L & M Ranch

Spring time!

2011-05-12T08:55:00.000-06:00

Spring is in the air! The grass is getting green and we have had a couple of warm days. The day I took these pictures it was downright HOT! Today it's 45 degrees and raining. Ah, springtime!

Above is Rock basking in the sunshine. He is becoming such an asset on the place. He's a strong dog with just enough patience to be really good on ewes and lambs. He'll catch and hold a lamb gently now if I need him to. He'll give ewes plenty of time to pick up their lambs and move but if they come out hunting him he quickly puts an end to it. Hopefully I can get a chance to get some trial type work sessions with him in the next few weeks.

We are the same as done lambing. About 3 that are still going to lamb is all. It took 3 weeks and was pretty fast and furious. We had some cold, wet weather that made it a bit difficult but everything is looking good now.

(Fighting for the only sliver of shade)

We had a way higher percentage than normal. I have never had quads before and we had 3 sets of those this year. I need to go through my books and check but I'm pretty sure we had at least 15 sets of triplets as well. Those make for some little lambs that have a ways to go to catch up to the twins and singles. Hopefully with some milk, grass and sunshine they'll get there by fall though.

We have had quite a bit of cattlework in amongst lambing as well. Got the winter take in calves moved out to their home and summer grass. Two days later our summer take in yearlings got here. Preg checked our fall calvers and getting ready to ship our fall calves out as soon as we can get a truck in through the mud. Also hit a few neighbor's brandings in there as well. We're hoping to get ours done at the end of May.

Basically, spring is a time to run around like a chicken with her head cut off trying to get a lot of work done in a short amount of time. Because the next season, haying, is just around the corner! Dustin is thoroughly looking forward to it. Wish I could say the same for me. :-)

A gift from God!

2011-02-06T15:59:00.004-07:00

Zac is 11 years old now. He ran in his last dog trial at the end of January. It was the Black Hills Stock Show and it has always been one of his favorites. I really didn't plan on running him at all this year but he's been feeling so good I thought I'd give it a go. In typical Zac fashion, he got 2nd in the prelim round and brought home money his last time out! He got 2nd and won money at his first trial when he was 10 months old as well. Seems kind of fitting, huh!

These pictures were taken just the other day (first part of Feb. 2011) and I know most people just see the gray in his face. I can't help but still see the sparkle in his eyes. This dog has been a huge part of my life for the last 11 years and will hopefully get to be for several more years. He taught me about perserverance, team work and how to handle stock. He also taught me about accepting things for just what they are! He's not perfect but there are few others (animal or human) I've seen with as big of a heart.

He still loves to help when I'm out training pups or ride along in the ranger when I go work the other dogs. He will hold sheep for any of them and still likes to compete with Jag on who can push them harder! He has no shame in the fact that he has grown to love toys in his later years.

His favorite place to be is wherever I am. It's a mutual feeling! He's laying here beside me now and when I get up to leave he'll get up, a little slower than he used to, and follow me wherever I go. It has been hard to leave him behind when we went to a couple of trials this past year because we didn't have enough room to haul everyone. We're working on fixing that problem as it's so important to me to enjoy every minute I get with him. After all, he is a gift I'm ever grateful for! Thank you Lord!!

Much ado about nothing!

2011-01-22T12:19:00.005-07:00

It's that time of year when we're pretty much just hunkered down doing the same things almost every day. Feeding livestock, processing new feeder calves, feeding, wrestling tournaments, feeding, shoveling snow and oh yeah, FEEDING!

We do have a new guard dog pup. We call her Sara and she is a Great Pyr/Akbash cross. She's only 2 1/2 months old so a long way from being helpful yet. She is a quick study though and seems to be picking up on how to read the sheep and fit in with them well. She'll be close to the house with some feeder lambs until she's old enough to be safe out with the big bunch.

Brady's wrestling season is going much better this year. He's still an 8th grader wrestling a lot of junior's and senior's but he's beginning to hold his own again. Sure has been good for his confidence. He's wanting to play baseball again this year and his dad had consented since they'll be done when school gets out and it won't conflict with haying season. Oh yeah, more late nights!

Dustin is trying to rope as much as his free time will allow. Hopefully he'll be ready to compete by spring. Right now he has to hang out in town while his brother is at wrestling practice every night so they don't get home until late on the weeknights. He's been named sophormore server for the prom in April and he cracks me up over it! You'd think someone was threatening to kill that boy as big of a deal as he makes that he has to wear something nice that night! Way to much like his Dad. Good thing I love them both!!

I'm working on memorizing some scripture verses this year. Thought I'd share the one I'm working on now.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV)

Are you ever ready for winter?

2010-12-19T06:28:00.006-07:00

The pictures below are from earlier this fall. (Sept and Oct) It seems like we work all summer to put up enough hay for the winter. Then we spend all fall (and a good portion of the winter) hauling it home. This year we put up a new barn as well. My kids are sure they don't care to have to tackle that project again anytime soon!

Above is Mike standing next to the frame of the barn. He had no idea I had him in the picture that's why he's actually looking my direction! :-) He thought I was just taking it of the end as we needed pictures (as well as measurements) to take to the guy who was cutting the tin for us. The tin is all now and we just need to do a little dirt work around the edges and put the 2 sliding doors on. Nothing like cutting it close huh!

Here is Mike unloading another load of hay back in October. Look at how green it is then!! So far they've hauled about 80 loads of hay with another 20 or so to go yet. Thankfully I don't have to go with him every load. Just move the tractor every now and then.

Above is Dustin helping unload hay. He goes with his dad every minute he's not in school. He often asks if I'd like to go to school in his place so he can stay and help his dad. He's talking like he wants to come back and ranch after college. We'll see once he gets away from home for awhile but I have to admit it sure wouldn't hurt my feelings to have him come back!

Cattle work

2010-11-06T13:30:00.002-06:00

Sorry it's been so long between posts. It's been a busy fall here. The weather has been great and we're enjoying every day we get a reprieve from the impending winter! We got our lambs sold, fall calves branded, spring calves sold, part of the yearling heifers shipped out and just putting on the last of the tin for the new barn. Hopefully we're ready for winter!

I thought I'd share a few pictures of moving the spring calver's back to their pasture after we sold calves. Jag, Rock, Mike and I moved them. I love having dog broke cattle!

(Jag)

(Jag pushing them through the gate and across the road)

(Rock)

Starting to look a lot like FALL

2010-09-06T08:45:00.009-06:00

Okay, I'm sitting here at the computer feeling a bit sorry for myself but also very fortunate at the same time. A weird place to be in I'll admit. Hearing about all the dog trials going on right now that I'm missing because of family and ranch obligations is tough. Of course there's a part of me that wishes I could be there having a go at it with my own dogs. The other part of me doesn't want to miss a day with my family right now.

Dustin and Brady are both back in school and playing football. Well, Dustin is playing and Brady is conditioning with the Junior High team hoping that he'll get his cast reduced to below the elbow before the first game. He can't play or hit until that happens. He goes back in for another checkup on the 10th and his first game is the 16th. Talk about cutting it close. :-)

The football season is making the fall trial's a bit hard to get to right now. Between not wanting to miss any of their games I'm also spending a big portion of my day herding my sheep around. It's that time of year again when they're on the hunt for anything green and fences are merely an obstacle to be conquered. Thankfully it's been cool this past week so it's not effecting my dogs at least.

(Nell moving the escapees back)

We're planning on selling lambs on the 16th of this month. I hope I can make it that long as I'm ready to bean them most days. Not to mention how great the market is right now. I keep praying that I'm making the right decision to wait for the big sale on that day and not go this week. Below is a picture of the lambs from their best angle taken over a month ago.

(lambs in late July)

I'm sure enjoying my dogs right now. I sold Cash back in June and it's been a tough adjustment for me to not have him here. He was so darn easy to get along with but he's doing great in his new home and even running well at the trials for his new owner already. Not having him has helped me step up my game with Rock and Bet though. They are both nice young dogs and need the extra work at this point in their lives. Jag is still the main man when it comes to the big jobs but both Rock and Bet are stepping up quickly.

I've taken over Dustin's young dog, Speck, as his schedule isn't allowing enough time to get him trained right now. What a super talented young dog! I wish we hadn't had so much time off with his injury but even if he doesn't make a nursery dog now I'm still excited about his future. My biggest concern with him is if he'll stay sound with our dog's working lifestyles.

I also have another young female who will be a year on September 17th. Jess is a full sister to Rock (Reece and Jag) but one litter younger. She is SO much fun to work. Full of intensity like her brother but with a bit more style. She might not be quite as full throttle as him but I could use a little of that right now! :-)

(Jess at 11 months)

So I really don't have any excuse to be feeling sorry for myself for missing a few dog trials. I'm really fortunate to have two boys who are so darn enjoyable to be around (despite being teenagers - just kidding all you teens out there), a hubby who supports my decisions even when I don't know what they are all the time, a ranch that is productive and enjoyable, as well as a kennel of dogs that I'm so pleased with right now. I guess in the grand scheme of things, I've got it pretty good!

Silver Spring and L & M SDT's

2010-09-01T07:42:00.003-06:00

Jamie and Lee Spring had us all up to their place on August 26th and 27th. They have such a beautiful place and as our judge Dianne Deal said it makes you want to go buy a gingam dress and play "Little House on the Prairie". I'm not sure how well that dress would serve a person while staring down the range ewes Jamie brings in for the trial though. They were yearling rambioullet ewes and were tough as they hadn't been worked by a dog much prior to this. They tested the dogs and it took a lot of work the first day to get them lifted off the top. This was definetly a DOG trial.

The course is on a hay field that runs uphill so it's a perfect shape for a trial field. It was a 12 minute course for the Open and it still ended up being a very long day the first day. We all went to the house for supper that night. It was great to relax and visit awhile after being out in the heat all day.

The second day the sheep got a little more manageable as they were figuring out the "rules" a little more. There were more scores the second day and we also got done earlier. This was a relief as we needed to travel the 2 1/2 hours SE to get to my place.

We ran at Mike and I's place on Saturday and Sunday (the 28th and 29th). The temps didn't cooperate anymore for here than they did up north. I'll admit it started getting to me a bit on Saturday afternoon but managed to rally up enough energy to finish on Sunday without being to big of a crab. Hopefully anyway. :-)

We ran on 2 ewes and 3 lambs for our trial. They'd been running in that pasture for a couple of weeks prior to the trial and knew where they were. It helps from a sheep production stand point because if there is a wreck and one gets singled off, they already know where they are so it's easier to get them back to the bunch. On the other hand, it makes them tough as they like to split and try to "divide and conquer".

The dog's adapted well though and most handled the sheep really well and there were quite a few good scores both days. The outrun was about 700 yds and the sheep had to cross two draws on the fetch. It really didn't seem to give anyone to much trouble and it was fun to watch the dogs handle the pressure coming out of the draws.

Both Jamie and I couldn't do these trials without the great support of our families as well as all the help from those running in the trial. We were both running around like chickens with our heads cut off most of the time so very few pictures got taken. Hopefully we can scare up a few though and share them with you soon!

Puppies

2010-08-24T08:04:00.001-06:00

My friend Jamie Spring had a litter of puppies the third week of August. This is a repeat cross of her Reece and my Jag. The previous pups have turned out really well. If you're interested in one please contact Jamie at jamiespringbc@yahoo.com .

Rodeo

2010-08-23T13:01:00.003-06:00

Well, the boys had a good time at their Rodeo Bible Camp. Dustin made a lot of progress with his horse and got to do some chute dogging. Brady's week was cut a bit short though. The second day they were riding practice bulls and on his fourth one (right in a row) he broke his arm. So, he's in a cast until the end of September. I think most of his friends were more worried about him possibly not being able to play football then they were about his arm.

Thought I'd share a few pictures of them. I don't have any of Brady actually doing anything as he didn't get to compete. Here is how thrilled he was the day after he got it casted.

Here is Dustin with his horse Mick getting ready to rope. He LOVES this horse and Mick loves to track cattle!

Time flies...

2010-08-03T09:02:00.002-06:00

whether you're having fun or not. So you might as well enjoy it, right! Our summer is flying by at warp speed. We're actually only 2 week away from the boys starting school again. That seems crazy to me. Seems like they just got out.

Speaking of the boys, they are both gone to a Rodeo Bible Camp this week. I grew up going to these and absolutely loved it so was happy when the boys decided they wanted to go. I got a quick phone call last night and it sounds like they're having a blast. Brady is riding bulls (yikes) and team roping. Dustin is calf roping, team roping and bull dogging. He wants to ride saddle broncs so bad but he's just not built for it. He looks like a big yard dart to me and I've seen SO many wrecks with saddle bronc riders that I just couldn't bring myself to letting him do it yet. I'd rather having him ride bulls but the boys don't want to be competing against each other so they try to stay out of the same events. Team roping they'll hopefully be working together. Might be a challenge for those two!

