Bye Bye to Big Boy the Bull

StickyAngus, Bull, Cattle, Cow-calf

It was a sad and exciting week on the Lazy J Ranch. Big Boy the Bull has moved to a new pasture with lots of new ladies waiting for him. While Big Boy did a great job leading our herd and increasing calf production, it was time for a different direction on the ranch.

Big Boy was a protective leader of our herd and yet very gentle with the new calves. It was fun to watch him interact with the herd and with us. As big as he was, he would still snuggle up next to you if you had cow candy to share. He loved being brushed and rubbed. However, if he needed to, he could show you how big and tough he was!

Big Boy was purchased by a local rancher and friend who has taken him to his herd. He will be joining a herd of Brahma heifers where his services will produce beautiful Brahma calves. He followed Jason right onto the trailer, but as the trailer drove out of the pasture, Big Boy turned his head and looked back at Jason and Charlie. It makes you wonder what he was thinking! It was sad to see his gentle spirit leave the ranch.

Big Boy gave us lots of nice looking calves, but we decided that we wanted to move forward to a homogenous herd – one where the bull, cows, and calves are all black Angus or Brangus. Our plan is to purchase a black Angus bull soon which will produce black calves with shorter ears.

Jason and a fellow welder will spend the next week building a new pen for the new bull with all kinds of bells and whistles. Whatever it takes to keep the bull happy. Stay tuned for pictures of the progress.

Fun and Games

StickyBull, Cow-calf, Family, Ranch Horses

There is a lot of hard work that goes on at the Lazy J Ranch – but there’s also time for fun and games! From fishing to driving the side-by-side to saddle surfing, there’s always something to do.

The horses have been a fun addition to the ranch. We are trying our best to spoil Spirit and Charley the best we can. We’re learning about feeding, shoeing, and brushing the horses. We’ve ridden some, but it has been so hot that we didn’t want to stress them. (I told you we were spoiling the horses!)

We were told to be aware that sometimes horses and cows don’t get along in the same pasture, but we haven’t experienced that. The new calves were curious about the horses the first time they were in the pasture together and the horses were very patient with the calves.

The calves are interested when we go to the barn to feed the horses. Big Boy and some of the cows greeted me outside the barn when I went to feed the horses one morning. The calves decided to investigate what was going on inside the stall gates. Then, Skipper and Rocky Raccoon decided to play hide and seek from around the corner of the barn with me. Rocky likes to go out and greet Charlie for ear scratches and head rubs.

It’s fun to be able to interact with the animals and share these experiences with family and friends. Taking photos are something I like to do to share fun times and new things that we’ve learned along the way. Selfies are always fun with the herd and horses!

We work hard and we play hard here at the ranch and we love it!

Time Flies When You’re Having Calves!

StickyCattle, Cow-calf,

It’s hard to believe that so much time has gone by since the last post where Buck and Roy were first introduced. It wasn’t long before Sven, Elsa, Cookie, Oliver, Kristoff, Bunny, Midnight, Ana, and Flower arrived to complete Crop #4.

It was different with this crop. Because of the ice and snow, we lost two calves born during that time. We suspect that several of the cows had miscarriages, perhaps also caused by the harsh weather. With baling hay, moving the herd between pastures, and so much rain, we did not have the same amount of time interacting with these calves. We watched them grow and play and some were very curious about us and the dogs. But we were unable to develop the strong bonds as we have before. Not long ago, it was time to take the calves to market and start planning for Crop #5.

One thing special about Crop #4 was Genesis, who was the first calf born on our ranch, had her first calf, Kristoff. These are photos of Genesis and Kristoff and Mama 47, Genesis, and Kristoff.

As the saying goes, “Time marches on.” More next time on what’s been going on at the Lazy J Ranch!

Calf Crop #4

StickyBull, Cow-calf

It’s hard to believe that Calf Crop #4 has already started on the Wheeler Lazy J Ranch. Buck was born at the end of December. Patches, his Mama Cow, had some health issues so we had kept her in the holding pen near the house. It was nice having Buck so close when he was born and for his first weeks. Buck is the first calf bred by Big Boy the Bull born on the Ranch.

A couple of weeks later, Rose, gave birth to Roy, a healthy bull calf also bred by Big Boy. Rose was not in the pen and hid Roy for several days before joining back up with the herd. We would find Roy and then Rose would hide him again. It was like a “Where’s Waldo” game!

