Moving & Sorting Cattle

Joey’s been busy, as usual, but this “busy-ness” included riding on horseback today.  All this “ride’m cowboy” stuff was necessary, really!  It’s not to just look…well…like a cowboy.   Different ranches work differently, but many still use the good ole’ fashioned method of horseback.  There are many places vehicles cannot traverse as well as a horse can.  However, the guys still use 4-wheelers, Rangers, trucks, and trailers too, in order to get the job done.  There are just certain things that can be done best on horseback and moving/sorting cattle is one of those things.  Yesterday, they had to sort bulls and take them to different meadows (pastures) where the cows and heifers hang out.  Today, they moved some cattle in closer for the winter.  Today’s ride totaled about 15 miles all on the back of The Gold.  Have we told you much about Gold?  I suppose not.  Well, I’ll post All About Gold this weekend and you’ll then know more than you might like.  Anyhoo, for the most part, the weather was very nice today, with the highs in the 50’s and a mild breeze.  The only weather blip was this morning, when Joey got rained on a bit lot.  First, the day was warming up, and along with some hard riding, he began to sweat through several layers.  Then, this wonderful, unpredictable NE weather turned to a continual light rain.  So, he’s loping & galloping along, you know, it’s breezy at that pace.  So, wet + breezy = a bit nippy.  (I suppose this is my cue to hurry & knit him more work-type wool sweaters.)  We also need to add a riding duster to our list of things “To Buy”.  I think we’ll do this one.

Tonight, as they were bringing in the last of the cattle for the day, I looked out my front porch & this is what I saw.

Joey is the wee little cowboy, second from left.  I suppose I need to spring for a really nice dSLR someday soon…It was so beautiful out there, yet this picture really doesn’t do it justice.  The sun was low in the horizon, the clouds & sky so blue with tinges of purple.  Then, I see my honey out doing something he really enjoys…I could only sigh & enjoy the sight.    Well, I then called to Afton to run out closer to them & see if she could get better pictures for me.  It was too difficult without a large zoom lens.  So, she picked the next best thing.  Landscapes…See?

Tomorrow will be interesting…they’ll be separating the cows & calves, as those babies have to be weaned.  The cattle are not too far from our house, so we’ll be listening to their bellowing throughout Bible, History, Science, Math, Spelling….you get the idea…it’s the rite of passage for all cattle, I suppose.  A funny story I have to tell you, but it didn’t happen at this ranch.  A (ranching) TX cousin of mine told me a few years ago about a steer that was overlooked on weaning day.  They didn’t notice him until months later, when they saw a HUGE steer nursing one of the cows in the pasture.  He was one happy camper…well, at least for a while.   Instead of sending him to the auction, with the other less rotund steers his age, they decided to keep him for their freezer.  She said that was the tastiest, most tender beef ever.  Imagine that!  Without a feedlot?  Mama’s milk & grass.  Shocking!

Stay tuned for the branding pictures & video…I haven’t forgotten, I promise!