We got a chance to go on a short family vacation to CO back in June. We were only gone two nights but the planning for all of us being off the place at the same time is horrible! It was a great trip though and got to see most of my family again. It was so much fun. Mike, Dustin, Brady and several of my relatives went white water rafting the last day. I think the boys would do it again in a heartbeat.

I haven't made it to any dog trials since the one in May. Just so busy with haying and ranch life that it really hasn't allowed for it. I think retiring Zac has played with my head a bit as well. A friend and I are headed to UT for one this next weekend though and I'm REALLY looking forward to it. Not sure if it's the dog trial aspect or just getting away from the hay field for awhile! :-)

Well, I need to get busy. I will try to post some pictures soon from the boys rodeo's if I get a chance.

Our rain dance

2010-06-15T13:27:00.004-06:00

Well, it must have worked. People who live down dirt roads always say the best way to make it rain is to wash your vehicle. I'm guessing since we used SO much water that is why it rained SO much this past weekend.

See the water tanker beside Brady? That's what we use to fight fires and now wash suburbans!

We got 3 inches of rain (that's a LOT in our country) and the grass is actually making noise with how fast it's growing now! I'll try to get some new pictures of the ewes and lambs. I think the lambs might be having growing pains as fast as they're growing as well.

Mike is helping Dustin figure out how much pressure he can get away with without stripping the paint off my vehicle. They had a pretty good time. So did the dogs!

So far behind

2010-05-30T20:12:00.002-06:00

Our springs are so busy that I find I not only get behind with posting on this blog but I'm also way to far behind with life and work in general. After awhile you figure you can only accomplish so much in a day and quit worrying about it so much and do what you can do. That's pretty much where I'm at now. I'd like to be able to catch you all up on what is all going on around here but it's to much for the time I have right now. So, I will try to scribble down the important parts and let you fill in the rest with your imagination. :-)

Lambing was successful and quick. 3 weeks and we were done. The ewes and lambs are out on grass now and loving it! Speaking of grass, we have it in spades right now and we're loving it!! Got the right amount of moisture early on and lately some sunshine so it has grown like wildfire. Most people are complaining because it hasn't warmed up enough yet but I would be perfectly happy to live in a sweatshirt every day of my life.

Brandings are a big part of our life in the spring. They started in mid April and we will have the last one (our own) this week. There are honestly few ranch related things that I look forward to more than branding season. It's so much fun to get together with neighbors and family. We work hard but it honestly feels like a bit of a vacation at the same time. It's enjoyable to watch my boys grow up and become such great help at these as well.

We still need to get lambs in one more time and give them a CD/T booster shot but will try to get that done right after branding. The stud colts needed cut so we got that accomplished yesterday. We're gearing up for a big haying season so trying to get the machinery all ready for that. Not sure I'm as fired up about haying as Mike is though. It gets really LONG!

Jag is back to full health and doesn't seem to favor that shoulder much at all. I can't even begin to explain how happy I am to have him back. Having him laid up all winter has made me appreciate him so much more. It did give the young dogs a chance to step up with him out of commission though. I'm pretty thrilled with how they're coming on.

Speck, the one who had ACL surgery, has been cleared for work again. Took him out for the first time the other day and he looks good. It will be exciting to get him really going this summer. He's nursery age for the CO finals so hopefully we can get him caught up now for that. If not, it's not a huge deal. He seems to have what it takes to make a really nice Open dog as well as very helpful on the place. He LOVES working cattle and is good at it likes his parents so looking forward to having another one to help with all the fall cattle work.

There is probably more I should write about but now I'm getting further behind on the real work. So, I will leave you with that and hopefully do a better job the rest of the summer!

Lambing is upon us

2010-04-20T20:10:00.005-06:00

Well, it's that time of year again. We are officially supposed to be starting lambing today but have been going pretty steady since last Friday. The weather has been really good so far and I for one thank the good Lord for that! I pasture lamb and prefer to limit the number of ewes that have to see the inside of my barn. Cold, wet weather puts a bit of a crimp in my "style" so every warm, halfway dry day is a blessing this time of year.

The majority of the ewes are 4 year olds which makes things pretty easy. This isn't their first "rodeo" and they're still young enough to not have to worry about milk issues. It was a tough winter and I was worried about their body condition but they held up really well. We're getting quite a few singles but that honestly doesn't bother me that much. The lambs are healthy and doing well so that's all I can ask for.

The ewes are a Rambioullet x Meat Merino cross and we bred them to predominately Hamp rams. The younger rams in the picture below just turned a year in March. I'm pretty pleased with them. We did this cross last year as well and they were some of the fastest growing, deepest bodied lambs we've raised. Hopefully they repeat that again this year! The grass situation is looking good right now so they ought to grow!

Jag is pictured moving the rams back to their summer lot. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to have him back to work in time for lambing! He's been my main man for the last couple of years and it's been a long winter around here with so many yearling steers without his help. Probably good for the young dogs but made life just a little harder without him for help. I have cussed this dog at trials so many times in the past. I hope I can remember how much I missed working him if things don't go just perfect on the trial field.

The weather is supposed to turn wet towards the weekend so I expect quite a few ewes to go today. It's already really foggy this morning. I guess that means I should quit for now and get out the door yet again. Until next time!

My teenagers

2010-04-13T05:09:00.005-06:00

My boys are growing up! Dustin is 15 and Brady is 13 now. It's hard to imagine that time can go this quickly. People warn you about it and when your kids are little and into everything. You say you believe it will go quickly but I don't think you really comprehend the full extent of it until they are older. I'm sure when they are both gone to college it's going to be even more shocking to me.

They have gone back to public school this year as I was pretty sure high school math was going to start getting over my head. I'm convinced the transition was harder for me than for them. I thought I'd be overjoyed at having my "time" back to myself again. I'm loving being able to go with Mike so much again now but I must admit this last fall was pretty tough on me. I felt lost with my boys gone so much of the time. It didn't help that they were in football and were gone from 7 am until almost 7 pm most days.

They have made me very proud in school. They have both been on the A Honor Roll all year and are consistently getting glowing reports from their teachers on their attitudes and work ethic. I know the cardinal rule about never bragging on your kids or your dogs but I just can't help it right now. I know they will both make plenty of mistakes (trust me we've already had several "good" ones) but right now I couldn't be more proud of how they're growing up.

Yesterday the boys barely got home from school and got put right to work. We had a broken legged yearling that need roped and loaded in the trailer. Another yearling that we missed castrating and needed to brought in to get cut. There were still 600 hd of yearlings that needed fed again before dark. So, Dustin took off with the tractor and processor and took care of feeding while Brady, Mike and I managed to get the broken legged yearling loaded and hauled to the house. Dustin is sporting a good welt on his leg today from holding the yearling for his dad to castrate him. No complaints from either of them though.

The other day the season's first branding brought home to me how much they've matured. They know the work, they have the ambition to get in there without having to be told and they both have enough heart to finish the job. I'm not always the best at telling them how proud I am of them but I made sure to take the time when we got home that night. I tell them "I love you" so much they probobly think I'm a broken record but I need to work on pointing out how proud of them I am as well. Everyone likes to hear they've done a good job and teenager's are no different. I think I'm going to try harder to show them how much I appreciate them from now on.

April Fool's Day

2010-04-01T08:18:00.004-06:00

It's that busy time of year around our place again and I've been slacking on writing on here because of it. So, I thought I'd share a Rory and Stan cartoon that I thought was funny this morning. You can check them out at http://www.creators.com/comics/the-barn.html

Growing up!

2010-03-12T09:17:00.004-07:00

I love training young dogs. I especially like that year to two year old range. They grow up so much in that time frame. I start using my young dogs for real work as soon as I have a reliable stop and recall on them. Then we train as we go. I still take them out for official "training sessions" from time to time but a lot of what they learn is on the job.

I have two young dogs right now. Rock just turned 2 the middle of February and Bet will turn 2 on March 15th. It has been fun to watch them come along and mature. They are both quite different and it's always fun for me to adjust my training and handling to different dogs.

Rock reminds me a lot of most of the males from my lines. He's pushy, confident on stock but has a little tension. He also has a lot of his mother in him (Jamie's Reece). No quit, great balance and about the most fun dog to just hang out with ever!

Bet is off of Tim Naasz's Ryn (Nell x Spot) who is a littermate to Jag. Her sire is Don Helsley's Cap. I'm not as familiar with Cap's lines obviously but she has been a bit slow to mature. Most of the female's I've worked actually get pushier with age and sometimes I'm not sure if they're going to be "enough dog" for me when they are a year old but most times they catch up with the males before their two.

Bet has been this way. She had all the natural ability in the world just wasn't sure she wanted to take the training early on. Driving was tough for her and because of that she just got to the point she wouldn't push at all. The winter has been a "bit long" in our area and because of that she got a couple of weeks off from all work. That must have done the trick because she has come back better than ever. She's full of confidence in herself as well as our partnership. She is driving with gusto now and it won't be long before I have to tap the brakes a little more with her. Right now I'm letting her be a bit pushy.

This past week has brought quite a bit of snow to our area again. The wind picked up and we were in the middle of a blizzard again yesterday. So, we needed to move the sheep to a better place. There wasn't any way to get around other than the tractor's so I took one and Mike took the other. I grabbed Bet as she's the smallest dog I have and loaded her in the tractor with me. She thought it was great by the way!

We couldn't see very far at all and the sheep didn't want to move through the snow very well. Bet handled the whole situation with a ton of maturity. She never got silly or dirty but pushed hard enough to get them going and keep them moving. I took off ahead in the tractor and she brought them behind me down the road. Several missed the gate coming out and tried to go up the fence line as the other sheep were in the ditch. I saw her cover them and move them back to the gate and through. So, I knew they were all there and then we were off down the road. They tried the same thing at the gate I turned into but she handled it just as well there. I LOVE a thinking dog.

So, I think my young'uns are officially growing up and making the transition to adulthood smoothly. I'm hopeful for their future's and quite proud of how far they've come!

Rock is 2 years old!

2010-02-22T10:18:00.008-07:00

Rock (Reece x Jag) turned 2 years old last week. I can't believe how fast the time has gone. I met him when he was 3 weeks old and tried so hard not to pick him. I wanted the one who looked like a mini Jag (Erin's Z now) but when I held Rock he looked straight in my eyes and I could feel him reach right into my heart! He's been there ever since.

(Rock - aka Frog boy or Eeyore - at 4 weeks old)

(Rock at 4 weeks in one of his rare calm moments)

He has grown up into a handsome boy with loads of talent. He still acts like a pup at times and still needs lots of miles of work to fully mature but he's got everything he needs to become a great dog. It doesn't hurt that he has to have one of the best personalities ever. He can be a bit of a spaz at times but it's just because he lives life at full throttle. There is never a dull moment with Rock around. My whole family adores this dog and we're hopeful for his future!

(Rock at 1 1/2 yrs)

(Rock this past fall moving some ewes)

Pictures from BHSS

2010-02-18T11:14:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of pictures of Cash and I from the BHSS. Jan Swan Wood from the Tri State Livestock News took them and also did an article. She emailed these to me as well. The one where Cash I are together at the Y-chute just cracks me up. Cash's butt in the air is SO him!

These were taken in the prelim round so the crowd wasn't very big yet. They estimate about 3000 people there for the finals. What a great chance to promote the Border Collie to ranchers in our area.

Winter Western Stock Show

2010-02-15T07:14:00.004-07:00

Dustin, Brady and I traveled to Gillette, WY for the Winter Western Stock Show on Friday, Feb. 12th. I ran Zac and Cash and Dustin ran Kat. Both of my dogs ran really well but just missed getting in the money.

Dustin on the other hand laid down a beautiful run in the PN and won it! It was a timed trial but Dustin and Kat's run proved that smooth is usually efficient as well. It was just one fluid move on a straight path. I was so proud of him. He's really stepped up as a handler this last year. He doesn't get to very many trials so it's hard to advance very fast when you're always busy helping your dad! We're both hopeful that he'll be ready to move up by summer or fall though.

Skunk attack!

2010-02-07T07:41:00.001-07:00

Holy smokes, it was a long night in my house last night! Dustin and I have been taking turns taking Speck out for walks and it was my turn right before bed last night. Jag and Zac were out with us and out in front a little ways. I should have stayed closer to the house and under the dusk to dawn lights. Lesson learned!

We went down near the haying equipment and post pile to see if Speck would go quicker. Zac and Jag were dinking around and ended up in the post pile. The next thing I heard was Zac barking. I hollered at him but figured he was just barking at a cat as they like to hang out down there. NOPE. It was dark enough I couldn't tell what it was but saw it standing it's ground against Zac. He called off and came right to me and Jag came running by it. I looked back as I was walking away and it was following us. It was then that I smelled it!

