We trailed cattle today. Gabe done real good. Cool when we started and never got real warm, but the calves and cows got hot and tired and we rested them twice and had a hard push the last couple miles to the pasture. Had to travel along side a tarred hiway for about half the distance and there sure are some rude people who won’t slow down for cattle and riders! Wish I’d of packed my pistol, I might have used some tires for target practice! Most were good and slowed down and waited on us when we had to be on the hiway.
Just as we turned into the pasture, off the hiway, the heavens opened up and it rained! And the wind blew! Gabe got in a wreck with Beaver and handled it real well. I believe that boy might make a hand!
We paired cows and calves on a knob in the wind and rain and close by lightning and it was pretty western deal, but we endeavored to preserver and by golly we did! First time I ever paired out backwards, as our horses didn’t want to face into it and I couldn’t see for the stinging rain and the wet glasses anyway! I couldn’t have got wetter if you had thrown buckets of water on me from four sides, all at once! I didn’t take a slicker as Gabe didn’t have one and I didn’t think that was fair for me to have one and him not to. I won’t make that mistake again! 😉
Pictures….
Dennisranch 
I was on US83 north of Thedford NE the other day and had to wait for cattle being moved. They had a sheriff with his lights on in the lead, though. First time I ever saw that. They did have a woman walking with a guy driving a pickup pulling a horse trailer – both in the rear – holding a red flag she’d wave at traffic catching them. That I’ve seen before.
We just gathered up the nabes, some horses and pickups, and moved back in the day.
I’d bet the idjuts would be shocked to learn of open range laws if they did hit an animal.
Not sure what the laws are on a state hiway. On our country roads, if you hit my cow, you owe me for the cow and pay your own vehicle damages. I was more worried about my grandson on horseback who is young and naive…he still thinks most people will look out for him!
Some people just don’t give a darn! Has Gabe demanded any wages yet 🙂 Sounds like grandpa is teaching him right!
Nope no demands for wages. Slaves don’t get wages… 😉
they fall under the general statement of “ya can’t fix stupid”………glad yall made it work OK tho……………..
Hello Rob
Nice looking cattle – how many in this mob ?, and good help. I’m just back from a muster in our South Island (NZ) High Country, took my young horse and was pleased how he went. I wrote a short story and posted photos of the muster here: http://forum.equichat.co.nz/equichat_forum/aft/1529 we needed some of your horsemen to show the guys here how to cut and sort cattle on horseback (we all got chased up the rails too many times doing it afoot – stupid !)
Moving stock on the roads has the same issues everywhere I’m afraid, we’ve just about had to give it up here due to urbanisation (no-one fences their yards properly – then they yell when a cow goes across their lawn !). Cheers – Foster
About 200 pairs, I suppose. I never ask, as it is considered impolite, unless a person needs to know fort a specific reason. Seems like it takes about as much help to move 100 as 1,000 as far as people on horse back.
Foster, I checked the link. Great! Wish I could have enlarged the pictures. Sounded like a grand adventure! As to the using the horses as hairy motor bikes or 4 wheelers, yes many around here do also, yet still try to sort on them , with about the same results…. 🙂