At the Ranch - The Idaho Rancher's Wife

The End of a Satisfying Year

November 14, 2014 by Allison

The first week in November is always a big week for us. Over that week most, if not all, ranchers in the valley sell and ship their calves. We calved out these babies, grown them over the summer, and then put the weight on them since weaning. I’ve said it over and over-this is the day we work for. Sale day is the day that makes every other day possible. And when its over we can finally relax (its only for like a day until we start thinking about the next year!).

We have had amazing growth over the last two months and it really showed on sale day. They were chubby, so chubby that we weighed in heavy! Seriously, fantastic! When we contract our calves, we contract less than what we have (mostly to hedge our bets because occasionally we contract before the calves are even born!). When we weigh heavy and have more calves than in the contract, that means there are more we can keep and sell on the side. Its like having two paydays! We do keep back anywhere from 90-115 heifer calves to keep for replacement heifers the next year.

The morning of sale day we bring the calves, already sorted into steers and heifers. We weigh all the calves, getting an average weight. Based on that weight, our broker will pick out any calves that he won’t be taking and then we reweigh those (to make sure we have the MOST accurate weight down). After the work of sorting and moving and weighing and reweighing its time to load the trucks. Once those trucks are full, they drive off into the sunset and we all live happily after. Ok, not really… It was noon so more like driving into the sun…. And its not all sunshine and roses, but having another year behind us is as sweet and satisfying as any fairy tale ending!

Why Ranchers Don’t Need a Personal Trainer

November 12, 2014 by Allison

I just got done spending a few days helping The Rancher fence. Mostly by accident. Like, my kids took off trekking down the busy road to find their dad and I followed after in my sweats. And of course once I got there I got put to work. And boy was it work, actually more of a workout. I tease The Rancher from time to time that he had better get doing some exercises before he has to move his buckle down a notch. But in reality, his daily living is enough of a workout that he doesn’t need to exercise.

Well, I take that back. As an exervise science major I believe that everyone needs to exercise, everyday. But hanging out with a rancher provides enough core building, heart racing, strength training exercises that you won’t have to hit the gym at the end of the day.

For example, take the job of tamping- using a narrow, 15 pound bar to pound and pack the dirt around a fence post. And since nothing done on the ranch is slow, you do it fast, as fast as you can. You squeeze your core tight as it will go to stabilize your shoulders as they slowly begin to burn from lifting the bar over and over again.

Moving hand lines. In the days when I was a pipe mover I always considered it to be my morning exercise routine. Squatting with an extra 50+ pounds stretching out 15 feet off each side is a great for a little balance work, especially while the water is still running up and down the pipe.

Roping… oh boy roping… I’ve learned this last year what a great workout this is. Keeping your elbow, swinging at just the right rhythm and then still having the strength to throw is so much harder than what it looks. In fact, I have yet to even remotely come close to figuring this out… But I have gotten sore, super sore.

And then there are all of the sledge hammers. Big, little, tall, short- they all have one thing in common. They are all heavy. So heavy that you don’t slam them down as much as swing them up and then just let them fall on whatever it is you are hitting. While they are doing whatever damage you need, they are building some beautiful core, shoulder, and even back muscles.

I really could keep going on… ranching is a physical job. So much so that even with my intense morning workouts, I still get sore after a long day with The Rancher. If ever you were looking for a change in your exercise routine, come spend the day with a rancher!

The Chicken Fiasco

October 22, 2014 by Allison

I had to buy eggs today. It’s the first time in like five years because we always had our own chickens. Even when we were poor-starving-college-students we had a few hens that provided “golden” eggs. Moving to the ranch only meant more eggs for us because when you have 18 hens and three families the eggs get shared around fast.

But it seems that every fall we have some sort of chicken drama. It was this time a year ago that the calves found their way into the chicken coop and scattered those crazy chickens all over the ranch yard. We spent all day gathering up those darn critters to try and keep them from the drooling dog that stalked them from the shed to the shop to the tractor… This year, though, we couldn’t save them from such an end.

Yep, you heard right. The chickens are gone, dead, no longer laying eggs! Fortunately for the dog, he wasn’t the one to get them (I’m pretty sure he would be done for too!) and it wasn’t because the calves crashed down the door. The intruder was much more stealthy- coming in the night and nabbing a few at a time. After the first couple nights of losing a few hens we guessed there was a weasel or racoon that had tunneled into the coop and moved the hens.

But it didn’t stop that ninja critter.

We tried to get one step ahead of the hunter to save the few chickens we had left- the four remaining chickens. We put them in the horse trailer and left them there for days. The Ranch Boss set traps hoping to nab the intruder and let us feel safe to put the chickies back. But we never caught him. For weeks we didn’t catch him. By this point we figured he had gotten frustrated and moved on.

