me that the rich slant of light meant here is a lot to do and not much time left to get it done. I've been thinking about the old children's story about the ant and the grasshopper since I turned out of the rack. I've definitely taken on some of the characteristics of the grasshopper this summer and the to-do list has grown out of control as a result. The good news is that we've had a chance to get out and explore and have some fun off the ranch this summer, which was much needed by all. The bad news is, summer is nearly over and winter is on its way before long.
We really have had a great summer, so I don't feel at all bad about taking a little time for ourselves. We have taken our new camper out a few times and seen some great places. We've managed to catch some really nice fish in some of Colorado's mountain lakes. We've explored and had fun and it's been good for all of us. Now, however, it's time for all of us to get back to work...maybe just as soon as this weekend is over.
Amy heads back to school on Monday and is having some mixed opinions about it. She's had a lot of fun with Wyatt and her friends this summer. She's spent days with friends at the country club pool. Explored farmers markets far and wide, been camping and fishing and just generally relaxing. I'd be hard-pressed to drag myself back to work after three months of that too. But, she's handling it pretty well. Once she gets back into it, I am certain she will slip right back into teacher mode. She's a great teacher and I am certain that most of our teacher friends experience the same issue every summer. It will be Christmas break before she knows it.
One of the things that is adding to the back to school issue this year is continued uncertainty about what we are going to do with Wyatt. We had planned to send him back to day care for one more year, but he seems to be growing tired of the daycare routine. He had the opportunity to spend a week at a preschool summer camp this year and now he wants to go to preschool instead of daycare. For our part as parents, we have felt that he's probably ready for a bit more challenge in his days, but we also don't want to push him too hard, too soon either. After all, he is only three years old. So we're on the horns of a dilemma. We've found two good options for preschool. Now, we just have to decide what's in his best interest. And, we have to do it by Monday, so, needless to say, that's adding somewhat to Amy's back to school stress. We'll keep you posted on that one.
On the ranch, it has been a mostly quiet summer. The cows are across the road gazing on the in-laws place and it has been nice letting our grass recover this summer. To say nothing of being free of having to fix fence and all that goes with keeping the herd confined. That's not to say that we've been entirely free of having to deal with loose cattle. Some of the neighors don't maintain their fences in as good a condition as we do, so about once a week, random passersby drop in to let us know that there are cattle loose on the road a mile distant. Because we live in the only house that can remotely be called a ranch house, the automatically assume the cattle belong to us. These random visits happen at all hours of the night and day, so it has been rather inconvenient. I started out being a nice guy, running down the road and pushing cattle back into their proper pastures. Now, after about 20 trips to do this, I mostly just call the sheriff to report it. I make about a call a week to the dispatch office and am now on a first name basis with most of the El Paso County Sheriff's office dispatchers. My attitude has taken on a "Hmm, I hope nobody hits those cows," tone. I really think that people who run their cattle using the Columbus method (Going out twice a year to rediscover their herds,) probably ought to find other means of making a living. I'm not saying that people need to visit their cattle and scratch their heads three times a week like we do, but stewardship of some kind is paramount to being successful in this business and having neighbors who could careless about making sure their cattle are securely confined rubs me the wrong way sometimes. The fact that I watched the sheriff chase those same cattle back into their pasture just this morning, adds to that ill will somewhat.
We have, of course, added to the livestock here at the ranch this summer. We have a really nice bunch of 11 healthy and growing, rambunctious calves here at Cherry Creek Angus, along with a half-dozen beef animals who are also growing well. It's always a satisfying feeling to watch the young calves grow during the summer and I am particularly happy with our calf crop this year. All of them are half-blood siblings and you can easily see the resemblence in them, both in genotype and in demeanor. Wyatt in particular has taken an interest in spending time with them this year. He loves to ride over to the summer pasture in the truck. After we park, he climbs into the back and chucks handfuls of apple treats to the cattle. Sometimes, I think beaning the cattle is almost the only reason he likes going over. He's got a pretty good arm and even better aim, so he delights in pinging the cattle with the treats. The cows could care less as long as they get their snacks.
We've had a number of ranch tour guests this summer and have another bunch visiting later this morning. It's something Wyatt enjoys, intorducing guests to his cattle. I sometimes forget how much fun it is for city kids to visit the farm. I take cow visits for granted. For people who don't do it every day, just riding through the pasture in the back of the truck is a delight. Feeding a bunch of cows by hand is even better for them. It's always a fun thing to see and it reminds me how lucky all of us, particularly Wyatt, are to be able to experience these things on a daily basis.
We have also added to our barn cat herd. We lost another cat to coyotes early this summer, bringing the total now to three, and launching an all-out war between me and the song dogs. So, needless to say, we needed to bring in some new mouseketeers to control the critter population. So, after some neighbors had a batch of kittens, we were lucky enough to get first pick of the litter. So now, Merlin and Cocoa have moved to the ranch. They have become good roommates for our two dogs until they grow old enough to move to the barn with Roofie. They are already showing signs of being good hunters and have been a lot of fun to have around. Wyatt has also claimed the cats as his own.
Our other, final summer addition has been a new batch of chickens to add to our aging flock. We purchased 10 day-old chicks (five Buff Orphingtons and five Araucanas) this spring and after a couple months living with them they finally got too big for household living and were moved to the newly refurbished Chicken Taj Mahal in June. I'm always amazed at how fast chickens grow. They are now just 20 weeks old and we were surprised with our first two blue eggs this week. Araucanas are also known as Easter Egg chickens and they lay pastel colored, blue, green and sometimes pink eggs. It's a lot of fun to see those little pastel colored eggs in with the rest of the big eggs. Newly laying hens start out laying small eggs, about the size of a quail egg and they progressively get larger, the longer the chickens are laying, so by the time Easter rolls around, we should have a good supply of naturally colored Easter eggs. We've already had requests for them, so I think they will be popular among our customers.
So, it's been a great summer here on the ranch, but it's quickly coming to a close. The mornings are coming a little later and they are a little cooler when they do arrive. It will be time to lay in our winter hay supply soon. Calves will be weaned later this month. I always love fall, but it always makes me a little nostalgic. Maybe it's just the richness of the light slanting through the shades in the morning.
For me, it's time to get on with my morning chores, so I'll sign off for now. I hope this post finds you well and enjoying what's left of your summer, where ever you may be.

