2013 Winter Cattlemen's Edition

r e t n i W

3 1 0 2 s n e

m e l t t Ca dition E

Featuring Campbell County, Wyoming

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WYOMING LIVESTOCK

ROUNDUP

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Wyoming Livestock Roundup

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2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY MARKED AS IMPORTANT IN CAMPBELL COUNTY Campbell County is sit-­ uated in the northeast corner of Wyoming and is home to a wide array of industries, from agriculture and energy to tourism.

Though Gillette is the major city in the county, the smaller towns of Spotted Horse, Recluse and Wright are spread through the county. Over 46,000 peo-­ ple make Campbell County their home, and they cel-­ ebrated their centennial in 2011.

Many small towns in Campbell County rose and faded through the years, including places such as Lightning Flat and Rocky-­ point.

Early beginnings “Ten thousand years ago, the first people came to the high plains to hunt buffalo and antelope,” says Campbell County’s web-­ site. “In the 1880s, ranch-­ ers came to graze longhorn cattle and sheep on the open range.”

Wyoming Tales and Trails marks Gillette’s foun-­ dation in 1891 with the

arrival of the Chicago, Burl-­ ington and Quincy Railroad.

When the railroad Engineer Edward Gillette located a shorter route for the railroad, they named the town for the man.

“With the railroad, Gil-­ lette became a major ship-­ ping point for wool and cat-­ tle,” reads Wyoming Tales and Trails. “In 1911, Camp-­ bell County was created out of parts of Weston and Crook Counties. The county is unique in that it is named after both Robert Camp-­ bell, who was a partner with William Sublette in the fur trade, and John A. Camp-­ bell, the first territorial gov-­ ernor.”

Ag background When many people today think of Campbell County, they think energy development. What not as many people think of is agriculture. Agriculture is alive and well in Campbell County, although it’s not as diverse in crops as other counties in the Equality State.

“Ranching is the pre-­

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1. T-­Chair Ranch 2. Scott Ranch 3. Durham Ranch 4. Pickrel Land and Cattle 5. Geis Ranch 6. Force Ranch 7. Powder River Angus 8. Mader Ranch 9. Tarver-­Heart X Ranch 10. Daly Ranch 11. Isenberger Ranch 12. Sorenson Ranch

13. Clabaugh Cattle Company 14. Floyd Ranch 15. Crump Red Angus 16. Sixty Bar Ranch 17. Oedekoven’s Bitter Creek Ranch 18. Campbell County Conservation District 19. Chicken Creek Consulting 20. Mooney Ranch 21. Rafter T Angus

dominant land use,” adds the county website. “Herds of cattle and sheep graze among large herds of deer and ante-­ lope. Campbell County was recently listed in a popular agricultural magazine as one of the top 100 places to live in rural America.”

At the turn of the cen-­ tury, Wyoming Tales and Trails says the area was a part of the customary range for a number of cattle com-­ panies, including the Stan-­ dard Cattle Company.

A number of colorful ranching characters spotted Campbell County’s ranch-­ ing history.

Until the 1970s, Camp-­ bell County was primarily agricultural, according to Wyoming Tales and Trails.

The website also adds that large growth occurred after World War I, when many small homesteads were cre-­ ated.

Ag statistics Campbell County farm-­

ers and ranchers primarily produce cattle, sheep, hay, winter wheat and barley.

In cash receipts, cat-­ tle is king, followed by hay production, and the county still has sheep. Gillette, the county seat, has long served cowboys and sheep men, and still does, because for most Campbell County res-­ idents, Gillette is the closest large town.

As of Jan. 1, 2012, there were 80,000 cattle and calves, including cows, bulls, steers, etc., with of 47,000 of those being cows.

There were 28,500 sheep and lambs. There may be a few dairy cows in the large county, but not enough to be recognized in Wyoming Ag Statistics.

Although much of the land is used for grazing, there is farming, with most farmed acres harvested for hay. The statistics on alfalfa hay from 2011 showed 45,500 acres harvested pro-­

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anching is the predominant land use. Herds of cattle and sheep graze among large herds of deer and antelope.”

– Campbell County website

ducing 59,000 tons of hay;; “other” hay was planted on 20,300 acres, with 26,600 tons produced. Both yielded 1.3 tons per acre. Keep in mind 2011 was an extremely wet year with record-­break-­ ing yields.

Campbell County farm-­ ers planted winter wheat, with 6,500 acres planted in 2011, resulting in a 6,300-­ acre harvest, making a total of 22.2 bushels per acre.

Though barley numbers weren’t sufficient to obtain statistical data in 2011, in 2010, 2,400 bushels were planted, with only 900 acres used for grain. The rest went for straw/hay.

Ag services The University of Wyo-­ ming has an Extension office

in Gillette, which offers ser-­ vices for farmers and ranch-­ ers and 4-­H along with pro-­ viding information on hor-­ ticulture, drought and nutri-­ tion.

Gillette has a few farm and ranch supply stores sell-­ ing feed, fencing supplies, water tanks, pharmaceuti-­ cals for livestock, panels and much more. There are also a few saddle shops sprinkled around the area.

For many in Campbell County, ranching’s long tra-­ ditions have shaped their family lives and the industry.

The article was co-­writ-­ ten by Rebecca Mott Colnar, a correspondent for the Wyo-­ ming Livestock Roundup, and Saige Albert, managing editor.

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Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

GENERATIONS  OF  RANCHING    T-Chair  ranch  moves  easily  into  fifth  generation  The  T-­Chair  Ranch,  60  miles  south  of  Gillette,  has  a  legacy  to  be  proud  of.    The  same  family  has  been  running  the  ranch  since  1896  when  John  Franklin  Brown  and  his  family  settled  in  the  area  near  Pumpkin  Buttes  and  started  running  cattle.    It’s  been  in  the  family  the  entire  time,  with  the  fifth  generation  now  taking  up  the  reins.

Family  owned  Today,  Trisha  Brown  Clark,  her  sister  Kristy  Brown  Mankin  and  Kristy’s  husband  Gene  are  fourth  generation  owners  who  now  operate  the  ranch  as  managers  for  the  fifth  generation.    Their  third  sister  Janinne  lives  on  the  ranch  now  but  spent  her  life  working  and  living  in  town  so  was  not Â

involved  in  the  ranch  opera-­ tions.   “Currently,  we  have  three  of  our  kids  living  on  the  ranch  helping  with  feeding,  fenc-­ ing,  mechanics,  you  name  it,�  explains  Trisha,  one  of  the  pre-­ vious  owners.    The  ranch  is  set  up  as  a  family  corporation,  allowing  each  of  the  ranch  managers  takes  pride  in  specific  duties.   Kristy  is  especially  involved  with  the  cattle,  Gene  enjoys  working  with  the  mechanical  aspects  and  Trisha  handles  the  business.  The  ranch  has  long  been  a  cow/calf  operation,  starting  with  Herefords,  moving  on  to  a  cross  with  Salers,  and  later  utilizing  a  three-­way  cross  with  Red  Angus.  Today,  the  ranch  primarily  breeds  Red  Angus.

Developing  and  modernizing  Gene,  who  was  raised  on  a  ranch  about  45  miles  north  of  the  T-­Chair,  married  Kristy  Brown  and  has  been  part  of  the  ranch  ever  since.    “I  came  down  here  more  than  33  years  ago,�  he  says.   “Before  I  moved  here,  a  friend  of  mine  and  I  used  to  come  to  the  Pumpkin  Buttes,  and  I’d  look  to  the  south  and  would  think  how  dry  that  country  was.   What  I  didn’t  realize  was  how  many  springs  there  were  in  this  country.  I  really  enjoy  developing  springs.  Kristy’s  uncle,  Eric  Ohman,  who  mod-­ ified  Urban  Groves’  model,  made  the  first  single  pipe  tower  windmill,  so  I  copied  his  design  and  installed  a  few  more  to  make  our  water  use  more  efficient.�  Gene  has  spent  consid-­

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erable  time  building  two  sets  of  pipe  corrals  “that  everyone  says  are  pretty  nice.  I  doubled  the  gates  because  I  don’t  like  climbing  over  a  fence.   I  am  trying  to  make  this  ranch  so  it  could  operate  as  a  one  man  show  if  it  had  to.   I  made  it  so  you  can  pull  a  well  by  your-­ self.â€?  Family  members  give  Gene  credit  for  “modernizingâ€?  the  ranch.  He  showed  up  with  his  experience  as  a  mechanic  and  a  two-­wheeled  horse,  more  commonly  known  as  a  motorcycle.   “My  father-­in-­law  exclu-­ sively  used  horses,â€?  says  Gene.  “We  still  enjoy  the  horses  and  use  them,  but  we  found  that  having  a  motor-­ cycle  to  do  the  outside  loop  when  we  are  gathering  saves  a  lot  of  time.  Those  cows  hear  the  motorcycle  and  come  out  because  they  know  it’s  time  to  move  to  a  different  pas-­ ture.  Then  we  can  drive  them  with  the  horses.  We  miss  very  few  cows  this  way.  However,  we  still  use  horses  to  bring  the  cows  in  and  to  do  corral  work.â€?  Gene  was  instrumental  in  purchasing  a  tractor,  baler  and  swather.   When  the  ranch Â

started  putting  up  round  bales,  he  purchased  a  bale  bed,  his  favorite  piece  of  equipment.    “I  say  it’s  the  best  hired  man  I’ll  ever  have,�  Gene  says.   He  also  likes  that  not  only  can  bales  be  fed  easily  and  efficiently,  but  the  post-­hole  digger  attachment  has  saved  a  lot  of  work  for  everyone.   “I  can  go  to  the  back  coun-­ try  and  can  easily  replace  a  brace  by  myself,�  he  explains.

Summer  drought  He  says  the  summer’s  drought  didn’t  have  partic-­ ularly  detrimental  effect  on  their  ranching  operation.    “We  don’t  over  stock  our  pastures.   We  like  to  leave  some  grass,  so  even  though  this  past  summer  was  so  dry,  we  still  had  some  old  grass,â€?  Gene  explains.  “I  was  fortu-­ nate  enough  to  do  some  share  crop  haying  on  another  ranch  –  I  put  up  hay  like  heck;Íž  by  doing  that  the  prior  two  years  I  didn’t  have  to  buy  any  hay  this  year.â€?  Gene  says  that  the  old  adage,  “Make  hay  while  the  sun  shines,â€?  certainly  applies.   “My  shoulders  are  still  sore  from  patting  myself  on  the  back!â€?  he  laughs.  “When Â

the  old  timers  talked  about  the  drought  and  how  to  get  through  it,  I  did  listen  and  I’ve  seen  it.  We’re  fortunate.  We  could  develop  a  little  more  water  in  the  pastures,  but  all  in  all,  it’s  a  pretty  good  life.�  Gene  spends  plenty  of  time  in  the  winter  welding  and  fabricating  in  the  large  shop.  “I  used  to  do  some  leath-­ erwork,  too,  making  chaps  and  chinks,�  he  says.  “I’ve  done  a  lot  of  things.  There  is  always  something  to  do  out  here.�

T-­Chair  cows  The  ranch  wouldn’t  be  the  ranch  without  the  cows.   “We  primarily  have  Red  Angus,â€?  explains  Kristy.   “Our  herd  foundation  started  with  my  grandfather  and  father.  We  first  had  straight  Herefords,  but  my  dad  thought  we  should  try  Salers.  However,  the  Sal-­ ers  got  a  little  bit  too  hot,  so  we  toned  that  down  and  put  in  Red  Angus  about  15  years  ago.  Now  we  primarily  have  Red  Angus  with  a  little  Saler  and  a  little  bit  of  Hereford.  We  have  nice  average  to  small  framed  cattle  –  we  don’t  want  them  big  and  leggy.â€?  Kristy  says  they  buy  low  birth  weight  bulls  so  generally  they  don’t  have  calving  issues. Â

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2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

They also don’t breed their heifers until they are two years old, which then calve as three year olds.

“This works really, really well for us,” Kristy says.

“We’ve been doing that for the past 20 years. It’s the way to go if you don’t need that extra calf from a two-­year-­old. We feel that by the time heifers are three, they have better sense, have good bags and they’ll raise a calf just like an older cow.”

Kristy continues, “We try to work the cows as lit-­ tle as possible, just vaccinat-­ ing at branding. We don’t use implants. In the fall, our calves average 450 pounds. They are nice, fat calves, and they gain well.”

She adds they have been told their cattle are nice look-­ ing, and they are pleased with the herd.

“We’re happy,” she says.

“It has worked best for us to sell them at the sales in Torrington. We have three bunches of cows that we work one group at time;; this way, it takes about a month to gather and ship. Each bunch takes about a week, then we have to get the next bunch in. We gen-­ erally try to hit the sale the first weekend in October, so by the time we sell and move the cows to their winter pasture, it’s the end of October.”

The younger generation Three of the ranch “kids” have headed off on other paths after high school, but have come back to the ranch.

“My original plan when I started college at the Uni-­ versity of Wyoming was to not come back to the ranch,” says Weston, Kristy and Gene’s son. “I had a market-­ ing degree, and was thinking about a job in that field. But I came back to the ranch for the summer to work and ended up staying. I’ve been here three and a half years. I thought I’d miss my college friends and being close to everything, but I really like it out here. Ranch-­ ing is addicting.”

The 27-­year-­old credits the ranch life for developing a good work ethic.

“Right now we’re feed-­ ing and this afternoon we’re working on putting an engine back in a water truck,” he says.

“You never run out of projects.

It takes a special breed of per-­ son to not mind the long hours and hard work, but it’s a good way to make a living.”

Weston’s brother, Justin, returned to the ranch via a dif-­ ferent path.

After graduating from high school he worked for mines in the Powder River Basin for 10 years.

“I really missed the ranch, though,” Justin said. “It’s peaceful and one of the real benefits is working with the family. Once I had my own family, I thought it would be good to have the grandparents close to the grandkids.”

Like Weston, Justin feels that ranch life is good for the soul.

“It’s a great way to grow

up. It teaches good morals and values and hard work,” he explains. “Today, a lot of young people have lost their manners and their respect for elders. Working on the ranch teaches them that. Being out here gives you deep roots in the place.”

Justin hopes at some point, his son can carry on the ranching business and life-­ style.

“We’re the fifth genera-­ tion, and I hope he is able to keep going on the ranch if that’s what he wants to do,” Justin comments. “I hope he has the opportunity to enjoy it like I have.”

Trish’s son, Ryan, has also returned.

“I went to school for edu-­ cation in diesel mechanics, but I returned home about four years ago. I love the ranch life and wouldn’t trade it for any-­ thing,” Ryan, 28, says. “There is such a variety, and I enjoy everything, from the horses to the cows to the projects. There really is no greater lifestyle.

Some days are easy, some are hard, but they are all good when you’re on a ranch.”

Trish enjoys the peace and quiet of the ranch and being away from town, although the increased traffic due to energy development is making the place a little less like the ideal ranch lifestyle.

“I used to really enjoy the romance of the ranch, but now

I’m getting ready for retire-­ ment,” she says.

She’s pleased that her son and nephews plan to continue the ranching tradition, saying, “I want the fifth generation to run it as successfully as the fourth generation has done.

That’s my ideal hope.”

After visiting with the fifth generation, it appears the ranch will be in good hands for a long time to come.

Rebecca Mott Colnar is a correspondent for the Wyo-­ ming Livestock Roundup.

Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.

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A6

Wyoming Livestock Roundup

Moving forward Scott family works to improve by diversifying Making use of the land has helped the Scott family run an efficient cowherd. By changing their calving sea-­ son, the Scotts have been able to graze their cattle year-­ around, with very little addi-­ tional feed.

“Cattle were put on this earth to graze,” Marion Scott says. “We try to calve with nature and run our cattle as cheaply as we can.”

Marion and his wife Mary will be celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary in January. The couple has been able to make a living off the ranch by thinking outside the box.

