sw said:
Now come on JB, just cause I have to push calves into the table for awhile. I'll get the MCG to do most of the work, take some pictures, have some medicine and eat, it will still be fun. We did get to rope his calves a couple of years ago, got done too fast. some people just do things their way, who am I to say what's right or wrong. Leads me to a story, I used to work on an outfit that ran about 1600 mother cows. The manager made us use a table, branding would take about 8 or 9 days, miserable long days. One day while moving the table to another part of the ranch to do another bunch, me and my buddy developed a plan. I was driving a flatbed pickup with the table on the back, he was walking a dozer over to make a flat spot to put the table on in front of the chute. Something went haywire :roll: . the table fell off of the truck and he was going so fast with the dozer, he did not see the table and ran over it. :wink: All we could do after that was rope those poor calves to get them branded, had to use the inner tube method cause we didn't have much help, but it sure beat fighting those little buggers into that table. The next year we still had to use the inner tubes, the manager still would not give us any help but we sure had more fun just doing our job. :lol:
Good thinkin' pard! :lol:
Reminds me of the time I was at Medora when Waddie Mitchell was on the show. Several of us were visitin' in a motel room and we got to talkin' about brandin' as Medora is always Memorial Day weekend. Waddie mentioned that he had been going to so many poetry gatherings that he hadn't even got his own cattle branded yet, "But, I did help brand about 4000 head so far this spring," he added.
"Pushed them all thru' a table, I suppose", I asked?
"Oh, yeah sure. , " was the response.
He then told this story.
"We still neighbor in our part of the country. We go around to everyones places and work the cattle. Hold them up in a rodier and a couple guys get afoot and get a fire going and then we head an heel them all.
We had a guy from one of them states back east come and buy a ranch. Seemed like a nice guy and we noticed that when we branded, he always just held the bunch or ran a vaccine gun. Never roped.
The day came to brand at his house and there he stood whith his brand new calf table. Just as proud as punch.
A couple guys got a 4 wheel drive and a chain and drug it to the junk pile.
He took it real well."
I don't care if someone wants to use a calf table, forks or chicken wrestle them. I try real hard not to help those who chicken wrestle or use a table. I just ain't much help afoot. :shock:
And don't get me wrong, if thats the way people want to work their cattle, that's fine by me. I just don't enjoy it that much and to me, this is what it's all about.
Yesterday we headed and heeled about 180 calvers. We sure didn't have to, but it worked well and we sure all enjoyed it. Makes you try a little harder to throw good loops and keeps the traditions alive so the younger guys can learn how to do it this way. I just loved it!
I was telling a guy about it today and he thought it must have been a rodeo or a wreck. He was amazed when I told him that we had a good crew and most had been around this before and that when you have that combination, things go pretty smooth.
Hell, it ain't work, it's a celebration of spring and all the long days of sloggin' thru' the mud and the muck and looking forward towards the warmth and growth of spring and summer. Dang near romantic!
Just my opinion and I don't want to ketch hell from any of these wise acres on here, neither!
And, I did wrestle a few calves today. :wink:
We were using forks and wrestling the singles. Funny how them single footed calves they drag out always seem to be on the bigger calves. :wink: :lol: :wink:
You have fun on Sunday and while I am helpin' another neighbor, I'll think of you and smile, ol' buddy.