I ran back up to the house and went to put Speck back in when Jag busted by me to get in the house. He ran up the stairs and I hollered for Dustin. He wasn't sure what was going on and neither he or Mike figured it out for a mintue or two as I was downstairs. Jag promptly rubbed all over the couch trying to get the spray off his face! Then he rubbed all over Dustin before he realized what was going on and finally ushered him out the door.

I went out and tried to at least clean their faces up a little so it wouldn't burn. They got to sleep outside though as I don't have enough tomato juice on hand right now to give them a bath. I'll pick up some today though and hopefully get the smell to die down a bit. Poor Zac is pretty upset about the idea of sleeping in the kennels though! Jag is the big issue though as he's been confined to the house because of an injury. Not sure what I'll do with him today as I don't want him out in a kennel all day but I REALLY don't want him in the house right now either.

If anyone has any good home remedies for getting rid of the skunk smell on dogs, please feel free to share them with me! I went through a whole can of febreeze trying to get the smell out of the house. Between that and the exhaust fan running with open windows for an hour last night it's at least liveable now! This does mean war now for the skunk and I though.

Boredom

2010-02-06T13:50:00.006-07:00

Winter is dragging on here. When, oh when, will there be some blue skies and warm weather? We have a couple of feeder calves that are normally up in a 5 acre lot but the fence is still under so much snow that we can't hold them in there. So, they have to stay in the corral for now. It's cause for a lot of long, slow days for them.

New and interesting toys are tried out to see what provides the best entertainment!

When it gets to miserable out it's always best to just cover your head until it gets better!

Speck's surgery

2010-02-03T08:00:00.003-07:00

Okay, today is Speck's surgery day to fix the ruptured ACL. It's going to be a long spring for this young, exhuberant dog trying to be quiet and calm. It puts his training behind schedule as well but hopefully the time off will allow for more maturity. In turn, maybe he'll progress quickly once we get going again. I'm going to miss having him for all the cattle work these next several months as he's right up there with one of the best young dog's on cattle I've seen in awhile.

Think of all the quality time he will get to spend in rehab with Dustin and I though! Do you suppose he feels real fortunate? If you would keep him in your prayers today I know I'd feel very forunate. Thanks!!

Black Hills Stock Show

2010-02-02T06:27:00.005-07:00

Wow, if there was a cloud 10 I think I'd be on it right now! Cash, my young dog, won the Black Hills Stock Show dog trial. It was his first year to compete there (it's actually been just a year now since he first set foot on a trial field) and the crowds and noise didn't seem to phase him at all. I couldn't be happier with the boy! He handles his sheep well and penning with him is just about like using Zac already.

We actually had a really good day in Rapid City yesterday overall. Zac just missed the cutoff to make the top 16 by one place. He was 4 seconds slower than Cash. He held the 16th spot until the last dog and then got bumped out by my good friend Tim Naasz and his good female, Zoey. Tim was first with Ryn (Nell x Spot) and second with Zoey (Tim's breeding) in the preliminary round. Rene LaBree and Jazz, were 3rd in that round and Dennis Edwards and his good young dog, Craig (Nell x Lew) were 4th.

I also ran Nell to fill in for Jag who is still out with an injury. She did really well for not being to a trial in a long time. She was slower than she needed to be but got around the course and was still in the top half out of 60 dogs. Dustin ran Kat and it was a good learning experience for him. He got through the figure 8 handily but then got hung up at the Y-chute. He learned that it's pretty important to run your dog the way it works best for them and not try to run them like someone else runs their dogs. He has come so far as a handler and I couldn't be more proud of him. He handles loss with more dignity than some adults.

Dustin was also great about helping me stay focused and calm before my runs in the semi's and finals. He took the time to pray over Cash and I before each run and the whole time we were running as well. He is definetly a shining light in this world!

Here are results that I have recorded. I don't have the way we placed in the semi's but the cumulative times to get into the finals. I know Cash was the fast time in the semi finals and I believe Dennis Edwards and Nap were second. They pay fast two times in the prelim's and semi's. Then everyone in the finals.

Prelims:

1. Tim Naasz - Ryn

2. Tim Naasz - Zoey

3. Rene LaBree - Jazz

4. Dennis Edwards - Craig

5. Murray Ketteler - Jack

6. Jeff Garman - Matt

7. Alison Ramsbottom - Cap

8. Alison Ramsbottom - Rob

9. Joni Swanke - Sweep

10. Shannon Fritz - Ben

11. Gerald Bunney - Lou

12. Tim Flint - Lad

13. Dennis Edwards - Nap

14. Pete Carmichael - Liz

15. Joni Swanke - Griz

16. Laura and Cash

Combined time order to get into finals:

1. Murray Ketteler - Jack

2. Tim Flint - Lad

3. Laura and Cash

4. Shannon Fritz - Ben

5. Gerald Bunney - Lou

6. Dennis Edwards - Nap

Finals:

1. Laura and Cash (Yay for my boy!)

2. Murray and Jack

3. Dennis and Nap

4. Tim and Lad

5. Gerald and Lou

6. Shannon and Ben

Signs for a modern woman

2010-01-31T06:18:00.001-07:00

I got these in an email yesterday and just wanted to share. They would fit in with my "decor" around here so well! Hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

This and That

2010-01-29T06:32:00.003-07:00

Okay, basically I'm just trying to get back in the habit of posting more often again. So, hopefully I don't bore you to death with everyday "stuff".

Dustin is taking fiddle lesson's and is riding up to Rapid City with my dad for one today. Brady plays the guitar and dobro and my dad plays those as well as the banjo. Dad LOVES having grandkids that want to "jam" with him now. Dad and Brady are especially fond of Bluegrass and Gospel. Dustin thinks anything by Charlie Daniels is the greatest.

Winter has been long in our country again this year. Seems like it's been rough for a lot of people though. Our livestock are all doing well though so we really shouldn't complain. We still do from time to time, but we really shouldn't! The next 10 days are forecasted to be in the low 30's for highs and the teens for lows so at least it's not brutal cold for now. A welcome reprieve from the -35 windchills we had for 2 weeks around Christmas.

The procession of calves coming in has finally begun. We've been feeding calves for another producer for the last couple of years. He buys them in various load sizes and then we process them and they stay here until going to grass at our cousins. It works well for us. Lots of work but enjoyable work. I wish they could all come in at once so we could have one really big branding day and then just go on with feeding every day. Alas, that's not how it financially works best for the other guy though.

So, I was looking forward to all this cattle work again for our young dogs this winter and spring. Rock and Bet are at a perfect age to be a lot of help and I'm thankful for that. Dustin's young dog, Speck, has already proven to be a good cattledog but unfortunately he will be out of commission the whole time these calves are here. He was going way to fast around a corner and clipped a metal gate with his hind leg. He ruptured his ACL and has surgery early next week to repair it. He won't be able to return to work until early summer. Huge bummer for us!

Jag is also out of commission right now and we're not sure what's going on. He's non weight bearing on his left front leg. It appears to be in his shoulder but my vet can't find what would be causing this much pain on xrays. They've been sent to the University and hopefully they can give us something to go on. We've started him on Adequan and if that helps we know it's joint related. He was moving some calves from one pen to the other and went to jump off a snow drift (there are a lot of them here) and took a pile drive into a metal feedbunk. It wasn't pretty! He seemed fine right afterwards but it's progressively gotten worse. Keep him in your prayers please as we'll be lost without Jag's help this spring. Not to mention I hate seeing him in pain!

Okay, I'm sure I've bored you to tears now and for that I apologize. We're preg checking cows and moving another bunch tomorrow. Then the Black Hills Stock Show on Monday. So hopefully I'll have more interesting stuff to report on next time.

PS - If you made it this far, way to go!

Denver Stock Show

2010-01-26T11:52:00.005-07:00

First, I must apologize for how lax I've been with the blog. No good excuses just busy with life and didn't feel much of it was news worthy. Then I pile things up and don't feel like I can write about everything that's happened in one blog so I just do the big one's. I'll try to do better now. :-)

Just got back from the Denver Stock Show. Spent quite a bit of time with my family down there and really enjoyed their company! I think it's the main reason I go to that trial every year. That and to go somewhere warmer even if it's just a couple of days! My brother Dan rode down with Dustin and I. It was nice to spend some time with him. We ran into a little snow coming home but for the most part it was good driving.

Our dogs did well down there. Can always do better but overall we're very happy with them. Dustin and Kat were up first for our crew in the Intermediate. Kat always handles lambs so well and she didn't disappoint us this time either. She had one that refused to go in the pen and it cost Dustin being in the money but he still ended up 11th out of 49 dogs so he was still happy. Then I ran Cash one last time in a lower class. He did a really good job. Handled the lambs really well and did everything I asked of him. If I hadn't dropped the ball at the pen (let a lamb slip under the rope twice) our score would have been much better. As it was we ended up 5th so in the money.

Then on to Sunday and the Open Sheep. Zac was my first dog to run and he hasn't worked since his surgery back in early December to remove the broken toe. It was like driving a cadillac again!! I just adore that dog and love working him. He put down a good run that could have been better if his partner (me) hadn't pushed on the lambs so hard at the Y chute. He ended up 5th in the prelims. Then I ran Cash in his first open trial. I had planned on running Jag but he's injured and still working on recovery right now. Anyway, Cash wasn't quite like running Zac but nonetheless he was a VERY good boy! Missed a couple of whistles on the figure 8 but still had a fast enough time to come in just under Zac and get 6th in the prelims out of 42 dogs. So, in his first open run he got the exact same place that Zac got in his first open run. Suppose that's a good sign! ;-)

So, both dogs made it back for the finals where both drew up towards the end. Cash was getting a little tired of the lambs trying to break back on him and wasn't listening quite as well but still managed to get them around the course. He is SO good at the pen. Zac was the last dog to run for the day and went out looking good. I've been a bit worried about his foot since it's only been 6 weeks since the surgery. He looked great in his first run but when the lambs broke back on him and he tried to beat them between the fence, something happened. Not sure if he hit the fence with that foot, got stepped on a little or just twisted it wrong but he threw his tail and I knew it hurt. So, I slowed things down for a little bit to see how he was. He seemed to be okay and wanted to keep going so we did. He had a great run despite the limp and ended up 5th in the finals. He was running and playing with Kat outside 10 minutes after his run and has worked sheep again this morning so everything is fine. Must have just been a stinger.

Great trip. Wonderful people to visit with and great dogs to watch. Overall I was thrilled.

Christmas blizzard

2009-12-28T12:34:00.004-07:00

Well, our Christmas plans were derailed by mother nature this year. Thankfully we got a bit of a repreive on Christmas Eve so we were able to make it to church and then supper with my family. I'm really thankful for that now!

We got some snow on the 23rd but then it quieted down again until Christmas morning. Wow, she cut loose then. All day Friday and Saturday we got hammered with snow and wind. Visibility was horrid. We had fed everything really good the day before and moved the cows and sheep into better protection. Still it was a long two days of not being able to find them on Friday and Saturday. Sunday morning the wind let up and Mike was able to see good enough to find all the sheep and the cows we were short. They had blown into a deep draw and weren't much worse for the wear. I was so relieved!

Thought I'd share this cartoon with you from one of my all time favorite strips. It's pretty fitting of how I felt Sunday morning. :-)

You can see more of "The Barn" at www.creators.com/comics/the-barn.html. It's one of my daily reads anymore.

We ended up with close to a foot of snow but the drifts are what are horrible. They range from 4 feet up to 14 feet. The roads are getting opened today though. Really tough feeding right now as the snow is getting a hard crust on it now. I'm fairly certain we'll have a good portion of these drifts until spring now.

Hope everyone had a blessed Christmas and enjoys the New Year!

Puppies!

2009-11-12T10:14:00.007-07:00

I'm the worst about taking puppy pictures so haven't shared yet about the puppies at my place. Sorry! Nell blessed us with one more litter of puppies by Don Helsley's Cap. I can't say enough good things about my grand old gal. She has been a true gem as a working dog as well as a producer. We are very fortunate to have her in our lives. She has basically moved into the house and is convinced she is the queen of the couch. She still helps out around the place but is basically enjoying retirement.

(Gage is the tri and Don's pup is the B/W)

The 3 puppies were born on October 4th. 2 females and 1 male. One of the girls (Soot) and the male (Gage) is staying with us and the other female is going to Don. I'm pretty excited to see how they mature and work but for right now we're just enjoying the antics of puppyhood.

(Soot)

We also got our stud fee pup from Jamie a week ago. She is off of Reece and Jag. This is a repeat cross and I have Rock from the first litter. I got a female this time and her name is Jess. She's a ball of fire and has a hard time slowing down right now but we sure enjoy the heck out of her. This of course means we're going to be raising way to many puppies right now but I just couldn't turn down one from this cross again seeing how much I love Rock. I had planned on only keeping one pup from Nell but with it being her last litter I want to give myself time to see them grow up before I decide. So... the boys and I are going to have our hands full this winter. It's a good time for us to raise pups though as we're not terribly busy until after the first of the year again. It also means I'm going to have to have a young dog or two for sale in the next year.