Making changes “My dad had Herefords when he ran the ranch,” Mar-­ ion says, “but they were bad about sun burning their bags and having swollen teats. I

can still remember having to milk some of them out. It wasn’t fun.”

When Marion came into the operation, he and his father began to experiment with artificial insemination, and they bred some of their cows to Gelbvieh.

“That is when the calv-­ ing problems started,” he explains. “Then, we went to Red Angus. We’ve been rais-­ ing them for over 30 years now. I am a great believer in the breed.”

New strategies Several years ago, Mar-­ ion started receiving a news-­ letter from an up and com-­ ing bull producer named Kit Pharo, who is from Colorado.

“Many people made fun of him because of his philoso-­ phies. He calves in sync with Mother Nature and makes

his cattle live off the land. He advertises that his bulls have never seen a bucket of grain,” Marion says. “He thinks out-­ side the box and has a low input operation.”

After checking out what the Pharo operation had to offer, Marion and Mary made the decision to give their bulls a try.

“He made us into herd quitters,” Marion says. “It has changed our operation to practically labor-­free. We calve in late April and May with the older cows. The heif-­ ers are calved out in April. We just put the cows in a fresh pasture and let them calve.”

“Over the years, I would estimate our death loss is less than two percent. It can work, and it can be a low cost opera-­ tion if you have the right kind of cows for the environment,”

he explains.

“We have been buying Pharo bulls for years now, because they do what he said they would do,” Marion con-­ tinues.

He buys the bulls sight unseen, although he watches the auction on RFD-­TV. “I select which bulls I want based on EPDs. I look at birth weight, gain tests on grass and maternal traits.

We try to select cattle that are moderate in size. I also pay attention to the mother’s udders and choose cattle with good dispositions,” he adds.

Low input The heifers kept as replacements are devel-­ oped at a low cost. They are weaned on hay and provided with mineral. They graze on grass and have access to pro-­ tein tubs through the winter.

“They will look a lit-­ tle rougher than some peo-­ ple’s,” Marion says, “but we have good breed-­up. Since we don’t calve until April, they have plenty of time to mature. We breed them to calving ease bulls for 55 days and have very few open.”

Despite the drought, the Scotts were surprised to have the heaviest weaning weights ever in last year’s calves.

“Our calves were 20 pounds heavier than the year before. Most people say it isn’t possible to wean a calf over 500 pounds when you calve in May, but they aver-­ aged 531 pounds,” he says.

Working with the land The family has also learned to be good conserva-­ tors of the land, which bene-­ fited them during the drought.

“We have under stocked our pastures for the last 10

I

f you don’t overgraze, you should have plenty of grazing through the winter.

The ability to graze year-around has been bred into these cattle.” – Marion Scott

years,” Marion explains.

“Our cows are still on sum-­ mer pasture because there was plenty of grass left there for them to graze.”

The development of methane on the ranch sup-­ plied the cows with good water sources during the last 15 years. It has helped the cows better utilize the grass in areas where they used to have to travel farther to water.

The family also built 10 miles of stock water pipeline to supply their summer grass areas with water. Electricity powers pumps that carry the water to a storage tank and distributes it to several dif-­ ferent tanks in the pastures.

Marion estimates that the cat-­ tle travel less than 0.75 miles to any water source.

Although the cattle graze year-­around, Marion does put up some dryland hay when there is enough moisture.

“We try and put up hay during the good years, but during the bad years, we just graze it,” he says.

The cows are only pro-­ vided with hay when the snow is too deep that they can’t graze.

“This area has as good of winter country as any area,” Marion says. “If you don’t overgraze, you should have plenty of grazing through the winter. The ability to graze year-­around has been bred into these cattle.”

Adding income “One of the biggest chal-­ lenges today is finding ways to make ranching pay,” Mar-­ ion says. “It is hard to make a ranch cash flow so you can keep it together. Most people have to develop some outside income to make it work.”

The Scotts addressed this concern when they were barely newlyweds.

“We started an outfit-­ ting business 60 years ago when we got married,” Mary says. “We started taking a few hunters and have developed it over the years through trial and error. It has kept us on this ranch.”

The family operation is home to a nice herd of mule deer and antelope. The deer and antelope season is at the same time, so it appeals to many hunters.

“We have a nice, stable herd,” Marion says. “We also leased some hunting rights from other ranches. Over the years, we have spent a little money on advertising, but our business has grown primarily through word of mouth.”

He adds, “We have developed a good, solid rep-­ utation.”

People have traveled from all over the world to take part in hunts on the Scott Ranch. Some are as close as Wyoming, and others have traveled from California and the East Coast, but they have also had hunters from countries like Europe, Asia, France, Austria and Canada.

The hunting season only lasts a few weeks in October, but the Scott family enjoys the opportunity to broaden their horizons.

The original house they lived in and a couple mobile homes they have moved to the property house the hunt-­ ers. They can host about 12 people at a time.

During their stay, the hunters can hunt their game, but if they obtain their trophy game right away, they can use the remainder of the time to see the sights – if it is within a reasonable distance of the ranch. They have taken hunt-­ ers to Yellowstone, Devils Tower, Mount Rushmore and the Custer battlefield. Many people also enjoy touring the area’s coal mines.

“We have learned over the years that by providing a little extra quality service, it puts you above everyone else in the business,” Mary says.

“We have several repeat hunters. A lot of our older cli-­ ents have passed away or got-­ ten too old to hunt, but we have a new generation com-­ ing on,” Marion adds. “Some have hunted here for 25 years.

We have gotten to be pretty good friends with some of these people. We have been careful to hire guides who like to hunt, are patient and enjoy being around people.”

Next generations Marion and Mary have turned over the management of the ranch to their daugh-­ ter and son-­in-­law, Marilyn and Dudley Mackey. Another daughter and son-­in-­law, Debbie and Butch Knutson, bought a portion of the orig-­ inal ranch and run their own operation. Their third daugh-­ ter, Cindy Dawson, operates her own insurance branch, Farmers Insurance Agency, in Gillette.

Marion and Mary still find the ranch a great place to raise children and family and couldn’t imagine living any-­ where else.

“My favorite part of the day is looking out the win-­ dow in the morning while having a cup of coffee and watching the deer, antelope, rabbits and birds,” Mary says.

“It is a peaceful life with-­ out many people around,” Marion adds.

The couple also find it special that all three of their living daughters live on the ranch or nearby.

“We never seriously con-­ sidered going south during the winter, like a lot of fam-­ ilies, because we would miss out on so much with our grandchildren, and now our great-­grandchildren,” Marion says. “The ranch has been the best place by far to raise kids.

They learn so much about what life is really all about.”

Gayle Smith is a corre-­ spondent for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.

A7

2013  Winter  Cattlemenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

ENERGY  DEVELOPMENT  With  energy  develop-­ ment  in  Campbell  County  spanning  the  spectrum  from  coal  to  methane  to  natural  gas,  landowners  across  the  county  have  been  involved  in  the  energy  business  as  a  result.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Energy  has  some  ben-­ efit  and  drawbacks,â&#x20AC;?  com-­ ments  Neal  Sorenson  of  Pow-­ der  River  Angus.

Energy  in  Campbell  County  Campbell  County  is  home  to  energy  development  that  includes  oil  and  gas,  coal  and  uranium.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Today,  Campbell  County  is  the  energy  capi-­ tal  of  the  nation,â&#x20AC;?  claims  the  countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  website,  ccgov.net.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thirty  percent  of  the  nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  coal  is  produced  in  area  sur-­ face  mines.â&#x20AC;?  The  countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  Economic  Development  Corporation  marks  the  Powder  River  Basin  as  the  nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  largest  coal-­producing  region.  Coal  bed  methane  is  also  a  large  part  of  the  energy  industry  in  the  county.  In  addition,  oil  and  gas  is  a  major  contributor  to  the  economic  prosperity  of  the  county,  and  uranium  produc-­ tion  is  growing.  Reports  issued  by  the  Campbell  County  Economic  Development  Corporation  show  that  the  leading  employ-­ ers  in  Campbell  County  are  in  mineral  extraction  activities,  equipment  manufacturing,  support  service  and  health  services.  Energy  history  Wyoming  Tales  and  Trails  marks  coalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  begin-­ nings  back  to  prior  to  the  arrival  of  Europeans  to  the  area.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Natural  outcropping  occurrences  in  the  area  were  utilized  by  Indians,â&#x20AC;?  the  web-­

Campbell  County  sees  energy  companies  interacting  with  agriculture

site  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;In  1920,  the  Peer-­ less  Mine  opened  as  an  under-­ ground  mine.â&#x20AC;?  The  coal  industry  expanded  beginning  in  the  1970s  as  a  result  of  the  need  for  Wyomingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  low  sulfur  coal.  Infrastructure  benefits  Because  of  the  infrastruc-­ ture  that  accompanies  energy  development,  particularly  in  the  form  of  water  and  road  development,  ranchers  can  see  some  benefits  as  a  result.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  gas  development  has  provided  a  lot  of  water,â&#x20AC;?  Neal  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  knew  that  it  was  going  to  disappear  at  some  point,  so  we  tied  our  wells  into  their  systems  to  uti-­ lize  the  infrastructure.â&#x20AC;?  Sherry  Oedekoven  also  says  they  have  appreciated  the  water  from  the  energy  development.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Methane  brought  water  to  two  different  location  on  the  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  she  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  pump  the  excess  water  into  tanks  and  that  has  been  a  great  benefit.â&#x20AC;?  Neal  also  notes  that  they  have  seen  graveled  crown-­ and-­ditch  roads  have  been  constructed  to  get  to  the  wells,  but  they  are  helpful  in  getting  to  cattle  pastures  as  well.   In  addition  to  infrastruc-­ ture  benefits,  several  ranches  also  note  that  royalties  have  provided  some  financial  ease  in  difficult  times.

Difficulties  While  energy  also  pro-­ vides  additional  income,  Neal  adds  that  the  ques-­ tion  of  whether  land  will  be  reclaimed  also  is  ever-­pres-­ ent.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  know  for  sure  if  they  are  going  to  fix  up  locations  like  they  should,â&#x20AC;?  he  says,   â&#x20AC;&#x153;but  we  hope  they  do.  There  is  supposed  to  be Â

money  in  trust  to  reclaim  the  land.â&#x20AC;?  Aside  from  the  impacts  to  land  quality,  Neal  notes  that  energy  also  impacts  land  values  and  the  ability  to  lease  lands.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  pressure  on  our  land  resources  is  great,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  makes  it  hard  to  purchase  or  lease  land  because  we  are  competing  with  energy.â&#x20AC;?

Legal  representation  â&#x20AC;&#x153;For  the  most  part,  energy  companies  are  really  good  to Â

deal  with,â&#x20AC;?  comments  Rod  Smith  of  Sixty  Bar  Ranch.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  like  every  other  business  though,  where  one  bad  apple  spoils  things  for  the  rest.â&#x20AC;?  He  also  notes  that  if  land-­ owners  are  firm  in  what  they  want  and  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  let  companies  get  away  with  anything,  the  relationship  stays  positive.  While  many  energy  companies  are  great  to  work  with,  according  to  Campbell  County  producers,  Neal  sug-­ gests  that  it  is  a  good  idea  to Â

have  a  good  attorney  that  is  versed  in  private  property  rights  and  doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  represent  energy  companies.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  are  in  a  business  (in  agriculture)  where  we  accept  things  on  a  handshake  deal.  If  you  shake  hands  with  some  in  the  cattle  business,  it  is  going  to  happen.  That  isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  the  way  the  energy  companies  always  work,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  impor-­ tant  to  find  a  good  attorney  to  represent  your  interests,  and  they  are  hard  to  find.â&#x20AC;?

 â&#x20AC;&#x153;There  are  some  issues,  but  overall,  it  is  pretty  good,â&#x20AC;?  Neal  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  provides  a  good  opportunities  to  bring  in  some  additional  money.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;You  have  to  learn,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nealâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  wife  Amanda.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  focus  is  on  cattle  and  making  a  living  on  cattle,  but  we  have  to  learn  the  inâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  and  outâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  of  energy.â&#x20AC;?  Saige  Albert  is  managing  editor  of  the  Wyoming  Live-­ stock  Roundup  and  can  be  reached  at  saige@wylr.net.

Driven Powersports (QJOLVK $YHQXH Â&#x2021; &DVSHU :< Â&#x2021; drivenpowersports.com

A8

Wyoming Livestock Roundup

Raising bison When the Flocchini fam-­ ily entered a partnership in 1965 to buy Durham Ranch, north of Wright, owner John Flocchini notes that buffalo were already raised on the operation.

John’s family has con-­ tinued the Durham Ranch traditions of raising purebred American Bison ever since.

Bison beginnings The bison on the ranch have roots in Yellowstone National Park, says John.

“The gentleman that we partnered with made a deal with the Department of the Interior to trap Yellowstone bison and bring them here,” explains John. “The founda-­ tion of this herd is in Yellow-­

Durham Ranch carries on family traditions with bison herd

stone National Park.”

Though the partnership only lasted one year, the Flocchinis continued to raise bison and began buying the land.

“The partnership was leasing most of the ranch from the Wright family,” explains John.

Today, the ranch encom-­ passes over 65,000 acres.

“When we first came to this place, there were a cou-­ ple thousand bison,” says John. “However, by 1966, there were quite a few less than that, and because of their Yellowstone origins, 40 percent of them had brucel-­ losis.”

In cooperation with

Heifers – All of the females at Durham are typically either dehorned or their horns are tipped for the safety of the animal and handlers. When they are in corrals or being transported in a trailer, the sharp pointed horns can cause injuries to the other bison. Saige Albert photo

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, as well as local veterinarians, John notes that a strict test and cull program cleaned up the herd in less than four years.

“At that point, we were brucellosis-­free and have remained that way ever since,” he says. “After that, we moved into a herd build-­ ing program, primarily from within, with numbers reach-­ ing as high as 1,900 breeding cows.”

The herd numbers are fewer than their peak now, at 1,200 breeding cows.

Raising bison “We raise bison primar-­ ily for the meat production,” explains John. “We have a cow herd that produces calves to sell into our meat markets. They are produced all naturally.”

Additionally, Durham Ranch sells breeding stock.

Using a planned, time-­ controlled grazing program with the more than 60 pad-­ docks on the ranch, John notes that they are able to uti-­ lize grass efficiently, reduce overgrazing and feed mini-­ mally.

“In winter feed mode, we feed roughly five pounds of hay per day and a cou-­ ple pounds of cake,” he explains. “We start feeding in mid-­December until about April.”

Because what they feed

is not enough to sustain the large creature, John says they still have to forage for the majority of their diet, and they strive to only provide a little extra supplement – not spoil them.

“We want them to remember that they are buf-­ falo and they have to con-­ tinue to be buffalo,” says John. “It doesn’t mat-­ ter how much snow we have because they will get through the snow. When we have extended extreme cold, we do feed them a little more cake.”

The ranch includes 10,000 acres of leased land that they trail the yearlings to each spring for summer grazing.

“It takes the pressure off of our land and allows us to have a few more cows,” John says.

Watering the animal is also a challenge, largely because of their herd instinct, says John.

“When they go to water, they all go to water,” he explains. “We’ve had to design our watering sys-­ tems to water the herd in two hours – that means 50,000 to 60,000 gallons of water in two hours in the hot summer months. In the winter, they also eat snow.”

Compared to cattle When looking at raising bison, John notes that there are a number of consider-­

ations that have to be taken compared to raising cattle.

In trailing bison, John says they have to be han-­ dled differently than cattle, because of their larger flight zone.

“We usually use pick-­ ups,” he comments. “We have used horses in the past, but it can be dangerous in certain situations.”

Calving is also done all naturally.

“The breeding season is in July and August,” says John, “and calving is done in April and May.” “We are hands off dur-­ ing calving,” he adds, not-­ ing that in the handful of times they have tried to assist, they have never saved a calf and only rarely saved cows. “It is so infrequent that they have problems. We lost maybe four or five cows dur-­ ing spring calving. Our death loss is less than one percent.”