It’s fun to watch these two bull calves. Buck is pretty laid back and likes to follow Joni (the white yearling in the herd) around. Sometimes he runs and plays, but not like Roy. Roy loves to run and frolic. He’s so curious about everything around him. He is beginning to explore the other cows in the herd.

We are expecting up to 9 more calves due in February and March for this Spring crop. We are looking forward to welcoming these calves. I must admit that the occasional harsh winter temperatures worry me with the little ones on the ground. We are so thankful that Jason isn’t afraid of the freezing temps!

God has created these animals to take care of themselves and each other in all types of weather. We are simply stewards of the land and animals. We are going to do the best we can to protect them and help them thrive.

Welcome to the Herd!

StickyCattle, Cow-calf
Charlie and I knew that once the cows began calving that the size of the herd would explode. Well, that explosion began at the end of July. Since then, we have welcomed four calves to the herd. It is interesting to watch how the different cows act during pregnancy and then act as new mothers. It is also interesting to see how each calf has a different personality almost from the moment they are born!
Wheeler Herd Calf Album – Summer 2020

Calf #1 – Cosmos

Cosmos was tiny when she was born and loved to curl up on the grass. She has long legs and definitely has the Brahman influence in her body shape. She is a little shy but loves to play with the other calves.

Calf #2 – Hanna

Hanna was jet-black when she was born showing her Black Brangus heritage. She is curious about everything and everyone around her! When you talk to her and she looks straight at you and wiggles her ears! She loves to run and frolic with the other calves and yearlings.

Calf #3 – Champ

Champ is Calf #3 and a bull calf. He had a very difficult start having to be pulled from his Mama. But he toughed it out and has hung on to life. His hips were stiff from his rough birth, but he’s walking better now and even running. Now he’s having difficulty acclimating to heat. He’s a big boy with lots of fat and fur consistent with his Hereford father. He needs to be a champion to acclimate quickly to this hot and humid East Texas environment. Mama Cow is doing her best to take care of him. We are helping out also as we can.

This afternoon, Charlie found Champ in the woods unconscious but breathing. He was able to wake him up and he immediately went to his Mama and began to nurse. That was a good thing. Charlie contacted our cowboy and vet for advice on what could be going on. Both felt like it was heat stress causing the issue. They both recommended that we continue to watch and hope he acclimates to the heat soon.

Charlie spent the rest of the night reflecting on this and shared that he has gained a new appreciation for those that have worked in this industry for most of their lives. As he said, “You can do all the right things and try to be a good steward of the land and livestock but in the end it may not be enough.” We are working hard to help this little guy make it!

Calf #4 – Bess

Charlie noticed a little white face in the pasture this afternoon while looking over the herd and doing a headcount! We found Bess just moments after she was born. She was already up on her feet and walking circles around her Mama! When the other cows came up to see the new calf, Bess took off walking toward them to introduce herself to them. She is very outgoing! Her Mama was a nervous wreck trying to keep Bess reined in and close to her! She was relieved when Bess finally decided to lay down in the shade of one of the tree and rest. Mama was then able to lay down and rest also.

We are excited as we await the arrival of seven more calves within the next month with the possibility of three or more after that. It is a joy to see the additions to our herd and see how God created such nurturing instincts in these mother cows.

Stay tuned as photos of more calves are added to the Wheeler Herd Baby Album!

Big Boy the Brahman Bull

StickyBull, Cow-calf,

After working the cows last month, the discussion of expanding our herd came up. Cowboy J. was telling us about a nice-looking Brahman bull that belonged to one of our neighbors. Originally, our goal was to buy a black Brangus bull to lessen the Brahman look from our Brangus cows. Charlie had even done a lot of homework about where to buy and talked to several ranches. That plan was put on the backburner after we had two visiting (not invited) bulls during the Fall. Our goal changed to finding out which of the cows were bred and taking care of their prenatal needs. We had put the idea of buying a bull off for a bit, but now we needed to talk about it. Charlie and Jason talked about breeding the cows with a Brahman bull. Charlie and I talked about breeding the cows with a Brahman bull. Jason and Danielle talked about breeding the cows with a Brahman bull. Finally, Charlie and Jason decided to talk to our neighbors and meet Big Boy.