(Jess our Jag x Reece pup at 7 weeks old)

Domestic Goddess...NOT!

2009-10-31T09:17:00.008-06:00

Okay, anyone that knows me, knows that I'm not a domestic goddess. Heck, I'm not a domestic anything to be honest. I have tried over the years to learn to enjoy (or maybe even tolerate better) the finer points of housework, cooking, baking, canning and maybe even sewing. I just have never acheived it. I've just about given up honestly but hope with age some of it will come to me.

Recently I had to apologize to my mom as she has really tried over the years to teach me how to cook, can, bake and attempt to sew. The only thing I've managed to sew up so far are critters. I did sew up the couch once, does that count? I love eating all the stuff my mom cans as well! :-) I wonder if that counts for anything. The one thing that has improved (if even just slightly) is my cooking. The first time I attempted to really cook anything was Rice a Roni when Mike and I were first together. The only thing I managed to do was catch my shirt on fire. I figure you can only go up from there, right?

Most of the time all I can think about are ways to escape to the outside world. Isn't there a horse that needs rode, a well that needs checked, a dog that needs worked or even a fence to be fixed? I'll admit I have to be a bit desperate for that last one to be real appealing. I suppose that's why I thrive on calving and lambing season. It's acceptable to not worry about anything real domestic then. :-) Works for me anyway!

Okay, I suppose I've stalled long enough. The vaccuum would like to remove some of the outside world I insist on dragging in with me.

Pictures

2009-09-25T06:33:00.005-06:00

Thought I'd share a few pictures I've taken recently. All but one were taken the same day. It was beautiful out! Plenty of sunshine along with some clouds for shade. I love fall weather. If it could just be spring and fall all year I'd sure be happy.

(Jag)

I really don't have much burdock around here but the day before we shipped lambs about 30 head of ewes found a hole in the fence and went exploring in a draw that's full of them. I wasn't overly happy with the girls!

(Jag)

I like the above picture because of the way the sun is shining on the hill with the trees and yet it's shady where we're working.

(Jag)

If you look towards the top right hand of the picture you can see where the sun is shining on a hill. Jag had just brought this bunch from over there. One of his best qualities is his gather. Anywhere, anyhow is his motto. :-)

(Rock)

The picture above was the morning we shipped lambs. There's a long lane down to the corral and that's where Rock is pushing them right now. He's getting more confident driving all the time. He loves to work a bigger bunch.

(Rock)

Just thought I'd share one of him up close. He reminds me a lot of his mother (Jamie's Reece).

(Rock)

We're working on driving here again and he's really starting to figure out how to hold a line on a smaller bunch on his own now. Yay! BTW, if you can't tell, I REALLY like this dog.

Update and general chaos

2009-09-21T13:44:00.004-06:00

Sorry, about how lax I've been on updating the blog. Life has been busy but it's no excuse, just reality.

I went to the Kaycee trial and bombed so nothing real exciting to report there. Wait, Dennis Edwards (one of the nicest person's your ever going to meet) won it with his good dog, Ben. His young dog, Craig (Nell x Lew), also made it into the double lift in his first open run. Yay for Dennis and his dogs!!!!

The boys are back in public school. What an adjustment for mom! I think the first week was much harder on me than it was on either of them. They are both really enjoying the different classes and getting to hang out with friends more. Both of them are also playing football and that keeps us VERY busy right now with 2 -3 games per week.

(Dustin is in the middle of the pack in purple)

Just getting started with the fall cattle work and am enjoying being able to go with Mike more now that I'm not teaching the boys this time of year. We preconditioned our calves last week and we do the cash cattle bunch this week. Loading out yearling steers tomorrow. Preg testing cows with a cousin on Friday. Lots of riding.

We sold lambs last week and did better than expected so that's always really nice!! Used Jag, Cash, Rock and Bet to gather, sort and load lambs. It's fun to watch the young dogs (Rock and Bet) get their first chance at this kind of work. They both stepped right up. I forgot how much I enjoy Cash for this kind of work as well. He is so good in tight spaces! Zac supervised as I just can't bring myself to leave him at the house when we work. I'm not sure if that's harder on him than just staying at the house but he seems happier even if he's just covering a "hole". His favorite job now is setting sheep for the other dogs.

Looking forward to "watching" the finals over the internet this week. Wish I was there but just couldn't swing it this year for one dog.

L & M SDT Results

2009-08-08T09:03:00.000-06:00

July 16 - 17, 2009 - Allen, SD - Judge: Dan Keeton
(all tie's broke on gather)

Thursday's Open (23 dogs)
1. Larry Adams - Raid - 84
2. Gerald Bunney - Lou - 69
3. Wendy Schmaltz - Gin - 66
4. Gerald Bunney - Lucky - 66
5. Bud Boudreau - Jay - 65
6. Wendy Shmaltz - Fly - 65
7. Bud Boudrea - Sam - 64
8. Laura Hicks - Jag - 64
9. Kelly Bradley - Jim - 62
10. Rene LaBree - Glen - 60
11. Bud Boudreau - Delta - 60
12. Gerald Bunney - Ladd - 57
13. Dennis Edwards - Nap - 54
14. Gene Weringa - Wills - 54
15. Tim Naasz - Ryn - 50
16. Dennis Edwards -Ben - 33
17. Sue Noll - Kirk - 20
18. Laura Hicks - Zac - RT
19. Sue Noll - Britton - RT
20. Bud Boudreau - Swael - RT
21. Herb Aronson - Bobbie - RT
22. Rene LaBree - Jazz - RT
23. Larry Adams - Mirk - RT

Thursday's Nursery - (11 dogs)
1. Kelly Bradley - Jim - 60
2. Wendy Schmaltz - Ann - 49
3. Herb Aronson - Jake Jr - 40
4. Bud Boudreau - Val - 39
5. Gene Weringa - Jebediah - 28
6. Gerald Bunney - Lyle - 28
7. Laura Hicks - Cash - RT
8. Bud Boudreau - Tine - RT
9. Wendy Schmaltz - Dot - RT
10. Dennis Edwards - Craig - RT
11. Wacey Kornemann - Whip - RT

Thursday's Open Ranch - (10 dogs)
1. Dennis Edwards - Craig - 76
2. Dustin Hicks - Kat - 44
3. Gene Weringa - Abby - 37
4. Gerald Bunney - Lyle - 31
5. Bud Boudreau - Annie - 31
6. Wacey Kornemann - Whip - RT
7. Rene LaBree - Jace - RT
8. John Kellner - Nate - RT
9. Shari Lindquist - Paige - RT
10. Gene Weringa - Rob Roy - DQ

Thursday's Novice (3 dogs)
1. Jamie Spring - Hope - 7
2. Charles Lindquist - Callie - DQ
3. Shari Lindquist - DQ

Friday's Open (23 dogs)
1. Kelly Bradley - Jim - 87
2. Bud Boudreau - Delta - 77
3. Bud Boudreau - Swael - 77
4. Gerald Bunney - Ladd - 76
5. Rene LaBree - Jazz - 76
6. Larry Adams - Mirk - 74
7. Rene LaBree - Glen - 73
8. Wendy Schmaltz - Gin - 73
9. Bud Boudreau - Sam - 72
10. Herb Aronson - Bobbie - 68
11. Dennis Edwards - Ben - 67
12. Sue Noll - Britton - 66
13.. Laura Hicks - Jag - 65
14. Dennis Edwards - Nap - 63
15. Larry Adams - Raid - 62
16. Gerald Bunney - Lou - 60
17. Gerald Bunney - Lucky - 60
18. Wendy Schmaltz - Fly - RT
19. Laura Hicks - Zac - RT
20. Gene Weringa - Wills - RT
21. Tim Naasz - Ryn - RT
22. Sue Noll - Kirk - RT
23. Bud Boudreau - Jay - RT

Friday's Nursery (13 dogs)
1. Kelly Bradley - Jim - 45
2. Bud Boudreau - Val - 39
3. Wendy Schmaltz - Dot - 28
4. Wendy Schmaltz - Ann - 19
5. Herb Aronson - Jake Jr - RT
6. Gerald Bunney - Lyle - RT
7. Bud Boudreau - Tine - RT
8. Dennis Edwards - Craig - RT
9. Wacey Kornemann - Whip - RT
10. Joni Swanke - Will - RT
11. Laura Hicks - Cash - RT
12. Rene LaBree - Jace - DQ
13. Gene Weringa - Jebediah - DQ

Friday's Open Ranch (13 dogs)
1. Gerald Bunney - Lyle - 55
2. Joni Swanke - Sweep - 50
3. Joni Swanke - Lucy - 50
4. Gene Weringa - Abby - 41
5. Dennis Edwards - Craig - 37
6. Bud Boudreau - Annie - 36
7. Dustin Hicks - Kat - 32
8. Joni Swanke - Griz - 31
9. Rene LaBree - Jace - RT
10. Gene Weringa - Rob Roy - RT
11. Wacey Kornemann - Whip - DQ
12. Shari Lindquist - Paige - DQ
13. John Kellnery - Nate - DQ

Friday's Novice (5 dogs)
1. Jamie Spring - Hope - 39
2. Amanda Klaboe - Nat - RT
3. Shari Lindquist - Wren - RT
4. Charles Lindquist - Callie - DQ
5. Jan Stebbins - Jake - DQ

Kelley Creek SDT - UT trip

2009-07-09T16:37:00.001-06:00

The 4th of July around our place can be pretty exciting so it was hard to pack up and leave knowing the party my little town likes to throw. We were well rewarded for our efforts though!

Jamie Spring (she lives north of me about 2 hours) and I took off on Thursday the 2nd and it was a LONG drive to Huntsville, UT! I think somehow when she and I travel together time must get lost somewhere. :-) Probably because we're gabbing so much we don't know where we are half the time.

The country is very green all the way from here through WY and into UT. There is so much grass and lots of hay being put up now. Huntsville is tucked into a little valley at the base of a ski resort. It's SO beautiful!!

Kelley Creek farm is a haven for dog people. It's literally built just for this kind of event. There are ponds that Brent designed and built that the dogs are free to play in. There is plenty of room to take them for good walks as well as loads of shade to park under or tie dogs under. It's just great! They also do a bang up job at hospitality. Patsy, Shauna and Carol keep everything running very smoothly.

So, for how our dogs ran. Jag was up 6th on Friday. He was listening good but after watching several runs where the sheep were really hard to move I thought I'd let him have them at the top a bit more. Mistake! I had a heck of a time keeping them slowed down enough to be manageable after that. They were just terrified of him. So, we ended up getting through the course but it wasn't real pretty. I think we were somewhere around 12th. Then Zac ran in the 25th spot. He was his usual steady, reliable self and ended up in 6th place. We had a big bobble on the crossdrive that cost us being up there higher. You couldn't see the dog and just barely see the sheep on the last half of the crossdrive. I gave a little flank at the wrong time and he took it so we missed the panel. Such is life.

Then Cash was up in the nursery. He ran like a champ all weekend and ended up winning both go's of the nursery. He still needs a little polish to be real competitive at the finals but I was pleased with him as this was only his 3rd field trial and 5th trial all together.

Jamie's more experienced dog is injured right now so she broke her pup (16 months) out for her first trial. Hope (Jag x Reece) did really well for her first trial. She ended up 2nd in the novice in the first go and 4th in the next go. She wasn't 100% sure about the set out crew but handled her sheep SO well. Jamie was thrilled with her and I'm loving to watch this whole litter of pups come on!

The second go of Open wasn't good for Jag. Just wasn't wanting to listen so I ran out and had a little meeting with him. Zac was really good in the heat. He was out of the money but had a really good run. There were just a LOT of really good runs that day.

Anyway, our trip was a success on many fronts and we love getting to travel together so you can't beat that! Our trials are next weekend so busy getting geared up for that.

Young dog pictures

2009-06-11T06:31:00.006-06:00

Here are the pictures of the young dogs we have right now. More information about them is in the post prior to this one.

(Dustin working Speck)

(Dose - his name came because he was the second pup we kept off of Kat, Uno was first)

(Rock - doesn't he have a HUGE tongue!)

(Bet - little miss thing!)

Young dogs

2009-06-10T08:40:00.005-06:00

I love starting dogs. Well, I like the finesse part of training to. I guess I'm really fond of real work and just using dogs as well. Okay, I'll admit it I just like working dogs in general. But, one of the best aspects is to see young dogs come on with their training. That year to two year old range is so much fun because they just seem to soak things up. It can be a bit repetitive in the beginning but the amount of change in a dog in that time frame is really cool.