In addition, they wean an average of 94 percent of the calves, a number that is very acceptable for the oper-­ ational goals.

“Calving isn’t labor intensive,” he says, as a result. “The other thing is, we don’t want to keep prob-­ lem calvers, so these are nat-­ urally removed from the herd.”

Cows are pregnancy tested in the fall using ultra-­ sound, and open cows are culled at that time.

“We also test for lac-­ tation on the cows,” he explains. “If she is dry, we look at her records. If a cow has been dry two of the last four years, she is culled, regardless of her pregnancy status.”

After culling, John notes that they see a 90 to 95 per-­ cent pregnancy rate on the cowherd.

They also raise all of their replacement heifers and bulls.

“We identify 65 or 70 potential replacement bulls and run them on grass through the following year,” says John. “When they are 1.5 years old, we perfor-­ mance test them based on their summer gain, and keep the quickest gainers.”

He also notes that they consider conformation, mas-­ culinity traits through the head and horn growth, rela-­ tive to their peers.

“We also select for tro-­ phy bulls,” he comments, noting the importance of the hunting enterprise of the operation.

Handling When handling the ani-­ mals, John notes that a cor-­ ral system that is set up right is important.

“Our corrals are custom made and designed for han-­ dling bison,” he comments.

“They have to be bigger and stronger.”

For example, a bison

A9

2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

bull can get out of alleyways that are 6.5 feet tall, so they build alleys at seven feet.

“Learning how to han-­ dle bison is also important,” John says. “They are really sensitive, so we have to be on our toes. We constantly strive to reduce the stress while they are being han-­ dled.”

Fencing is also an issue, and John says that running bulls separately from cows can be challenging.

“They can be hard on fences,” he says, “but we’ve gotten to the point that we run our bulls with the cow-­ herd year around.”

Since they only keep pregnant cows, they don’t have to worry about offsea-­ son breeding, and the bulls are happier and easier to keep when they are run together.

Markets The bison meat mar-­

kets, says John, tend to fol-­ low cattle markets, currently returning approximately a 50 percent premium over beef today.

“For many years, it would sell for around a 20 percent premium,” says John. “A few years ago, it broke out.”

Because of marketing by the National Bison Associa-­ tion and private marketers, as well as low prices, great taste and nutritional benefits, John says the product took off.

“The ‘cool’ factor is also important,” John com-­ ments. “There is a great story behind it.”

While markets have slowed recently, he adds, “Producers have been able to make good money in bison production. It has been more of a challenge to have enough supply for the

marketers.”

Benefits of bison John mentions that there are a number of benefits to running bison in the area.

“Weather is one of the biggest factors in trying to deal with and manage the land,” he comments. “It is great that we have an animal that can handle weather bet-­ ter than domestic animals.”

As an example, John says that cattle and sheep producers in the area were devastated after a four-­day blizzard in 1984, but he only lost two yearling bison that wandered onto a pond and broke through the ice.

As with weather, preda-­ tors do not pose much of an

issue for Durham Ranch.

Additionally, he appreci-­ ates the unique nature of the venture and sees some bene-­ fit in the premiums that can be had over beef.

“There are a lot of rea-­ sons to stay in it,” he says.

“We have a lot of history with the animal, and we’ve always at least managed to break even with just the ani-­ mals. We are pretty fortunate to be involved with an ani-­ mal that can provide so well for us.”

For more information, visit durhamranch.com.

Saige Albert is managing editor of the Wyoming Live-­ stock Roundup and can be reached at saige@wylr.net.

Durham meat products All of Durham Ranch’s natural bison is marketed through the family-owned meat company in Reno, Nev. called Sierra

Meat and Seafood.

“My grandfather bought a meat company called Durham Meat Company is San Francisco in the 1930s,” says John.

The family owned a string of meat companies through the years, but now only holds Sierra Meat and Seafood.

“Sierra Meat and Seafood markets all of the bison for Durham Ranch,” John says. “They package and sell bison nationwide under the Durham Ranch brand.”

Most of their product ends up in restaurants and hotels, while some is sold in grocery stores across the country.

The Durham Ranch brand encompasses more than just natural bison, and also includes other products such as natural beef, Wagyu beef, Berkshire pork and wild boar.

A10

Wyoming Livestock Roundup

Diversified operation Pickrel Land and Cattle Company uses diversity on ranch What started as four small homesteads between the Belle Fourche River and Four Horse Creek in 1916 has grown into Pick-­ rel Land and Cattle Com-­ pany, the largest ranch in Campbell, Weston and Crook Counties.

Irvin Arthur “Pick” Pickrel settled on the land as a youngster with his mother. After work-­ ing in the oil fields near Midwest for many years, Pick returned to the home-­ stead with his wife Nora in 1931. The Pickrels acquired their first new land in 1959, purchas-­ ing the Spaeth Ranch near Gillette.

Over the years, the family continued to pur-­ chase land and grow the ranch, building on the leg-­ acy Pick started and creat-­ ing a thriving family ranch that’s been home to multi-­ ple generations.

Today, Pickrel Land and Cattle Company is an

incorporated, successful Red Angus cow/calf and yearling business oper-­ ating on 165,000 acres.

They employ six men full-­ time.

The ranch is headquar-­ tered in Rozet, but holds property in three coun-­ ties. T heir land starts with a pasture in Gillette near Cam-­plex and runs past Moorcroft to the east and 20 miles to the south.

The ranch and live-­ stock business is headed up by Max and George Ann Burch and their sons, Matt and Chad. George Ann is Pick’s young-­ est daughter. Clint Pick-­ rel, Pick’s grandson, also lives on the ranch, han-­ dling legal issues, mineral leasing and right-­of-­way agreements.

The ranch headquar-­ ters haven’t changed much since Pick’s days. The house and corrals stand unadorned, providing ranch visitors a clear view

of the Rochelle Hills and Belle Fourche River to the west, providing an almost idyllic backdrop for rais-­ ing cattle.

Surviving the dry years The ranch’s acreage is usually more than enough to sustain their herd. The ranch contracts locally to put up some hay and buys the balance of feed when needed. As the head of the livestock operation, Max says they had to sell all their calves this year, however, because of the drought most of Wyoming experienced in the spring and summer of 2012.

“It’s the first time we’ve had to do that,” he says, “but I just didn’t want to pay hay prices to feed them all. I really hope we don’t have to look at doing that again.”

Max says the area is usually producer friendly, which he credits for help-­ ing the ranch’s sustain-­ ability.

“This is a pretty cheap operating area most of the time. We don’t even nor-­ mally feed much hay,” he explains. “Cutting back on expenses like buying hay can really help a guy be profitable. We also start calving May 1, so all of it can be done outside.”

While some Campbell County operations strug-­ gled t o s urvive i n t he wake of the county’s differ-­ ent energy booms, Pickrel Land and Cattle used the country’s need for power to their advantage.

After Pick’s death in 1974, his wife Nora took over the ranch, started her own oil leasing company and began acquiring prop-­ erties of her own. She was well respected in the oil and business commu-­ nities and was known as a tough woman with which to deal.

“We haven’t had the problems some places have. In fact, we sold off

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A

s long as the cattle market stays high like it is and we get some rain, I think we’ll be pretty well off.” – Max Burch

some small parcels of land to the coal mine and used that money to help buy other, better suited areas to add to our acreage,” says Max. Four Horse Outfitters Matt Burch runs Four Horse Outfitters on the side, taking advantage of Pickrel Land and Cat-­ tle’s wildlife and open space. Matt offers both archery and rifle hunts for mule deer, antelope and some elk. Custom-­ ers get a guided hunt and full accommodations and meals.

Max says the drought affected deer numbers but not necessarily hunters this past fall.

“We backed off a lit-­ tle bit on the number of hunters last fall because the deer populations were down some, but it didn’t seem to affect hunter suc-­ cess,” he says. “I think everyone came home with their deer, and they were some pretty nice deer, too!”

The ranch has even been featured on the Out-­ door Channel’s show, Best of the West, a program dedicated to long-­range hunting opportunities.

Bucks in bucking stock Pickrel Land and Cat-­ tle is also home to Burch Rodeo Company, a nation-­ ally recognized Profes-­ sional Rodeo Cowboys Association stock con-­ tracting business, provid-­ ing some of the rankest bucking horses and bulls on the professional rodeo tour. Around 900 four-­ footed rodeo athletes call the ranch home on their off days.

“My sons (Matt and Chad) handle most of the rodeo company these days,” says Max. “The

boys got their professional card in the late 1990s, but we’ve been putting on rodeos since the early 1980s.”

Burch Rodeo Com-­ pany provides stock for large rodeos like Chey-­ enne F rontier Days and t he National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colo., as well as smaller rodeos in Wyoming and surrounding states.

One of Burch’s most well-­known horses, Blood Brother, was voted the 2008 PRCA Saddle Bronc Horse of the Year before his retirement.

Matt and Chad sent seven bucking horses and one bull to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in December 2012. Their big, flashy Paint saddle bronc, Lunatic Fringe, helped Cole Elshere win first place in Round Five.

Zombie Zoo lived up to his nasty reputation and bucked off bull rider Cody Teel in Round Nine.

In addition to buck-­ ing out the performance animals, Burch Rodeo Company raises and sells bucking seedstock to other stock contractors, and Max’s sons plan to expand in future years as they take over more day-­to-­day duties on the ranch.

Despite many irons in the fire with family, wild-­ life, livestock and rough-­ stock, Max’s hopes for the future remain simple.

“As long as the cattle market stays high like it is and we get some rain, I think we’ll be pretty well off,” he comments.

Teresa Milner is a cor-­ respondent for the Wyo-­ ming Livestock Roundup.

Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr. net.

A11

2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

Low Input Cows Geis brothers focus on low maintenance cattle Although Gerry Geis and his brother Kevin have to overcome challenges and make sacrifices to keep their ranch sustainable, they feel the benefits and love of the land are what keep them excited about the business.

They lease the ranch, which is located southwest of Gillette, from their family’s trust.

The brothers, who have been ranching together for 12 years, manage the ranch that was homesteaded by their great-­grandfather and grand-­ father in the late 1920s.

Joint operation “We run our operation together as a joint business,” Gerry says. “My brother and I get along really well. He is nine years younger than I am.

His oldest son is 15, and my youngest son is 28. My kids are all grown, so there is no kid friction.”

He adds, “We have both had our turn at different times attending our kid’s activi-­ ties, so there is always some-­ one here to take care of the chores.”

Gerry also considers it a blessing that both spouses get along so well.

“Realistically, it doesn’t matter how well my brother and I get along. If our spouses didn’t get along, we wouldn’t be able to work together,” he says.

Off the ranch Kevin’s wife Bobbi, and Gerry’s wife Gwen both have jobs outside the family ranch.

Kevin and Gerry also work outside the ranch. Their out-­ side employment has shaped how they manage their oper-­ ation and what type of cows they select.

“Since my brother and I both work off the ranch, we needed low maintenance cat-­ tle. Time is an issue for us,” he explains. “We cull really hard for things like bad bags, cows that limp, bad dispositions, poor mothers and anything else that will take extra time.

The cows also have to come in with a calf each fall, and they have to be trouble-­free.”

“I can’t have cattle that get out, because I don’t have time to go to the neighbor’s every night to get them in,” he says.

“We have been fortu-­ nate that while we were try-­ ing to build our operation, we all had outside jobs, so we weren’t dependent on the cows to put food on the table,” he says. “We have been able to make decisions that we couldn’t have made if we depended on that income to live.”

Raising cattle Kevin and Gerry settled on a predominantly Black Angus-­based herd that they breed to Hereford and some Angus bulls.

“Our goal is to have con-­ sistent cows that raise good black or black baldy calves that don’t require a lot of bab-­ ysitting,” Gerry says. “They have to be efficient.”

“We don’t keep cows until they are real old. We used to keep them as long as they brought a good, live calf home, but now we’re trying to keep them under eight or nine years old,” he says. “We want to cull them when they still have some marketability.”

Most of the cows are moderate in size, averaging around 1,200 pounds. They aim for a 600-­pound calf at weaning.

“We like to calve the heif-­ ers in mid-­February or by the first of March to give them time to recover and be ready to breed again,” Gerry explains.

The older cows start calv-­ ing about March 10.

“The weather is usually pretty good then,” he says.

“Our biggest problems at calving are rain and wet snow because there is no way to get the calves dry no matter how much straw we put out.”

Most of the cows calve in a small pasture near the house where they can be closely monitored. Only first calf heifers with problems ever see the inside of the barn, Gerry says.

After they calve, pairs are pulled once or twice a week and rotated into another pas-­ ture where they stay a week before they are kicked out into an even larger pasture.

“This system allows us to monitor the pairs for a cou-­ ple weeks so we can catch the cows that aren’t milking, or calves that may be getting sick,” he said. “Our goal is a 95 to 98 percent calving rate.”

Making changes The brothers have come along way since starting their own operation in 1999. Like many other ranchers, their dad raised the traditional Her-­ eford cattle that dotted the grazing lands in the western plains. Although both brothers are fond of the red and white cattle, they found the cattle buyers preferred black-­hided calves.

“When we sold dad’s Herefords after he passed away, everyone talked about how good those cows were, but no one wanted to bid on them because they weren’t black,” Gerry says. “They were nice Hereford cattle –

Working together – The Geis brothers, Gerry and Kevin, run their family ranch together, and Gerry notes that they are fortunate to be able to work well together. Courtesy photo

long, straight and deep, but others still didn’t want them.”

Although Gerry tries to lease every piece of land he can that is a reasonable price, they still have to feed some hay to get the cattle through the winter months.

“We also raise quite a bit of small grains like wheat, barley and oats,” he says. “In a good year, hay can be a cash crop, and we use some and sell some. In a bad year, like last year, we found out that we should have kept all our hay from the last four or five years.”

Gerry continues, “When you are ranching, you are at

the mercy of nature. Despite all the advancements in tech-­ nology, no one can still accu-­ rately predict the weather. No one told us we would have a wet spring in 2011, and no one said when it quit raining the first of July that we wouldn’t see any moisture until 2013.

You would think with all the technology out there, weather forecasting could be a little more accurate.”

Managing land “We have been able to survive the drought and dry years because we have been under stocked,” he explains.

“If it doesn’t rain this year, we will be in a bind. Even when

you develop a plan for some-­ thing like this, it always seems like there is a wrinkle some-­ where.”

He adds that this is why he is always on the lookout for more land to lease.

“You just never know,” Gerry says. “You try to save a pasture back, and then a fire comes through, or a snow comes early and buries all the pasture.”

The family manages the grazing lands by rotational grazing in some areas and monitoring the grass.

“What has really helped our land was the development of excellent water sources

when we had coal bed meth-­ ane. Those extra water sources have made a lot of difference.

Our cows stay scattered out and utilize the pastures better than I’ve ever seen before,” Gerry explains.

One pasture has 14 water sources, instead of two or three.

“The pastures look better with more livestock than they did before because we are get-­ ting better grass utilization,” he explains.

Gayle Smith is a corre-­ spondent for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.

Family operation – Kevin and wife Bobbi work together on the ranch with Gerry and his wife Gwen. The family operates southwest of Gil-­ lette. Courtesy photo

A12

Wyoming Livestock Roundup

Way of life Mackeys enjoy ranching lifestyles As Paxton and Kristin Mackey watch their young sons play on the ranch, they agree there is no better envi-­ ronment to raise their boys.

“They will grow up get-­ ting to go outside and work and play instead of staying in the house playing the Wii all day like many town kids do,” Paxton says. “I don’t think there is a better place to raise children than on the ranch. It is my own dream that someday I can ranch full time. I would like to build up enough cows and land to be able to do that comfortably.”

Family history Paxton and Kristin cur-­ rently manage the ranch that was homesteaded by Paxton’s great-­grandfather in 1916.

“My great-­grandfather, Frank Force, came to Wyoming on a train from Chicago. This was as far as he made it because he had no more money to ride the train, so this is where they made him get off,” he explains.