We knew that Big Boy was a full-blooded Brahman bull and that he was halter-broke and could be walked around the pasture with a halter and rope. So far, he has bred small calves that grew quickly after they were born. This is important because some of our herd will be heifers (first-time to be bred) and it is usually better if their calves are small. Of course, you don’t want them to stay small so growing and gaining weight quickly is beneficial. We found out that all of his calves have been heifers (so far) which is good for us since we are building our herd with heifers that will become cows which give us more calves. Steers go to the sale barn to buy more cows and heifer calves!

Today was the day of transition. A portion of our common fence was cut and a temporary gate put in and Big Boy was walked into our pasture. He came in and quickly found the “ladies of the pasture.” Charlie and Jason were able to work with him by giving him mineral cubes. Thanks to our neighbor for taking the pictures of him with Charlie and Jason!

We’re looking forward to what the future holds with Big Boy as part of the herd. His immediate task is to find the three cows that need to be bred which will ensure that all 14 cows are bred with hopes of 14 healthy calves being born!

Working and Weaning

StickyCattle, Cow-calf

Once again, it was time to work the cows and wean the calves. Charlie and Jason discussed the meds to use this time for the injections and fly control. Charlie purchased the supplies and gathered together the equipment. Jason checked over the supplies and grabbed a few more. It was a nice cool morning which made it more comfortable for us and for the cows branding was on the agenda. We had gathered all of them up in the pen the night before and, as you can see, they didn’t really suspect anything was going on…until the cowboy drove into the driveway. Could they really remember the sound of the motor of his truck???

Working the cows went relatively smoothly including the branding and palpating. 11 of the 14 cows are bred. (Plans are being made for the 3 that aren’t bred.)Once the cows were finished and let out to the pasture, the calves were taken care of and kept inside the pen. Stevie Nicks, Annie, and Joni Paycheck were the last three calves born and the time has come for their weaning. Looks like they were wondering where all of the cows had gone! The calves made their way to the trap in the pen where they had last been with their Mama Cows.

Joni and Annie came to see us at the fence, but Stevie (in the background) was already bawling. Joni found her way to the fence where her Mama was. Mama wasn’t happy that her baby was locked inside the pen! She has been a very good and protective Mama. In fact, the next few mornings she came to the fence by the house and moo’ed to us. In fact, the first morning after the other cows wandered off after their morning cubes, she laid down at our fence. Since we have three cows to breed still, the decision was made to add Genesis to the pen with the calves. She is a yearling and we aren’t ready for her to be bred. She has had a calming effect on the calves. For the most part she has been happy with the creep feed, cubes, and extra attention she has been given, but isn’t particularly happy to be locked up again. She will definitely be the leader of this pack!

All of the calves are eating cubes from our hands and we walk among them several times a day to help them become accustomed to us. Our approach to raising cattle is to take good care of them and treat them as gently as possible which is accomplished by handling them often with care and respect.

And the Cow Jumped Over the…Fence!

StickyCattle, Cow-calf, Gardening,

Last weekend as I was contemplating what to write about, I was coming up with a blank. The vegetables planted in the tubs were beginning to sprout, but with so much rain the strawberries and watermelons weren’t going to be planted in the ground.The roses are blooming.

The grass in the pastures is growing and the cows are happy to be grazing. What was I going to write about? And then it happened….

 

Charlie received a call from our neighbor that several of our cows had been out in his pasture, but had gone ‘home.’ I had been outside several times that morning and had not noticed anything odd. But as we walked down the fence line, 20200405_121510we saw Lily Cow out of our pasture. Remember that Lily is our visiting cow that jumped into our pasture after a different neighbor had unloaded her into his pasture from a stock trailer. Apparently, she jumped out of our pasture and during the process broke a section of the fence. 20200405_121508Charlie grabbed tools to repair the fence and our cows seemed curious about what he was doing. I kept telling the cows that Lily was bad and this wasn’t the place for them to be. The blooming honeysuckle on the fence line was telling them otherwise!

But back to Lily Cow who was grazing outside our fence. She followed me from the neighbor’s pasture, along the fence line, into our backyard (by the garden), along the fence line in the front yard, all the way to the gate at the road going into our front pasture. You should see all of hoof prints all through our property in the muddy grass! 20200405_123158Lily made her way to the spot where she had first jumped (and broken) the fence. The three calves had been following Lily around all week and we were afraid that she would teach them how to jump the fence! What an exciting afternoon!

