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Friday morning cattle drive

Soapweed

Well-known member
We trailed a bunch of yearling heifers home from where they spent the winter. They were synchronized and AI'ed this past week.
Trailingyearlingheifershomethismorn.jpg

Trailing yearling heifers home to our pastures
Acoupleprettyhorsesalongtheroad.jpg

A couple pretty horses along the way
Anothershotofthem.jpg

Another shot of them
Prettyflowersalongthewaybutisitawee.jpg

Pretty flowers along the way, but is it really a weed?
Theroadhome.jpg

The road home
Cloudsandsoapweeds.jpg

Clouds and soapweeds
Cheatgrassandsoapweeds.jpg

Cheatgrass and soapweeds
Heretheycome-1.jpg

Here they come
Boredcowboy.jpg

Bored cowboy
Stillbored.jpg

Still bored
Comingdowntheroad.jpg

Coming down the road
Thecowboycrewfollowingtheheifers.jpg

The cowboy crew following the heifers
GoingbyasignthatIhelpeddesignforane.jpg

Going by a sign that I helped a neighbor design many years ago
Thesouthwindishowling.jpg

The south wind is howling
Raininginthedistance-1.jpg

Raining in the distance
Backyardrainbow.jpg

Backyard rainbow
 

IluvAltaBeef

Well-known member
I like the pics. I think those purple flowers almost look like purple loostrife (sp?), a notorious weed that is illegal up here in AB that is known for choking out indigenous plants. That's a wild guess, because it's kinda hard to tell in the pic.
 

Tap

Well-known member
Kudos to you and your crew Soapweed for doing things the cowboy way, when Lord knows it is not always the easiest way, but it will always be the most efficient way. Might as well leave home horseback cause if you have to do anything difficult you will have to go home and get your horse anyhow. :)

It can be done other ways, but not nearly as efficient. :!:

Good photos too.
 

Cal

Well-known member
Tap said:
Kudos to you and your crew Soapweed for doing things the cowboy way, when Lord knows it is not always the easiest way, but it will always be the most efficient way. Might as well leave home horseback cause if you have to do anything difficult you will have to go home and get your horse anyhow. :)

It can be done other ways, but not nearly as efficient. :!:

Good photos too.
Yep, good pics! But if something is not easy how can it be most efficient? After sending the last trailer load of hay burners (my definition of a horse) to the sale barn a number of years ago I have yet to come across a situation where I wish we had them back, quite the opposite actually. Just this afternoon I roped one of the earlier calves that had an infected tag, off a 4wheeler using the rope inside the pvc pipe method and had the tag cut out and calf let loose in less time than it would have taken to saddle a horse and all the screwing around it entails. But that's just me; generally lacking in sentimentality and nostalgia and way short on time.
 

Soapweed

Well-known member
Cal said:
Tap said:
Kudos to you and your crew Soapweed for doing things the cowboy way, when Lord knows it is not always the easiest way, but it will always be the most efficient way. Might as well leave home horseback cause if you have to do anything difficult you will have to go home and get your horse anyhow. :)

It can be done other ways, but not nearly as efficient. :!:

Good photos too.
Yep, good pics! But if something is not easy how can it be most efficient? After sending the last trailer load of hay burners (my definition of a horse) to the sale barn a number of years ago I have yet to come across a situation where I wish we had them back, quite the opposite actually. Just this afternoon I roped one of the earlier calves that had an infected tag, off a 4wheeler using the rope inside the pvc pipe method and had the tag cut out and calf let loose in less time than it would have taken to saddle a horse and all the screwing around it entails. But that's just me; generally lacking in sentimentality and nostalgia and way short on time.

By using horses in our ranchwork, we combine work and pleasure. I really think our cattle stay more gentle and easy to handle because they are "messed with" a lot, with us going slow and easy on horseback. A little over two years ago, I bought 37 cows that were "four-wheeler specials." They were very wild and hard to handle. After being in our herds of gentle cows for the past two years, and being worked horseback, they are now almost as gentle as our own home-raised cattle. The time we spend horseback in fence corners, sorting steer calf pairs from heifer calf pairs, is time well spent as far as keeping our cattle docile. Gentle cattle are quite appreciated in feed yards, because they spend their time eating and efficiently gaining weight instead of continually being on the move.

