Category Archive

We preg checked the heifers on Monday… hauled the opens and the steers to Philip that evening…we turned bulls out on July 1st for 24 days.. got 55% bred… some would say that isn’t a high enough pregnancy rate, but by doing it this way, supposedly we willet the best ones and won’t have so many opens as 2 year olds… guess we will see.. steers sold fairly well, heifers sure could have brought more.. they really stole my corrientees. I knew they would, but didn’t think it would be that bad.. should have brought the Corry heifers home and fattened them and sold them as beef…would have been pretty cheap meat… oh well, lesson learned…

Chance is done working the rally and his kids are here, so this morning them four and Ari Cat and I got the bunch in from out east and doctored cows and calves.. not as many this time, so me must be gaining.. we pushed them south, across the road.. then this afternoon, I went and mowed some weeds and grass around the buildings.. if I had a decent rake, I’d go to mowing more, for hay.. thought about seeing if I could get my team going and just bunch some up and leave it for them,…… the the younger, greener mare has a colt and I am not real sure how well that would work, but I bet it would be good for her! Tomorrow we will ride on the other bunch, bring them in to the corrals if there are very many big ones who need doctored.. if there are just a few, we will just rope and doctor them in the pasture… LA 200 seems to be working as good as anything.. this bunch tomorrow, is the bunch we used Micotil on last Sunday… we will see if it worked any better..

How in the heck did it get to be Autgust, so fast? Seems like the summer is flying by.

Because of all the extra rain, we have been fighting sore feet and sore eyes in cows and calves.. we started off just darting them, but that became to expensive too fast, so we went to roping and doctoring in the pasture.. and decided we didn’t have enough horses or time in the day to do them that way, so we started bringing bunches into the corral and sorting off any cows or bulls that were effected, and putting them down the chute to vaccinate them.. the calves we just rope in the corral.. been getting lots of work out of the runt cowhand who live here… but they have been having to put up wth a grumpy Grampa… one bunch has been thru’ three times.. and the numbers are getting lower, so I guess we are gaining.. it is still green around here.. seems I heard we had 10 inches of rain in July… but I haven’t added my totals up yet.. wettest I have ever seen it in 61 years… people are having a hard time getting the hay put up as they never get much time when the moisture is right to cut and bale.. but they are making progress. I have always loved the idea of wet years like this.. who would have thought it would cause so many unforseen problems

Been getting lots of rain, washed out a couple creek crossings.. one, I had just got done repairing then got over 2 inches of rain and washed it out again.. I went and worked on a couple today…

Went and worked on water tanks that were getting pretty dug out around them by the cattle and the water… these skid steers are handy..

Got hotter today. this evening we had ambulance training ….had the life flight copter come and land and showed us what to do when we call them, then a presentation after they took off, a lot for an old guy to try and remember..

Kids are having Vacation Bible School, Totus Tous this week in Faith.. I went and picked up the kids yesterday…

Have an appointment with the doc on Thursday, then meet up with Cindy and go down into the Hills and meet up with cousins, out here on vacation..

Seems like there is plenty to do.. still lots of green and the clover is just now starting to lose some blossoms.. lots of people getting hay put up.. it has been hard for them with all the rain.. maybe we will have a late fall and not much snow this winter, seeing as we are getting so much moisture now..time will tell..

Up into the low 90’s this afternoon, a little breeze.

Went and helped a neighbor haul his lambs to the sale this morning.. Bit went along and helped.. she got sick at the sale barn, waiting in the pickup so had to go get some paper towels and some spray cleaner and clean up her mess.. poor girl. I let her out at the sale for a bit while waiting to unload, but evidently not long enough… I had the air running hard in the pickup, so she stayed pretty cool, but dogs don’t sweat.. on the way home I found some clean water alongside the road and stopped and let her go in and cool off and get a drink… I lost a dog from over heating once and never want to do it again.. lots of humidity, for this country.