Guess who we discovered out of the fence on Monday morning!! We coaxed her back onto our property to keep her safe until her owner could make arrangements to pick her up. He had already been there on Sunday afternoon and started making plans to pick her up in a couple of weeks. She wouldn’t go in our gate so we closed our gate at the end of the driveway. She was ok with that until our cows went across the creek and she wanted to join them. Lily Cow walked up to the fence at the road and jumped over that fence and headed down the road where our cows were. I walked down the road and she followed me back to our front yard. Thankfully, she was off the road. I went inside to get back to work and Charlie went to take care of his tasks. After about two hours, we walked outside to see our cows coming back across the creek to the pasture beside our house. Guess who was with them! Somehow and somewhere, Lily had jumped back into our pasture. 20200406_152524After all of that jumping and walking, she was exhausted and had settled down for a nap! We didn’t see where she came in and couldn’t find any broken fences.  Needless to say, Lily’s owner came over along with a cowboy to take her home. She wasn’t too happy being loaded into the stock trailer and taken home. I must admit that Tuesday morning, I wouldn’t have been surprised to see her in our yard or pasture. However, she is now behind an eight foot tall wildlife fence. We’ll see if that can keep Lily the Jumping Cow at home!

On our horizon – working the cows for shots, treatments, pregnancy checking, and branding (of the new cows) AND weaning the three calves. Charlie and Jason will finish preparing the pens this weekend and everyone in the family is ready to come help with the cows and calves at the Wheeler Lazy J Ranch. Maybe when it dries out, I can finish planting the garden!

Time To Garden

StickyCattle, Gardening,

20200328_115932It’s been almost a month since we moved the cows to the back pasture to give the front pasture time to rest, recuperate, and grow. And grow it did! With all of the rain, the grass was tall, green, and lush. The cows are enjoying grazing in the tall and tasty grass. They are also enjoying being closer to the house, so they can enjoy Kimmie’s Cow Candy at least once a day. Soon we’ll be ready to wean Joni, Stevie, and Annie. Those details to follow.

During this last week, I have found two bird nests on the back porch, a box turtle that Shadow pointed out to me, and a huge green frog hiding under a timber that I moved. I have worked on planting seeds for vegetables and transplanting seedlings that I started a month ago. Some of the plants are in the ground – cantaloupes, pumpkins, cucumbers, beans, tomatoes, strawberries, and watermelons. Others are in pots and large tubs that Charlie helped me move and fill with soil. I’m trying several varieties of lettuce this year, along with spinach, onions, carrots, and sweet peas. And last, but not least, sweet and jalapeno peppers. I’m hoping for lots of fresh salads and homemade salsa!

We’ve worked on the ‘front yard’ by adding walking stones for a walkway from the driveway to the front porch, added more roses to the front bed and rearranged the mums and calla lilies. The goal for this next week is to add stones to the front bed border. More grooming and “fixin’ up” coming soon!

Over the last couple of weeks, 20200328_120733we moved from hay pastures, to gardening, to cows and calves! Stay tuned to see what’s up next!

New Year Surprises

StickyBull, Cattle, Cow-calf

There are many strategies among ranchers with cow-calf operations. Our goal is to have all of our cows on the same cycle where they will go into heat, breed, and calve at the same time. This insures having a consistent calf crop which makes it better when you take them to market.Our goal was to buy a black Angus bull in the Spring to breed with our cows. Charlie had even spoken with several ranchers that sell bulls. Sounds practical and efficient, right? But we all know that things don’t always work out as we plan for them to – Life is full of surprises.

Curly 4One morning in November when I walked out toward the herd, I noticed a white patch in the middle of the cows. I walked a bit closer, thinking that this was just the sun causing a glare and making my eyes see things. However, as I walked closer, it was apparent that we had a visitor in our herd. A very handsome red Hereford bull had come to visit our ladies. Mr. Curly (as named by Natalie because of the white curls on his head) was very happy to be among 14 cows that were looking for male companionship. It took a few phone calls and we found which neighbor Mr. Curly belongs to. Curly 1Charlie talked with him and it was decided to leave Mr. Curly in our pasture to ‘finish the job’ since he had already messed up our schedule of putting a bull out in March with the cows. Soon we will do a pregnancy check on the cows and see how many are bred. We would expect to see Black Baldies – Black Brangus with white markings on their heads. But some could show up with the red from the Hereford. Curly and CalvesTime will tell and I’m not really wanting to be patient to find out! As you can see, the calves being weaned were very curious about our visitor!