I'm not a real fast trainer. Probalby because I HATE drilling even more than a lot of dogs do. It bores me to tears. Most of my young dogs start doing real jobs before they really even know their flanks. As long as I have a good stop, recall and they're working off body language well I'll just start using them. I guess you could say it's a bit of baptism by fire. It doesn't work for every dog and sure wouldn't suit a lot of people but for the most part it works for me.

We have a couple of young dogs right now we're just getting started. Dose and Speck are off of Kat and Jag. So, linebred on my Nell. Speck is Dustin's pup and Dose is mine. It started out the other way around but as we're getting them started we realized Speck is going to fit Dustin best. It's his first pup to start and I want to set him up for as much success as possible. Speck is a very natural, talented, level headed pup. Dose is also very natural and talented but not as level headed just yet. It could change but for right now Speck reminds me a lot of his mother. Dustin thinks the sun rises and sets over Kat so he's pretty excited about Speck!

I also have two yearlings right now. Rock (almost 16 months old) and Bet (almost 15 months old). Rock is by Jag and off of Jamie Spring's Reece. He is the class clown around here. Rock is just flat fun to be around! He has more try and heart than a lot of dogs his age already though. He is a bit of an adrenaline junkie. He's not grippy and has plenty of come forward. He's a thinker and tries really hard to figure out what I want. If things get a bit wild he likes to jump right into it but he'll settle with age. I'm not worried. I love the fire in his belly.

Bet is by Don Helsley's Cap and out of Tim Naasz's Ryn (Nell x Spot). She's the kind of dog that everything comes easy for her. She didn't necessarily want to take any training until recently though. In the last few weeks she has just come on gangbusters though. I started using her to gather the pairs (a pretty good sized bunch) in the evenings and her confidence went through the roof! She has decided she's "The Dog" now and whatever I want to do she's sure she can handle. It's really fun to watch.

I have a few pictures of them and if my computer will ever let me get them uploaded I'll put them on here.

Another lambing season in the books!

2009-06-03T08:16:00.002-06:00

Another lambing season has come and gone. It's always pretty intense here for about 3 weeksand right in the middle of it I sometimes wonder what I'm thinking. I really do enjoy it though and love to see the lambs racing all over. It's just so much fun to watch them enjoy jumping off of little embankments.

(A couple of day old lambs)

Dustin and Brady are really growing up and were a tremendous help this year. Dustin and his dog Kat can get any job I could do done by himself now. So, I can send him one way while I go another. Cuts the time in half now. Brady is really good at running the bander and paints most of the numbers on fairly straight anyway. :-)

(Dustin and Kat moving a pair out)

(Dustin and Brady painting and banding)

The dogs love lambing season and it was fun to watch Cash figure things out this year. Jag is my main dog for all ranch work now but it's nice to have another one coming up that understand the job so well. Zac and Nell are always great help but are getting enough age on them now that I don't use them very hard. Just enough that they enjoy it but don't get sore.

(Kat and her mothering skills with a chilled lamb)

So, as one season passes another starts and we're getting ready to move on to haying. I still spend most evenings checking on the water for the pairs. It's SO much fun to watch the "lambie races" and very rewarding to see them grow every day.

Quick catchup

2009-05-13T07:56:00.002-06:00

Spring (which has finally arrived here) is probably the busiest time of year for us around here. So, it's made it a bit difficult to update the blog. I have taken a number of pictures and hope to get them uploaded soon.

Shearing was at the end of April and was very successful. I used Mist and Cash for their first time in the shearing pens. They both did extremely well and I was very happy with them. They have both also helped with lambing and have really stepped up to the plate.

Lambing is going well. A lot of singles this year but after the winter our livestock have had I'm just grateful that they all bred up so well. We've had 150 ewes lambs in 2 1/2 weeks so I'm pleased.

It's also branding season and it's the biggest social time of the year for us around here. It's hard work, no doubt, but the joy of it totally trumps the amount of work. Watching Dustin and Brady mature into such great help is also a benefit!

I hope to get a more detailed post up soon!

L & M Sheepdog Trial

2009-04-15T10:10:00.002-06:00

We're hosting another sheepdog trial on July 16th and 17th at the ranch here in Allen, SD. Dan Keeton has agreed to judge for us and we're excited to have him. We'll be running on ewes with May lambs. We have done this before and it has proved to be challenging.

If you'd like more information about it or an entry form you can go to www.lmstockdogs.com .

Oh spring, come out, come out wherever you are!

2009-04-09T17:21:00.005-06:00

Well, since winter won't let go of it's grip on us I figured I might as well get even more snowy pictures. We have all decided 3 blizzards in 3 weeks has passed the level of discomfort for all of us. Calving during all of this has made it even more disheartening. We figure spring (or summer eventually) has to come so we just keeping praying for warmer weather.

The picture above was taken by my youngest son, Brady, earlier today. He and his brother Dustin cake the steers every morning before they start school. The wild turkey have figured out that there are good leftovers for them in and around where the calves eat. The boys both really like wild life and the turkeys are really strutting about right now.

This picture was taken the day after our 3rd blizzard. We had brought the sheep closer to the house before it hit. Trying to get them back out to their pasture took several days as the snow had blocked all of the gates other than on to the main gravel road.

It's hard to tell in this picture (taken the same day as the one above) but we got a foot and a half of snow out this storm. The previous 14 inches had melted quite a bit so there is a LOT of water under all that snow.

Here are the ewes enjoying some hay that had just come out of the processor. There starting to bag up quite a bit. We were supposed to shear next Tuesday but there is no way we'll be able to get them through the corral and to the barn by then. So we've moved it back a week. We had one ewe lamb in a snow storm last night and now we're just hoping the rest will hold off a little while longer. The new lamb is doing great! Tough little buggers.

This picture was actually taken right before the second blizzard. We got about 10 inches or so out of the first and that's what is still in this picture.

Here are my guard dogs looking like they're really ready for spring as well! Nala (standing) is an Akbash from Julie Hansmire of CO and is about 2 years old. She is absolutely fantastic! Simba (laying down) comes from Ellen Beach of MT and is an Akbash/Pyr. Simba is about 5 years old. He's the fiercer of the two with predators but the more easily caught as well. It's been a long winter for my boy! Nala is helping out by giving him some love.

Spring is in the air...

2009-03-21T09:05:00.003-06:00

and another blizzard is around the corner! We think winter has been long enough. Doesn't that mean we should be able to skate through spring without all the normal spring snow storms? That would be my vote anyway. Unfortunately the weather man is predicting otherwise for the beginning of next week.

It's supposed to get up to almost 70 degrees today. The wind is blowing a bit but when the sun is shining this much it's hard to even complain about the wind. This is normal for our spring weather. Up and down a lot. We have to get the high mag mineral put out because the grass is starting to green up but in a couple of days the grass could all be covered up again.

The neighbor's bulls have helped calving get started a little early for us this year. Jag, Cash and I went and moved a few pairs (slowly) yesterday. It was Cash's first time helping with pairs. He was a bit to pushy but learned quickly. It was fun to see.

Well, I'm off to enjoy one more beautiful spring day!

Cash

2009-03-17T10:10:00.004-06:00

Thought I'd share a little about one of my up and coming dogs. This is Cash and he just turned 2 years old. I got him from my friend Shannon Fritz. He's a grandson of my Nell through Shannon's Kate (Spot x Nell). His sire is Shannon's Jim who came from Bobby Henderson.

Cash is such a fun dog to work. He has loads of try and wants to be a partner more than anything. He has a few quirky behaviors. For some reason he has a pretty big fear of the guard dogs. No explainable reason either. They've never attacked him or even bothered him really. He's getting over it and seems to just ignore them for the most part now. I was making a pretty big issue of it in the beginning and just continued to make it worse. When I backed off and just let him sort it out himself that's pretty much what he did.

Cash will be my nursery dog this year. He has one leg on him now and hopefully he'll run well at the spring trials. He's a line dog like his grandma, Nell. He's very similiar in working style to Nell actually.

This will be Cash's first year helping with lambing and I think he'll be a great addition to the team. He's been helping dog break the calves that come in during the winter and he's been a great at that. I really appreciate that he's good at working in a multiple dog situation already as well. We're all pretty attached to the "Cash-ew Nut" at my house and I'm hopeful he'll be my next open dog.

Where the buffalo roam!

2009-02-26T09:03:00.008-07:00

The tribe's buffalo pasture borders our west pasture. It's always fun to be out riding and see them in the next pasture. What is not so much fun is that they're getting out on a regular basis now. The snow storm back in November buried a lot of fence in our country. Most of us actually had to put fence over snow drifts in some spots because it was to hard by the time we could get to it to even dig it out right away. The buffalo fence hasn't been fixed yet unfortunately.

We put it up the best we can in the spots that we've found but there's 6000 acres of buffalo pasture and it gets pretty rough in spots. We talked to the tribal parks department and there supposed to be sending a crew out to get it up again. We're hopeful.

When Mike and I were first married he would go help the tribe gather and ship buffalo fairly often. It was always exciting but I hate to admit I'm pretty darn intimidated by them. They're SO much faster than cattle and don't take being pressured well at all. One year, a teenage girl decided to help. She had been told that with buffalo you just kind of hang back and try not to put to much pressure on them. Make the right way real easy and the wrong direction a little less inviting. She rode way to close to one bull and he turned on her and had her horse down before she even know what hit her. Thankfully there was someone close enough to distract the buffalo long enough she could crawl up a tree. I tend to remember that story every time we need to move them anywhere!

Processing calves

2009-02-22T19:34:00.005-07:00

(Jag)

We take in calves for another cattleman to feed for the winter. They go to our cousin for summer grass in May. As the order buyer gets the steers bought they're shipped to our house. We process (brand, vaccinate and pour) them as they come in. Usually 50 - 100+ at a time. We work around the boys' school work so that the four of us can take care of it without any extra help. We introduce the dogs to the calves as we're moving them in the corral and up into the tub and alley. We don't use the dogs once they're in the alley as it's solid. We've been doing this long enough now that my family runs calves through pretty quickly. I do think there's some sort of murphy's law that says when we get the bigger loads in it has to be cold, snowy or windy. Sometimes all of the above!

(Jag watching a bunch that's been worked already.)

Anyway, the dogs will bring a bunch of about 14-15 up the return alley and into the tub. We are there to open and close gates for them. I like to spread the work out between all of my dogs from time to time but I do have a few favorites when it comes to this work. Jag and Zac know the job so well that it would be easy to just take them all the time but Zac is retired and I don't want to shorten Jag's career by over using him. Dustin takes Kat and she really excels at this work. Well, as long as Dustin is there. It doesn't even do me any good to take Kat out if he's not there as she wants nothing to do with working for me anymore.

(Kat bringing another bunch to the tub.)

Cash has just started helping with it this year. He turned 2 in January. He can be a bit gung ho at times and wants to go after every steer that comes of of the chute but he's taking less reminders to lay still until needed now. He's also dealing with working with several different dogs at the same time and getting better about only taking his commands. He's proving to be a very useful dog. He's also figured out that he likes be next to the chute just in case one of the calves hasn't been castrated yet!

(Cash working with Jag as backup)

It can take several hours to get it all done and move the calves to pasture but we all really enjoy the time spent together. Even the boys really seem to enjoy it. They both would like to brand every calf but we make them trade off between that and bringing calves up the alleyway. When it's cold the fight is ON because both of them would like to be close to the branding stove! :-)

(Jag turning one back)

We need to get our own fall calves run through tomorrow. We'll have to gather and move them to the corrals first. Should be enough work to spread it out to a few dogs anyway. Nell and Jag will probably do the pasture work and we'll let Kat and Cash work the pens. It's supposed to be nice tomorrow. Not sure if we'll really know how to handle that.

Black Hills Stock Show

2009-02-04T12:07:00.003-07:00

The winter is pretty slow for us on the trial front. We're so thankful to have the opportunity to run at the Black Hills Stock Show. It's a great chance to get together with other dog people and catch up. It's also a really good venue to get working dogs in front of the public. There are a lot of spectators there who become genuinely interested in working dogs and how they can help their operations. It's a nice thing to see.

It's not a sanctioned trial and there is one class. It's a figure 8 pattern around two barrels, Y chute and then a pen. It's a timed trial and as such is very easy for the crowd to understand. I'm not a huge fan of timed trials but have to admit they are an adrenaline rush.

This was Dustin's first year to compete there. He and Kat have come so far together it's really great to see. I ran Kat until she was 3 years old and fully trained. Dustin helped with everything dog related for 6 months to prove to us he was serious about owning a dog. When he had done that, Kat became his dog. He still helps with anything related to the dogs.

It's really fun for me to see the bond and the partnership these two have together. It reminds me quite a bit of the team Zac and I have always been. She always did well for me but she never really gave her heart over to me. She has more than done that with Dustin. She will do anything for him.