We had to bum a calf yesterday while we were doctoring a few calves for bad eyes…seen one who’s mama ain’t got no milk, just to old I guess, so we caught him and brought him in.. man is he a wild cat.. probably a couple months old or close to it… Cindy and I tried to get him to suck a bottle, but he wasn’t hungry enough, so it didn’t work to well, this afternoon when she got home we did it again and had a lot better luck.. I put some grass and some water in his pen, which is the old horse trailer… I think he’s got the sucking a bottle idea figured out.. I will have to get him some calf feed if someone doesn’t want him. I have one lady interested, but he might be a bit to big for her deal with a couple calves sucking one cow.. she raises quite a few that way…we aren’t really set up very well to raise them.. Cindy works several days every week this summer, as one of the people at the job is out on medical leave…

Lot of hay getting cut today, looks like, finally warming up and drying off enough, people can get to haying full time instead of waiting for things to dry out..

We just keep getting rains… got an inch the other night than an inch yesterday evening and night and then it rained hard this afternoon… looks like about 2.5 inches in the last couple days.

We had cattle get mixed the other night, heifers and heifer bulls in with the older cows, so Chance and I and 3 runt cowhands, Gabe, Ari and CC went and got them back where they were supposed to be yesterday and got the bulls at least back with the other heifers.. we went out this afternoon, same crew, and got the yearlings sorted from the old cows and back where they belong, got pretty wild and western just driving and sorting as we went.. one of the Hereford bulls was in with them, so when we were about done, Chance and Gabe and CC took the yearlings back and Ari and I went and got the bull and brought him home.. I had been riding Mijo and she had been riding Pard, so we swapped. She didn’t want to do it but I talked her into it… and just as I thought, they got along great and she really liked him.. he has mellowed a lot in his older age.. hard to believe he is 15… she kind of swelled up some when I told her there were men who would give their left arm to get to ride him.. she and he done well.. Gus had been riding him some lately and he really likes him, but he is like a kid in a race car, always going faster than he needs to.

We had some friends and neighbor over last evening for burgers and food and then the kids all shot off their fireworks.. started drizzling as they were getting done…pretty good show.. off to the east we could see someone else shooting off fireworks.. not sure who, quite a ways away… it was a good Independence day celebration…

Got about 30 hundreds last night in a quick passing thunder storm…we will take it..

Eric and Rainey and Glen came over yesterday and helped us get the last bunch of calves worked.. Gus and Sam and Eli and Gabe and Rainey all roped and Eric roped on a colt he has in training… went well.. towards the end I stole the horse Gabe was riding and drug the last couple out… Game told Chance, while waiting on me to catch one.. Grampa stole my horse and he ain’t even catching any! And I sure missed several times..and in truth, I let Gave ride MY horse, Pard, so there!

I sure am loving the green color of this country!

Supposed to get hotter.. up towards 90… can’t complain, it has been staying cool..

Ari Cat and I were supposed to go up north and help sort cattle this morning, but the rain moved the date to Friday… roads are bad enough that if we get much rain, it is pretty hard to get anywhere with a trailer on..hopefully they are going to get these bad spots fixed in the near future.

Man, green is a pretty color, in the grass anyway…

Laramie came and reshod Feather.. been having trouble keeping shoes on him so he put ones with clips on.. hopefully that will help.. I rode him to gather on Monday when we branded the big bunch and he had some spring in his stride.. a little too much spring! But it was only one jump and he quit as soon as I asked him politely, to quit…

We had a good crew and got the cows vaccinated and the calves worked.. bunch of these runt cowhands were here and they sure did a lot of work.. at one point it was all the little ones running the calf forks, catching calves…real nice day for it, didn’t get too hot or windy.

Tuesday, Gabe and I took a beef in for Tate and then I went to the dentist and got a wisdom tooth pulled. Had one pulled a couple years ago.. probably should just pull them all while I am there, but hate to take out a tooth I might need someday! That part of my cheek is still pretty sore..