We also have another visitor to our herd. Her name is Lily Cow. Same neighbor bought a cows but she decided to jump the fence into our pasture when they let her out of the livestock trailer. She was pretty tame with the neighbor’s wife, but was not ready to be rounded up. Lily Cow is making herself at home with our herd. She stands out because she is a white and reddish tiger stripe with black dots on her forehead. The dots on her head made me think of the inside of a flower plus she is a tiger stripe cow so I came up with Lily Cow. Charlie and Jason have restructured our working pens now so when we gather the cows up soon to work them, our neighbor will be able to come and collect Lily! I think his wife is anxious to get her back. I’ve been taking care of by hand feeding her cubes. Can you spot Lily Cow with the other cows?

Come back for more calf adventures next post!

A Season for Everything

StickyCattle, Family, ,

As the book of Ecclesiastes says: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” So many things happened here on the ranch after the last post back in May. There was “a time to be born and a time to die.” We discovered that two more of our original five heifers were bred and there were hopes that they would give Genesis (#1 calf) some siblings. Unfortunately, #60 (yes, that’s what we called her) had difficulty with her birth of a bull calf. He was simply too large for her to give birth to. We thought we could save her and we did our best doctoring her for a few days, but she decided the journey back to health was too long and hard. She was under a tree close to the house and we stayed with her for many hours. Even Shadow would go out and lay down with her. She simply closed her eyes and went to sleep. Then just a bit later, the third heifer went into labor and had issues. Charlie and Jason stayed with her until the early morning hours when she hid herself in one of the thickets. We found her the next morning and unfortunately she had lost her calf – another bull calf. She had an injured back leg but we were able to nurse her fully back to health. Melissa was here that weekend also to help out with #64. (Yes, that was her name.) It was a true team effort! We learned a lot about the bulls that you choose to breed your cows, breeding heifers, and breeding cows and have made plans to go a different direction when the next breeding cycle begins. We also learned the value of hiring an experienced and knowledgeable cowboy. Cowboy James taught us so many things about taking care of a sick cow with his know-how and his compassion.

Since the last post in May, the first five bred cows that Charlie bought have calved and the five calves that he bought have grown. They all have names because that makes it easy for me to keep track of them…and it’s fun! So much has happened since May, but I like to divide the posts by year so I can create a book from them. While this will be the ‘official’ last post for our second year on the ranch, there is much more to share. Stay tuned!

Here are some photos to enjoy so you’ll know the names of the calves too! (Click on each photo and it will pull up a larger image!)

Growing Pains

StickyCattle,

It was just a year ago that we purchased our first five heifers. Now we have one cow, one calf, and four heifers that we are waiting to determine if they are bred. Genesis_5.19We are fairly confident that we will have 2-3 more calves, but only time will tell. Our goal for our cow-calf operation was to have a herd that was on the same calving schedule. It makes it easier to manage a herd if the calves are born around the same time. With Genesis (calf #1) coming in January and no others showing up yet, we were trying to determine the best method to meet our calving schedule goal. After talking to some local cattle raisers and a broker, we decided that our next purchase would be bred cows that would give birth about the same time as those that we already have.

On Tuesday, Charlie went to a ranch that came highly recommended to look at bred Brangus cows. We thought we would try to find ten cows to grow our herd. 6 + 10 = 16 (with future calves) sounded like a good formula. Imagine my surprise when he sent me a text saying he had bought 5 bred cows and 5 cow-calf pairs. 10 cows + 5 calves = 15 new head!!

To prepare for these new cows, Charlie and Jason plus a couple of friends built a new pen with chute. The plan was for the cows to be delivered and unloaded into the pen where they could stay for a while until they settled down from the ride to our place.

What really happened was the driver didn’t want to drive into the pasture and back up to the pens. (He had several reasons why.) He decided to back partially into our gate, let out the five calves and then the ten cows. He assumed that the young calves would huddle around and wait for their mamas to come out of the trailer. Boy, was he wrong. Those calves, all being 30 days old and younger, went c-r-a-z-y! The two older ones ran out into the pasture but then headed back to the fence line. Shadow herded one of the calves to keep it in the fence. One managed to find its way out and was in the area by the fig trees where Raya was. 0430191138bIt was just standing there when Raya was trying to walk up to it. We scooted it back into the pasture. However, the oldest calf – a black Brangus steer – hit the driveway and headed out to the road. As I made it to the road, I saw not only the black calf but a tan one following it! Charlie and the driver took off after the two runaways in the side by side and found one in the neighbor’s pasture and the other one pasture down. So the phone calls began to call the neighbors to help round the calves up. The tan one found its way back to our pasture shortly – listening to the mama cows billowing. We were afraid that it was going to take more effort to get the steer back, but soon he was in the pasture next to ours. Our neighbor was able to rope it and was leading (pulling) it back to our pasture. Charlie, on the other side of the fence, was trying to guide the steer and did a great job because the steer looked at him, put his head down, and plowed over Charlie knocking him to the ground! Charlie wasn’t hurt but discovered how much power a 200 pound calf has! All 5 calves were safe and sound in our pasture.

