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Checking heavys in the fog>

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leanin' H

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Today i went with my neighbor to check on his cows on winter range west of the Great Salt Lake. Its 80 miles north and a little west. When we arrived we found fog to greet us. You could see about 1/2 a mile at times and less at others. Most of the pictures today are of the country. Heading west up a draw on the Lakeside mountains looking for getting ready to calve bovines of the mostly Angus ancestory.
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The lower country didnt get enough moisture at the right times and the grass was pretty much disguised as dirt! :shock: But the higher we rode the better it looked.
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Scott on a paint gelding that can go all day and not miss a beat. I have never saw that pony get tired. He packs one of everything in those saddle bags: sringe, bottle of anti-biotic, tags, tagger, pulling chains, handles, boluses, sueter kit, piggin' strings and a prod pole in a pvc pipe scabbard for changing minds of cows who get fiesty!
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We made a 10 or 12 mile loop up into the clouds. The cows are scattered some chasing the best feed and earning a honest living.
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Being that close to the Salt Lake ya can smell the old salt in the air. Like being near the ocean cept a tad colder. :D
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The south facing slopes were nicer to ride on. The north ones were frosty and rocky and tricky. Lost a litttle hide off my mare's hock in one little skating episode.
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Scott talking on the two-way to some folks riding lower in the brush flats. He runs 200 head out here and has people come help when they can.
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Lots of ledges and rocks! And some grass!
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Couldn't see too far in spots! Still had fun and saw a lot of country when ya could see!
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When we found cows they were in little pockets. We only saw 20 or so on our loop. They found 80 lower on water.
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The herd shouldn't start till the 15th of feb. but one ol' gal dropped early. Nice heifer calf doing well. Dabbed a loop on and gave her an ear-ring. Didnt do to well taking pictures till i was astride the calf awaiting a tag. Momma looked me over good but left me intact!
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She was with a little bunch of cows who watched with mild intrest. Nice pocket of grass.
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Took this one after we dropped back down to the trailer. We'll try to ride every Saturday and tag as many as we can from here on out! You all are welcome if yer in the nieghborhood! :D
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When i got home we had to give two cute girls a lap aroung the place. Little H and her younger cousin. See ya later!
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Beats checking heavies in a blizzard! :D Your pics made me tired looking for a calf...and then we didn't even get to see one :lol: . Does your neighbor have a place to put heavies in bad weather? Looks like a nice day for a ride. Reba looks like she got a good workout. Thanks for taking us all along :D .
 
Thanks for the pictures. Looked like a successful day.

I had a few pictures, but messed up in downloading them. Then I erased them off of the camera thinking they were where they should be. A word of warning to the rest of you--make sure the photos are where you want them before you let them escape from your camera. :roll:
 
that's big beautiful country for sure leaning H,thanks for the picture story,wish me and my ole gray mule was close enough to ride along.
good luck
 
WyomingRancher said:
Beats checking heavies in a blizzard! :D Your pics made me tired looking for a calf...and then we didn't even get to see one :lol: . Does your neighbor have a place to put heavies in bad weather? Looks like a nice day for a ride. Reba looks like she got a good workout. Thanks for taking us all along :D .


Sorry bout missing the actual "action" of the day. But who wants to watch me miss one loop, catch the second and get snot blown on me by a worried mamma? I was so discombobulated after getting the new gal tagged, i forgot to take her pict! :???: It's tough to get good help! As for the place to put heavies if it snows....... that would be everywhere we went today. The cows do prettty well for calving unassisted in the middle of a desert. He lost 13 out'a 200 last year. The snow usually doesn't get really deep and the ridges give cover and wind blown slopes for finding groceries! :D It is a nice winter permit!
 
cold or warm? looks like there would be some pretty nice views...don't forget the camera next Sat.! :wink:
 
Looks like you had a day just like the rest of your days.......wanderin' around with your head in the fog. Good thing for you that you have guys that will take you along and keep you out of trouble. :roll:
Thanks for the trip buddy. :wink:

On a serious note, when do you usually have green grass? In my way of thinking those calves should be coming with the grass or shortly before in that type of operation in order for the mamas to do the best job possible.
Just asking.
 
gcreekrch said:
Looks like you had a day just like the rest of your days.......wanderin' around with your head in the fog. Good thing for you that you have guys that will take you along and keep you out of trouble. :roll:
Thanks for the trip buddy. :wink:

On a serious note, when do you usually have green grass? In my way of thinking those calves should be coming with the grass or shortly before in that type of operation in order for the mamas to do the best job possible.
Just asking.

We get a little green grass from mid April to early June. Then it gets hot and starts turning. In a perfect world they'd calve then and get the benefits you mentioned. But in order to get weaning weights up to ship as weaners in October you almost have to start calving now. Cattle in this country gain flesh after weaning and into early winter. The majority of the rest of the year they are maintaining or sluffing off! :( That's what we get for running cattle here. But ya gotta dance with who brung ya to the ball! :D We can't all live in the land of milk and honey my Friend! :wink:
 
leanin' H said:
gcreekrch said:
Looks like you had a day just like the rest of your days.......wanderin' around with your head in the fog. Good thing for you that you have guys that will take you along and keep you out of trouble. :roll:
Thanks for the trip buddy. :wink:

On a serious note, when do you usually have green grass? In my way of thinking those calves should be coming with the grass or shortly before in that type of operation in order for the mamas to do the best job possible.
Just asking.

We get a little green grass from mid April to early June. Then it gets hot and starts turning. In a perfect world they'd calve then and get the benefits you mentioned. But in order to get weaning weights up to ship as weaners in October you almost have to start calving now. Cattle in this country gain flesh after weaning and into early winter. The majority of the rest of the year they are maintaining or sluffing off! :( That's what we get for running cattle here. But ya gotta dance with who brung ya to the ball! :D We can't all live in the land of milk and honey my Friend! :wink:

I don't think very many of us live in a land of milk and honey, every place has it's merits and drawbacks. If what your friend is doing makes him money then he can't be going too far wrong.
My experience here in the cold wet desert is that there is a line where calves will keep growing from birth and where they will stand still or even kind of stunt themselves if mama isn't producing enough milk. We moved calving dates here from mid-Feb to Mar 10 to Apr 1 in the last 15 years. Sacrificed about 35 lbs on average and have a lot less inputs.
When we started we were leasing a ranch along the breaks of the Fraser River. We started caving there generally the day the cows went to grass- Mar 10. Fragile, semi-desert bunchgrass in the spring, timber grass during the summer and back to bunchgrass in the winter. One year we fed 17 days. That was a good place but there was no chance of ever owning it and the int. rates were a might high back in the early 80's so we came and hid out in the swamps.
 
Sure looks like some tough country.That first shot looks like the desert around Las Vegas.
 
Mother Nature is pretty tough to beat for doing Feed Efficieny Trials and testing for backfat and such. The cream would certainly rise quickly to the top in that country. The rest would spoil just as quick, too.

Thanks for sharin' LH.
 

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