I guess the object of being in a hurry to get work done is so a person can have time to go do something they want to do. We aren't in too much of a hurry, because by being horseback we are already doing something we want to do. :wink: :)
 

Cal

Well-known member
Soapweed said:
Cal said:
Tap said:
Kudos to you and your crew Soapweed for doing things the cowboy way, when Lord knows it is not always the easiest way, but it will always be the most efficient way. Might as well leave home horseback cause if you have to do anything difficult you will have to go home and get your horse anyhow. :)

It can be done other ways, but not nearly as efficient. :!:

Good photos too.
Yep, good pics! But if something is not easy how can it be most efficient? After sending the last trailer load of hay burners (my definition of a horse) to the sale barn a number of years ago I have yet to come across a situation where I wish we had them back, quite the opposite actually. Just this afternoon I roped one of the earlier calves that had an infected tag, off a 4wheeler using the rope inside the pvc pipe method and had the tag cut out and calf let loose in less time than it would have taken to saddle a horse and all the screwing around it entails. But that's just me; generally lacking in sentimentality and nostalgia and way short on time.

By using horses in our ranchwork, we combine work and pleasure. I really think our cattle stay more gentle and easy to handle because they are "messed with" a lot, with us going slow and easy on horseback. A little over two years ago, I bought 37 cows that were "four-wheeler specials." They were very wild and hard to handle. After being in our herds of gentle cows for the past two years, and being worked horseback, they are now almost as gentle as our own home-raised cattle. The time we spend horseback in fence corners, sorting steer calf pairs from heifer calf pairs, is time well spent as far as keeping our cattle docile. Gentle cattle are quite appreciated in feed yards, because they spend their time eating and efficiently gaining weight instead of continually being on the move.

I guess the object of being in a hurry to get work done is so a person can have time to go do something they want to do. We aren't in too much of a hurry, because by being horseback we are already doing something we want to do. :wink: :)
I actually think that the speed at which cattle are approached has a good deal to do with their reaction, and is something that one must be attentive of irregardless of what you're sitting on. At this point our cattle pay very little attention to ATVs and would be unaccustomed to horses as they are dogs. Other than that we probably are guilty of having too many other irons in the fire and really no excess of help. You can have the last word; I'm out of here at 3a.m to go trucking.
 

movin' on

Well-known member
Boy, I could not disagree with Cal more. Maybe I haven't been around the right person on the right four wheeler? I get "beat" by a cow one out of one hundred times on a horse. If I had a cattier horse it would be even less than that. Nearly every time I try to push an animal on an ATV or a pickup I get beat one hundred times! There are reasons feedyards use horses and not four wheelers. I think most of those reasons are beneficial on the ranch also. I can have my horse saddled in the time it takes a fellow to switch from forward to reverse on his four wheeler! OK, OK, that might be pushing it a little. Soapweed, we do all the moving of our cattle horseback and the labor and time and expense we save more than feeds those horses. With fuel costs continuing to rise plus the fact that truckers dislike 5-10 mile hauls, it would probably be $10-20 dollars a mile to move cows from stalk field to stalk field to grass, etc. A couple hours and some great memories is all it "costs" us now.
 

Tap

Well-known member
I need to move cattle here directly Cal, but I will take a quick shot at answering your question better. When I said working horseback might not always be the easy way, I was referring to the length of time it sometimes takes compared to just flying around the backside of the pasture and hoorawing the cows to the gate. I have been around a few guys that can handle cattle fairly well on a 4 wheeler, but most push way too hard on the cattle, because they have no feel for the "animal" (4wheeler) they are riding, compared to if they were on a horse. When I work with others on 4 wheelers, and I am horseback, I leave on a trot or lope, and never am able to leave that gait until the job is done. Even when the cattle are bunched, it mostly has been that way. I am not saying it cannot be done right your way, but people have the natural urge to push too hard because they do not realize it.