So, back to the Stock Show. Dustin and Kat didn't advance past the preliminary round but their run was something to be proud of. When Dustin started running her he would pretty much "default" to her judgement on everything. He wasn't truly running her but letting her run it all. In the last year that has completely changed and he is now a partner with her but has stepped up to be the handler. It took her awhile to trust that he really knew what he was doing and give the "reins" back to him but she has now. His timing, judgement, stock sense and attitude have really come a LONG ways as well. I'm SO proud of him!!

I had a good time getting together with friends as well as running my dogs. Jag is fighting a really nasty infection right now and it was clearly obvious to me that he wasn't himself out there. I really shouldn't have run him. Zac had wisdom and experience on his side and did a great job. He's so much fun to run at these kind of events. He LOVES crowds and it really gets him pumped up. He's very level headed though and handles whatever is thrown at him. He made it through the first two rounds to end up 4th in the finals. Good job Zac!

Looking forward to next year.

"Family"

2009-01-16T13:59:00.004-07:00

I'd like to wax philosophical about family and all the different kinds and meanings that go along with the word but honestly I'm not feeling real great today so will be brief.

Anyway, the above picture is a partial "family" shot of the Jag and Reece (outside edges) with 3 of their half grown pups. Rock is the one I'm holding and he's mostly his mother's son in personality. I love that goofball! The two Jamie has are Rye (sitting up more) and Hope (mostly black). Hope is very much like Jag's side of the family and Rye seems to be a bit of both right now. The pups are all starting out really well and both Jamie and I are excited about them.

Now, for those of you who don't know Jamie. She has become one of my best friends in the last few years and to me feels more and more like a sister. We celebrate family highs and lows together. We talk dogs but more often than not, we discuss husbands, kids and ranching. So, this picture doesn't include all of my family (or even close to it actually) but it does have some important members of it!

Holidays

2009-01-04T16:50:00.002-07:00

I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas and a great start to the New Year. I have enjoyed the last two weeks immensely! We had family visit and spent a good deal of time hanging out together. I'm very fortunate to be able to get together with quite a few of my extended family members for all of the holidays.

My dad is the pastor of our church, Living Word Community Church. We meet in the old Movie Theater in our nearby town (well 30 miles but it's our closest town). We're a non demoninational, ranching kind of church who live by the word of the Bible. We had quite a few special performances (singing, cowboy poetry, narrations, etc) by people in our area at our church this month. I'm always amazed by how much talent out little community has. Pretty exciting!

We start school again tomorrow. The boys aren't overly thrilled with it but I'm ready to get cracking on it again. We're taking down the Christmas decorations tonight. I'm not ready! It's pretty amazing when you think about the whole Christmas story. Maybe if we can all remember it more throughout the year we'll be better people for it.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Picture game

2008-12-18T16:31:00.003-07:00

Okay, I got tagged to do the 6th picture game. I won't go into all the details as I think everyone else that blogs has already been tagged and played the game.

This was my "6th picture" in my archives on my computer. It is Jag holding the replacement heifers up to the cake pickup. I think it was when he was 2 so about 4 years ago. We had weaned these heifers in the corral and dog broke them for about 4 days or so. Then moved them to a section pasture where we fed them all winter. We'd drive over and cake them every morning. It only takes about 2-3 times before they figure out what the pickup is about. The dogs gather the draws and such and we wait in the middle of the pasture. We're keeping some calves of our own again this winter so the dogs get extra work again. Yay!

Winter weather and Survival

2008-12-13T13:42:00.003-07:00

Well, we're all battening down the hatches again. We're under a blizzard warning for tonight and all of tomorrow. No one seems to be taking it lightly after the last storm. We're all praying we're going to be terribly over prepared for what is supposed to be coming. They're not predicting a lot of snow (5 inches) but they were only predicting about 6-8 last time and we got 2 feet. The part that's bad about this one is how much colder it's supposed to be. We're supposed to maybe reach 3 degrees on Sunday with windchills down to -30. So we have all the livestock fed down in the draws and I'm going to move sheep close to the house before it gets dark tonight. They'll have the big, machine shop to get hunkered down next to and if it gets to bad they'll just have to go in it. Mike hates that thought! We have the generator close by in case we lose power and the garage is full of firewood. So, I think we're about as prepared as we can be anyway.

Now, for my survival story from the last blizzard in November. A friend of mine lives north of me about 2.5 hours. She got hit pretty hard as well but thankfully didn't lose a lot of sheep. Unfortunately 2 of them could never be found. She was out feeding shortly after Thanksgiving and noticed the top of a sheep's head where a snow drift was melting. She knew she was dead but glad to know for sure now. Except, the head moved a bit! She and her husband went to digging and sure enough she was alive. This was now 24 days after the storm. She was extremely thin and soaked because of the melting snow but was able to stand in there. So when they got her dug out she walked to the barn and went right to eating hay and drinking. She's needed a lot of TLC and is still pretty thin but looks like she's going to make. It's just another reminder of how strong the will to survive can be! Simply amazing to me.

My main "men"

2008-12-01T13:48:00.005-07:00

Well it's official, Zac has been retired from cattlework and most of the hard work on the place. He hasn't done the bulk of it in over a year now but we've finally decided he just can't do the tough jobs anymore. He still gets to do plenty of work around the place and some of the smaller trials but his body just doesn't keep up with his heart anymore.

Heart. It is the one word that describes him the best. I have worked a number of dogs now and have had and still do have ones that are more talented but if I ever have one that has as much heart as Zac has I will truly be blessed. I have never "lacked for dog" in any situation I've put him in. It's not that he's always the toughest (although I'd put him up against most I've seen) it's simply that his heart will carry him through whatever is asked of him.

I made to many mistakes in his training to even know where to begin. I started using him on the place to moves cows and calves at 6 months old. I put him in way to many situations that have aged his body way to rapidly. If given the chance to go back and do it again I'm not sure if he or I would know how to do it any differently though. We've always just been a team and no matter what needed done we figured out a way to do it. Probably not always the correct way and darn sure not with a lot of finesse but we always managed to "get 'er done"!

One of my favorite memories of Zac is during a huge fire in a neighboring pasture in August of 2003. In the mayhem a bunch of lambs got pushed into a tank and couldn't reach the bottom. They couldn't get any footing to be able to get out. I grabbed the ones closest to the edge and started pulling them out. Zac watched me for a minute and I was just taking my boots off to go in after the others, he jumped in without me asking. He started grabbing them by the base of their tails and pushing them to the edge for me to grab. He would then let go and go after another one. You just can't train that in a dog!

Zac just turned 9 on Thanksgiving day and besides my family there isn't one thing I'm more thankful for than to have this dog in my life. He has officially moved into the house. Some days he acts older than his age. Other days you'd think he's a pup again. He loves to set out sheep for the young dogs and back them up if something challenges them. One of his other favorite pastimes is watching TV with us in the evenings. And I DO mean WATCH. Not just sit there, he totally gets in to it. His favorites are anything on Animal Planet and Football. I don't think he'll ever see another tough job or really hard trial course again but I plan on enjoying every day I get with him.

So this brings me to my other "man", Jag. He wasn't as fast maturing as Zac but I also had an old reliable to fall back on while training him so didn't put him in the situations I just threw Zac into either. He was a challenge to start as he pushed on me and when I pushed back we often met with an explosion.

I have been amazed at his natural talent. He's the best outrunning dog I've ever owned and stellar at reading stock. My hubby always says he's got more finesse than most but doesn't always choose to use it! His sheer determination is what kept me going with him when he was young and I was getting frustrated. Nothing was going to get by him. I'm pretty sure he would have died trying rather than not get it stopped. Didn't matter what species it was.

Jag is now the dog that does the bulk of the tough work around the place. Dustin's dog, Kat, helps quite a bit as well but she won't work for me anymore. During the blizzard he was the dog who helped us find all the weaned calves and move them out of the draws. He was the one who worked for 10 hours the one day helping move neighbors cows around. I'm not sure I've seen a dog lose weight as quickly as he did during that 2 week time span. I fed him like crazy but he just put in way to many miles. Always ready for more whenever I asked.

One of my favorite memories of him is when I sent him after the ewes and lambs right at dusk. The coyotes had been giving us trouble and I wanted to move them closer to the house. He's always great at gathering everthing so I just went about my business and figured he'd show up soon enough. Well the sheep quit trickling in but no Jag. So I went looking. I called but no Jag. It took me quite awhile but I finally spotted him on a side hill just laying there. I hollered but he wouldn't come. I was getting a bit torked then so ran up there to give him a piece of my mind. When I got there he was laying next to a big hole that was very deep. I really couldn't see anything down there but just then I heard a faint little bawl. It was a lamb and I had to reach in well up to my shoulder to reach the little bugger. His mom had left him but Jag wasn't about to!

Jag just turned 6 and I'm hopeful that he has many years left of ranch work as well as on the trial field. I hope to spread the work out to my younger dogs more quickly now so I don't age him as quickly as I did Zac. It really is nice to know I have an old reliable again though!

Snow pictures

2008-11-13T19:16:00.003-07:00

It's hard to tell in this picture but there are 5 1/2 foot tall fences buried in there. The rams were in that pen and the snow banks were hard enough to walk them across it and put them in a different lot.

I'm standing on the snow bank taking this picture. That tree broke off onto the chicken house. The chicken house with all but one chicken it was completely buried. There wasn't anything but a bit of the roof showing.

The dogs could walk across the fence in the high spot there and it's over 6 foot high.

Once it settled down around here my boys had a blast digging a huge tunnel in this bank. They had a great time naming all the different "peaks", "mountain ranges" and "passes".

The barn towards the back is 14 foot tall at the back. The snow drift actually gets much higher to the left of the picture. That one went to almost 20 feet tall. The drift towards the front went into the building. To get in there I had to dig a little hole and then I could shimmy in on my stomach up against the ceiling. Thankfully the rams weren't in there. Just one stray chicken.

Blizzard!

2008-11-13T08:05:00.004-07:00

Well, the first weekend of November was almost summer like weather. Dustin and I spent it at a dog trial in t-shirts enjoying the 70 degree days. The second weekend was a totally different story.

It started to snow Wednesday afternoon (the 5th I believe) and we lost electricity by 3 pm. It snowed pretty good all night and woke up to close to 8 inches. Thursday the wind blew hard all day with gusts close to 80 mph. Add another 10-12 inches of snow coming with it all day and it made for a disastrous blizzard.

Not to be dramatic but everyone is pretty much in agreement that it's the worst one we've had here in at least 30 years. It's the worst one I can ever remember. The worst part was that it wasn't predicted to be even close to this bad so we didn't have time to put the sheep anywhere different. They were down in a good draw but after almost 2 days of the wind and snow blowing that hard, it blew them out of there and through the fences.

By the time we were able to see enough to get to them on Friday (we tried on Thursday but you literally couldn't see 2 feet in front of you) it was a horrid sight. The majority of the snow drifts were six feet tall but many were between 12 and 20 feet. The rams and feeder lambs had a barn but it had literally filled to the roof with snow in all but about a 2' x 10' area. Two of the feeder lambs had been trampled and died as a result.

We started finding the ewes scattered out all over the pasture. It was a pretty horrible sight honestly. It was hard to tell that they were even sheep. They looked more like snow drifts as they were SO covered in snow and ice. Mike started putting hay out for the ones that were fairly grouped up. Zac and I started gently easing the others up to the hay. We got a count and realized we were about 40 head short. So we went looking and found about 20 up against the fence in the pasture. There was a huge snow drift on the other side. Mike found a couple of air holes and we started digging. We found 20 head of ewes buried in there. It was amazing to me how many of those were still alive. It took us 4 hours to dig them all out but all but 6 of them survived. We never could find 4 of them and still don't have a clue as to where they might be but we're assuming they didn't make it. There are 3 that are still down that were buried in the snow bank but they seem to be getting stronger every day. Who is it that says sheep are weak? Ha!

We had just weaned calves about a week prior to the storm hitting. The snow buried a good portion of the fences around the country including the pasture our calves are in. We found all but 50 head on Friday. We found the remainder by Sunday. We lost 3 of them in the storm and we're dealing with a fair amount of sickness in them now. We had about 40 head of neighbor cows that had made it to our house on Friday so we finally got those all moved back to their rightful places on Tuesday. The boys and I have had our fill of riding in deep snow to last for awhile!

We still don't have electricity and they're telling us that it might be Thanksgiving before we have it. There are over 1000 poles down in our local area. The National Guard is in here now helping the Electric Company get through the snow and now mud to get to the poles. So, it looks like there may be light at the end of the tunnel!

We are very blessed and things like this have a way of reminding us of that. We know how much worse it could have been for our livestock. We know how many other people around the area only have electrical heat and have had to leave their homes until the power comes back. We know that all of our family and friends stayed in during the storm and weren't stranded in vehicles all over the state. We are so thankful for a great generator that we can run some of the household appliances on from time to time. Most of all we're so grateful to live in a "community" that all works together to help each other out whenever it's needed!

