The Ranch From the Wife's Perspective
Before the Christmas season is too far gone, I have one last photo to share with you.
Cowboys Pete and E were busy putting up lights on the fences, around trees, and along the house. Their decorating even made it into the corral along the barn. If only I could get a good picture of the cows standing under the lights like they do at night. Until then (which is most likely to be next year) we will have to enjoy this view of them!
Feeding cattle can seem to be a simple thing. Just spread some hay out there and the cows will be good, right?
Nope. You have to realize what hay is- it is energy and nutrition. This is how our cows get all of those essential vitamins and minerals and the calories for energy. There are things that will affect the quality of nutrients in our hay, things like the soil it is grown in, the amount of water it gets while it grows, and lots of other stuff.
After we grow our hay we (or our friend, The Cenex Man) usually take forage samples and have the hay analyzed to determine its quality, especially the quality of the vitamins and minerals. This is like our baseline for what our cows are getting and then we can know where we need to supplement.
About a year ago we really kicked in the supplementing game and oh boy it has made a difference. Our cows are in great condition and bred up better than they have in a while.
The nutrition of our cows is HUGE because it directly influences our calf crop- a healthy momma is more likely to get bred on her first cycle, which means she will calve earlier in the season, giving our calves a longer time to nurse. Her milk will most likely have more nutrients to pass to her calf to help him be stronger and healthier.
Ya, nutrition is SUPER important! ‘Feeding’ is a lot more than what it used to be when you consider that it includes putting out mineral, salt, and liquid protein.
And lets not forget that it is a great chance for this momma (that gets cabin fever WAY too often) to get out of the house. I guess I have my own reasons that I support the extra nutrition we give the cows!
Over the Christmas break our dear friends, the Davis Family, stopped by to see us and to see the ranch. We were neighbors in small town Parker, Idaho while we went to school. But with both of our families moving on after college graduations we get to be long distance friends.
While they were visiting we took a quick trip up Quaken Asp to deliver salt, mineral, and protein. It is fun to experience the ranch with others- their reactions to the cows, the poop, the scenery… the poop.
The Rancher’s Sidekick shared a little more than the rest of us. He shared a taste of the salt we were putting out to the cows! Every time The Rancher and his tagalong take salt to the cows, The Rancher’s Sidekick dips his little finger in the salt for a taste. And every time it tastes salty- surprise! He invited our friends to taste along with him. Oh how we love to share the ranch, every bit of it!
I love winter. Pretty much everything about. The colder temperatures are so nice after a hot summer.
Winter time is calving time and there is something special about new babies.
I even love myself a little blizzard once in a while. I’m a hopeless romantic- the idea of being snugged up by the warm fire during a blizzard sounds so lovely. (Don’t let The Rancher read this… I might get in trouble by saying this out loud…)
But I especially love looking out over the ranch and seeing it covered in blanket of snow. Or the trees that are frosted and twinkling in the sunlight. Mmm… I love me some winter scenes.
Working on the ranch is a family affair. Partly because we all love to be out there but also because we need all the man (and woman)-power we can get. That usually means we get kid-power too because wherever I go, the kids go. So when we vaccinated the calves, The Rancher’s Sidekick came too.
This little boy loves to be on the ranch and already can be a great helper. He even has his own paddle to poke the calves through the chute. And he can “hup” with the best of them. His size is never a factor- he just finds a way to climb up or reach whatever he needs.
But sometime he needs a break. So we pull out his tractors and cars and plays on his own ranch. Life is never dull for a little boy living on a ranch…
My holiday spirit has taken over my rancher’s wife spirit because I am praying for snow. You might wonder what- wanting snow has go do with being a good ranch wife… so I’ll tell you.
Actually its rather simple- when it snows it covers the feed. If the animals can’t find feed they get hungry. Therefore, we have to start feeding hay, something The Rancher really doesn’t like to do.
So I’m being a little naughty and hoping for more snow. Let the winter fun begin!
So I got a little ahead of myself, which means that I didn’t share the pictures from feeding the calves one night. So even though the calves are long gone, I am enjoying another look at them.
The calves go out on the old alfalfa when they are first weaned. Between their ravenous eating and the freezing temperatures, alfalfa stops growing. Once the feed is eaten down we load up the old two ton with some bails and pitch it out to them.
On this fine occasion it is Rancher Sr. and Cowboy Pete with the pitch forks.
Are you laughing at the title? Because what is the predictable Idaho weather? Ok, the wind, I will give you that. But everyday you can predict sun, clouds, wind, hot, cold, and most likely some sort of a storm and you would be right. We get them all nearly everyday.
Even on pay day. It started it a cold windy morning, then the sun came out, turning up the heat a bit. But it didn’t last long before the nasty sort of clouds came rolling in with some crazy snow flurries. Of course it was as we were loading the last semi of calves and finished as the last were loaded on the truck. Gotta love our Idaho weather.
I told you that we sold our calves, but I didn’t get to share everything from our day. Like that it took 5 semis to haul out all of those calves. Oh boy it took a while. Good thing we had some good help-the other Curlew Valley Cowboys. I think that they come to socialize and eat the cinnamon rolls, but we will take advantage of them being out on the ranch.
Last Monday we had a big day at the ranch. Its the day that we work all the other 364 days… yep it was sale day.
And really it couldn’t have gone much better. Our calf crop this year was really good, weighing in heavier than last year. After weaning, when it seems that we have the most sickness and loss, we had a lot of good growth. Having a great summer and fall with these calves makes this pay day so much sweeter.
Its almost an emotional day because it is a day that we have worked so hard for, for so long. We have camped out on the desert in the midst of feet of snow to keep alive through the winter. We have spent long days branding and marking calves. We have spent even LONGER days in the hot dusty sun moving the herd. Then there were more long days with the weaning. We have said some very earnest prayers for these calves to be healthy and to grow well.
Now we feel the relief, the success, the tiredness, and the drive to gear up for another year.
Hello! I'm Allison, The Rancher's Wife! There's nothing I love more than being out on the ranch with my husband and kids. Join me for a look at what goes on here at the ranch and the life being a rancher's wife!
