Some Cows and Some Calves (pics)

[randiliana]

Took some photos over the last few days of the cows. Here you go.

Took salt out to one pasture. There are 21 pair here, and they certainly like their salt, they had been out for about 2 weeks.

First one there, man, this is good stuff

Uh oh, better hurry up

Git, this is MINE!!

Slightly outnumbered

The red calf belongs to the red cow in the very first photo

I think, that I like this girl

Short grass prairie

Another sweetheart

My very favorite heifer calf

And, some steers, they are all in that 600 lb range now.

 

[leanin' H]

Really like your calves! Do ya always salt near wtaer? Out here on the desert we put it away from water and up on the ridges to pull the cattle out of the bottoms to utilize the feed better. But whatever works! Just was wonderin'! :wink:

 

[randiliana]

Depends on the pasture. This one, the water hole is in the middle of the pasture, so we don't worry about it. Plus, we rent that pasture, and the owner (well, her children) complain about the bare spots if we move the salt around. On some of our other pastures, where the water is at one end or the other, we move the salt around more.

 

[Soapweed]

My theory is to put the salt bunk where there is already a bare spot, preferably near water. Otherwise, wherever you put the salt bunk, the cows will wreck good grass and make a bare spot. If the cows get salt near water, they will drink more water and then they can stay out on grass longer. :wink: They always seem to have a knack in finding the available grass anyway, with their wandering habits.

 

[Northern Rancher]

I usually put my salt blocks in a willow bunch or a thistle patch-some guys throw some clover seed out there too.

 

[Triangle Bar]

Very nice stock! That short grass sure packs on the pounds.

I'm with Soap on the salt block placement...but I can't get away with it on my BLM ground. Those "range experts" moan & holler if they see a salt block anywhere within a 1/2 mile of a water source.

 

[gcreekrch]

We are discouraged also by the "experts" to place salt in a riparian zone so we salt in the timber on trails between meadows.

NR, an old rancher at Dog Creek where we got our start found a few patches of "weed" planted on his range, he claimed they made wonderful salting areas as all the debris had been cleaned up and the cows weren't in danger of stubbing their toes while licking salt.



Your cattle look really good Randi.

 

[Big Muddy rancher]

I like putting my mineral tubs in the buck brush or on juniper patches. The grass grows back the next year.

 

[per]

Your cattle always look good Randi. We use salt to keep aspen under control. Never the same spot twice and moved every few days. The bare spot is gone and better than ever next year. Sometime spray the trees with salt brine so the cattle eat the bark off.

 

[randiliana]

Thanks everyone. I'm quite pleased with the calves this year. It is amazing how selling of about 1/2 the herd really improves the calf crop the next year 8) .

Down here we don't really have any great amount of brush to worry about, at least not on those pastures. Trees are few and far between :wink: . Weeds, can be a different story, but not out there. It is a pretty clean pasture over all.