When we checked on the new members of the herd after dinner, we could only find 3 calves! It was a warm day and it had been a strenuous day for them so we were hoping they were bedded down in the woods where we couldn’t see them. Several friends told us to be patient because even though calves might stray, they would always come home when their mamas called for them. And, they were right. Charlie went out for a headcount on Wednesday morning and saw all 10 cows and 5 calves, plus the original 6.

In the afternoon, we went out to check the herd. The new group was back by the pond figuring out the best shady spots.

After dinner we drove out to see where all of the cows and calves were. We found the ‘Original 5 + 1’ in the front of the side pasture and the new herd members in the back of the side pasture. DSCF7436We parked next to the Originals and watched them and talked to them. It was in no time that the new cows began walking toward us bringing the calves with them.DSCF7461 They came close enough for me to take some great shots. DSCF7484One of the Originals let out a loud ‘mooooo’ while facing the newbies. She has done this several times! She’s the one that I call “Sassy Pants!” It didn’t stop them from coming closer.

After a bit, one of the cows decided it was time to move on and began walking to the back of the pasture again. All of the new cows started following her and her calf except for one cow. The youngest calf had decided that it was time for a nap. Her mama stood there beside her and then started nuzzling the calf until she woke up, stood up, and then followed her mama to the others.

It’s hard to believe that our herd has grown by leaps and bounds in such a short period of time. 5 cows + 1 calf (Genesis) + 5 bred cows + 5 cows + 5 calves = 21 head.

Now the question is how many calves will be born and when!

Winter Weekend Camp 2019

StickyCattle, Family, Land

Winter Camp took place at the Wheeler Ranch with Maddie and Gianna staying here for a long weekend. The first day had such pleasant weather! DSCF6790Jason and Raya came over to visit and work with the cows. I walked out onto the front porch and this is what I saw.

While we were waiting for our hay bales to arrive, Charlie bought some alfalfa which the cows really like! He and Jason decided to give the herd a treat this morning so Raya and Gianna could help take care of the cows.

While Gianna was very comfortable working with the cows, Raya decided that she needed to stay in the back of the side by side.

Raya was very curious about the herd until Mama Cow came to visit!

Gianna learned what a ‘cow stick’ is and how to use one this weekend. We may have a future veterinarian on our hands!

I think Shadow and Genesis are curious about each other because they are about the same size. Although, Genesis is quickly outgrowing Shadow! They get close to each other…but not TOO close!

Genesis the calf was very curious about the empty mineral bucket that day. She nosed it and nudged it until she turned it on its side and she could roll it around. After all of the exercise, she needed a nap on the hay.

DSCF6871Maddie wasn’t as interested in the cows this trip. Instead, she wanted to explore the creek and she wanted Kimmie to hike and explore with her. The weather on Day 2 of Winter Weekend Camp was not as pleasant as Day 1. In fact, it was completely brutal!

We bundled up and headed to the creek. Gianna went on the adventure with us also – sporting another one of our UH beanies! The bright red makes it easy for me to spot the grandkids when they are out roaming! Shadow was not going to be left behind!

She loves when the grandkids come to visit! I cannot even begin to say how many layers of clothes that I had on! I felt like the blueberry kid in Willy Wonka or the little brother in Christmas Story!

It is pretty easy to make it down the creek since most of the foliage has lost its leaves. Unfortunately, thorns do not fall off of branches in the winter!

There is a rope bridge that the girls discovered last summer. They didn’t need it to cross the creek during the summer, but it certainly helped with water in the creek!

We found the spot where Maddie and Emory buried a Barbie in the creek bed. Well, she thinks we found it. DSCF6853The creek was pretty dry during the summer when they buried their treasure. She thinks this is the spot of the ‘buried treasure.’ Maybe Maddie and Emory can check it out this summer.

 

 

As we crossed the creek, we found another treasure – the herd!