After homesteading in

1916, he married Paxton’s great-­grandmother in 1918 and went away to fight in World War I. When he returned from WWI, he started ranching and raising children. Later, Frank developed a heart condition, and since his two oldest sons were fighting in World War II, his younger son Bob took over management of the ranch.

Bob started as a sheep rancher, but also worked as a cattle buyer. His operation consisted mostly of Herefords, Paxton says.

When Bob retired, the ranch was managed by the third generation of Forces, which was Paxton’s mother and father, Faye and Bert Mackey, and Faye’s sister and brother.

“My mother and her sis-­ ter eventually bought out their brother, and in 2003, my mother and sister split up the ranch. Last year, my mother turned the ranch over to me,” he explains.

Fourth generation “My parents ran a little bit

of everything for cows,” Pax-­ ton says. “Most of the cows were Charolais, Black Angus and baldies. I started my own cowherd in 2005.”

“Since then, I have been able to lease some land, and we also run cattle with a close family friend. Most of my cat-­ tle are Black Angus, raised all natural and bred to Black Angus bulls,” he explains.

Paxton is working toward moderate frame cattle, but he is the first to admit some are larger in frame than he would like.

“It is a work in prog-­ ress,” he says of reducing the size of his cattle. “We are like most ranchers in that we want lower birth weights and higher weaning weights, so that is something we select for in our bulls and replacement heif-­ ers.”

He adds, “I also want cows that are good milkers, flesh easy and have a good disposition.”

All natural, aged and sourced The focus of their pro-­

Haying – Paxton Mackey also puts up hay, both on his property and for various neighbors, each sum-­ mer. Courtesy photo

gram has been to raise healthy cows that stay in as good of shape as possible.

“We try to market our calves as all natural, age and source verified,” he explains.

His description of all nat-­ ural beef is cattle that haven’t received any growth hor-­ mones or byproducts to make them grow faster. They do, however, receive antibiotics if they become ill, he notes.

“We use identification tags so we can age and source verify calves to tell when and where they were born and about the cows they came from,” he says. “We have found that we can earn a pre-­ mium by having them in some type of a program. We work with our neighbors and sell our calves together, so we can sell three or four loads of straight steer calves. We mar-­ ket them through Western Video Auction and feel we have done quite well. We sell the steer calves straight off the cow.”

Raising heifers The heifer calves are weaned and may be sold later or kept as replacements.

“We have been retain-­ ing them the last two years because of the cost of heifer replacements,” Paxton explains. “We are trying to build our herd, and since we know the genetics of our heif-­ ers, it makes sense to us to hold on to them if we can.”

The heifers are developed

over the winter with good feed and mineral.

“We keep them separate from the cows so they grow well and stay healthy and have good breed up,” he explains.

The heifers are artificially inseminated to a low birth weight Black Angus bull, then put with a clean up bull for 30 days.

“We have had good luck with this type of program,” Paxton explains. “We have a good percentage of them bred.”

Grazing management The cattle are able to graze year-­round on the ranch if the forage doesn’t snow under, Paxton says.

“We had to start feed-­ ing sooner this year because we are out of grass from the drought. But, we put up a lot of hay in the summer around here and for other area ranch-­ ers,” he says. “I supplement the cows with some hay and cake during the winter. We don’t calve until the first of April.”

In the future, Paxton says he would like to obtain enough grass to rotationally graze his cattle, but currently he only has a summer pas-­ ture and winter pasture.

“We want to grow, but right now it is challenging to find leases,” he explains.

“The cattle market is up, and I think it is a good time to expand, so I want to hold on to as many cattle as I can.”

Paxton also finds it chal-­ lenging to work full-­time outside the ranch and still find time to finish every-­ thing.

“During the summer, I use all my vacation time put-­ ting up hay for myself and some of the other ranchers. I have to put up other people’s hay to help pay for the hay-­ ing equipment,” he explains.

Sometimes, it is tough having a full-­time job, and having time to take care of the cattle when I get home.

I enjoy the winter because I have more time to go out and spend with the cows. I like branding, too. I want to say I also look forward to calving, but by the time I am halfway through it, I am tired of it. It is hard trying to tag calves at night after work, and get the feeding done,” he explains.

“But, in spite of it all, I wouldn’t choose to do any-­ thing else. Ranchers are a dying breed,” Paxton says.

“Everything costs more, and it is a challenge to stay afloat and be a good money man-­ ager, but the cattle market is good, and I really enjoy hav-­ ing cows.”

“I am optimistic about what the future holds and having the chance to increase the herd,” he finishes.

Gayle Smith is a corre-­ spondent for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.

A13

2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS As a purebred cattle business, Neal and Amanda Sorenson at Powder River Angus not only recognizes the value of having good cattle that work in the country, but also notes that selling bulls is a people business.

The Sorenson family homesteaded on the conflu-­ ence of Clear Creek and the Powder River in the mid-­ 1880s, says Neal.

“They ran a stage stop and freight stop between Arvada and Broadus, Mont.,” says Neal of his family’s history.

“They made a really good liv-­ ing until the railroad came through and put them out of business.”

The family moved to Washington until their son, Neal’s great-­grandfather, returned to Horse Creek and homesteaded a parcel of land in 1909.

“We have been in the cat-­ tle business since the begin-­ ning,” adds Neal. “Even my family that ran the stage line still had cattle.”

Powder River Angus still runs cattle on the parcel of land homesteaded on Horse Creek.

Starting a business Neal and Amanda bought their first purebred cows in 1994 when they purchased an entire herd from Colorado.

When they were working with Neal’s father’s commer-­ cial operation, Amanda began tagging and keeping records on each cow, similar to what she had grown up doing on her family’s commercial oper-­ ation in Wheatland.

“Dad told us that if we like to keep all the records, we should get purebred cows, because that is important in the purebred business,” says Neal. “We took his advice.”

They began their business selling bulls private treaty, only beginning to sell using an auction four years ago.

“People started to want first shot at the bulls when we were selling private treaty,” Neal explains, “so we started doing an open house and silent auction.”

The open house allowed buyers to see their bulls, view video and bid on bulls, but Neal says that people tended to get caught up in visiting and forgot to continue bidding on animals.

“When we started announcing who won the bulls, people wanted to keep bidding,” he explains, “so it evolved into an auction that way.”

As they began to outgrow the feedlot on their property, Neal and Amanda made the decision to feed their bulls in Buffalo and hold an annual bull sale at the Buffalo Live-­ stock Auction.

“We had more num-­ bers than I could feed with-­ out expanding,” he says.

“Because we have to truck all of our feed resources in, it was better to take the cattle to feed.”

Focus on bulls As they raise bulls, Neal and Amanda focus on a prod-­ uct that will work for their cus-­ tomers.

“Most of our customers

are very local,” Neal com-­ ments. “The bulk of our busi-­ ness comes from northeast Wyoming, southeast Montana and northwest South Dakota.”

They strive for a moder-­ ately sized bull that is good footed and structurally cor-­ rect. They also look for good udders and fertility.

“When we select for herd bulls, we also are selecting for big scrotal bulls because they pass that on in the female fer-­ tility,” Neal says. “They have to breed up in an orderly fash-­ ion or they don’t stay here, no matter how good they are.”

Neal notes that their strict culling criteria isn’t easy, but is necessary to maintain a strong herd.

Breeding challenges One of the challenges in developing a cattle herd is in selecting genetics and then waiting for the results.

“In the cattle business, there are so many different things going on,” Amanda explains. “We make a decision and breed for something, but it takes five, six or even 10 years down the road before we can see the results.”

Before results of breeding can really be seen, she adds that it takes time to get females on the range to see how they perform.

“In our breeding, we breed toward the ideal female,” says Amanda. “The bulls are a byproduct of a good female.”

“Our bulls are born and raised where corn doesn’t grow,” she comments. “They don’t get creep feed and are minimally supplemented in the winter.”

“We can say with pretty good certainty that if they are going to make it here, they should make it anywhere,” Amanda adds.

While Neal notes that the numbers may not match up to others that are being used across the country, he raises hardy bulls that survive and do very well on the range.

“I wouldn’t be doing my customers a service to sell them bulls that can’t make it where they run,” Neal says.

“These bulls work on the range.”

Focus on customers Because they focus on a bull that works on the range, customers keep returning.

The Sorenson’s also guarantee their bulls to ensure that cus-­ tomers are happy.

“When we were raising commercial cows, if we had a bull that didn’t work, for what-­ ever reason, we hoped that people would stand behind them,” says Amanda, “but that didn’t always happen.”

She continues, “If anyone has a problem with a bull, we will fix it. Whether that means getting them a different bull or giving them back their money, we do it. We want to make sure our bulls work for our customers.”

Because of their guaran-­ tee, the Sorensons note that they have seen a number of customers attend their sales as a result of word of mouth.

“The best marketing is when a guy buys cattle and tells his neighbor they work,” says Neal.

Powder River Angus focuses on the people business Neal also notes that sell-­ ing bulls private treaty is something he misses, largely because of the customer rela-­ tionship.

“When we were selling private treaty, we got to know our customers better, and we got more face time with peo-­ ple,” says Neal. “I would rec-­ ommend to any young pro-­ ducer that wants to go into the purebred business to sell pri-­ vate treaty in the beginning to get to know their customer base.”

Utilizing an auction to sell bulls is more impersonal, according to Neal, and to bridge the gap, they usually deliver their bulls personally to get more face time and learn about their customers more.

“We like to learn what people do, how they run and get to know them better,” he adds.

“This is like any busi-­ ness,” says Amanda. “It’s a people business.”

Challenging industry “In this industry as a

whole, everything has its prob-­ lems,” says Neal. “I think the industry is probably pushing for production beyond what can realistically be attained on the range.”

He continues by noting that it is important to be care-­ ful when selecting bulls to make sure it is something that works on the operation.

“We have learned over the years, we have to find the right genetics that work,” Neal comments. “We have to go to different places and see the cows, look at how they are raised before we select them.”

“It doesn’t happen over-­ night,” Neal says, “but we like what we do.”

Family life “Outside of some of the challenges we face, we love where we live,” says Neal. “It is a wonderful community.”

Raising children in the area between Spotted Horse and Recluse allows a strong community to develop and Neal says it provides a great way to raise a family.

Their sons Cole and Chance both show in 4-­H and enjoy the ranch. At ages 10 and 9, respectively, they both agree that they want to be ranchers when they grow up.

“It is a good lifestyle,” adds Amanda. “We both enjoy raising cattle and see-­ ing what we can do to make

it better.”

“Our goal was to be able to make a living on cat-­ tle without having to have an outside job,” Neal comments.

“We can do that today.”

Saige Albert is managing editor of the Wyoming Live-­ stock Roundup and can be reached at saige@wylr.net.

Family operation – Neal and Amanda Sorenson live east of Spotted Horse and note that it is a great place to raise a family. Not only are their children taught to work and play outside, but the community strongly supports each other and provides a good environment for raising kids.

Curt Cox photo

A14

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

FOR  THE  LOVE  OF  LIVESTOCK  Since  Arnie  Maderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  grandfather  homesteaded  land  on  the  Montana  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Wyo-­ ming  border  in  1912,  the  Mader  family  has  raised  cows,  sheep  and  improved  the  land.   Arnie  notes  that  he  and  his  wife  Denise  enjoy  run-­ ning  cattle  and  sheep,  and  his  rich  family  history  in  the  area  strongly  ties  him  to  the  land.

The  Mader  Ranch  After  his  grandfather  homesteaded  in  1912,  he  ranched  until  his  passing  in  1954.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Grandma  leased  the  land  to  someone  new  every  three  years  or  so  because  she  was  frustrated  with  the  way  they  were  taking  care  of  it,â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  started  leasing  it  in  1976.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  place  straddles  the  border,â&#x20AC;?  says  Arnie.   He  adds  that  he  has  now  purchased  the  property,  in  addition  to  a  larger  piece  of  land  west  of  Broadus,  Mont.  After  his  father  Bob  passed  in  1987,  he  also  began  leas-­ ing  his  motherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  property  just  south  of  his  land.

Running  cattle  Arnie  notes  that  his  father  ran  yearlings  in  addi-­ tion  to  the  cow/calf  opera-­ tion,  and  he  continued  until  recently,  when  drought  necessitated  that  the  herd  was  downsized  this  year.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  normally  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  sell  many  heifer  calves  in Â

the  fall,â&#x20AC;?  he  commented,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;but  this  year  we  just  kept  replacements.â&#x20AC;?   They  begin  calving  heifers  at  the  beginning  of  March,  and  breeding  cows  later  in  the  season  so  there  isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  much  overlap.  With  just  Denise  and  him  on  the  ranch,  he  notes  that  it  is  eas-­ ier  to  manage  under  that  schedule.  After  his  father  began  experimenting  with  breeds  to  find  what  was  best  for  the  country,  Arnie  says  heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  been  working  to  downsize  his  cattle  so  they  work  well.  They  currently  run  Red  and  Black  Angus  cows.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  think  there  is  just  as  much  hybrid  vigor  between  the  Red  and  Black  Angus  as  there  is  between  Black  Angus  and  Herefords,â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  think  our  best  calves  are  from  a  red  cow  bred  to  a  black  bull  or  a  black  cow  bred  to  a  red  bull.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d  like  to  have  an  1,100  pound  cow,  and  I  want  to  see  her  raise  50  per-­ cent  of  her  body  weight  in  calf  without  a  lot  of  feed,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  think  a  550  pound  calf  is  worth  just  as  much  as  the  bigger  ones.â&#x20AC;?  He  also  adds  that  by  decreasing  the  size  of  the  cows,  they  have  improved  stocking  rates.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  can  run  20  more  cows  in  the  same  pastures  for  a  month  or  two  longer,â&#x20AC;? Â

Maders  continue  family  ranching  traditions

Arnie  mentions.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  can  really  see  a  difference  in  the  cow  size.â&#x20AC;?  While  cow  sizes  have  increased  in  the  industry,  he  says  he  prefers  the  moderate  animals  that  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  require  too  much  purchased  feed.

Improved  pastures  They  also  have  improved  pastures  and  a  number  of  acres  of  hay  land  that  they  can  raise  plenty  of  hay  to  feed  most  years.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Grass  is  gold,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  hay  on  all  of  our  places,  and  we  have  really  good  hay.â&#x20AC;?   Arnie  recalls  that  when  they  first  began  leasing  the  land,  it  had  been  overgrazed,  so  they  farmed  it,  planting  grass  and  improving  pas-­ tures.  Now,  they  have  ade-­ quate  pasture  and  hay  land  to  run  on  through  the  year.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  it  gets  cold,  I  feed  a  couple  of  pounds  of  cake  every  other  day  and  hay,  along  with  our  mineral  program,  but  thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  it,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.

Diversifying  Along  with  their  cat-­ tle,  Arnie  and  Denise  have  a  small  herd  of  sheep  and  operate  a  hunting  business.  The  herd  of  Targhee  sheep  helps  to  control  weeds  and  provide  extra  income.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  had  a  herd  of  Ram-­ bouillet,  and  we  sold  them  several  years  ago  because  the  coyotes  go  so  bad,â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  bought Â

WEBO ANGUS

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SELLING 70+ BULLS "13*- t "5 5)& 3"/$) t -64, 8: 8 miles east on Hwy. 20 to Node Rd. then .6 miles south on Pfister Rd.