All the best from us down on the ranch.

Chicken Taj Mahal

Yearling bull 8265

It has been a little while since I've updated the Ranchland News, so I wanted to take some time this morning while it's quiet to write one and update all of you on our lives here at the ranch. It is most definitely summer here and it has been a very good start for us. The weather has been perfect for good grass and the top of the divide where we live is lush green. It's always very nice here this time of year, but with the combination of abundant rainfall and warmer than normal temperatures, the grass is emerald green and growing well. I never really concerned myself with grass growth other than as a gauge for mowing the lawn...now, it means the difference between lafe and death for us at least in terms of the cow herd. Needless to say, I pay close attention to each rainfall and forecast like only someone who's livelihood depends on it can understand. In fact, I've become something of a junior meterologist. Need to know the current weather or forecast in Colorado? Just give me a call.

With all the grass this spring, we have moved the cows across the road to the 120 acre pasture at my in-laws for the summer. We bred them May 19th and are hoping for good conception but Gosar the Destructor is out with them now to clean up after seven months of forced celibacy and much happier for it. He always seems relieved in the fall to be locked up in solitary confinement, but gets restless in the spring. This year as we were synchronizing the cow's heat cycles he got a little destructive and broke through his fence, so he spent the last few days of the breeding season locked in the barn, much to his chagrin. His name is still very fitting. He's very gentle, but he's got strength beyond comprehension... Anyway, when he was finally out, I don't think I've ever seen an animal more pleased with himself. So, now the cows are out on their big summer pasture and seem to be enjoying it a great deal. We are down to just a handful of animals on our side of the ranch now and I have to tell you, it's very nice to give our pastures and our staff (me) a little break. We have just two horses, three beef heifer calves and two alpacas here now, down from more than 30 just two weeks ago. It's sometimes tough to find the animals now that there are so few. It's a lot easier for them to hide now.

