Branding Crews in Sask.

[Gomez]

Is there any leads or experience with branding crews in Saskatchewan? My crew is getting older and young wrestlers are getting tougher to find. If I am considering paying wrestlers why don't I just hire the whole crew? Beer and burgers isn't sufficient currency for young wrestlers these days.
Thoughts and advise?
Thank you

 

[randiliana]

Is there any leads or experience with branding crews in Saskatchewan? My crew is getting older and young wrestlers are getting tougher to find. If I am considering paying wrestlers why don't I just hire the whole crew? Beer and burgers isn't sufficient currency for young wrestlers these days.
Thoughts and advise?
Thank you

Haven't heard of any branding crews for hire up here. You have the same thing going on as pretty much any rancher. No young people that have time or the desire to do the hard work. It is the reason that a lot of people have gone to using calf tables rather than roping. It might take longer, but with a calf table, you don't need near as big a crew to do the job.

 

[gcreekrch]

Is there any leads or experience with branding crews in Saskatchewan? My crew is getting older and young wrestlers are getting tougher to find. If I am considering paying wrestlers why don't I just hire the whole crew? Beer and burgers isn't sufficient currency for young wrestlers these days.
Thoughts and advise?
Thank you

Haven't heard of any branding crews for hire up here. You have the same thing going on as pretty much any rancher. No young people that have time or the desire to do the hard work. It is the reason that a lot of people have gone to using calf tables rather than roping. It might take longer, but with a calf table, you don't need near as big a crew to do the job.

Our male calves are banded at birth so we don't have to tip them on the table. About 30% have horns to burn off. 2 vaccines, brand and implant the steers.
Ma and Pa at the table and a one person bringing calves up a short chute set up in the barn, we can average 50 to 60 calves an hour.

 

[Anonymous]

Is there any leads or experience with branding crews in Saskatchewan? My crew is getting older and young wrestlers are getting tougher to find. If I am considering paying wrestlers why don't I just hire the whole crew? Beer and burgers isn't sufficient currency for young wrestlers these days. Thoughts and advise? Thank you

Haven't heard of any branding crews for hire up here. You have the same thing going on as pretty much any rancher. No young people that have time or the desire to do the hard work. It is the reason that a lot of people have gone to using calf tables rather than roping. It might take longer, but with a calf table, you don't need near as big a crew to do the job.

Same thing down here-- finding young folks for wrestling crews is far and few between...So many Corporate owned outfits- or off ranch ownership....Some of the 4-H and FFA kids used to offer theirservices for a donation to their club (and slipping them a few dollars each) but anymore the liability insurance companies will almost disown you if they find out you are doing that... Lots of exchanged work still going on between ranchs- but because the national average age of ranch owners is almost 60--and many young folks going out to where they can make enough to live on- most all that show up for brandings want to be/ need to be ropers- and few wrestlers- so more and more going to tables....

 

[randiliana]

Our male calves are banded at birth so we don't have to tip them on the table. About 30% have horns to burn off. 2 vaccines, brand and implant the steers.
Ma and Pa at the table and a one person bringing calves up a short chute set up in the barn, we can average 50 to 60 calves an hour.

We used to rope, DH liked to do it the old fashioned way, but I finally put my foot down, and told him that either he helped with the cooking or we find a different way, after all I was doing as much as him with the cattle. He didn't want to cook......

This is pretty much the same way we do it too. Calves are banded and usually pasted at birth, so no tipping. The chute we use doesn't tip anyways. Then two people on the chute and one or two pushing calves. With half quiet calves it doesn't take long at all to get them all done.

 

[cowsense]

Gomez; We've got a new neighbour that does custom processing.......don't know the cost or how far he'd travel. Busy but ambitious young guy; starting a ranch; custom processing & renting of cattle equipment and is a potash miner as well! PM me if you want more info.

 

[RSL]

We don't touch calves at birth as it takes way too much time and is way too dangerous the way we run our cows. We use a tipping table as we have a neighbour, not neighbours like we used to have. A few outfits still have regular brandings, but when it takes the gross of a calf to pay for the beer it is not for us. We bought a new For-most self catch table this spring and even though it would be slow, 1 person could now process calves. I have nothing but great things to say about that particular table. We tip and knife cut the bulls, vaccinate the heifers standing, and breed the horns off a year ahead.
If you can find a crew that doesn't drink 'til the job is done, then I suspect things would work pretty well the traditional way.
Maybe when our slave labour (kids) get a little older we will rope and drag...

 

[gcreekrch]

Our male calves are banded at birth so we don't have to tip them on the table. About 30% have horns to burn off. 2 vaccines, brand and implant the steers.
Ma and Pa at the table and a one person bringing calves up a short chute set up in the barn, we can average 50 to 60 calves an hour.

We used to rope, DH liked to do it the old fashioned way, but I finally put my foot down, and told him that either he helped with the cooking or we find a different way, after all I was doing as much as him with the cattle. He didn't want to cook......

This is pretty much the same way we do it too. Calves are banded and usually pasted at birth, so no tipping. The chute we use doesn't tip anyways. Then two people on the chute and one or two pushing calves. With half quiet calves it doesn't take long at all to get them all done.

Are you sure you two aren't we two? :wink: :lol:


I also got tired of the self invited non-working group that showed up for free beer and meal. There aren't many that understand unwritten range etiquette anymore. :roll:

 

[randiliana]

Our male calves are banded at birth so we don't have to tip them on the table. About 30% have horns to burn off. 2 vaccines, brand and implant the steers.
Ma and Pa at the table and a one person bringing calves up a short chute set up in the barn, we can average 50 to 60 calves an hour.

We used to rope, DH liked to do it the old fashioned way, but I finally put my foot down, and told him that either he helped with the cooking or we find a different way, after all I was doing as much as him with the cattle. He didn't want to cook......

This is pretty much the same way we do it too. Calves are banded and usually pasted at birth, so no tipping. The chute we use doesn't tip
anyways. Then two people on the chute and one or two pushing calves. With half quiet calves it doesn't take long at all to get them all done.

Are you sure you two aren't we two? :wink: :lol:


I also got tired of the self invited non-working group that showed up for free beer and meal. There aren't many that understand unwritten range etiquette anymore. :roll:

Yep, I totally know what you mean, pretty much what happens here. Either you can't get enough help, or you end up with a bunch of freeloaders...... :twisted:

 

[Anonymous]

NOBODY wants to be invited to take thier turn at wrastling, or roping and dragging to the fire anymore ? ? ? ?

I guess 'nobody' bothers to read the classifieds anymore either.

Sign o' the times I guess...everybody is moving too fast to notice anything going on around them...people wanting help are too busy to notice those few who are left OFFERING help. :roll:

 

[per]

We use a table and also seldom tip it. Our back end crew are young town kids and the front end is old farts. It is fast and efficient and entertaining. I walk around and get in the way keeping everyone's thirst quenched and take pictures. There is an old style crew for hire here that does an excellent job using their family and 4H kids. I could be hired to get in the way and take pictures. :wink:

 

[Northern Rancher]

When and where do you need them? I can round up probably a half dozen guys that do 4-5000 calves a spring. Ours is the last one of the year so let me know and I'll run it by them.

 

[Denny]

I've got 6 kids 4 girls and 2 boys. The girls are good help and normally have some Boys tagging along.The boys have their buddies come along so it adds up quickly. Were lucky the neighbors all have a work together attitude. But I can Tell you where I'll be and who's place every saturday in May without asking. You guys should have been Catholic then you'd have enough kids to put together a crew.