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Targhees  when  we  decided  to  get  back  in,  but  Denise  would  like  to  work  into  a  bunch  of  registered  Ram-­ bouillet.â&#x20AC;?  Because  of  their  moth-­ ering  ability  and  smaller  size,  the  Maderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  preferred  breed  is  Rambouillet.  She  also  appreciates  that  they  have  nice  wool  that  is  more  valuable.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  shed  lamb  our  sheep  and  average  a  160  percent  lamb  crop,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  also  keep  them  close.â&#x20AC;?  Because  of  the  impacts  of  predators,  the  sheep  are  kept  near  ranch  headquar-­ ters.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  like  the  sheep  because  they  take  care  of  the  weeds,â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because  of  the  sheep,  we  hardly  know  that  the  weeds  are  there.â&#x20AC;?  The  added  enterprise  also  reduces  the  amount  of  weed  spraying  that  he  has  to  do  to  keep  his  pastures  in  good  shape.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  run  a  little  hunting  business,  too,â&#x20AC;?  he  adds.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  try  to  take  some  hunters  and  guide  them  each  year.â&#x20AC;?  Deer  and  antelope  on  the  property,  as  well  as  coy-­ otes,  provide  trophy  hunt-­ ing  opportunities  on  the  land.  While  Arnie  notes  that  numbers  have  decreased  in  recent  years,  they  still  take  a  handful  of  hunters.  Training  horses  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  love  to  train  horses,â&#x20AC;?  adds  Arnie.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Dad  helped  me  start  my  first  one  when  I  was  eight  years  old,  and  Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve Â

Love  of  horses  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Arnie  Mader  says  he  loves  training  horses.  He  does  as  much  ranch  work  as  possible  on  horseback  and  notes  that  he  has  probably  put  the  first  ride  on  over  300  horses.  Saige  Albert  photo

had  a  colt  every  year  since.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  suppose  Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  proba-­ bly  put  the  first  ride  on  300  horses,â&#x20AC;?  he  adds.  As  a  child  on  the  family  ranch,  he  explains  that  they  had  a  truck,  but  it  was  used  primarily  for  going  to  town.   For  ranch  work,  they  used  horses.  Though  Arnie  doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  break  horses  as  much  any-­ more,  he  says  good  cow  horses  are  fun.  He  enjoys  working  livestock  on  good  horses  and  has  put  in  the  time  to  train  working  horses.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  do  all  my  sorting  by  horseback,â&#x20AC;?  he  comments.  Training  and  selling  horses  has  been  a  valuable  enterprise  for  the  ranch,  especially  when  Arnie  and  Denise  first  started.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  Denise  and  I  first  bought  this  place,  I  could  make  a  living  rode-­ oing  and  training,  selling  and  breaking  horses,â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  mentions.  As  a  team  roper,  Arnie  travelled  across  the  county  for  many  years.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;This  is  the  first  year Â

since  1965  that  I  havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  gone  to  a  rodeo,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  never  went  any  far-­ ther  south  than  Texas  or  any  farther  north  than  Alberta,  Canada,â&#x20AC;?  he  adds,  with  a  smile.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  roped  with  my  brother  Craig  for  20  years  and  another  brother  was  also  a  good  roper.â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  still  takes  the  chance  to  ride  as  often  as  he  can,  noting  that  he  likes  to  see  all  his  cows  everyday  when  they  are  calving,  and  he  prefers  to  do  it  by  horse-­ back  if  possible.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  feel  pretty  fortunate  that  there  arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  many  jobs  I  have  to  do  that  I  hate,â&#x20AC;?  Arnie  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d  like  to  get  caught  up  on  the  work,  but  I  love  working  stock.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;To  me,  calving  is  one  of  my  favorite  times  of  year,â&#x20AC;?  he  adds.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  like  seeing  the  new  calves  come,  and  everything  comes  to  life.  I  really  enjoy  what  I  do.â&#x20AC;?  Saige  Albert  is  manag-­ ing  editor  of  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup  and  can  be  reached  at  saige@wylr. net.

A15

2013  Winter  Cattlemenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

GENERATIONS  OF  HARD  WORK    Tarver-Heart  X  Ranch  works  to  continue  ranching  traditions  The  allure  of  the  West  prompted  a  British  bache-­ lor  to  found  one  of  Campbell  Countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  first  ranches,  the  TJ,  50  miles  north  of  Gillette  on  Olmstead  Creek.  Gilbert  de  Sausmarez  Hamilton  and  his  friend  Fred-­ erick  August  Ker  Bennet  part-­ nered  to  start  the  TJ  in  1884.   More  than  100  years  and  sev-­ eral  owners  later,  the  land  of  the  original  TJ  Ranch,  now  known  as  the  Tarver-­Heart  X  Ranch,  is  still  growing  grass  to  feed  cattle  and  horses  under  the  care  of  owners  Bob  and  Nancy  Tarver.  Bob  and  Nancy,  along  with  their  sons  James  and  Robert,  run  the  ranch  today.  Ranching  operation  Their  ranch  operation  consists  of  commercial  Black  Angus  cows  and  a  diversified  yearling  heifer  operation.   The  Tarvers  began  retaining  all  heifer  calves  when  James  and  Robert  returned  to  the  ranch  after  college.   The  yearling  heifer  operation  is  a  combina-­ tion  of  replacement  AI  heifers  and  spayed  heifers.    They  have  been  able  to  improve  their  herd  genetics  through  the  AI  program.    The  Tarvers  graze  their  Heart  X  Ranch,  Trail  Creek  Grazing  Association,  as  well  as  private,  state  and  federal  leases  in  northern  Campbell  County.   Bobâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  father  Lynn  began  leasing  the  Hunter  Ranch  in  1956,  and  it  remains  an  integral  part  of  their  opera-­ tion  today.    While  they  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  any  irrigated  land,  they  do  dryland  hay  950  acres.  Tarvers  also  raise  a  hand-­ ful  of  horses  on  their  prop-­ erty  every  year,  both  for  use  on  the  ranch  and  in  the  roping  arena.   James  and  Robert  are  in  charge  of  the  horses.   From  the  1980s  to  around  2000,  most  of  their  horses  were  dou-­ ble  bred  Hancock.   Over  the  past  12  years,  Colonels  Dun  Lena  has  been  the  sire  on  the  Tarver  ranch.   Colonel,  as  they  call  him,  crossed  with  the  Hancock  mares,  has  consis-­ tently  produced  offspring  that  are  tough  enough  for  the  ranch  work  and  talented  enough  for  the  roping  and  rodeo  arena.    â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  can  count  on  these  horses  to  get  the  job  done  on  the  ranch,  perform  in  the  arena  and  to  be  gentle  enough  for  our  kids,â&#x20AC;?  says  James.    Their  horses  are  impor-­ tant  tools  on  the  sprawling  ranch.

Family  ties  Three  generations  of  Tarvers  help  out  to  make  the  ranch  work.    â&#x20AC;&#x153;One  thing  that  has  worked  in  our  favor  is  that  our  sons  were  always  interested  in  returning  to  the  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nancy.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  do  all  of  our  own  hay  and  field  maintenance  as  well  as  taking  care  of  the  cat-­ tle  and  horses.    The  more  you  can  do  in  house,  the  bet-­ ter  off  you  are.   Family  labor  and  knowledge  has  certainly  helped  us  be  more  efficient  and  kept  costs  down.â&#x20AC;?  The  availability  of  afford-­ able  help  is  one  issue  Nancy  said  many  producers  will  face  in  the  coming  years.  The  Tarvers  rely  mainly  on  family  labor,  but  in  the  busiest  times Â

of  the  year  such  as  branding  and  shipping,  the  Tarvers  hire  day  help  and  trade  help  with  the  neighbors.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;What  you  are  able  to  afford  to  pay  quality  help  just  canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  compete  with  other  industries.   If  our  sons  hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  returned  to  the  ranch,  we  couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  operate  the  way  we  do.   Our  extra  help  arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  strangers,  theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re  our  friends  and  neighbors  that  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  worked  with  for  years.   Every-­ one  knows  what  needs  to  be  done  and  what  their  job  is,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nancy.    Bob  and  Nancyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  two  old-­ est  grandsons,  Wyatt,  age  14,  and  Tayler,  age  16,  help  out  a  lot  on  weekends  and  in  the  summer.   Jamesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;  wife  Jaime  and  Robertâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  wife  Michelle  also  help  out  when  they  arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  working  at  their  jobs  outside  the  ranch.   Jaime  is  a  civil  engineer,  and  Michelle  is  a  teacher.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;That  outside  income  is  also  important,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nancy.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  provide  additional  income  and  insurance  for  their  families,  which  is  every  bit  as  important.   We  really  do  work  together  as  one  big  family  to  keep  this  place  running.â&#x20AC;?

Conservation  improvements  The  Tarvers  have  com-­ pleted  numerous  conservation  improvement  projects  on  their  ranch,  including  electric  fenc-­ ing  for  pasture  rotation  and  the  installation  of  solar  water  wells.    Nancy  said  theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  also  worked  with  the  Campbell  County  Conservation  District  and  the  Natural  Resources  Conservation  Service  on  weed  control,  diking  and  pipelines.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;If  you  enhance  your  land  and  take  care  of  it,  it  enables  you  to  take  care  of  your  cat-­ tle,  even  in  the  worst  drought  conditions,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nancy.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  helped  us  disperse  the  cattle  more  efficiently.   If  it  wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  for  the  water  wells  and  fenc-­ ing,  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d  have  to  move  the  cattle  in  the  dry  times.â&#x20AC;?

From  snipe  hunts  to deer  hunts  Legend  has  it  that  on  their  first  night  at  the  ranch,  Ham-­ ilton  and  Bennet  were  invited  on  a  snipe  hunt  by  the  local  cowboys.   For  six  hours,  the  English  gentlemen  were  led  horseback  around  the  sur-­ rounding  hillside  before  being  handed  bags  to  catch  the  elu-­ sive  snipe  the  cowboys  prom-­ ised  to  drive  their  way.  Hunters  on  the  Tarver  Ranch  experience  more  suc-­ cess  today  than  Hamilton  and  Bennet  did  on  their  royal  snipe  hunts  all  those  years  ago.     The  Tarvers  run  a  small  outfitting  business,  guid-­ ing  deer  and  antelope  hunt-­ ers  on  their  property.   Accord-­ ing  to  Nancy,  James  and  Rob-­ ert  do  the  guiding,  Bob  does  the  patrolling  and  sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  the  chief  cook  and  bottle  washer.   The  Tarvers  keep  the  number  of  hunters  on  their  property  small,  making  it  a  specialized  hunt  for  their  customers.

Passing  it  on  The  future  looks  bright  for  keeping  the  Tarver  Ranch  a  family  operation.   The  grand-­ kids  have  already  expressed  an  interest  in  returning  to  the  ranch,  but  Nancy  said  good  estate  planning  will  be  critical Â

to  keeping  the  property  intact  for  future  generations.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  were  fortunate  that  our  family  planned  ahead  so  that  we  could  continue  in  agriculture,  and  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll  do  the  same  for  our  kids  and  grand-­ kids,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nancy.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;You  need  to  have  a  plan  on  how  to  pass  along  assets  in  advance.â&#x20AC;?    Bobâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  folks  worked  a  life-­ time  to  build  a  herd  of  cattle  to  pass  on  to  their  sons.  Bob  and  Nancy  had  a  dream  of  not  only  growing  the  cattle  herd  but  also  buying  land.   That  dream  came  true  when  they  purchased  the  Heart  Ranch,  which  is  adjacent  to  the  Hunter  Ranch  that  the  Tarvers  have  leased  for  more  than  50  years.     Education  outside  the  ranch  is  something  the  Tarvers  support.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  encouraged  our  sons  and  grandkids  to  get  a  good  education  first  and  fore-­ most,â&#x20AC;?  explains  Nancy.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  will  help  not  only  as  a  ranch  manager,  but  the  more  expe-­

riences  you  have,  the  better  rounded  and  more  mature  per-­ son  you  become.â&#x20AC;?  But  education  must  be  combined  with  common  sense  and  the  willingness  to  work  hard.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  really  believe  there  is  a  great  future  ahead  for  young  people  in  agriculture.   Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll  need  a  good  understand-­ ing  of  business  management  and  how  to  run  cows.   Bud-­ geting  and  planning  and  just Â

plain  hard  work  has  gotten  us  through  the  good  years  and  the  lean  years,â&#x20AC;?  says  Nancy.  Last  year  was  one  of  the  lean  years.   Tarvers  culled  very  heavily  and  had  to  pur-­ chase  hay  from  Montana  because  of  last  yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  drought.    â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ranching  is  a  business,  first  and  foremost,  â&#x20AC;?  Nancy  explains.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  a  romance  to  the  West  and  this  way  of  life,  but  real  ranching  takes  planning,  commitment  and Â

effort  to  survive.â&#x20AC;?  It  may  have  been  a  roman-­ tic  notion  that  lured  the  jolly  Hamilton  to  cross  an  ocean  and  start  a  ranch  in  Wyo-­ ming  all  those  years  ago,  but  itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  hard  work  and  the  love  of  family  that  keep  it  going  more  than  a  century  later.  Teresa  Milner  is  a  cor-­ respondent  for  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  roundup@wylr.net.

Watching  cows  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Robert  and  James  Tarver  survey  the  family  herd.   Robert  and  James,  along  with  their  parents,  own  and  operate  the  Tarver-­Heart  X  Ranch.  Courtesy  photo

Doug Booth Family Angus

Annual Bull Sale

100 Angus Bulls Sell

â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Kind That Build A Cowmanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Reputationâ&#x20AC;? /XQFK a Sale ~ 1:00 p.m. MST 7RUULQJWRQ /LYHVWRFN 0DUNHW Â&#x2021; 7RUULQJWRQ :<

7XHVGD\ )HEUXDU\

Carcass Data Available Delivery Available Performance Data Available Volume of Heifer Bulls Free Wintering Available Negative for PI-­BVD

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Sires Represented: '% &RQVHQVXV BW:  81  Adj  WW:  685 Sire:  Consensus Mat.  Sire:  Newsline BW:  2.2  WW:  60  Milk:  20  YW:  106 Marb.:+.60  RE:  +.67  $B:  +88.01 Â

'% &RQVHQVXV BW:  76  Adj  WW:  765 Sire:  Consensus Mat.  Sire:  Aberdeen BW:  0.8  WW:  64  Milk:  24  YW:  110 Marb.:+.95  RE:  +.80  $B:  +94.56 Â

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'% 1HZ &RQVHQVXV BW:  80  Adj  WW:  708 Sire:  Consensus 0DW 6LUH 5HĂ&#x20AC;HFWLRQ BW:  2.1  WW:  61  Milk:  27  YW:  109 Marb.:+.63  RE:  +.59  $B:  +87.31 Â

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For  additional  information  or  a  sale  catalog  please  contact:

Doug & Carolyn Booth 7618  Road  41,  Torrington,  WY  82240 'RXJ Â&#x2021; www.BoothFamilyAngus.com

Dudley & Jennifer Booth 4156  Road  82,  Torrington,  WY  82240

Â&#x2021; GERRWK#VFRWWVEOXII QHW

A16

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

-PDBUFE JO UIF TPVUIXFTU DPSOFS PG 1PXEFS 3JWFS $PVOUZ .POUBOB KVTU OPSUI PG UIF 8ZPNJOH CPSEFS PO UIF VQQFS XFTU TJEF PG 1PXEFS 3JWFS ɨJT SBODI DPNQSJTFT B UPUBM PG BDSFT PG XIJDI BSF EFFEFE BOE

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Offered for $5,040,000

SOLD

D DUCE E R E PRIC

JACKPOT RANCH

ROCKY MOUNTAIN SHEEP CO. RANCH

Crook County, Wyoming

t -FHBDZ 3BODI XJUI EFFEFE BDSFT 4UBUF PG 8ZPNJOH MFBTF BDSFT BOE #-. MFBTF BDSFT 'JSTU UJNF UIJT SBODI JT CFJOH PêFSFE TJODF QBUFOU t 4PMJE JNQSPWFNFOUT JODMVEJOH UISFF IPVTFT UXP CBSOT B TIPQ BOE B MBSHF EFUBDIFE HBSBHF t 2VBMJUZ HSBTT BOE SFDSFBUJPOBM SBODI XJUI FML NVMF EFFS XIJUFUBJM BOE BOUFMPQF BOE MPUT PG MJWF XBUFS XJUI NVMUJQMF TUSFBNT SFTFSWPJST BOE TQSJOHT t 0êFSFE GPS

CURRANT CREEK RANCH

Carbon County, Wyoming

t EFFEFE BDSFT #-. MFBTF BDSFT BOE 4UBUF PG 8ZPNJOH MFBTF BDSFT MPDBUFE FRVJEJTUBOU GSPN 4BSBUPHB BOE 3BXMJOT BOE POMZ NJMFT GSPN -BSBNJF 8Z t 8PSME SFOPXOFE /PSUI 1MBUUF 3JWFS ìPXT UISPVHI UIF SBODI GPS BQQSPYJNBUFMZ NJMFT QSPWJEJOH FYDFMMFOU ëTIJOH BOE PUIFS SFDSFBUJPOBM PQQPSUVOJUJFT t ɨF SJQBSJBO BSFBT BMPOH UIF SJWFS BSF IFBWJMZ TPEEFE QSPWJEJOH FYDFMMFOU MJWFTUPDL DPWFS BOE XJMEMJGF IBCJUBU t 0êFSFE GPS REDUCED 25% TO $7,500,000

Sweetwater County, Wyoming

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SOLD

ED EDUC R E C PRI

CHINA WALL RANCH

WILFORD BRIMLEYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S B7 FARM

Albany County, Wyoming

Big Horn County, Wyoming

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GRAND CANYON RECREATIONAL RETREAT

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Crook County, Wyoming

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Lisco & M Diamond Angus

g n i m o y W

From the

Hub of Cow Country

1(: /2&$7,21

come cattle born & Bred with the

DRIVE TO THRIVE

Cattle  that  thrive  under  tough  range  conditions  with  limited  inputs.  Cattle  that  produce  &  raise  big,  healthy  calves  year  after  year.