They seemed to be very curious as to why we would be crossing THEIR creek! Gianna and I walked over to ‘talk’ with ‘the ladies.’ We were having a very informative talk about bovines. Of course, Shadow was with us! Then it was time for more creek exploration.

DSCF6883

I’m not sure what this made this burrow in the creek bed, but we quickly walked by.

And then it was time for some competition between the girls. Who would come to the end of the tree line at the creek first?

 

Maddie and I continue to hike down the creek but Gianna went to Grandad who had come to check on us. I think she was recruiting him for her team! She crossed the creek and brought him back to us. DSCF6886Maddie kept forging ahead until she broke the tree line. She was so proud of herself and wanted me to take a victory shot of her!

When it was time to head back to the house, the cows followed us home! DSCF6890Notice Charlie’s layered clothing. It was seriously wet and cold that day! As we started back, we noticed the calf was left behind at the creek. Charlie, Gianna, and Shadow went to check on her. Charlie showed Gianna how to split up and each of them walk Genesis back toward the front of the pasture. The calf made it to the road and trotted away from them. Shadow took over then and drove her back to the rest of the

herd. I wonder what the cows were thinking. They were not bothered at all with all of the commotion. Maybe Mama Cow was telling Genesis that’s what happens when you don’t stay close to me!

Maddie wasn’t wild about feeding the cows mineral cubes so I had her be our photographer. I’m not sure why she doesn’t like having minerals mixed with cow slobber all over her hands! Gianna certainly doesn’t mind cow drool, cow snot, and methane gas. I think I look like a giant raspberry – but the cows don’t seem to mind as long as I share ‘cow candy’ and rub their foreheads!

It was an extremely cold weekend. We’re all getting tire of wearing rain boots and walking on mushy ground. Spring must be around the corner though. The robins have flown north and the daffodils and narcissus in the pastures are in full bloom.

Maddie’s Gallery

I gave Maddie my camera for part of our hike to take photos and she did a really good job! Here are some of her photos.

Genesis of the Herd

StickyCattle, , ,

As summer turned to Fall and Fall into Winter, we had a long list of jobs we wanted to do here on the Wheeler Ranch. Paint the chicken coop, paint the porches, paint the pipe fence – do you see a pattern here? Projects that began in the summer needed time to let the wood cure. Unfortunately, between rain and football games, no painting happened in the Fall. Winter arrived with more rain and painting was once again delayed. Spring is around the corner now and, while our list of tasks keeps growing, we’re looking forward to warmer and drier temperatures and being able to work outside. There are a few daily tasks to keep us busy including checking on the herd, feeding them, and surveying the pastures. Tuesdays include a trip into town for Charlie to go to the Sale Barn to look at the cows and calves.

Something exciting brightened our dreary winter days in January – our first calf was born. We weren’t certain if our heifers had been bred during their time with the black Brangus bulls. Since this is all new to us, we relied on books, the Internet, and experienced cattle raisers to help us learn all we could about cows and calving. Charlie and I suspected that one of the heifers was getting close to a delivery date but expected it to be a couple of weeks away. The way that she walked across the pasture reminded me of what it felt like to be nine months pregnant! DSCF6530One morning, Charlie went out for his morning check of the pastures and “the ladies” but quickly came back to pick me up. As he headed up the hill, he had noticed one of the heifers standing off by herself and, as he drove closer, he saw a little fuzzy black bundle on the ground beside her. DSCF6496

Although, I’ve been better about not naming our herd, I knew the first calf needed to be named! What better name than Genesis! This calf was officially the beginning of our cow-calf operation! DSCF6865We have watched her grow, play, and interact with the other cows in the herd. She was born a deep shade of black, but seems to have a tinge of red on the tip of her coat. We suspect that several other calves are on the way. It would be nice to have playmates for Genesis. DSCF6813She and Shadow are curious about each other but have yet to get too close to each other. It has been very interesting to watch how the cows and heifers in the herd have reacted to the new mommy and her calf. If they sense danger, they will circle around her. Some of them will groom her. As Genesis has grown, she seems comfortable snuggling up to the other cows. She quickly learned who we are and that we bring the hay and mineral cubes either to the fence or with the side by side. She loves to run around the hay bales and then jump head first into the hay bale!

Just a few more photos of Genesis from Day 1 to a few days ago.

Charlie and I are looking forward to what the upcoming months hold in store for us here on the Wheeler Country Road.

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To Market, To Market, To Sell a Fat Calf!