Out to pasture!

2008-11-03T17:22:00.002-07:00

Well, the bunch of cows that we just weaned calves off of got moved out of the corrals today and to a new pasture. We didn't have any extra rider's come over today. It was Mike, Dustin, Brady, myself, Jag and Kat. Dustin hasn't taken Kat with us to move cattle very often lately. I forgot how nice she is for that kind of work! She has so much stamina and just does her job without a lot of commands needed. I think Dustin decided moving cows with her might even be better than trialing. We decided that we (people) were basically there to open/close gates and get the dogs started in the right direction with the bunch. Other than that we just rode along and visited. I love having neighbors over to help us but I can't help but think how much simpler it is with the dogs to do the work instead. They don't drink as much beer either!

Good horses and great dogs!

2008-10-30T13:23:00.009-06:00

(I think he found a little mud!)

We've been pretty busy with fall cattle work lately. Helping neighbor's ship yearlings, preg checking cows and weaning calves. I really think fall and spring have to be my favorite times of year simply because of the loads of riding and helping neighbor's work cattle. It's a big part of what our area still takes great pride in, helping your neighbor's. It doesn't hurt that being horseback with a good dog and working cattle is right up there with heaven on earth for me!

I've been riding a young horse since last spring. We're still figuring each other out but I really like him. He's a typical young horse without a lot of miles under his saddle yet though. Every time I ride him he learns something new and advances in my opinion. Today was the first day though where I really felt like he went from a "young horse" to "I've got a horse now". He's always handled cattle work okay but the way he stepped up in every situation today was just great!

We gathered the cows and calves into a portable panel corral in the pasture. They were gathered about a month ago to precondition the calves and then again to preg check recently. They came to the corrals out in the pasture great. They sorted just fine. We left the calves in the corral and started to move the cows back to the house. This is never an easy job and it was pretty tricky for the first 5 minutes with cows breaking back to their calves like crazy.

We had Jag with us as he handles all the different rider's there whooping and hollering without letting it effect him at all. Zac had been officially retired from this type of work as well. When the cows started cutting back he was stopping them and riders would bring them back. One cow got back and got on the fight though. She tried her best to just rub him into the ground. He kept stopping her but she finally got him down pretty good. He never quit trying though. I was up there trying to help him at that point. The cow tried pushing over my horse. He laid his shoulder into her head and kept pushing. That must have done the trick as she just completely gave up and marched to the house like an old milk cow.

So the cows are all in the corral now and the bawling is already starting to quiet down a bit. Jag is a bit sore from the one cow rubbing him into the ground. Amigo, my horse, is back out to pasture grazing and enjoying the sunshine. The boys have still managed to get all their schoolwork done despite having to ride all morning. I'd say it was a GREAT day.

(Brady and his horse Spades)

A Goat Trial

2008-10-15T07:52:00.002-06:00

I've been meaning to post a write up about a goat trial we went to at the end of September for awhile now. I may get it done today!

The Griffith Ranch down in Nebraska hosted a field trial that was points and time working Boer/Spanish cross goats. JoEllen and John Wiese manage the goats for Griffith's and put together the trial. They're such great people and bend over backwards to make this an outstanding event.

I love doing things out of the norm with my dogs to see how we do and what we need to work on. This was a perfect opporunity and fun to boot! It was two days and the first day the goats were about like what I imagine antelope are like to work. Wild as the wind! The fetch was only about 200 yds but keeping them all on the field at any distance was a huge challenge! The goal was to get all 5 goats brought through the fetch panels, around you for a left hand drive and then once they cleared the drive panels you were free to help at the rest of the obstacles.

Well, these goats aren't to sure about people as they run in a group of about 1200 out in cedar filled draws all their life. So I'm not sure how much help the "people" were at most of the obstacles. We had a maltese cross, then a pen where you were supposed to have your dog hold them in the open pen while you went around the other side to let them out. Ha! That wasn't happening. Then on to a horse trailer where the goal was to load them, have the dog hold them in the trailer while you went around to open the side door to let them out. Again, that wasn't happening the first day. Then on to a Y chute which wasn't that difficult and a finish with a shed. If you could get that far (no one did that day) the goats were pretty darn easy to get apart. Holding them together had been the challenge! BTW, the second day the goats changed dramatically and they were all fresh again. Not sure what changed in them but the difference was HUGE!

Zac was 3rd the first day and Uno won the PN both days. (WTG Uno!) The first day Jag did setout to get us started for about 2 straight hours in the heat on goats that were hell to hold. I didn't have a dog left when it came time to run. I ended up retiring him that day. The second day we had a dream run going and had it won going into the shedding ring. One nanny tried to jump over Jag and that was all she wrote. Big fat DQ!

I also decided to give Cash a go since I figured it was a smaller course. So, I ran him in nursery. The first day he started to come in tight on his outrun but took his blowout really well. He handled the goats well but was getting in over his head before it was over so I retired. The second day was much better. He worked so well. We didn't place but I think I was more happy about his run that day than anyone of my other dogs! He handles stock so well and trys SO hard to please me. A great combination. I can't wait to see how he handles this next season. I really need to put the finer mechanics on him now. :-)

Thanks again to JoEllen, John, their whole family and the Griffith's for giving us handlers such a great opportunity!

Warmer pastures

2008-10-09T07:43:00.005-06:00

Well, Uno has been sold and leaves tomorrow. She'll be going south and will get out of our cold winters. Lucky girl! She's going to a super home and will hopefully be hitting the trial scene with them soon. I'm going to miss her terribly though. She's always been a one person dog and enjoys being with me. Not to mention how much I respect this little dog's work ethic and drive. She would rather die than quit. My youngest son always says, "Dynamite comes in small packages" and I tell you that fits Uno to a T.

Fall work

2008-10-08T16:07:00.003-06:00

Fall is a busy time at my house. There are lambs to sort and sell. Yearling steers and spade heifers to gather and ship to the feedlots. Calves to precondition (vaccinate) and cows to preg check. The cattle work goes on all over the county at our neighbors as well. Ranching communities such as ours still trade help for cattle work. So we go help them work their cows and they come help us. The spring cattle work is very similiar as well. I wouldn't trade it for anything!

One thing that we don't trade help on is anything to do with the sheep. Mainly because there isn't anyone else within a 100 mile radius that owns sheep besides us. Also, we can get everything done we need to do with the dogs.

We just shipped lambs out last week. I used several different dogs. We gathered them and counted the ewes out of the pasture to make sure we had everything. Uno and Cash did the bulk of that work as their young and need as much experience as they can get now. Once we got to the corrals the older dogs got me started as the young dog's rested. We hold the big bunch in a pen and then sort off 10 or so at a time with the dogs to put in a tub to run up the sorting alley. The dogs just love this work!

This was Cash's first time helping load the tub and alley. Wow, did he excel at it. He's a very level headed young dog with enough power and presence to move anything. I think I'm going to really enjoy him.

Uno loves this work as well but gets a bit more wound up. She thinks heeling sheep in tight quarters is what life is all about. She settled in after a bit though. I have to say that I have worked this dog pretty darn hard at times and have yet to find the limit of her stamina. She is such a great work dog!

Okay, I'll try to keep up with more of what's going on around here now.

The "Final" few days

2008-09-03T17:20:00.003-06:00

We're on the final big push before the National Sheepdog Finals now. Wow, I've never done anything like this before in my whole life! I feel like my head's swimming with all of the information I've put through it in the last year but especially the last month. I'm so excited about how things are coming together though. It's such a super field, we have good sheep and great set out and pen help. So regardless of what else happens as to the "event" we WILL have a good dog trial. Oh, wait I forgot one of the other most important elements. We have plenty of portapotties! I never realized until now how important this element of a trial really is.

We have some really exciting things planned for this years finals. We'll be having all of our meetings early in the week. Then on the weekend lots of time to have some fun. Friday night there will be a bluegrass event at Roscoe's Bar and Grill. They're being so supportive of our event and we look forward to getting together with them on Friday night. Then Saturday is the Dog Classic with tons of "doggy fun". That evening we'll have some Cowboy Entertainment and refreshments before we hold the Calcutta of the top 17. (WARNING: shameless brag coming up next.) My younger brother has been doing some cowboy poetry for awhile now and writes mostly about his experiences guiding hunters up in the WY mountains in the fall. He'll be joining Bob O'Donnell this year at our Cowboy Poetry event and I'm SO proud!!

Sunday morning we'll start off with the double lift bright and early. Then we'll have ceremony mid morning to introduce the contestants and sing our National and Candian anthem's. Then my dad, mom and kids will be putting on a Cowboy Church service at 10 am. Brady (my youngest) is so excited to be playing the guitar for this! Yeah, I'm a proud mother. :-)

I'll be leaving for Sturgis on Friday morning, September 5th. I won't be home again until after the finals. If I get a chance to write about any of the finals from my hotel in the evenings I will really try. I just won't promise anything as I know how tired I am now and we haven't even started the event yet.

Workin' dogs!

2008-08-11T09:51:00.007-06:00

What a great morning I had out working dogs. I have decided a big part of how any training/working session goes depends on my attitude. I was fired up and excited that Dustin was going to go set some sheep for me to work on a few double lifts with Jag and Zac. We set up a couple of fairly big ones. They could see them when they turned around but only for the first 50 yds or so and then not again for quite awhile.

Neither got out without a little help but actually I have to say that I'm really happy that they both let me help them so well. Zac has a tendency to just stop if he can't find them in the first minute or two. Because of where I ended up turning him back he couldn't see them at all for the first 200 yds or so but he let me guide him out well.

(Zac)

Jag on the other hand will always (well so far anyway) just take off running and just keep looking until he finds them. This time I asked him to stop and really look for a second and then take off. He was right on then. I did some international shedding with him after that and even Dustin commented on how nice of a job he did. You would know how big of a deal thiss if you knew how little Dustin actually watches me work my dogs! :-)

(Jag)

Dustin seemed to have a really good time working Kat as well. He worked on quite a bit of driving with her and his timing has improved so much! I wish there were more trials around here that he could run in before he moves up to Open.

(Nell, Jag, Kat and Zac waiting while Uno is bringing the bunch behind me)

I entered Uno in the finals but in all honesty have had my doubts on whether or not she'll really be ready to be competitive. I think the world of this little dog but she is a speed demon and has been really hard to hold on a drive. I have really been working on what Patrick told me with her and it's been paying off. She was AWESOME this morning!!! I was so happy with her. Now, I still don't know if she'll really be competitive at the final's or not but I'm starting to get a bit excited to find out.

(Uno waiting her turn)

I'm hoping to find time later this evening to work Cash and Tess as well. They're both at such fun stages right now as well. I'll try to write more about them another time.

New adventures

2008-08-04T09:35:00.002-06:00

So I figured I needed one more thing to do in my days so I've started training for a 5K race. I figured I always take the dogs out for a good walk in the morning anyway so I might as well try to start kicking it up a notch. The dogs love it! Okay, they love the run/walks, I'm not so sure how they all feel about my "off days" though.

I have a hybrid bike that I take out across the pasture's with them the 3 days a week I don't run. It is pretty funny to me on how some of my dogs have figured this biking thing out. They don't have any trouble keeping up with me (or running out and back to me either) when I'm "running" as I'm not setting any world speed records. The bike is a little harder to stay out in front of though. Zac, Jag, Cash and Kat each have a certain distance they all go now and then just hang out there and wait for me to get back. Darn bums! Tess and Uno are my die hards. I haven't found a distance they won't go yet. Nell does her best to keep up but I usually end up meeting her coming on my way back. I don't take the two pups (Rock and Fly) on bike rides as I think it's to much for them at this age. They do enjoy the run days though.

Either way I figure we're all getting in a little better shape and I know for sure my stress level seems to have gone down since I've started making the time for this every day!

Dog days of summer?

2008-07-15T11:01:00.008-06:00

Well, summer is flying by at warp speed. I don't like it! I want to have a couple of just plain, lazy summer days. It's not happening.

I feel like a calendar is ticking of in my head right now with the final's coming up so quickly now. Rene and I talk daily about things that need done or are in the process of getting done. We both are sure every time we get all excited about checking something off our list that another 10 things get added to it! My husband is convinced I'm starting to lose it. I wake up in the middle of the night with something else I remembered needed done yesterday. My latest nightmare was that it was time for the National Anthem to be sung and I didn't have anyone lined up for it yet. So there I was running around like a crazy woman asking every handler at the final's "Can you sing?" Okay, I took care of that one the next morning so I can officially check that one off the list. :-)

Haying is also all consuming for my family. We just got another big job to do on a cash basis. It's a great one and we're so thankful for it. But, my hubby stresses over getting everything put up while the putting's good when it comes to this as well! The several days I've got him roped into helping fence at the final's sits real well with him right now too.