Featuring Progeny Of:

6$9 )LQDO $QVZHU Â&#x2021; 5HGODQG (PEOD]RQ Â&#x2021; %LJ 5RN 2OH &RQQHDO\ )URQW 3DJH Â&#x2021; *'$5 *DPH 'D\ Â&#x2021; 6 &KLVXP 6LW] $OOLDQFH Â&#x2021; 0DUF\¶V 7UDLOEOD]HU Â&#x2021; 0DUF\¶V %URDGEDQG

Dick Lisco

(307) 358-3810 Cell (307) 359-0167

liscoangus@vcn.com

21st Annual Angus Bull Sale Friday, March 22, 2013

S P PVW Â&#x2021; &HQWUDO :\R )DLUJURXQGV DUHQD &DVSHU :\RPLQJ

Brad Boner (307) 436-5406 Cell (307) 359-1162

mdiamond@hughes.net

Section  B WHY COME TO BRIDGER STEEL?

Since  the  beginning Daly  Ranch  history  extends  back  to  county  origins  The  family  of  one  of  Campbell  Countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  historic  ranches  can  trace  their  his-­ tory  back  to  the  first  days  of  Gillette  in  the  late  1800s.  John  Thomas  Daly  and  brother  James  H.  opened  the  first  general  store  when  Gillette  was  just  a  tent  city.  In  1891,  John  T.  moved  a  small  herd  of  cattle  from  Sundance  to  Gillette  and  eventually  to  Twenty  Mile  Creek  northwest  of  Gil-­ lette.  Gradually,  he  added  land  to  develop  a  sizeable  spread.  That  sizeable  spread  is  the  modern  day  Daly  Ranch.  The  ranch  head-­ quarters  is  on  Rawhide  Creek,  about  12  miles  from  Gillette  and  near  Rawhide  Buttes.  Larry  Smith  is  the  son-­ in-­law  of  James  R.  Daly,  grandson  of  the  founding  Dalyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s.  Smith  manages  the  ranch,  which  is  still  an  all-­ family  cow-­calf  operation.  Daly  Ranch  has  around  1,400  head  of  Angus  mother  cows  and  some  saddle  horses.  The  entire  ranch  now  encompasses  nearly  100,000  acres,  as  each  generation  of  Daly  has  acquired  new  property  to  expand  the  operation.

All  in  the  family  James  R.  took  over  the  ranch  in  1945  and  moved  the  operation  into  a  cow-­calf  business.  Dur-­ ing  World  War  II,  the  Dalys  sold  young  steers  to  a  packing  company  with  a  government  beef  contract.  When  the  war  ended  and  that  opportunity  dried  up,  James  R.  moved  the  oper-­ ation  into  a  cow-­calf.  He  also  helped  form  Twenty  Mile  Land  Company  in  1963,  enabling  the  ranch  to  further  expand  through  purchases  of  area  proper-­ ties.  Now  in  his  80s,  James  R.  leaves  the  heavy  lifting  to  the  younger  generation.  While  Larry  runs  the  ranch  with  the  help  of  a  hired  hand,  John  M.  Daly  and  his  sons,  Tad  and  Brent,  also  assist  with  ranch  oper-­ ations.  In  fact,  five  genera-­ tions  of  Daly  relatives  have  called  the  ranch  home.   Larry  credits  previous  generations  for  keeping  the  operation  in  the  family.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re  fortunate  that  the  generations  that  pre-­ ceded  us  worked  it  right.  They  gifted  and  planned  and  did  everything  right  so  that  so  far,  we  havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  had  to  split  up  the  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.   But  good  planning  and  communication  are  issues  the  Daly  Ranch  will  face  on  an  ongoing  basis.  Larry  says  his  sons  plan  to  return  to  come  back  to  the  ranch  someday  and  continue  to  tradition.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  ranch  is  like  any  other  family  business,â&#x20AC;?  Larry  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  to  consider  how  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re  going  to  pass  it  on  to  the  next  generation,  keep  it  profit-­ able  and  keep  the  family  happy  with  one  another.â&#x20AC;?

 W

eâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re fortunate that the generations that preceded us worked it right.

They gifted and planned and did everything right so that so far, we havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t had to split up the ranch.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Larry Smith  The  weather  was  a  more  pressing  issue  for  the  ranch  this  last  year.  Drought  conditions  throughout  much  of  Camp-­ bell  County  were  severe  enough  for  the  county  to  be  declared  a  primary  natu-­ ral  disaster  area  by  the  U.S.  Department  of  Agriculture.  Range  conditions  on  the  Daly  Ranch  were  similar  to  many  areas  across  Wyo-­ ming  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  just  plain  dry.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  had  to  cull  most  of  our  older  cows  and  we  lim-­ ited  the  number  of  replace-­ ment  heifers,â&#x20AC;?  Larry  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll  continue  to  down-­ size  until  we  know  we  have  the  grass  again.â&#x20AC;?

Living  history  In  2011,  the  Daly  Ranch  was  honored  as  a  Wyoming  Centennial  Farm  and  Ranch  by  the  Wyo-­ ming  State  Historic  Pres-­ ervation  Office.  The  pro-­ gram  recognizes  families  that  have  owned  and  oper-­ ated  the  same  farm  or  ranch  for  at  least  100  years.  Pieces  of  the  Daly  Ranchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  history  can  still  be  seen  both  on  the  ranch  and  in  the  city  of  Gillette.  A  barn  built  in  1940  from  rock  and  mud  from  the  ranch  itself  is  still  used  today.  In  a  video  about  the  history  of  the  Daly  Ranch,  James  R.  recalls  help-­ ing  build  the  unique  stone  barn.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  was  involved  more  in  mixing  the  concrete,â&#x20AC;?  said  James  R.,  who  also  talked  about  hauling  rocks  and  building  the  barn  a  lit-­ tle  at  a  time.   The  two-­story  struc-­ ture  is  still  in  use.  It  even  includes  a  stone-­dipping  bath,  used  to  treat  calves  for  parasites  more  than  70  years  ago.  The  Daly  Ranch  loaned  a  sheep  wagon  to  the  Campbell  County  Rock-­ pile  Museum  to  help  tell  the  story  of  early  agricul-­ ture  in  the  northwest  Wyo-­ ming.  In  the  late  1920s,  the  Dalys  had  the  third  larg-­ est  flock  of  Karakul  sheep  in  the  U.S.  They  didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  get  into  the  steer  business  until  1938  when  James  H.  bought  a  few  yearling  steers  to  raise.

Looking  ahead  It  takes  a  unique  fam-­ ily  to  preserve  and  build  a  sustainable  life  from  Wyo-­ mingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  rugged  and  often  unforgiving  landscape.   The  Daly  Ranch  will  continue  to  perservere  and  stay  in  the  family,  at  least  for  the  foreseeable  future.   Larryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  sons,  Kel-­ len  and  Cameron,  plan  to  return  to  the  ranch  as  a  career.  Both  have  pur-­ sued  degrees  at  the  Univer-­ sity  of  Wyoming  that  will  help  them  in  that  endeavor, Â

Cameron  in  agribusiness  management  and  Kellen  in  range  and  watershed  man-­ agement.  Larry  says  thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  room  out  there  for  young  produc-­ ers  to  make  a  living  in  agri-­ culture.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  a  lot  of  uncer-­ tainty  and  some  tough  times  in  this  business.  This  way  of  life  has  got  to  be  your  passion  and  you  have  to  like  hard  work,â&#x20AC;?  Larry  explains.   Teresa  Milner  is  a  cor-­ respondent  for  the  Wyo-­ ming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  roundup@wylr. net.

67((/07 Â&#x2021; ::: %5,'*(567((/ &20 307-­473-­9655 Â&#x2021; :LOGFDW 5RDG Â&#x2021; (YDQVYLOOH :< 2II RI +DW 6L[ 5RDG DFURVV IURP 'RUL /RXÂśV

B2

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

Sheep  and  cattle      Isenberger  enjoys  the  challenge  of  managing  sheep  and  cattle  Lee  Isenberger  feels  for-­ tunate  to  have  had  the  oppor-­ tunity  to  make  his  living  as  a  rancher.  He  and  his  wife  Peggy  were  able  to  raise  their  children  on  the  ranch,  teach-­ ing  them  responsibility  and  how  important  it  is  to  care  for  and  nurture  the  livestock  and  the  land.  Although  the  chil-­ dren  are  grown  now,  and  have  children  of  their  own,  the  close-­knit  family  still  enjoys  getting  together  and  helping  out  on  the  family  operation.   Lee  and  Peggy  live  on  the  Campbell  County  ranch  they  share  with  Leeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  mother Â

Pat  and  stepfather  Gene  Lit-­ ton.  Together,  they  manage  over  250  head  of  commercial  Angus  cows,  50  replacement  heifers  and  a  large  flock  of  commercial  Columbia  ewes.  Lee  also  has  a  flock  of  pure-­ bred  Rambouillet.   Over  the  years,  they  have  also  raised  horses  and  some  Border  Collies  that  are  trained  for  stock  dog  trials.

Growing  up  ranching  Leeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  parents  Bob  and  Pat  Isenberger  both  grew  up  in  Campbell  County  and  married  in  1949.  Pat  was  a  schoolteacher,  and  Bob Â

worked  on  area  ranches.   In  1956,  the  young  cou-­ ple  had  the  opportunity  to  lease  the  ranch  that  they  live  on  today  after  the  owner  suf-­ fered  a  tragic  accident.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  ranch  was  origi-­ nally  about  25,000  acres,â&#x20AC;?  Lee  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;But  since  then,  the  coal  mine  purchased  some  of  it.â&#x20AC;?   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  probably  have  around  20,000  acres  now  including  private  and  Thun-­ der  Basin  National  grazing  leases,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  Raising  cattle  and  sheep  The  ranch  has  always Â

had  cattle  and  sheep,  which  started  with  a  little  band  of  sheep  that  they  went  partners  on.  During  the  drought  in  the  80s,  Lee  says  all  the  cattle  were  sold,  but  the  family  kept  the  sheep  because  they  could  survive  on  a  lot  less.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  will  eat  sagebrush  and  weeds  and  can  survive  on  that,  where  cattle  canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  During  the  summer,  the  cattle  graze  on  private  lands  and  some  additional  land  Lee  has  leased  from  one  of  the  coal  mines.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  run  on  some  Ante-­ lope  (mine)  reclaim  land  that  used  to  be  part  of  the  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  Lee  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  about  1,800  acres  that  we  graze  in  a  rota-­ tion  for  about  40  to  45  days Â

with  about  200  pair.â&#x20AC;?   The  piece  is  set  up  like  a  wagon  wheel,  Lee  describes,  with  the  outside  perimeter  having  permanent  fence  and  divided  into  smaller  pieces  with  electric  fence.  The  water  source  is  in  the  middle  of  it.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  cross  the  wagon  wheel  each  time  we  move,  which  is  about  every  three  or  four  days,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;A  lot  of  the  time,  we  can  open  the  gate  and  the  cattle  will  move  themselves.  We  just  have  to  come  back  later  and  move  a  few  strays  that  stayed  behind.â&#x20AC;?  Developing  water  and  range  Over  the  years,  the  ranch  has  undergone  changes  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  pri-­ marily  the  development  of Â

new  water  sources.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  methane  came  in,  we  were  able  to  add  a  lot  more  water.  The  company  was  very  willing  to  work  with  us  to  drill  wells  where  they  would  benefit  us.  That  has  been  a  tremendous  help,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  has  allowed  us  to  better  utilize  the  pastures  because  the  water  sources  are  spread  out.â&#x20AC;?  Lee  has  also  worked  to  improve  the  vegetation  and  plant  species  on  the  ranch  by  mowing  and  burning  some  sagebrush.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  has  allowed  for  bet-­ ter  grazing  than  what  we  had  when  there  was  big,  tall,  rank  sagebrush.  The  mowing  we  did  eight  years  ago  has  done  a  good  job  of  keeping  the  sage-­

Kids  and  cows  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Lee  Isenberger  introduces  his  whole  family  to  the  cattle  operation,  with  the  little  ones  helping  when  they  check  cows.  Courtesy  photo

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B3

2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

brush from coming back. You can just now see it starting to reestablish, but it has given the other plants an opportu-­ nity to become better estab-­ lished so they can compete with it,” he says.

Cattle goals Lee also likes to care-­ fully manage the cattle with a goal of raising big, growthy calves. He started purchas-­ ing bulls from Jim Jensen of Lucky 7 Angus about 10 years ago.

“We have been very pleased with how the calves perform,” he explains. “Since we started using his bulls, we have put probably 50 to 60 pounds more on our calves.”

The cattle typically start calving March 20 for around 45 days.

“The trick to getting a high percentage of them to breed up is having them in good shape,” he explains.

“We also try and split the cows into bunches of 50 to 75, so there isn’t so much competition for feed and bulls. We just supplement them with some trace mineral and salt.”

The calves are weaned in the fall and sold privately on the ranch.

“It has been less stressful on the calves, and the buyers like it because they can run them across a scale we have here on the ranch and weigh them, figure the shrink, load them onto the truck and take them directly to the feedlot.

The buyer who purchased our calves last fall called to tell us how pleased they were because they didn’t have one calf get sick once they arrived at the feedlot,” he explains.

“I was relieved to hear that.

Since the year was so dry, we had taken extra precau-­ tions and supplemented the calves with some creep feed since the first of July. I think that had a lot to do with them being so healthy.”

Three years ago, Lee also made a decision to start retaining his own replace-­ ment heifers once again.

“I found that I was sell-­ ing better cattle than what I was buying, so I started keeping some back. I think in the long run, it will pay off

for us,” he says.

The heifers are devel-­ oped slowly in a separate area they lease from the coal mine that has a shed and good water. The heifers are caked daily and always have grass hay in front of them.

Sheep aspect Lee also helps his family manage a flock of Columbia range ewes.

The flock, which belongs to his mother, are one of only a few large purebred flocks of Columbia left in the area, he says. The breed has worked out well, since their focus is on both size and wool.

“We try to select ewes that will not get real wool blind,” he says, “and ones that have big, growthy lambs.”

Lee likes to have the ewes pregnancy checked in February using ultrasound.

