JANUARY 27 Last week when Lynn and I took another big bale of hay to the cows above the house, I hiked through the deep snow and across the creek into the upper swamp pasture to check where Michael and Carolyn are wintering their horses. With the cold weather, the water holes have been freezing […] Read more
Good And Bad News In The Month
Tips On Using A Stomach Tube
There are times you must get fluid into a calf, such as a newborn that needs colostrum or a sick calf that needs fluid and medications orally. If a newborn is unable to nurse, the quickest, safest way to get colostrum into him is by tube. There are two ways to “tube” a calf. You […] Read more
Tips On Building Calf Barns
Calving barns are as individual as the ranchers who build them. There are many innovations worth looking at before you build your own. The ideal barn is different for every ranch. In some situations it may be a simple shed with room for two or three cows — just the ones that need assistance. In […] Read more
Use The Quiet Yet Firm Approach
Helping a calf nurse his mama is relatively easy in a small pen or stall, if the cow or heifer is not too wild and you have someone to help you. Our cows know and trust us and are easy to handle. One person can monitor the cow to keep her from moving away while […] Read more
Year Got Off To A Cold Start
DECEMBER 21 Last week we had several snowstorms and nine more inches of snow. Lynn went up the creek with Andrea and Rick to cut Christmas trees, and hiked through nearly two feet of snow to get to the trees. During a stretch of slightly warmer weather he got two tractors started, and moved them […] Read more
Tips On Getting Colostrum Into A New Calf
Calves usually load up on colostrum the first nursing, gaining a high level of antibodies and sufficient energy and nutrients to get them off to a good start. Then they may play or lie down for a nap, nursing again in six to eight hours. A calf that wants to nurse sooner than that probably […] Read more
Lease Rates Too High For Beef
NOVEMBER 25 Last week we moved our small group of cows back to the fields above the house, and let the newly weaned heifers into more pens by the calving barn, to graze the rest of that grass. They bawled a little, seeing their mothers leave; the cows had been in the field next to […] Read more
Family Gathers For Final Tribute
OCTOBER 30 Last week I rode with Michael and Carolyn to look for their missing bull — the only animal that didn’t show up on our range this fall. The last time he was seen was when we were moving cattle from the middle range to the high range. He was fighting one of Alfonzo’s […] Read more
Roundup And Weaning Completed
SEPTEMBER 24 The second ride to gather cattle from the range was another long day. I fed the horses before daylight, so Ed (the mare I’ve been riding) had time to eat before we left. Michael and Carolyn picked us up with their truck and trailer at the top of our lane. Farther up the […] Read more
Cattle Pump Their Own Water
Cold weather presents challenges for watering cattle, especially in areas with no electricity for pumps or tank heaters. Jim Anderson, at Rimbey, Alta., solved this problem by creating a system in which cattle pump water themselves from shallow wells, ponds or pressure systems using a watering system that never freezes even at -40 C. Anderson’s […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
