Category: The Ranch
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Beef Alternative
It seems like many people, including farmers, have found an alternative to beef. RABBIT. I am not to sure how commercially viable this idea is for ranches like mine. How many rabbits could I run per acre? How do I contain them? Gather them? How much labor do they take? Lots of questions. But maybe…
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Boyz
Well, we put the boyz out for the summer yesterday. Wish I had pictures but the camera is unavailable at the moment. We started real early because it was supposed to be warm and I was sure glad we did. They didn't give us any trouble but they sure could have as warm as it…
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Update
Long time, no write. Things sure catch up with a person. Branding season is upon us. Started with my branding last Saturday and then had a couple more brandings right after that with more coming up this weekend. So far the brandings have really been going well and everybody has been in a real good…
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Calving
Let's see, a quick update on calving. I'm tired.<br />n<br />nAbove and beyond that, it's going really slow. The heifers could have started around the 8th of February. I had the first calf on the 14th of February and they are going slow. Not quite 10 percent done yet. When they finally start opening up…
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What A Change
Sunday morning it was 25 below, that's Fahrenheit, zero here. The Damn Dodge Diesel gelled up and I had to get the Ford out to rescue it. Yes, I was using cut fuel and had added diesel conditioner so it wouldn't gel and it still did. Oh was I mad.<br />n<br />nThen what a change…
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Tired
This weather we have had lately really has me down. The paper <a href="http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/12/23/news/local/21-itsatadchillyweather.txt">says</a> that we have had only nine days in a row with temperatures that have not been above 27 degrees. They must really live in a banana belt. It hasn't got above 10 degrees around here in that same time frame and…
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Raining
Gloomy and wet. That's how I would define things around here the past few days. It's been raining here and the moisture is making it wet and muddy. Not a particularly bad thin, just miserable to deal with. It's too late in the year for the moisture to be much good but we are storing…
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Just Deserts
Yesterday while preg checking the replacement heifers my oldest daughter made a great observation. While fighting with a particularly recalcitrant heifer she said, "Now I know why we eat you." How many cattlemen have you seen that are vegetarian? Most all of them love beef. It is kind of just deserts or revenge for having…
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It Happened
<a href="http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/06/09/news/state/21-bruce.txt">Montana to lose its status as brucellosis-free</a><br />n<br />n<blockquote>A Paradise Valley cow has tested positive for brucellosis, costing Montana its status as a brucellosis-free state.<br />n<br />nThe announcement came Monday afternoon and means Montana cattlemen must now test all bulls and nonspayed heifers older than 18 months before they can be sold to out-of-state…
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Wet
It has rained now for about 3 days now. We have got around 3 inches of rain. How nice. Two neighbors have canceled brandings because of all the rain. I'm sure glad mine is done. I am reminded of something I heard an old timer say a while ago. <br />n<br />n"The way to make…