“They ultrasound the sheep on the outside of their flank,” he explains. “The main reason I ultrasound the sheep is for culling my twins and opens. It really helps me clean up the flock so I can shear the opens and sell them. I may keep a ewe that is a first lamber and is open to give them a chance to breed the next year, but it helps me cull my old barren ewes that will never have a lamb.”

Typically, Lee said most ewes stay in the flock until they are at least seven years old.

“We have ear tags that correspond with their age.

When they are older, we go through and check their bags and teeth and eliminate the bad ones immediately. A lot of the ewes are pretty used up by the time they are seven, but we had some buyers from Iowa a few years ago that purchased these older ewes and put them on some irri-­ gated pasture in Iowa. They made a lot of money on those sheep,” he explains.

The sheep are more of a challenge to manage because of weather-­related losses and predator problems.

“We usually start lamb-­ ing the range ewes about May 15,” he explains. “The biggest losses we have are weather-­related because it usually rains or snows dur-­

Come and see us at the Black Hills Stock Show in Rushmore Hall!!

ing the first 10 days of lamb-­ ing, and a baby lamb just can’t take much cold. We also have predator problems with coyotes, bobcats, eagles, and some mountain lions.”

They heavily rely on the county trappers and some neighbors with a helicopter and airplane to help control predators.

Lee also takes the time to wean the lambs each fall before they are sold to a feed-­ lot.

“We like to wean the lambs for about two or three weeks,” he says. “The people who buy the lambs have had really good luck with them because they are weaned and ready to go on feed.”

“We have one pasture down on the creek bottom that I save because it has fresh grass. I have been able to put 7.5 pounds on the lambs in 20 days this way,” he says.

“The lambs also wean much easier than the cattle. They aren’t too bad about crawling through the fence at weaning and don’t spend much time looking for their mother. If

she doesn’t come back, they just go to eating.”

Gayle Smith is a corre-­ spondent for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.

I

found that I was selling better cattle than what I was buying, so I started keeping some back. I think in the long run, it will pay off for us.” – Lee Isenberger

Sheep herd – Along with their cattle, Iserbergers also raise sheep. Lee says the sheep will eat sage-­ brush and weeds that cattle don’t. Courtesy photo

B4

Wyoming Livestock Roundup

FEED MANAGEMENT Managing forage keeps Sorensen moving forward with his cattle operation Resting pastures, rota-­ tional grazing and harvesting annual forages has helped one Campbell County producer survive the drought. Steve and Jalene Sorensen raise commercial cattle, dryland wheat, hay and horses on their ranch his grandfather, Charles

Sorensen, homesteaded in 1909.

Steve says the knowledge he has gained from his ances-­ tors, who lived through the Great Depression, has proved invaluable to him.

Being creative “During the Depres-­

Changing operation – Sorensen Ranch has changed significantly through the years. This photo depicts the home place of the ranch through the years. Courtesy photo

sion, many of the farmers and ranchers would plant rye so they would always have hay,” he explains. “I have consid-­ ered planting some, but the problem with it is it volunteers back, and it’s hard to get rid of.”

Instead, Steve plants dry-­ land wheat and harvests it for hay. Sometimes, he even plants some barley or oats with it. The crop is quite valu-­ able as hay and has provided some good nutrition for his cows.

“I have never had a win-­ ter wheat crop fail for hay,” he says. “My dad once said even when the wheat was hailed out, it still made good hay. He never had a winter wheat crop fail for hay, either.”

Even last summer, when the soil was bone dry, and the hay didn’t pro-­ duce well, Steve was able to yield 220 bales off 100 acres, which was about 2.25 tons.

“The summer fallow

helped carry it through,” he explains.

Feeding and grazing Steve has found that feeding his cattle wheat hay encourages them to continue grazing.

“If I feed them wheat hay, especially if it has a lot of straw, they will go into the grass,” he explains. “If I feed them alfalfa, they will lick the ground clean, stand there and wait for the next bale. With the winter wheat hay, they will go to the hills and graze everyday, and I hardly ever see a wheat seed pass through them.”

This winter, Steve says he has fed the cattle a 1,200 pound bale of hay every other day.

“They are getting about 10 pounds of hay a day to sup-­ plement their grazing. They clean it up really well,” he says.

Putting up wheat as hay is a viable option for the rancher since he doesn’t own his own combine and custom harvest-­ ers aren’t readily available in the area, especially for the smaller amount of acreage he has.

“I can do much better har-­ vesting it as hay,” he says. “If I want to market my wheat, I just market it as hay. There are a lot of ranchers out there looking for wheat hay.”

Learning from others Steve also learned a lot about managing cattle by lis-­ tening to the old timers.

“I really like the year-­ lings,” he says. “The old tim-­ ers taught me if you get into dry years, you can just sell your yearlings in the spring.

It will reduce your herd down to a third or half. Then you can probably make it through a drought year because you have extra grass. The next year, your numbers will be right back up there. It allows you to save your grass with-­

out sacrificing your cow num-­ bers.”

“Those old guys really knew what they were talking about,” he says.

Steve says he also finds that by retaining the heifer portion of the crop, he can eas-­ ily replace any dry cows in the herd with bred heifers and still have 100 percent calf crop each year.

“If you don’t replace those cows, it just kills you because it takes forever to raise one up to be a cow,” he notes.

Although he likes to retain his own heifers, occa-­ sionally Steve will purchase some replacement heifers to add new bloodlines to the herd.

“I like to save replace-­ ments from the better cows in the herd,” he explains. “I like heifers that are from cows that are more moderate in size, easy birthers and good milkers and mothers.”

Steve likes to run the replacement heifers right with the cows.

“I try and wean them a month,” he says. “You used to be able to wean a calf in about three days, but now it seems like it takes forever because they have such good moth-­ ering instinct. Once they are weaned, I turn them back with the cows, and they all eat the same thing. They breed up really well. We rarely have a dry.”

Steve also limits the amount of feed the heifers receive to keep them on the leaner side.

“They will hit that green grass in the spring and really gain. It helps them cycle, and they come in bred,” he adds.

The cows can stay in the herd about 10 years, unless they develop problems.

“If they still have teeth, they stay in pretty good shape,” he says. “If they start going downhill in the fall, I mark them down and will sell them the next year in June or July when they are fat.”

Developing water and grass Since taking over man-­ agement of the ranch, Steve has developed some addi-­ tional water sources, which has helped improve the stock-­ ing rate of his operation.

Methane was developed on the ranch about 12 years ago and added live running water to the operation.

“We also put in a big pipeline that goes clear to the back of the ranch,” he says.

“It has helped our grass utili-­ zation tremendously. Dad had

built some reservoirs, but they really mudded in from all the rainfall. We don’t seem to get the rains we used to.”

“We have some big lanes that come into the ranch from some major pastures,” he continues. “They used to go down to a windmill and that was how they watered them.

During the winter, they used to have to trail them to the springs, let them drink and trail them back. It involved a lot of labor.”

Like most ranchers in the Plains, rain is a must this spring on the Steve operation.

“We are fortunate to have some grass that we haven’t been in yet to give us a jump start this spring, but it will probably only carry them a month,” he says.

The cows start calving on March 15. Between May 15 and June 1, Steve starts rotationally grazing the cows through summer grass.

“We try to rotate which pastures we use and graze them at different times from year to year so they are never grazed the same time of year,” he explains. “My dad had pas-­ tures he rotated into, and he would have grass all over the place. This system has really helped our grass production.”

“We just rotate which pas-­ tures we graze based on the stage of the grass,” he adds.

Ranch life Steve and his wife enjoy everything about the ranching life they lead, from spending their spring mornings listening to the Meadowlarks sing to fall days weaning calves and rotating cattle and the winter months feeding and checking cows.

“I think the cowboy of today is pretty spoiled,” he says of the way of life. “I can remember when dad used to feed the cattle with a team and a wagon. After school, we had to pitch hay onto the wagon. I can remember when my dad and I would milk 14 cows, and I would feed the skim milk to the pigs. There was a time when the cows were caked on horseback.”

“A pack saddle was put on the horse, and the panniers were filled up with cake. It was put over the saddlehorn on the crossbucks,” he says.

“Now, we feed with $50,000 pickups. The way of life has definitely changed.”

Gayle Smith is a corre-­ spondent for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.

Forage management – In order to make the best utilization of his land, Steve Sorensen surveys his pastures and watches his cattle.

Courtesy photo

B5

2013  Winter  Cattlemenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Nutrition  focus     Clabaugh  cattle  looks  for  gain  The  key  to  the  success  of  the  Clabaugh  Cattle  Com-­ pany  could  be  summed  up  in  one  word:  nutrition.  Visit  with  owner  Glen  Clabaugh  and  itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  apparent  he  spends  a  lot  of  time  thinking  about  the  best  way  to  put  good  weight  on  his  cattle.  Glen  grew  up  on  his  fam-­ ilyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  ranch  just  south  of  Gil-­ lette,  and  the  Clabaugh  Cat-­ tle  Company,  which  is  north  of  Gillette,  was  established  in  1978.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;My  father  passed  away  right  after  he  bought  this  place,  so  Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  been  on  my  own  for  quite  a  while,â&#x20AC;?  Glen  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;My  mom  lived  here  until  about  a  year  and  a  half  ago  when  she  moved  into  a  retire-­ ment  home  in  Gillette.  I  left  home  to  go  into  the  Marine  Corps  but  other  than  that,  Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  been  working  the  ranch.â&#x20AC;?

Beginnings  Glen  started  raising  Red  Angus  around  1980.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Of  course,  like  everyone,  I  grew  up  with  Herefords,  then  moved  on  to  baldies,  but  the  redder  my  herd  got,  the  more  I  liked  it.  I  think  Red  Angus  is  an  excellent  combination  of  a  great  disposition  and  good  growth,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  Although  Glen  isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  a  reg-­ istered  breeder,  he  spends  a  lot  of  time  working  to  have  supe-­ rior  genetics  in  the  herd.  Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  paid  off,  as  he  sells  his  heifers  and  bulls  to  other  ranchers.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Another  breeder  and  I  used  to  have  a  sale  together, Â

but  now  itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  just  me,  so  I  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  a  sale  anymore,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  do  have  one  ranch  in  Campbell  County  that  I  fur-­ nish  bulls  for,  and  I  raise  my  own  bulls  and  sell  some  pri-­ vate  treaty.â&#x20AC;?  The  Gillette-­area  rancher  got  involved  in  the  seedstock  business  when  he  did  artificial  insemination  that  resulted  in  very  good  calves.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  decided  they  were  too  nice  to  castrate  and  sell,â&#x20AC;?  he  remembers.  The  ranch  retains  owner-­ ship  on  the  steers  that  are  sent  to  a  feedlot  in  Nebraska.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;That  gives  me  another  option  for  income,  so  I  enjoy  doing  that.  Our  cattle  grade  very  well,  usually  choice  90  percent  of  the  time.  The  pack-­ ers  who  buy  them  know  that,â&#x20AC;?  Glen  comments.

Heifer  development  Replacement  heifer  calves  are  sent  to  Heartland  Cattle  Company  in  Cook,  Neb.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;This  is  an  excellent  heifer  development  center  that  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  been  using  for  20  years,â&#x20AC;?  Glen  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  condition  them  and  do  a  repro-­ ductive  tract  score.  The  heifers  are  artificially  inseminated,  and  then  they  use  ultrasound  to  pregnancy  check.   There  are  no  cleanup  bulls  used.  We  bring  back  the  replacement  heifers  at  the  end  of  July  and  sell  the  ones  we  choose  not  to  bring  home.  Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  a  little  early  to  sell  heifers,  but  there  are  peo-­ ple  looking  for  good  bred  heif-­

ers  at  that  time.â&#x20AC;?  Glen  says  itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  expen-­ sive  to  use  the  heifer  cen-­ ter  because  it  is  far  away,  but  adds,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  like  it  because  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  been  able  to  improve  our  cat-­ tle  with  the  genetics  they  offer,  and  the  heifers  are  down  there  instead  of  running  around  try-­ ing  to  get  into  the  neighborsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;  place.  It  allows  us  to  run  a  few  more  cows  at  home  and  not  have  to  worry  about  our  heif-­ ers  for  a  few  months.  The  con-­ ception  rate  is  excellent,  and  they  do  an  excellent  job  of  feeding.  In  addition,  we  trust  them.â&#x20AC;?

Feeding  steers  Steer  calves  are  shipped  to  a  feedlot  in  Alliance,  Neb.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  been  sending  our  steers  out  to  be  fed  for  about  25  years  and  have  used  sev-­ eral  different  facilities,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;You  have  to  ask  your-­ self  what  you  want  in  a  feed-­ lot.   Personally,  I  want  to  make  sure  I  really  trust  the  peo-­ ple  Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m  dealing  with  because  I  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  time  to  go  down  there  and  see  the  animals.   I  like  this  particular  place  because  I  can  call  them  and  they  know  me  and  my  cattle.â&#x20AC;?  The  Clabaugh  cattle  weight  gain  is  impressive.    â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  wean  in  early  Octo-­ ber  and  the  steers  go  to  feedlot  in  the  middle  of  November,â&#x20AC;?  Glen  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  objective  is  to  sell  them  in  April  as  fats.  We  have  larger-­than-­average  cattle  so  we  can  hit  that  mar-­ ket  and  have  a  good-­size  ani-­

mal.  They  weigh  about  1,400  pounds  when  we  sell  in  mid-­ April.â&#x20AC;?  Glen  continues,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  find  the  April  market  is  consis-­ tently  higher  than  any  other  time,  at  least  over  the  past  20  years.  Last  year  our  calves  averaged  four  pounds  of  gain  per  day  from  when  they  went  in  until  they  were  sold,  which  was  really  exciting.   That  was  the  best  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  ever  done.  Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  had  them  gain  3.9  pounds  for  quite  a  few  years.  I  credit  this  to  efficient  feeding,  implants  and  feed  additives.â&#x20AC;?

Feeding  cattle  He  explains  feed  effi-­ ciency  is  not  only  important  for  his  cattle  in  feedlots  and  at  the  heifer  center,  but  back  at  the  ranch,  too.    â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  feed  a  little  different  than  most  folks.  A  lot  of  peo-­ ple  just  give  their  cows  hay  and  cake,  but  we  feed  a  total  ration  in  troughs.   We  grind  all  of  our  hay  and  we  mix  some  liquid  feed  in  the  ration,  so  we  get  all  of  our  minerals  put  in  the  feed  that  way.  We  take  screenings  from  corn  and  flax,  which  run  at  about  22  per-­ cent  protein,  and  put  that  into  the  feed,  as  well,â&#x20AC;?  Glen  notes.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;In  addition,  we  do  feed  iono-­ phores  to  help  maintain  good  health.  We  work  with  a  nutri-­ tionist  Todd  Olson  out  of  Sheridan  to  develop  a  feed  that  addresses  the  nutritional  needs  of  our  livestock.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m  very  interested  in  the  nutrition  of  cattle,â&#x20AC;?  Glen  says. Â

Nutrition  programs  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Glen  Clabaugh  focuses  on  the  nutrition  of  his  cows,  feeding  them  a  complete  ration  in  troughs.  Rebecca  Colnar  Mott  photo

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  have  two  feed  trucks.  We  have  concrete  bunks,  which  are  set  up  to  feed  100  head  in  each  pasture.  I  can  put  out  a  complete  feed  in  about  60  sec-­ onds  for  100  head  and  every  cow  gets  the  same  amount.  Two  of  us  can  feed  all  of  the  cows  in  two  hours.  â&#x20AC;&#x153; Cow  work  He  points  out  that  since  his  grown  kids  live  in  Denver,  he,  his  wife  and  a  hired  man  handle  all  of  the  cow  work.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  run  all  the  heifers  through  a  calving  shed.  Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll  start  calving  heifers  in  the  mid-­ dle  of  February,  and  our  cows  start  the  middle  of  March.  We  do  AI  our  three-­  and  four-­year-­ old  cattle,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  start  branding  in  May  doing  about  100  at  a  time  using  calf  table  with  just  three  of  us.  I  spend  a  lot  of  time  pick-­ ing  out  the  bull  calves  to  keep  at  branding  time.  I  like  good  growth,  but  it  needs  to  be  bal-­ anced  with  other  traits.  We  also  want  good  carcass  traits  and  a  nice  disposition.â&#x20AC;?