The sheep have also decided that the grass is much greener on the other side of the fence now. So, we have to gather them daily now. It's great work for the dog's but unfortunately the one big drawback to a wet summer in my area is the needle and thread grass! It's unbelieveable this year. I had to take Jag to the vet just the other day to get one removed out of his ear canal. It was lodged against the ear drum so we had to put him under for it. Miserable little weeds!!!

I guess there could be a lot worse things to deal with in life than be busy with things you enjoy though! Maybe I'll just go sit on the deck, drink a beer and watch the sun set now.

Clinic lessons

2008-07-02T10:48:00.005-06:00

Dustin and I recently went to a Patrick Shannahan clinic that my friend Jamie Spring hosted. It was GREAT!! Dustin took Kat and I took Uno and Cash. It was a relaxed clinic and it kind of felt like just a bunch of friends getting together to work dogs. In my opinion, that's the way to go.

I realize everyone gets something different out of each new experience with a clinician. The two main thoughts I keep repeating to myself now are, "Responsibility" and "Energy".

I tend to be a person who is a bit "buzzed up" when it comes to the energy I put out there. I also seem to be drawn to dogs that may have a bit of that in them as well. We tend to become a pretty energetic partnership! :-) So, now my goal is to become very aware of when I'm throwing energy at an already energized situation and bring myself back down. I've been seeing such a big difference in my dog's when I can do that so I know what a big deal it is for me.

I also like to work/train/run dogs that are very natural and who can do a job without being told every step. On the other hand I want a dog that's flexible enough to let me take the reins when needed. I needed a reminder and got a good one at Patrick's clinic about letting the dog have some responsibility for themselves. I was really fighting with Uno lately because for some reason I was not letting her be responsibile for the line on a drive. I wanted total control (not sure why) over it and she was getting downright squirrely because of it. When I gave her the responsibility back she relaxed and was holding a line again like a champ. We still have work to do on it, for both her and myself, but it was nice to get a wake up call to remind me of what I'm aiming for here.

Dustin had a great time as well and takes instruction SO much better from someone else besides his mother. He really seems to take in what Patrick has to say and comes home recharged to do a better job with his dog.

If any of you ever get a chance to attend one of Patrick's clinic's, I highly recommend it.

It's a Love Thing

2008-06-20T15:05:00.010-06:00

(Zac enjoying life!)

I probably haven't made it painfully obvious on here yet but I'm going to just come right out and admit it now. I LOVE dogs! They are the most amazing creature's and I'm still to this day continually impressed with their abilities. I grew up ranching and have been around working dogs in one form or another all of my life. So, I'm thankful the Lord has allowed me the capability to not take these great animals for granted so far.

I enjoy time on and off stock with them. They're my working partner's and I respect the heck out of them for the job's they do. I have to say though that I just enjoy hanging out with them also. There are very few places I go where I don't have a dog or two along with me. I'm not sure what people would think around here anymore if I didn't show up at the feed store, grocery store, baseball game's, etc. with a dog or two with me. They're simply part of my life.

(Kat enjoying the kids pool)

My dad is vet and when he was in general practice had 5 kids that lived right next door to the clinic. People would bring dogs in to be put down for various reasons while I was a kid. Of course very few of them ever did get euthanized as it was my sister's and I mission in life to give every one of them a home. I still have a soft spot in my life for the "underdog" and like to see the ones people have given up on, given a chance.

Well, it's just about time for another baseball game so I better decide who's going, husband or the dog!

Green grass, fat lambs and good dogs!

2008-06-17T08:46:00.004-06:00

Is there anything better than green grass, fat lambs and good dogs? Well, I suppose it is in the eyes of the beholder, but THIS beholder thinks life doesn't get a whole lot better than that!

We have been truly blessed this spring with the right combination of moisture and sunshine to make it look like a garden of eden around here. I have heard that other parts of the country stay green all year so those of you who live with so much of it might not appreciate it as much as those of us who only get it 2-3 months out of the year.

The lambs, calves and colts are growing rapidly and seem to look healthier than ever. My husband keeps trying to convince me that a lot of it is in my attitude but I don't think so.

The dogs are all enjoying the sunny yet cool weather to work in as well. Above is Jag bringing some ewes and lambs back that had found a hole in my fence.

I'm going to try to post some picture's in the next few days of the just dog's working as well. Hope you enjoy them!

Haying season is upon us!

2008-06-14T15:55:00.002-06:00

I suppose with any endeavor in life there are certain parts of the cycle that more exciting than others. The process of getting equipment ready for haying season is a big double edged sword in my household! The males in my house (hubby and two boys) thrive on working on machinery and getting geared up for putting hay up. I, on the hand, see it as a big red X on the calendar of the year. When I become an alien in my own land. Now don't get me wrong. I love the smell of fresh cut alfalfa and grass hay. I love how we all continue to work together as a family to accomplish a goal. What I'm not as fond of is my hubby haying until 2 in the morning, machinery breaking down and sending me after parts as soon as I get back from the last trip for parts!

The continual trips to the part store do provide great socialization outings for the pup's I raise though! Not to mention learning to ride in a tractor is an absolute necessity for any good ranch dog.

When the boys were younger Mike and I would each take one with us in whatever tractor we were using. My role has changed as my boys have grown though.

Now that they are a bit older (13 & 11) they think haying and running any kind of equipment is about as good as life gets right now. Okay, I'll admit we live way out in the sticks so they don't get to see many girls just yet. I'm sure their love for equipment will take a back seat as soon as they hit the public school doors of the high school. For now though, my hubby is absolutely thrilled with having such a full haying crew.

The weather has been good to us this spring and there is quite a little hay to put up as of now. So, I guess I'll just resign myself to the fact that I, once again, am I hay field gopher!

2008-06-11T13:12:00.003-06:00

Here is a picture of Dustin penning at the Colorado trial. I'm still figuring this blog out so forgive me if it's too big or small. We got the results from the trial and he placed 10th in one go round and 7th in the other. Not to bad for his first time in Open Ranch. The red barns were at the Bed and Breakfast we stayed at. It's called H2 Stables and Ed and Arlene Housley have to be two of the nicest people I've ever met. They made us feel so at home. I've already called my room with them again next year! If anybody is ever traveling towards Monument, CO and are looking for a good place to rest, they're it. They have facilities for housing horses as well. You can find them at www.H2stables.com .

Tabletop Sheepdog Trial

2008-06-09T09:07:00.003-06:00

Hello all. Just got back last night from a trip down near Colorado Springs, CO. We traveled to the dog's and my first field trial again since Kaycee and the National's last September. Lise Anderson hosted it and it was great!! This was the first year for the Tabletop SDT and I'm hopeful there will be many to follow. It was on a great field and the sheep were very even and tested us all well.

There were 3 open go round's starting on Thursday and going through Sunday. Each round featured a different judge with a little different course. I really enjoyed this aspect and it made the trial more challenging in my opinion. The judge for the first go was Don Helsley, then Stormy Winters and the third go was judged by Beverly Lambert. Herbert Holmes judged the Open Ranch and Nursery runs on Sunday.

The field was a bit hilly and had a small draw running up the right side. It seemed to me like the majority of the dog's really handled the outrun pretty well. The drive was a challenge every day but certainly doable.

As it seems to be the case everywhere this year, the weather was all over the board down there as well! Thursday it was cold, windy and rainy all day. Then warmer on Friday and Saturday with some wind both days. Sunday was colder again with periods of rain.

The L & M Crew ran pretty well for the most part. Zac brought home his fair share of money and just loved the cooler weather and tough sheep. He lead the first go round most of the day until Tommy and Sly came along and bumped us to second. He had a great running going in the second go and one ewe had been testing him the entire time. He'd had enough and gripped off. The third go he was on the money and ended up winning it! The thing I'm most pleased with though is how well he held up physically to three runs in a row. Yes, it was cooler weather but it was still a tough course and you'd never know he just worked that much.

Jag is getting more consistent and I'm thrilled to say didn't grip off or even consider it during any of his run's down there. Yay for Jag! He seemed to get harder to handle each run though so we certainly still have work to do. He did move those fiesty girls around like a champ though! He managed a fifth place finish in the first go so got a few more points toward National's.

Dustin and Kat ran their first Open Ranch course and the first go wasn't too shabby. Not in the money but got around the course. Just couldn't get the pen. The second go was pretty rough. Uno ran in her first ever field trial and we found out it was a bit over her head. She lost sight of them on the outrun and took my redirect's really well though!!

So, overall I'm quite pleased with the dog's and had a really great time! It was fun to get away for awhile again and it makes me appreciate home that much more.

Ah, the joys of weaning calves

2008-06-02T08:50:00.002-06:00

So, you know that we just weaned the fall calves on Saturday. They're averaging about 600 pounds so certainly to the weaning point. I guess they didn't get the memo! We made it through the first night but the second night (Sunday) we got a pretty good thunderstorm. Hail, wind and heavy rain. They made it through the first round without to much stress but the second round early this Monday morning must have been the final straw for a good portion of them.

Anyway, at about 4 am I heard a loud crash and a couple of my dog's bark and knew something wasn't right. Fortunately for Mike I'm a very light sleeper and hear everything at night. I don't feel so fortunate with that "gift" though. I woke Mike up and sure enough they had torn part of the corral fence out. The biggest disappointed is WHERE they tore it out. Right through the one spot that leads to our garden! I was so proud of the fact that we got that bugger in early this year and it was doing so well despite the colder temps and recent hail. The hail did take several of the tomato plants but I still had plenty. Well, that was until these 600 lb tiller's tore them all up for me again! I guess we'll start over as soon as it dries up enough to get the seeds in again.

So, we've spent the morning getting the corral fence fixed and all but 10 head are back in the corral now. Those last 10 should be fun as they made it all the way back to their mama's. I'm sure they're SO proud of themselves. Should be fun bringing those cows back to the corral right after preg checking them.

I've been taught from the time I was little in this country that we're not allowed to curse any kind of moisture though as you never know when it will just shut off. We're SO dependent on it that we feel blessed every time we get any. Just makes things more interesting when you have to put corral fence back in in almost 2 foot of mud.

The sun is out now and you can almost see the grass growing in the pasture's again so all is still right with the world.

Working cattle

2008-06-01T16:29:00.002-06:00

Okay, a little background info before I share my Saturday details with you. We run a split calving operation. We have spring calver's and fall calver's. Every year we're striving to go toward's more fall calver's and get away from the spring calving a bit. The banker balked in the beginning but is starting to come around to our way of thinking now.

Anyway, we preg checked the fall calving cows and worked and weaned their calves. My 5 year old nephew is here visiting us right now and has been such a trooper going to branding's, helping with chores and riding quite a little. When my boys were little they rode with me until they were old enough to sit up on a saddle on their own (around 3 years old as we had a great kids horse for them) so I've had plenty of experience riding with a little person in front of me. I've decided it's not liking riding a bike and you do forget how to do it. Thankfully it's a skill that can be picked up again when the chips are down.

Our fall calver's are not the gentlest bunch of cows either. We bought 300 head of open cows several years ago to put embryo's in for my dad's client's. A good portion of these are the "not so open" girls that people just really wanted to get rid of for one reason or another. We quickly found out that temprament was one of the main reason's!

My nephew did really well while we were moving them home and I was never short on conversation with him. By the time we got them here and started sorting cows from calves he thought he'd had enough though. He had to tough it out for awhile though as there's no safe place for a 5 year old while your sorting cow's other than on a horse. Once he was off though I switched horses and rode a young horse we just got back from some training.

It was SO much fun to ride a horse with some fire in his belly and tons of cow sense. He's off of our breeding and we're pretty proud of that line of horses. 4 of the horses being used yesterday were all by King (a linebred King P-234 stud) and the cow sense and level headedness shows through with all of them!

We vaccinated and poured the calves and it was obvious several of them are already picking up their mother's sour attitudes! My dad is a vet and does all of our herd work for us. So, when he got here we tested bulls and preg checked cows. The opens and broken mouthed cows got loaded in a trailer and headed for the salebarn. The bred cows got moved back to the pasture minus their calves who are standing in the corral still bawling.

It was past dark by the time we got done yesterday but overall a good day. The weather was absolutely beautiful all day, no bodily harm to human or critter and another day to spend doing what we love with people we love. I feel blessed!

Getting started

2008-05-31T08:23:00.000-06:00

Okay, many of you may not know this about me but my hubby will attest to the fact that I can be a bit windy. So, I figured I'd give him a break and share some of my stories with people that might not have heard them 100 times already. I don't live life by a clock and my days are never the same. So, I can't promise there will be any kind of consistency to this thing but I'll do my best.

Pull up a chair and grab a cup of coffee and we'll get started.