So, now that things have quieted down some, I have started the spring project list. There's always a lot of cleanup here after winter winds down, but there seems to be a lot more than normal this year. Part of that is the size of the cowherd....more cows equals more damage... but that's just part of the territory. I've also taken on a couple of larger projects, including building a new chicken coop for our expanding flock. We purchased another 10 laying hens this year as day-old chicks and they have been living in a small room off the garage for quite awhile. They are now at the point where they need to go outside. But, the rest of the hens need to be kept separate until the young ones get a little older. So, as a result, I have been constructing the newly dubbed Chicken Taj Mahal in the old homestead barn....formerly known as the Hantavirus Barn. Now, before any of you panic...I assure you there's no Hantavirus in there, or at least I am 90 percent certain there isn't. After two weeks of working in there the only hazards I've come across have been of my own making. Needless to say, construction is not my forte. So, I am pretty proud of the new hut.

The barn was originally built around the turn of the century and has just been sitting unoccupied for years...mostly due to it's name, so I decided it was a perfect new home for our chickens. I've built new walls for the pen, put in new nest boxes and roosts and by the end of the day should have the new outdoor run constructed for them. It's going to be a pretty nice shack when it's all done. Plus Amy and Wyatt like it, so that's an added bonus.

Speaking of Amy and Wyatt, they are enjoying summer vacation now. Amy finished school last Wednesday and is looking forward to the break. They have lots of activities planned and have started out doing a little gardening. I think that swimming lessons may also be on the to-do list this year for the little guy. In the meantime, he has a brand new fancy life jacket to keep him safe around the water. He and I went last week to get him a new fishing pole and tackle for the kid's fishing derby at Palmer Lake next weekend. It's his first time fishing, so he's very excited about it. I'm hopeful that there are enough trout stocked in the lake that there is a little action to keep him occupied. I am not sure that bobber watching will hold his attention for more than a couple minutes if it's slow. I'll post pictures soon though if we manage to catch anything.

We also have a camper now, we've joined the ranks of weekend RV families, so we're hoping to squeeze in a few weekend camping trips this summer. We found a very nice, gently used pop-up camper on CraigsList and have got it all outfitted and ready to go. We are very excited about the chance to go out as soon as the weather in the high country warms up a little. I think that the second or third weekend in June will be our first outing and we are very excited for it.

Needless to say, we've got lots going on this summer and a great deal to look forward to....as soon as the Taj Mahal is complete. Speaking of which, my construction buddy is already outside calling my name, so I'll leave you with that. We hope this letter finds you doing well, wherever you may be.

Best wishes from all of us in ranchland.

Newborn calves and big, bad Gert

Just a short progress report on calving season today. I will try to get some new pictures of the calves posted this weekend for all of you.

As of our last update, we had two calves on the ground and doing well and I am happy to inform you that as of this morning, we had doubled that number. We are up to a grand total of three bull calves, Rosie, Gertie and Gracie have all had boys, and Aspen has produced our only heifer calf to date. It has been a lot of fun to see the new calves arrive and there is much anticipation on every trip out to the barn that the next calf may have arrived. We have Bertie and Lady in the barn now and Delta still to come in this week, so by the end of the week numbers will have increased again with any luck. So far, our weather has been pretty mild and sunny, just right for calving and three of our mommas and their calves are outside now, able to stretch, play and enjoy the weather. Gracie and her calf which was born this morning will be able to head out in a couple days to make room for the next bunch if the weather holds. Keep your fingers crossed.

I have already made a mistake this calving season, one that will need to be rectified this weekend. Since they are all in the calving corral down by the house, I didn’t bother tagging the calves before I turned them loose. Now, as they are all running around, it is very difficult to tell who’s who. Three all black calves, all similar in size are hard to differentiate. We’ll have to bring all of them in this weekend and sort it out before the problem is multiplied by adding more to the mix. In the past with only one or two at a time it wasn’t a problem, but now, I will need to make sure I get that done before I turn them loose.