Cow-calf, Market

Well, the time has come for this crop of calves to go to market. Last Friday, we separated the ten calves from the mama cows and loaded them in the livestock trailer. The calves were actually pretty calm during the entire process. Charlie, Jason, and a friend separated them and I talked to the calves as they were loaded in the trailer in small groups. The calves were licking my fingers and letting me rub their noses. Once the trailer pulled out of driveway, Jason let the cows out of the pen and back into the pasture.

The cows left the pen quickly, but the ten mama cows came back shortly to inspect the area and find their calves.

Then they started calling for the babies.
Then they went into the pens to look for them.
Then they called out some more.
Then they came to the fence to talk to (fuss at) us.
Then they quieted down.
Then it all started up again.

The Jersey/Holstein (JoJo) and one of the other cows came all the way inside the inner pen looking and crying…I mean mooing for their calves. (JoJo was Tank’s adoptive mom after he was abandoned. She took really good care of him. She is a good Mama Cow and was missing her Tank!)  Charlie gave them all mineral cubes (Cow Candy) and ear rubs, but as soon as we walked back to the house, they started mooing again. Jason said that they were all going to be hoarse in the morning!

The next morning, those ten cows were still in the pasture around the pen. They had mooed all night long. By that evening, all but two of the cows had moved to the back pasture with the rest of the herd to the bales of hay that Jason had put out.  JoJo was one of the cows that stayed up front. By the next afternoon, all the cows had moved to the back pasture.

Charlie and I went up to the sale barn to check on the calves. They were all in their pen just as calm as they could be and happy to see us. We had time for ear rubs, chin rubs, and finger licks. Champ and Tank came right to us. Hannah was being her usual drama queen self and was laying in the feed trough! The calves had been like a mini herd inside the big herd here at the ranch. They played together, fought over the feed trough, and rested together and that appeared to make a difference when they were at the sale barn. The calves in the other pens around them were pacing and nervous. Perhaps having six steers and only four heifers helped the emotional level of the herd. I had one more talk with the calves about how big they were and how it was time for them to go into the big world! I know they listened to me!

Charlie and I are very proud of the way these calves look and act. They look healthy and have a nice body condition. They are calm and not skittish – very even tempered. It is evident of the good care they have been given here at the ranch. We feel like we have accomplished our goal of raising the best calves that we could. It will be an exciting day when they go to auction and we see how well they perform and how they give back to the ranch so more calves can follow their footsteps.

Memorial Day Fishing

Family,

What better way to enjoy Memorial Day than by spending time fishing. Here are some photos from our afternoon at the pond. (You can click on the photos for a larger view.)

The cows and Big Boy didn’t seem impressed with our fishing efforts since we didn’t have any cow candy to share with them.

The Growing Herd

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After a month in the pen, we decided that the three calves were weaned and ready to return to the herd. When Charlie opened the gate to let them out, they just ignored him. He was able to get Genesis’ attention and she walked over to him and then out of the gate into the pasture. Annie followed suite, but when she walked through the gate she kicked up her back legs and jumped out. Joni must have thought that would be fun and she did the same though and kicked up her back legs to bounce out of the holding pen. I thought that I was going to have to get into the pen to coax Stevie out, but by the time I climbed over the fence she was headed to Charlie to walk out the gate. It didn’t take long for Genesis and the three calves to walk over to the herd and mingle right in. Joni was the only calf that tried to nuzzle with her Mama. Mama Cow was very quick to push her away and let her know that she was a big heifer now!

Big Boy has acclimated in well with the ladies in the herd. At first, when they wandered from the other side of the creek in the morning for cubes, he would stay over there. Now he wanders with them wherever they are going. Or may they are wandering wherever he goes. It’s interesting to see them at the water trough. When there are several cows at the trough, they will sometimes push one another out of the way. When Big Boy shows up, he walks up to the trough and they simply let him walk right up and make room for him.

Big Boy’s job has been to find the three cows that haven’t bred yet and take care of business. After watching him for a couple of weeks, he seems to be trying his best to do his job. We’ve noticed him spending time with each of the three. We’ll know soon if he was successful. Our calving time is expected to be between mid-July and mid-August. Hopefully, we will have 14 healthy calves.

Coming up on the ranch…hay baling! The pastures were fertilized and sprayed for weeds in the Spring and the grass is growing very well. So well in fact, that the pastures will need to be baled soon. This will give us hay for our herd as well as sell some like we did last year. Stay tuned for more details.