It’s tried to rain several times, but haven’t gotten much.. but this country sure looks good.. it is a sweet clover year and out on the gumbo there sure is a lot of it… some runt cowhands and I rode last evening and we didn’t see a lot of it down south… we sorted off and moved some cattle that had gotten in the wrong pasture with cows they weren’t supposed to be with…

I probably need to go fix some fence.. seems like there is plenty of that to do and I just go at it in fits and jerks… but I need to get it fixed and move some cattle around…

I just got a call asking if CC and Ari Cat can spend the day with me, so I imagine we need to go ride at some point. For some reason they like to ride with a crabby old Grampa, or maybe they just put up with him in order to get to go ride… 😀

Today, Addy Bear and I took the big draft mares back… didn’t use them nearly as much as I wanted this winter… on the way home we ate at Hardy’s.. all she ate was my curly fries… got some metal to weld a gate back together.. stopped near home at a neighbors and got a couple new branding irons as that is coming up fast.. Then Lige helped me fix fence when we got home and then he and I and Addy Bear rode out and moved some cows.. I rode Feather.. every time I ride him I am amazed at what a nice young feller he is.. nicest colt I’ve ever ridden…

Yesterday… let’s see, what did I do yesterday……. Cindy and I went over and voted in the school board election.. we got three young men from this country on the board…hopefully they can make a difference.. got some steel posts while there and some branding stuff.. when we got home I built some horn irons for dehorning… rode in the evening and moved some cows.. took Bit with me.. when I got home Gabe and Lige were here and Gabe was working with Hub, in the corral, getting him used to a rope.. roping the dummy, then Lige saddled Pilgrim and did the same…then Gabe and I worked with a dumb young two year old fresh cut gelding.. man he is dumb.. but give him credit, there ain’t much quit in him.. when we were done, the colt and I both were pretty sweaty.. Gabe is supposed to work with a couple horses this summer to pay for a car for him to drive to high school this fall.. so hopefully he learned something

The day before yesterday Cindy and I went to Rapid to get branding food and pick up a new cat.. bob tailed mitten Manx, Tom cat.. so far he has been hiding down in the basement, but he will come around… I heard him meowing last night before I went to bed.. they called him Bags , short for Bagheera, named after the panther in the Jungle Book.. he is black.. I think Cindy and I worked with the big draft horse that evening also.. I was tired!

Other than that, we ain’t been doing too much…. sure is pretty and green around these parts!

Still checking cows.. had a beautiful day yesterday… Laramie came and put a shoe back on that Feather had lost.. Chance and I went to Punkin Center and got some posts.. well, we told Tate what we wanted, and he brought them when he got off work at noon… also some salt.. we did stop at Tee’s and get some mineral.. that stuff ain’t cheap.. but a few of them cows weren’t cleaning earlier and we just decided maybe we ought to put some out for awhile…we tore out the old alley leading to the working chute and part of the chute.. it was getting pretty bad…we need to do more on it today and get it all ready for when we work calves as we are going to work the cows also.. Gabe and Lige rode north and south and checked cattle.. Gabe got a ride in on Hub and then on Brody, Lige rode Pilgrim, but as fat and sassy as the Pirate Horse has been this spring, it did him good… windy today, but warmer… supposed to get some rain this evening and tomorrow..I plan on going to town for a Memorial service for a lady I knew when I was growing up, who was raised around here.. and put some flowers on the folks graves. I hope people remember the real reason for this holiday.

Here is one I wrote a long time back..

Memorial Day

My Great Grandpa fought in the Civil War
Entered when he was 17 years old
He fought on the side of the North
Guess he didn’t think folks should be bought or sold

Grampa raised a family on a homestead
Raised food during the First World War
Never had to fight in the trenches
Fightin’ hard times seemed to be his biggest chore

Dad lost an eye in the 30’s
Uncle Harry had an arm that wasn’t good
Uncle Wayne fought in World War Two
Guess each helped out the best that he could

I never had to register for the draft
But my brother was in the Service for several years
Thank God, he never fought in any battles
But my Mom still shed her share of tears

I hope my children never have to fight
Never experience the horrors of a war
But we all owe those who fought and died for us
And you know, thats what Memorial Day is for

                    Robert Dennis