So we put the chickens back. They were happy and we were happy to have the few eggs they were laying. The kids and I were stalwart in doing the nightly egg gather and chicken lock up, always careful make sure there was no way a chicken could escape or a creeper to get in.

But one morning we heard the bad news- the last of the chickens had been attacked and killed. We felt defeated. We lost all 18 chickens. And all this boiled down to one conclusion- no more fresh eggs.

To appease your curiosity, we did find what got the chickens. There was a mink that had escaped the mink farm in town and trekked down to our chicken coop.

Now we know that we need to beef up our chicken coop to prevent any unwelcome visitors for getting their dinner. And until next spring when the next batch of chickens comes in we will buy eggs, coloring eggs as The Rancher’s Sidekick calls them (apparently white store eggs have only one purpose!).

Checking Out the Calf Crop

October 14, 2014 by Allison

Every time we look out towards the fields we see the beautiful green speckled with the black of the calves. Its a beautiful sight… Actually, the contrast of the beautiful green with the black really is pretty. But there is a different beauty. The beauty of a year’s hard work. The beauty of the rain that has blessed this valley with the feed we desperately need. The beauty of the healthy calves eating and energetically running through the field. Truly, a beautiful sight.

Throughout the week, we will take several trips through the calves- checking the feed, the mineral and salt, and the overall health. Its a little routine, but at the same time its a fun little drive we take as a family. We spend a good part of the time yelling at the dogs to not chase the calves (who invites the dogs anyway?). That usually follows with them trying to jump on the 4 wheeler, where there is NO room for any extras. Just picture the Beverly Hillbillies… Now that the calves are really beginning to settle in, they have become quite curious. They’ll follow us around or chase the dogs, but as soon as we make a sudden move they take off to the other end of the pasture, just to turn back around. Any typical curious child, right?

These calves have really taken to the mineral and salt that we have been putting out. We are doing everything we can to supplement their feed so that we can get them all the nutrients they need for healthy growing. That means that on a lot of our family drives through the calves we are also loaded down with bags and bags of mineral. How is the picture you are creating in your mind? No, no one has fallen off…yet… But do go so far as to imagine that dumping the mineral in the troughs is a highlight for the kids because it is SUPER fun to play in!

This is the time of year we take a little pride in the hard work we have put throughout the year to raise this calf crop. A little drive through the calves has such a sweet smell of satisfaction!

Vaccinating in the Rain

October 10, 2014 by Allison

We gathered… we sorted… we weaned… we hauled… and then we vaccinated. Not all ranchers do it, but we do. Its like with kids- not everyone has to, not everyone chooses to but we think its well worth it. There are two times a year that we have all of the calves gathered up that we can give them their vaccinations- branding and weaning.

In the few years that we have been back to the ranch this is one of those areas that I have really jumped in to help. Maybe that was because the first year we weaned I was big and pregnant and that was about all I could do. But there is the nerdy medical side of me (the one that likes to think that I can be part of the at-home-vet crew) that likes to give shots… I don’t know why I’ve settled myself in here, but I did…

Having the new chute was so nice. So so SO nice! It was fast, it had an awesome neck bar so I could give shots without my hand potentially getting hurt, and even better we didn’t hurt any calves like we have in the past with the old chute. Thanks Moly Mfg. for the Silencer!

One of our vaccinating days we had to wait for a break in the rain. Lucky enough we got a few good hours of dry work in before the rain stared again. But the rain didn’t dampen any spirits. Especially any of our little helpers. These kids of mine love to come and help and don’t mind being hours at the chute with bawling calves. In fact, they each find a hot shot or a stick and find a place to poke the calves as we go through.

It was a great few days vaccinating, but its great that its over. They’ve had their booster shots and now its time for them to grow, grow, grow!

Weaning Anxiety

September 30, 2014 by Allison

Oh weaning… A time that we love and hate. I should say I and not speak for the others. I love the days out riding, sorting and working the cattle through the chute. It’s awesome to see the growth that they’ve had over the summer and the satisfaction to see your hard work paying off.

But there is a flip side. Weaning is stressful on calves. It can be super stressful. Ideally you don’t change terrain or feed too much. You try to not work them too hard or even haul them long distances if you can manage. But when your calves are NOT at the home ranch you bite the bullet and do all those things. The hard thing is stressed calves can turn into sick calves. Sick calves don’t eat so well. Sick calves can become super sick calves. And super sick calves can die. What we don’t want…

Whatever we are doing, whether it’s sorting, moving, vaccinating or feeding, we take care to keep these calves running healthy. We only have to make it 45 days (give or take) and in that time we pack on the pounds and keep all healthy so we can turn a good profit. These calves are our payday… Now dont think I’m talking about getting rich off these babies. What I’m really talking about is earning enough to keep doing what we love.