One of the reasons I passed on it this time, was the fact that with some new momma cows in the mix, I wasn’t sure how they’d react to me piercing their calve’s ears. It turns out they are all pretty tolerant of the process, with just one possible exception. Gert, who just had her first calf on our place is a little snakey with a newborn calf. She’s hippo-big and a little unpredictable under the best of circumstances. If you catch her in the wrong mood, it’s best to steer clear. She’s never malicious, but she is moody and doesn’t have much patience for people. Add a newborn to that mix and for the first 24 hours, she’s very menacing. Her bull calf was born on Saturday afternoon and after a couple hours was up and nursing, doing fine. Since he is the first calf sired by our bull, I wanted a better look at him and let myself into the pen. I had no sooner closed and latched the gate, effectively locking myself in her stall, then she began tossing her head, snorting and pawing with a mean sounding growl. She backed the calf into the corner and started inching toward me. I tried to stand my ground, but decided quickly that the risk wasn’t worth the reward and backed out of there.

After a few more hours, I went back out to vaccinate the calf and dip his navel with iodine. Standard procedure with all newborn calves at our place.

Amy accompanied me back to the barn, mostly as a witness in case things went bad. Fortunately, Gert was laying down and is very slow to get up. For those of you who haven’t met Gert, imagine a 2,000 pound black hippopotamus with curly hair and you’ll be pretty close. She’s slow at everything she does, particularly getting up. I managed to dart in, vaccinate and dip the calf before she managed to rock herself onto her feet and got the job accomplished unscathed. I did notice afterward though that she now backs her calf into the far corner of her stall and lays down blocking him in. There will be no more monkeying with her calf without climbing over the top of her, something that I am certain will speed her reflexes quickly. Needless to say, tagging her calf this weekend ought to be a lot of fun. Fortunately, she has eased up a little and now that he’s a few days old, she is less concerned with my being around, so it should be okay. Rest assured though, she’ll be locked out while I am working on him.

Two down, lots more to go

Aspen's calf, Willow, born Feb. 21, at 4:35 a.m.

Rosie's bull calf, Bronco Billy, born Feb. 28

I included a couple of pictures taken at the start of Sunday's blizzard. These were taken early in the morning at the start of the storm. Winds were blowing about 35 knots steady, with gusts in excess of 50. The static air temperature was about 20 degrees. We received a total snowfall accumulation of about 10-12 inches of snow on the level.

You might have been looking for this entry last week, as it was my intention to publish it then. However, a series of unfortunate events transpired to prevent me from posting it. Unfortunately, the flu has been plaguing our house for a week or so and it is only today that we all appear to be completely recovered. The little guy seemed to get the worst dose of it, and I came in a close second in terms of severity. I would recommend that if any one you know comes down with the bug that’s circulating that you all steer clear. This one is particularly nasty and contagious.

Anyhow, on to the good news. After nine months of waiting and wondering our efforts were have been rewarded with two new additions to the herd. Aspen gave birth to a tiny 72 pound heifer calf on Feb. 21. Amy has decided on the name Willow for her and it seems to fit pretty well. She is a very curious and somewhat rambunctious little calf, but at the same time she’s very gentle and willing to allow some quiet petting which is unusual after the first couple of days. They become wary of people pretty quickly, but Aspen is a pretty tame cow, so even though it’s her first calf she is more tolerant of interaction with her calf than most new momma cows. Perhaps the biggest news is that I was present when willow was delivered and had the opportunity to see her born, the first one I have seen since we moved to the ranch. I have to tell you there are few things that are more amazing than seeing an animal born.

I had been checking the girls pretty regularly throughout the past several days. My regular routine is to check them just before bed time and again at 2:30 in the morning followed by another check during feeding at 6:00 a.m. Aspen wasn’t showing much sign of labor at about 10:00 p.m., but was looking pretty uncomfortable during the 2:30 check up, so I set my alarm for 4:30 a.m., in case I needed a little extra time in the morning before heading to work, and climbed back in the rack for a couple of hours extra sleep.

