Old Fashioned Roundup--with Lee

Last weekend, the cowboys on the ranch held an old-fashioned roundup to mark and vaccinate calves. Usually this is done in the corrals with a cattle chute and a calf table, as seen in last year's post on processing calves. The old-fashioned way means that the cowboys have to go out, rope the calves and bring them to a processing area where a team does everything they need to quickly. There were 200 calves to rope. Here is a sampling of photos, with more to come in future posts.

This post focuses on Lee, our 90-year old cowboy. He was out there pretty much the whole time and was definitely one of the best ropers. It takes a bit of strength and flexibility to twirl that rope around, but he managed it time after time.

Most times the calves aren't very cooperative, and sometimes they require a bit of a chase. Lee's eyes are a bit worn out, but once he knew which calf he wanted, he could see just fine to rope it.

Once he roped the calf, it was time to bring it across the fenced area to where a crew was waiting.

The calf is preferably roped by two legs to make it easier for those processing to handle. More on processing in the next post.

I never saw Lee smile so much as during this day. He was certainly in his element. My husband reminded me that Lee won a saddle in a roping competition when he was 70, competing against all ages. Lee's wife said he enjoyed roping so much he used to take a month off each year to go do it. It's so great he had the opportunity to practice those skills again.

Here are a few more shots of Lee in action.
And here's a short video of Lee bringing in a calf, and then it being vaccinated, ear marked, and ear tagged.

Still Riding at 90

The other day when I was driving down the road when I saw something up ahead that caused me to slow down. Heifers and calves were being moved from one pasture to another, and doing it by himself was Lee, the 90 year old cowboy.
The new heifers and calves wandered over to visit the ones that had been moved previously. They also spent some time chasing Henry. He chased the cows for awhile, and then they started chasing him and he ran as fast as he could. It's quite humorous to watch.
Meanwhile, Lee was putting the gate up and getting ready to go home. Lee really wishes he was much younger and could do what he used to, but he can still ride better than me!

I'm always impressed with how much Lee has done, and how he's managed to keep doing what he likes best. I hope I can do what I enjoy when I'm 90.

Success!

We had success feeding the bummer calves. Desert Boy thought it was pretty neat to go back and visit the calves. They didn't seem to mind his company. They didn't even mind Henry, although Henry was more interested in chasing the ducks in the pond than spending time with the calves.

Nevertheless, he was on the lookout for any spilled milk.

A happy calf. Don't you love all that milk drool?

Desert Boy posing next to the calf. I'm not sure if it has a name yet--the main caretaker gets to name the calves. And often they become quite attached to whomever feeds them and will follow that person around or leave a group of cows to come say hi when they're older. Cows might not be all that intelligent, but they can be cute.

Feeding the Bummer Calves-Training

It's that time of year again when a few calves need to be fed by hand because they don't have mama cows to feed from for one reason or another. This year Cynthia is going to do most of it, but we tagged along for the training session because we'll be backup feeders.

First Dave showed us how where to find the bottles and how to fill them up with warm water.

Then he measured out the milk replacer. "Milk replacer" is a nice, simple, descriptive name. How come none of the baby formula manufacturers use it?

Next is the explanation about the nipples, with smaller holes for the younger calves and bigger ones for the older ones.

Finally, put the nipple on and shake it all up!

Desert Boy decides he wanted to get in on the action. He volunteered to carry the giant bottle out to the calf pen. He had to be told a couple of times that the bottle wasn't for him, no matter how much he wanted to give it a try!

Then Dave put the bottle in a holder to feed to this two-week old calf. She's a twin, and her mom only took one of her calves, so now she's growing up in the bummer calf pen. Our dog Henry is about the same size.

She's quickly adapted to her alternate feeding and is happy to eat.

This four-week old calf's mom died, so that's why he ended up here.

He's also a really good eater. There are several more pens, so as the calving season proceeds, probably a few more will be abandoned and brought in. It's sad to see them without their moms, but at the same time it's nice they have a second chance.

Tomorrow is our first day to go and give feeding a try by ourselves. We'll see how well we learned!

Unexpected Visitors

I was napping when I heard some heavy footsteps outside the bedroom window. I figured I was hearing cows, because they've been in the meadow below our house. They are heifers (first time mama cows), recently arrived with their new calves. I hoped that they were outside the fence, but when I peeked out the window, I saw one in the yard. And then another. And then I went to the kitchen and saw the view above out the window.

I grabbed the camera, because cows in the yard are usually a fun subject to photograph, and sure enough, this was no exception. This heifer went up to Henry's water dish for a drink.

Another heifer thought that might be a good idea.

I decided to open the door, and this is what I saw...

Hello, cow! It took her a moment to realize that she wasn't being invited in. Then she raced off the front steps and back into the driveway.

The heifers had come in through an open gate, but they didn't want to leave by it. So I opened another gate and gave them some room (and made sure Henry was with me). These heifers had come to visit because they were bored, but now they wanted to get back to their calves, so they didn't waste any time leaving through the gate and heading back to the meadow.

I enjoyed my extra bit of afternoon fresh air walking around the yard. Now I've just got to watch my step a bit more, because there are some extra fresh, juicy cowpies decorating the yard!

Shipping Hay

My husband was busy loading hay trucks for a couple days last week, with eighteen arriving. Usually hay trucks are flat bed trucks, but in this case, the trucks were the more common box trucks. That makes for some interesting challenges.

Here's the inside of an empty box truck. It's long, narrow, and only open on one side.

Here's my husband loading a couple bales of hay into it. They just barely fit width-wise.

Then he adds the third bale on top. That one's tricky to get in just right.

There's no space to spare, as you can see. The next step is to push the bales back enough so that some more can be loaded.

As the truck fills up, a second loader pushes the first loader to move the bales forward. They keep pushing until the loader wheels spin.

It's pretty amazing what can be done with heavy equipment.

Here are a couple trucks waiting their turn. Then they'll take their backhaul and be on the road. I wish I could get a glimpse of how they unload the box trucks--that seems tricky as well.

Checking Hay

We were supposed to have lots of rain last night and today, but so far nary a drop has fallen down in the valley. We have gotten plenty of wind, though. And in preparation for the supposed deluge (well, California and Reno got it), my husband has been working hard to try to get they hay up. Cut hay and rain are not a good combination.

Desert Boy and I went along one afternoon on a hay checking expedition. I've learned never to go on one of these trips unless I have some reading material and/or my camera with me. They're a little tedious and always take longer than my husband says.

I was content to stay by the truck, but Desert Boy wanted to go follow his Daddy, so he hiked out into the alfalfa field and started following him around.

Soon it was time to go check hay in a different row. Desert Boy likes to hold onto someone's hand (unlike his independent, younger cousin!).

He also likes to be carried, and he managed to convince Daddy to pick him up.

Then it was time to flip over some more hay and check its moisture content. They hay has to be just right to make the best bales.

Desert Boy sorta looks like he knows what he's doing!

Then it's time to head back to the truck. Desert Boy starts out walking all confident-like.

Then it's time to hold onto Daddy's hand.

And then the other hand.

And, uh-oh, he's convinced Daddy to pick him up again.

Apparently checking hay is tough work for a two-year old.