So for the next month or so, there is a little more tension, a little more anxiety, and a lot more prayers that our efforts everyday haven’t been in vain and that we can continue this cowboy living.

Throw Back Thursday: Cattle Drive From May

September 11, 2014 by Allison

Remember that terrible cattle drive? That one where there were more cows out in the fields than on the road… I wish I didn’t… That adventurous day was day one of two of our cattle drive. I know what you are thinking (ok maybe you’re not thinking this…) that if day was so bad, day two must have been horendous and that is why I have to do a little “throw back Thursday” to catch you up on it.

Nope, on all accounts. Day two went as smooth as… it was GREAT! Granted, we did have a good road to follow, fences on all sides, lots of cowboys, and a shorter drive. But hey, it was good! We will take it any way that we can!

And lets say we learned a little from day one. The Rancher just started the day with a motor bike. We called up The Buckaroo who brought along his sweetheart and a bull whip. Both highly useful, just one more so than the other (just to be clear, his girl really is quite the cowgirl!) And I opted to not try a photo shoot on the run. I went with the 4 wheeler, kids and camera- its a lot less pressure!

Moving Cows on a Wonderfully Rainy Day

September 1, 2014 by Allison

You know that we are desperately in need rain. Every time we have a cattle drive means that we come home covered in dust. Somewhere there always seems to be a trough that runs dry. The feed is so dry and not so palatable (not that I would want to eat yucky dry crusted wheat!) that those blasted cows are out all the time. That all equals some pretty intense praying and praying for rain.

We have had a great answer to those prayers. In the last two weeks we have had 3 inches of rain. THREE! Its been amazing! There was so much rain that we were having flash floods… all over our freshly cut hay. With the fields so wet we couldn’t even haul out the bales… with out getting stuck. We found that out the hard way. There was so much debris and water coming down that we had some intense back hoe work to be done to get the water following in fine fashion again. The ground was so saturated that any bit of rain turned into a flood.

But we were so thankful for the rain that none of that mattered. It didn’t even matter that we had hundreds of cows to move seven long miles… we are just so happy for the rain! It was muddy and cold… but so wet!

Haying on the Ranch

August 11, 2014 by Allison

The Rancher is out baling tonight. I told him that I was going to bed… but I have some pictures that just need to be put. Its 10:30 pm and he’s out baling, while I’m in bed writing about it.

We started second crop last week, slowly. We have been blessed rain this week. Not a lot, but enough to slow down progress. We did have a little hay down-its what happens when the weather man cries wolf too many times. He says that its going to rain, it doesn’t, we cut hay. Most of the time that works out but not this week.

94.7% of the time we have to work around Mother Nature’s unplanned schedule. We work around the storms, rake and clean up after the wind, and bale at night when the dew is on (or should be on… Its why I never have baling pictures!). We could just do it when things are convenient. The boys would get a lot more sleep, but we believe in doing things right. Even when Mother Nature tries to throw a kink in the mix.

Making the Cut When it Counts

July 22, 2014 by Allison

This summer is just flying by! I feel like we just barely moved cows up to Badger Hole last week… Ya, they are already long gone from that range! Sadly, I am just now getting to share it to you.

The ride to Badger Hole is pretty easy. That’s why The Rancher’s Sidekick got to go… They just follow the road for a few miles and then, ta da! We’re there.

Once we get there the cows bury their heads in the grass and totally forget about their calves. Ya, know… the typical thing they do once they get to greener feed. We like to hold them there at the water for a bit until they settle in and remember their calves. We’ll sort the pairs off slowly to make sure that all the calves have found their mommas.

Towards the end of sorting we have the less than smart cows left that try to give us a fight. Those ornery cows just don’t want to be bothered! Crazy at it may sound, it makes it a little fun. The cowboys have a chance to do a little cutting and show off some real cowboy skills! There is such a rush when you take off after a cow and have to stop in an instant to change directions. With a good horse that knows how to move you just slide down in the saddle, glue yourself in, and let her do all the work! I love watching a horse that knows what to do. You can see it in how she follows the cow with her ears pinned back, how she spins on her back feet or stops on a dime. Mmm… It makes me swoon just thinking about it!

Cutting athleticism at its finest! Watching a cowboy and his horse working together, making split second decisions and moving fast and smooth out on the range, watching out in God’s arena the way it was meant to be- making the cut when it matters.