At 4:30 a.m. I nearly turned the alarm off and went back to sleep, but I knew that if something went wrong I’d feel awful about not dragging myself out of bed. I suited up and headed out into the dark. When we’re calving the barn lights stay on all the time so I don’t have to fumble around with a flash light looking for the switch and I can also just stick my head in the door for a quick check and head back to bed if there’s nothing going on. So, I stuck my head in the barn and saw Aspen laying prone in her stall and not breathing and was immediately afraid of the worst. I turned my flashlight on her and I could see two tiny hooves just visible along with the tip of a calf nose. Now, the prone position isn’t normal for a cow and is generally a sign of distress, so I was pretty worried and wondering what I should do. This all took place in a span of about 15 seconds, and before I could react, or even really process anything logically, Aspen let go with a big Whooshing breath and Willow popped out fully into the world, much to my surprise. It all happened very quickly, but it definitely made the trip to the barn worthwhile.

With Willow doing well I turned my attention to Rosie, who although she was bred on the same day, was expected to calve first. However, that was far from the case. She was due on Feb. 24, but the day came and went with absolutely no fanfare. She had been in the barn for about 10 days by that point and other than having a tremendously full udder, had shown no signs that she was making any progress whatsoever. I came down with the aforementioned flu on Monday morning and I figured that would probably trigger her labor, since things like that generally do in our world. Unfortunately, I was sicker than I have been in several years and spent two days unable to roust myself out for anything. Nolan fed the animals for me, but reported no calving activity other than Willow (who I had forgotten to mention). On Wednesday, now three days past her due date, I was on the mend and back to work. Still no calf. Thursdays in the spring are always late nights for me at work, and when I left Thursday morning I was starting to wonder seriously if she hadn’t skipped over the AI breeding and been bull bred on her next cycle, which would have meant another 21 days to go.

When I got home around 8 p.m. Thursday evening, Allie (who almost always accompanies me on my chore rounds) was first through the barn door, which prompted an immediate (and very uncharacteristic) charge out of Rosie, who was extremely riled up. It took me a second to adjust to the light in the barn and determine the reason why she was so agitated. Her new calf, was laying in the corner of the stall, right where Allie was chasing her shadow (for those of you who don’t know Allie, this is her favorite spastic pastime). I shushed Allie out of the barn and went back to the house to get my calving box and Amy who always comes out to see the newborns. Rosie’s calf was a thick little bull calf who tipped the scale at 83 lbs. at birth. By the time I found him he was several hours old and up nursing and doing well.

I have to say it is always easier to doctor them and check them over before they can walk. They gather their strength pretty rapidly and more than once I have had a bit of a butt-kicking from a calf less than a few hours old, this turned out to be no exception and I ended up going for a short ride around the pen behind the little guy. Needless to say he is a strong, healthy calf, just the kind we have come to expect out of Rosie. He’s very curious and full of energy and loves running laps around the barn, bucking and kicking as he goes. It’s entertaining to see it happen for the first time. The cows always give chase, but after about a lap-and-a-half, the cows are wheezing and coughing while the calves continue on for hours on end.

We’ve been pretty fortunate weather-wise, last week’s weather was very mild and enjoyable for calving and dealing with newborns. They all had a chance to spend a couple of days outside before the weather closed in yesterday. We had blizzard conditions all day and they were in the barn for the entire day. I did clean their stalls and Rosie and her calf moved to the center-aisle holding pen which is twice the size of a normal pen and allows them room to play a little, something he took full advantage of yesterday, bucking circles around his mom and earning him the name Bronco Billy.

So that’s the latest from the ranch. We have more calves on the way soon and the next several weeks are going to be busy getting ready for our next run of calves which could start later this week. Gertie’s in the barn and up next, so we’ll have another update for you, along with some new pictures soon.

I hope this posting finds you well, wherever you may be.

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