Our Morning Coffee and Weather

[JEBar]

beautiful, absolutely beautiful, morning where we are camped in east central South Dakota .... clear blue sky, 66 degrees on its way to a predicted high of 78, 0% chance of rain .... homemade biscuits with sausage gravy and scrambled eggs on the stove .... great way to start the day ...

[Mags]

Woke this morning to sprinkles hitting the deck roof. Nice sound, put me back to sleep. Currently 54. Maybe 72 and rain later.

[Rifletom]

beautiful, absolutely beautiful, morning where we are camped in east central South Dakota .... clear blue sky, 66 degrees on its way to a predicted high of 78, 0% chance of rain .... homemade biscuits with sausage gravy and scrambled eggs on the stove .... great way to start the day ...

Hold those biscuits and sausage gravy and eggs. I'm on my way! Great way to start the day JEBar!

[Mags]

.
update: now have the rain.

Woke this morning to sprinkles hitting the deck roof. Nice sound, put me back to sleep. Currently 54. Maybe 72 and rain later.

[Vaquero]

Sunshine and 90° here in central SC

RP

[RanchRoper]

60's this week. Might get rain Wednesday. Moving a big bunch of cow/calf pairs tomorrow.

[JEBar]

ride safe and please post pictures ..

[RanchRoper]

Just now

[RanchRoper]

ride safe and please post pictures ..

Will do...thks...riding my big paint horse Dakota.

[JEBar]

Will do...thks...riding my big paint horse Dakota.

outstanding

[EasyEd]

Hey All,

Not much to say about the weather here in Nanaimo BC. Wish it would rain around BC as fire danger is ramping up. Ive not said it but I do have Provincial (=statewide) responsibility for planning for wildfire in BC in terms of resources and values on the landbase. I have lots of good help but I have the responsibility for standards and guidelines and lots of technical stuff.

I posted to wish RR an enjoyable day. I have always loved moving cattle in the spring but gathering in the fall as well. When I was working on my PhD we moved cow calf pairs about 10 miles to summer pasture. The first year the experiment station head said we'll take em through town down railroad street as the tracks on one side of the herd would mean we don't need riders on that side. HA them cows ignored the tracks like they weren't there and went through hedges through gates and we were trying to gather cattle out of people's backyards at 6AM. At the commotion windows were flying up and heads sticking out while we pushed cattle around swingsets tables plastic pools back thru gates an hedges... Gawd what a wreck. Do you have any idea how challenging it is to gather cattle in yards duckin under clotheslines with clothes underwear and whatnot people Yellin at ya and such? I been there done that. The mayor had watered his yard and now it was pockmarked with holes - fortunately his son was helping herd the cattle an he talked to his dad. Then it was about 10 miles up a paved highway. The challenge there is of course traffic coming up behind you and trying to get the drivers and their cars to stay close enough to your horses but to not get cattle between the car and your horse. RR you probably been there. At the end of the drive you have some pretty footsore cattle but they get over it. We did it again the next year and went down main Street an the only real incident was the town laundromat had a door with no handle and a few cows crowded up against it an the door opened an two cows went in an were wandering around looking in washing machines dryers an such - really funny - cows wandering around in a laundromat. We were concerned about a wreck in the laundromat but got a rope on the door an those cows were happy to join their buddies. The years after that the experiment station surrendered the old west ways an just trucked em. I'll never forget those two springs though - looking back two of the best days ever. Enjoy tomorrow RR.

-Ed-

[Vaquero]

Good story Ed, my brother and I used to raise cattle also.
Yes they definitely have a mind of their own and can be very trying.

Good morning Henry lovers.
Up early playing with the boys, had breakfast and now they are busy on their tablets.

RP

[BigAl52]

Have fun up there RR. I bet Badger is staying behind studying the latest range reports. He will probably have some advice for you when you get back. Nice day here today upper 80's. Tomorrow and Friday hot mid ninetys. Might need to get the motorcycle out for a ride to work.

[JEBar]

60 this morning following a thunderstorm that set in around 2AM and hung around until around 7AM .... hopefully, that means we've already gotten all 20% of the rain forecasted for today .. .. sausage and eggs for breakfast, coffee in Luckenbach mug

[RanchRoper]

Hey All,

Not much to say about the weather here in Nanaimo BC. Wish it would rain around BC as fire danger is ramping up. Ive not said it but I do have Provincial (=statewide) responsibility for planning for wildfire in BC in terms of resources and values on the landbase. I have lots of good help but I have the responsibility for standards and guidelines and lots of technical stuff.

