drought is over

Finally we have average rainfall for the year after 2 years of severe drought.  When that happens the ranch grows normal amounts of grass and the cows have ample supplies of it to eat.  The microorganisms in the cows rumen (stomach) are able to convert grass into food that the cow can then develop into muscle that we eat as beef.  This makes land that is best suited for growing grass productive as a place to produce food to feed people.  The semi-arid climate and soil on our ranch would not be suitable for growing crops like broccoli or grapefruit.  

Future rancher ?

Joe and Travis came to the ranch to help with calving and pony training for a few days.  Here Joe is helping milk a cow to give to a calf that couldn't find it's mother for several days.  This cow's calf had died, but she was willing to accept the foster calf once he had the strength to nurse on his own.  Joe received some first hand knowledge of the work involved in taking care of cattle, sheep and horses.

Contrast of seasons

Spring has arrived but there is still a touch of winter on the horizon.  Traveling to the ranch this morning we stopped at our SE corner along the highway and took a photo of the buildings with the remnants of yesterdays snow storm in the hills to the north.  As you can see the grass is becoming green in the pastures and the .8" of moisture in the snow (rain) might make a better grass year than what we have had the past couple of years due to the drought.

The scratching tree

This old gnarly tree has stood by by itself in one of the calving pastures for as long as I can remember.  It was probably planted 110 to 125 years ago by the homesteader on this piece of ground.  It hasn't ever got any taller in  the last 60 years but the trunk keeps getting bigger around and the branches more contorted from the cows rubbing on it, which is the tree's main function in life as there are no cattle in this pasture in the summer after it has finally leaved out and could provide shade.  As warm temperatures arrive I'm certain being able to scratch off some of their winter coat is a welcome relief for the cows.

Cold weather project

 We try to have an indoor project to work on during the winter when the weather is to cold and stormy to do anymore work outdoors than what is necessary to get the livestock fed and comfortable.  Sometimes it can be difficult to warm the shop up enough to be comfortable working in it.  This winter we placed laminate flooring in the upstairs hallway, the stairwell and the downstairs bathroom.  Todd came up and revamped the plumbing and wiring as well as installed new bathroom fixtures.  We are pleased with the finished product, but we are glad spring has come and with the return of warm weather we can get back to ranching and leave the construction projects for another season.

Fencing with a Mule

The ranch has 44 miles of fence to check and repair each year.  This involves a considerable amount of walking and carrying of supplies.  We used to haul posts and wire and tools in a pickup, but the past few year we have done the hauling in a small trailer pulled by a 4-wheeler.  The trailer has wore out so we purchased a Kawasaki Mule for this task.  So far it is working out well and best of all Kate has a place to set and supervise Blake making sure the work is done correctly.

Dahli gets sheared

Dahli Llama has been rolling in the hay and dirt so his hair has been trapping a lot of unwanted material, plus with the coming of warm weather he needed shearing for his comfort.  He was given a midbody shear and we may decide to take more hair off later.  He looks much better and I hope he is more comfortable as well.  His halter training is going well, but he does not like being caught and having the halter placed on his head.