On our operation, the way we calve, etc. lends itself to working horseback. We have structured things to where time is not always everything to us. I do very little off the ranch for pleasure, and I know you don't either, but I am not going to be an old man and realize that I was not able to look back and say I didn't enjoy the hell out of my life. We work hard too, but I like to have fun at the same time. I could add more, but I need to get out of here.
 

Jassy

Well-known member
Sure has been nice weather for moving cows these last couple of weeks hasn't it? I like your "bored" pictures Soap...lol I haven't taken the camera with me lately cause I'm not coordinated enuff to handle it..the pup..and the horse...but I'm gonna try it again one of these days...The skies sure make for some awesome backgrounds...Great pictures again...

2cents worth....we use horses and ATV's and dogs...all have their place and importance when needed. Every situtaion that comes up is handled by the best way possible. Alot of the times when we have the long moves of the big herds we use all 3 and get along just fine...It works for us. :wink:
 

Cal

Well-known member
movin' on said:
Boy, I could not disagree with Cal more. Maybe I haven't been around the right person on the right four wheeler? I get "beat" by a cow one out of one hundred times on a horse. If I had a cattier horse it would be even less than that. Nearly every time I try to push an animal on an ATV or a pickup I get beat one hundred times! There are reasons feedyards use horses and not four wheelers. I think most of those reasons are beneficial on the ranch also. I can have my horse saddled in the time it takes a fellow to switch from forward to reverse on his four wheeler! OK, OK, that might be pushing it a little. Soapweed, we do all the moving of our cattle horseback and the labor and time and expense we save more than feeds those horses. With fuel costs continuing to rise plus the fact that truckers dislike 5-10 mile hauls, it would probably be $10-20 dollars a mile to move cows from stalk field to stalk field to grass, etc. A couple hours and some great memories is all it "costs" us now.
Don't feel bad, some people just ain't cut out to be good drivers, and a low end ATV is about as worthless as a Shetland Pony. The stores around here don't even carry tack anymore, and I just spent the last few days driving truck, and sure see alot of ATVs in the back of pickups. We run a pretty fair size cow herd and almost never "get beat" by a cow. And moving a bunch of cows, whatever the distance, isn't a problem....and the ride home is plum easy and as fast as you want it to be, with time left over to do something else like move another bunch of cows.
 

Cal

Well-known member
Tap said:
I need to move cattle here directly Cal, but I will take a quick shot at answering your question better. When I said working horseback might not always be the easy way, I was referring to the length of time it sometimes takes compared to just flying around the backside of the pasture and hoorawing the cows to the gate. I have been around a few guys that can handle cattle fairly well on a 4 wheeler, but most push way too hard on the cattle, because they have no feel for the "animal" (4wheeler) they are riding, compared to if they were on a horse. When I work with others on 4 wheelers, and I am horseback, I leave on a trot or lope, and never am able to leave that gait until the job is done. Even when the cattle are bunched, it mostly has been that way. I am not saying it cannot be done right your way, but people have the natural urge to push too hard because they do not realize it.

On our operation, the way we calve, etc. lends itself to working horseback. We have structured things to where time is not always everything to us. I do very little off the ranch for pleasure, and I know you don't either, but I am not going to be an old man and realize that I was not able to look back and say I didn't enjoy the hell out of my life. We work hard too, but I like to have fun at the same time. I could add more, but I need to get out of here.
Tap, we're probably just greedy, but you know that we've got other ventures going on than just cattle that need our attention, and time around here is a valuable resource. Do you think that cattle not worked on horse are normally stressed? Some of the most inhumane treatment to cattle that I've ever witnessed was dished out by some guys on horses, which don't deserve the title of cowboys or men IMO, and the wildest were off the reservation which never saw anything motorized. IMO there's good and bad with however cattle are worked and it's pretty much dictated by the people working, not their method of transportation.
 
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