I posted to wish RR an enjoyable day. I have always loved moving cattle in the spring but gathering in the fall as well. When I was working on my PhD we moved cow calf pairs about 10 miles to summer pasture. The first year the experiment station head said we'll take em through town down railroad street as the tracks on one side of the herd would mean we don't need riders on that side. HA them cows ignored the tracks like they weren't there and went through hedges through gates and we were trying to gather cattle out of people's backyards at 6AM. At the commotion windows were flying up and heads sticking out while we pushed cattle around swingsets tables plastic pools back thru gates an hedges... Gawd what a wreck. Do you have any idea how challenging it is to gather cattle in yards duckin under clotheslines with clothes underwear and whatnot people Yellin at ya and such? I been there done that. The mayor had watered his yard and now it was pockmarked with holes - fortunately his son was helping herd the cattle an he talked to his dad. Then it was about 10 miles up a paved highway. The challenge there is of course traffic coming up behind you and trying to get the drivers and their cars to stay close enough to your horses but to not get cattle between the car and your horse. RR you probably been there. At the end of the drive you have some pretty footsore cattle but they get over it. We did it again the next year and went down main Street an the only real incident was the town laundromat had a door with no handle and a few cows crowded up against it an the door opened an two cows went in an were wandering around looking in washing machines dryers an such - really funny - cows wandering around in a laundromat. We were concerned about a wreck in the laundromat but got a rope on the door an those cows were happy to join their buddies. The years after that the experiment station surrendered the old west ways an just trucked em. I'll never forget those two springs though - looking back two of the best days ever. Enjoy tomorrow RR.

-Ed-

Pics are in my Cow Country thread. Yes moving cattle can be a real challenge some days. Most people think they are dumb animals but they are not. They are very logical in their thinking and that is the frustrating part some days. For example, when cows and calves get separated stressed out, either one of both may turn around and head the opposite direction from where you are trailing them. One can wonder why they don't stick with the herd but they will try to go back to the place they last saw each other. Even if it's miles away. So with mamas and babies we always take our time and rest them once in awhile so they can pair up again.

[EasyEd]

Hey All,

Pics are in my Cow Country thread. Yes moving cattle can be a real challenge some days. Most people think they are dumb animals but they are not. They are very logical in their thinking and that is the frustrating part some days. For example, when cows and calves get separated stressed out, either one of both may turn around and head the opposite direction from where you are trailing them. One can wonder why they don't stick with the herd but they will try to go back to the place they last saw each other. Even if it's miles away. So with mamas and babies we always take our time and rest them once in awhile so they can pair up again.

RR you just have to be smarter than the cows. I don't know if you ever heard of Temple Grandin an autistic who basically revolutionized livestock handling and was on the faculty at Colorado State U. There is a movie about her. I met her and was part of a workshop she put on wow almost 30 years ago now. I have used her teachings in handling livestock an pets actually ever since. The best example. When I was a range scientist in Alberta I was doing research on grazing management in riparian streamside zones in the aspen parkland not far from vermilion I had 8 teenage heifers (yearlings) as part of the study. I always did animal weight gain as part of grazing studies. Anyway they were rotated through 3 different pastures and one time I asked my two technicians to move them from one pasture to another an those heifers refused to go thru the open gate. They chased em on foot for bout half hour or more but they refused to cooperate so they called me. I was not far away and in 20 mins or so I was at the pasture where my technicians were sampling vegetation. I told them I'd go look for those heifers and I found them bout 20 yds from the gate they needed to go thru. Enter Temple Grandin thinking. I was on foot an circled wide around them and went into the pasture I wanted them in about 10 yards away from the gate. I saw my technicians coming to help an I waved them to stop an stay back an they did. Then I sat down in a patch of Timothy watching them heifers out of the corner of my eye. I knew what they would do. The heifers kept looking at me until the "leader" couldn't stand it anymore an got up walking through the gate to within a few feet of me - the others followed suit and I sat fidgeting a bit till they were in the right place an then stood up backing into the gate opening and they bolted away deeper into the pasture I wanted them in. I closed the gate an walked over to my technicians. One just said wow the other said she had grown up working cattle on her parents ranch near tofield and had never seen anything like that. I just said that is why I'm the scientist an you are the technicians. I was just kidding them as they both were great technicians. Like pressure points curiosity is a powerful weapon when you know how to use it. Thank you Temple Grandin.

-Ed-

[RanchRoper]

I am familiar with her. I follow Bud Williams teachings and books on stockmanship. Similar.

[PatientWolf]

Good morning.

It’s going to be a warm one today: 93 and humid. To add insult to injury, I ran out of coffee Tuesday just before running out of town and haven’t had a chance to pick up any more.

[Vaquero]

Morning from sunny SC.

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RP

[JEBar]

it was a dark and stormy night in east central South Dakota .... shortly after midnight a strong thunderstorm rolled in and hammered away until well after sunup .... a watch remains in effect until 1PM .... on the plus side, very little wind .... haven't been out and about to see if any trees were hit by lightening .... if not, that would be a miracle for sure