 Bull  calves  are  sent  at  eight  months  old  to  the  Wyo-­ ming  Bull  Test  near  Riverton  in  October.  Glen  will  select  the  bulls  he  wants  to  keep,  and  the  ones  he  doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  will  be  sold  private  treaty.  Following  branding,  the  pairs  head  to  summer  pas-­ ture.  Glen  says  they  use  horses  and  ATVs  on  the  ranch,  but  a  lot  of  the  summer  country  is  rough  and  a  horse  is  the  better  choice.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  really  like  the  horses,â&#x20AC;?  he  notes  And  as  for  what  he  likes  best  about  ranching,  Glen  says,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  great  being  out  in  the  fresh  air  with  the  cows.  I  really  enjoy  taking  care  of  my  cows.  Sometimes  in  the  busi-­ ness  because  youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re  so  busy,  you  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  take  time  to  stop  and  smell  the  roses.  Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  important  to  do  that.â&#x20AC;?  Rebecca  Colnar  Mott  is  a  correspondent  for  the  Wyo-­ ming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  roundup@wylr.net.

G BAR H GENETICS

Flying MAngus 'Â&#x201C;( Â&#x201C; 2Â&#x201C;%' / ) Â&#x201C;)' )2 ' () ' Â&#x201C; Â&#x201C; *(Â&#x201C; * (

Lot  31

3/2/2012

Sire:  SAV  Iron  Mountain  8066 4  Sons  Sell

Lot  1

2/24/2012

Sire:  Sitz  Upward  307R 13  Sons  &  Grandsons  Sell

SIRES REPRESENTED:

%PCSFO[ "OTXFS 5 &YBNQMF + 3 t 4DPUDI $BQ 5SBOTGPSNFS 5 3JUP 9 PG 3JUB ; &91 t &NVMBUJPO #BOEP 7 .%4 &NVMBUJPO / t .%4 9 / RZÂ&#x201C;ORZ?Â&#x201C;GPDRZO4\GRPwÂ&#x201C;<RP\4<\v

Larry and Jackie Dobrenz mlmmÂ&#x201C; N4Z?\RPÂ&#x201C; ceÂ&#x201C;uÂ&#x201C; GNN?\\?wÂ&#x201C;02Â&#x201C;oinho jgn{kmk{gjhlÂ&#x201C;Â&#x2021;FRO?Â&#x2C6;Â&#x201C;uÂ&#x201C;jgn{mmg{lnllÂ&#x201C;Â&#x2021;<?NNÂ&#x2C6; N4ZZe>R;Z?Pf¤e4FRR{<RO

Lot  15

2/13/2012

Sire:  SAV  Brilliance  8077 7  Sons  Sell

Lot  24

2/2/2012

Sire:  Connealy  Final  Product 4  Sons  Sell

B6

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

Floyd  Ranch    Fourth  generation  now  managing  the  Floyd  Ranch  Like  most  ranching  fami-­ lies,  Darlene  Floyd  considers  herself  fortunate  to  have  been  able  to  raise  her  children  on  the  ranch  and  watch  her  son  take  over  the  family  operation.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  main  goal  is  to  keep  the  ranch  in  the  family  where  it  has  been  for  so  long.  Time  will  tell  if  we  will  continue  to  be  able  to  do  that,â&#x20AC;?  she  says.   Joe  Floyd  was  born  in  Martinsburg,  Ohio  in  1864.  After  marrying  Cora  Fitch  in  1894,  the  couple  traveled  by  covered  wagon  with  a  wagon  train  and  arrived  in  Wyoming  in  1901.  Searching  for  a  better  life  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  came  to  Wyoming Â

looking  for  a  better  life,â&#x20AC;?  Dar-­ lene  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  settled  in  the  Sandhills  of  Nebraska  for  a  while,  then  decided  to  travel  farther  west.  In  the  fall  of  1901,  they  settled  where  we  live  now  on  Wild  Horse  Creek,  which  is  26  miles  northwest  of  Gillette.  They  had  two  children  when  they  came  to  Gillette,  and  two  more  were  born  in  Wyoming.â&#x20AC;?   â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  settled  near  the  railroad  and  picked  out  a  place  on  the  creek  bank  because  of  the  water,â&#x20AC;?  Darlene  contin-­ ues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  started  with  horses  and  cattle,  and  for  extra  money  they  trapped.â&#x20AC;?   Once  the  second  genera-­ tion  grew  into  ranching,  Joeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Â

three  sons  worked  together  over  their  lifetime,  branching  out  and  adding  to  the  ranch-­ ing  operation.  One  of  the  sons,  Fred,  also  Darleneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  father-­in-­ law,  stayed  on  the  main  ranch.  One  of  Fredâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  sisters  pur-­ chased  a  ranch  seven  miles  north  of  the  main  ranch,  and  when  she  and  her  husband  retired,  Darlene  and  her  hus-­ band,  Fred  Jr.,  purchased  the  ranch  from  them.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Her  ranch  joined  the  main  one,â&#x20AC;?  she  says.  Changing  times  Over  the  years,  many  changes  have  taken  place  including  replacing  the  tradi-­ tional  Herefords  with  Black Â

M

 I

t has been a tough life, but it is a good life. I think it has been a great way to raise children.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Darlene Floyd Fourche.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  been  very  pleased  with  how  they  have  done  there,â&#x20AC;?  Darlene  says.   The  calves  are  typically  sold  right  off  the  cow,  although  they  retain  some  heifers  for  replacements  and  some  steers  to  run  as  yearlings.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  a  nice  option  to  have  when  we  can  do  it,â&#x20AC;?  Darlene  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;This  last  year,  we  were  short  on  grass,  so  we  had  to  sell  all  the  calves  right  off  the  cows.  We  had  to  wean  early  and  sell  early  because  of  the  drought.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Last  year,  we  were  lucky  to  have  some  old  grass  avail-­ able  for  the  cows  to  graze,  but  if  we  hit  another  dry  year,  we  will  have  trouble,â&#x20AC;?  she  contin-­ ues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  may  have  to  cut  back  more,  but  you  have  to  have  so  many  cows  just  to  cover  your  expenses.  As  taxes  continue  to  increase,  and  the  government  dumps  more  regulations  on  us,  I  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  know  how  long  we  can  continue  making  a  living  off  the  land.â&#x20AC;?

Managing  land  Over  the  years,  the  fam-­ ily  has  carefully  managed  their  grazing  land,  trying  not  to  overgraze  it.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;My  husband  and  I  pur-­ chased  my  parentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  place,  which  is  26  miles  from  here. Â

It  gave  us  some  land  we  could  fence  and  harvest  some  hay  from,  although  we  need  mois-­ ture  at  the  right  time  to  make  hay.  In  the  past,  we  have  always  been  able  to  produce  enough  hay  to  keep  our  cows  fed,â&#x20AC;?  she  continues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  never  sold  any  hay  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  we  just  held  it  over.  Along  with  the  meadows,  we  usually  had  enough  feed  to  take  care  of  our  cows  through  the  year.  This  past  year,  we  didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  receive  enough  rain  to  make  our  hay  fields  grow,  so  we  had  to  buy  some  hay  this  year.â&#x20AC;?  Despite  her  concerns,  Darlene  still  remains  optimis-­ tic  and  excited  about  the  fam-­ ily  operation  and  the  future  of  the  cattle  industry.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  the  only  thing  we  have  ever  done,â&#x20AC;?  she  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  never  had  outside  jobs.  It  is  our  life.  It  has  been  a  tough  life,  but  it  is  a  good  life.  I  think  it  has  been  a  great  way  to  raise  children.  They  go  out-­ side,  do  chores  and  spend  time  with  animals.â&#x20AC;?   â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  learn  to  love  and  appreciate  the  land,  and  they  respect  it,â&#x20AC;?  she  adds.  Gayle  Smith  is  a  corre-­ spondent  for  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  roundup@wylr.net.

J

J

First  generation  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  The  first  generation  of  Floyd  Ranch,  Joe  and  Cora  Floyd,  settled  in  Wyoming  in  1902.  Courtesy  photo

Angus  cattle.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;My  father-­in-­law  liked  the  black  cattle,  so  he  and  my  husband  started  purchasing  them  in  the  1960s,â&#x20AC;?  says  Dar-­ lene.   The  Black  Angus  cat-­ tle  were  simpler  for  the  men  to  manage,  Darlene  says.  The  Herefords  always  needed  bag  balm  in  the  spring  because  their  bags  would  burn  and  become  chapped  from  the  snow.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  buyers  liked  the  Black  Angus,  too,  so  that  helped  change  their  opinion  of  raising  Herefords,â&#x20AC;?  she  notes.

Improving  the  herd  Over  the  years,  the  family  has  worked  together  to  con-­ tinually  improve  their  herd  of  commercial  cows.  When  their  bull  supplier  announced  a  few  years  back  he  was  retiring,  they  purchased  a  small  group  of  his  registered  Black  Angus  cows  and  heifers.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  hope  this  will  help  build  up  our  herd,â&#x20AC;?  Darlene  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  like  how  the  calves  are  born  smaller,  but  hit  the  ground  growing  and  feed  out  well.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  plan  is  to  breed  our  own  bulls  and  add  some  new  bloodlines  to  the  herd.  We  use  natural  service,  because  we  arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  set  up  to  AI,â&#x20AC;?  she  adds.  For  years,  the  family  con-­ tracted  their  calf  crop  with  buyers  from  Iowa  and  other  states,  but  has  since  moved  to  selling  their  calves  through  the  cattle  auction  in  Belle Â

McClunâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lazy JM Ranch Spring Sale

LE NE W SA !

DATE

M

.BSDI t Q N Torrington Livestock Sale Barn

SELLING 87 HEAD

:FBSMJOH "OHVT #VMMT t $PNJOH ZFBS PME )FSFGPSET t :FBSMJOH )FSFGPSET

Sale Bulls by these Angus Sires:

Stockyards  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  When  this  photo  was  taken  on  Aug.  24,  1918,  the  Floyd  family  loaded  cattle  onto  trains  at  the  Echeta  Stockyards.  The  facility  no  longer  exists.  Courtesy  photo

"SUJĂśDJBM *OTFNJOBUJPO Mc Upward 30Z #% 2/11/12 4JSF Sitz Upward 307R .(4 TC Franklin 619 BW 2.3 WW 60 YW 107 Milk 32

.D . %FTJHO 5 6QXBSE 6QTIPU #JTNBSDL %ZOBNJUF 'SPOUNBO

4UJNVMVT 1JPOFFS *NBHF .BLFS %BLPUB (PME )JHIFS 4UBOEBSE

Mc Thor 35Z #% 2/17/12 4JSF THR Thor 4029 .(4 SHF Rib Eye BW 2.8 WW 53 YW 88 Milk 23

/BUVSBM 4FSWJDF 7JTJPO 'JOBM "OTXFS ,$) &YQBOE

Hereford Sires: "SUJĂśDJBM *OTFNJOBUJPO

Mc Design 13Z #% 2/5/12 4JSF Mc349M Design 21T .(4 DB Whitman 8159 BW .4 WW 49 YW 84 Milk 24

Mc Design Trav 4Z #% 2/1/12 4JSF Mc349M Design 21T .(4 SAV Trav. 004 BW .9 WW 49 YW 87 Milk 26

5) 7JDUPS 5 ,$' #FOOFUU 3 5IPS 3FEFFN 'FMUPO T -FHFOE

4)' 3JC &ZF 4)' 1SPHSFTT %VSBOHP .46 3FWPMVUJPO )VUI 1SPTQFDUPS

/BUVSBM 4FSWJDF 4)' 3FE .BO 3 4)' 5FOEFSMPJO

Coming 2-­year-­old Hereford Bulls

Mc Victor Dom 32Z #% 2/13/12 4JSF TH 122 711 Victor 719T .(4 Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Reillys Revolution 502R BW 5.7 WW 70 YW 107 Milk 20

Mc Benny 21Z #% 2/7/12 4JSF KCF Bennett R294 .(4 Feltons Legend BW 2.5 WW 53 YW 93 Milk 23

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

+JN BOE +FSSJ .D$MVO

3E t 7FUFSBO 8: t

+Fò BOE ,BSJ .D$MVO

3E t 7FUFSBO 8: t jkmcclun@wyomail.com

1RODQG )HHG

,QGXVWULDO $YH Â&#x2021; &DVSHU :< Â&#x2021; 2SHQ 0 ) Â&#x2021; 6DW Â&#x2021; &ORVHG 6XQGD\V DQG +ROLGD\V ZZZ VPDUWOLF FRP

B7

2013  Winter  Cattlemenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Beginning  producers      Crump  Red  Angus  strives  for  longevity  in  bulls  profiting  the  commercial  producer  Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  not  uncommon  to  see  the  young  bulls  at  Crump  Red  Angus  walking  up  a  steep  hill  for  water,  and  back  down  the  hill  for  feed.  Like  training  to  be  an  athlete,  owners  Jesse  and  Charity  Crump  believe  this  helps  their  bulls  build  nat-­ ural  muscle,  as  well  as  put  them  in  tip  top  condition  to  cover  the  country  they  will  be  required  to  as  breeding  bulls.  Crump  Red  Angus  is  managed  by  Jesse  and  Char-­ ity  Crump,  but  three  genera-­ tions  work  together  to  make  the  entire  ranch  operate.  Jes-­ seâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  grandparents  John  and  Doris  Crump,  Jesseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  parents.  John  and  Kristie  Crump,  and  Jesseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  aunt  and  uncle  Tom  and  Cathy  Stalcup  are  involved  in  the  wheat,  haying  and  commercial  cattle  opera-­ tions.   Jesse  and  Charityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  chil-­ dren  David,  6,  Carter,  5,  Titus,  3,  and  Willow  and  Echo,  2,  are  the  fourth  generation  of  Crumps  to  make  their  home  on  the  family  operation.

Bull  production  â&#x20AC;&#x153;With  record  setting  prices  being  the  trend  again  in  the  late  fall  or  early  winter  bull  sales  this  year,  longevity  in  bulls  is  a  priority  for  us,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  says  of  their  registered  bull  business.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  feed  the  bulls  for  a  three  pound  a  day  gain  using  a  bull  developer  pellet,  native  grass  hay  and  flax  tubs.  We  feel  this  dry  ration  closely  mimics  real  world  conditions,  and  that  it  will  enable  the  bulls  to  easily  transition  to  feed  con-­ ditions  anywhere.â&#x20AC;?   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  are  confident  that  the  bulls  developed  in  this  pro-­ gram  will  thrive  in  any  envi-­ ronment,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  says.  Buyers  who  purchase  bulls  from  the  Crumps  can  also  expect  bulls  with  struc-­ tural  correctness.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  cattle  are  run  in  the  Powder  River  breaks  of  Northeast  Wyoming,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  beautiful,  but  it  is  rugged,  so  structural  cor-­ rectness  is  imperative  for  lon-­ gevity  in  our  cows.  The  terrain  can  be  unforgiving,  so  infe-­ rior  genetics  weed  themselves  out.â&#x20AC;?  To  produce  the  type  of  bulls  they  want  to  sell,  their  goal  has  been  to  build  up  a  herd  of  mother  cows  that  are  functional  females,  with  mod-­ erate  frames,  spring  of  rib  and  lots  of  volume.   They  try Â

to  stay  away  from  cattle  with  larger  frames,  although  Jesse  adds  he  doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  mind  them  being  large  if  they  have  the  capacity  and  thickness  to  han-­ dle  the  country  and  raise  a  calf  that  is  at  least  proportionate  to  their  body  weight.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  breed  for  vigorous  calves  that  have  explosive  growth  through  the  weaning  and  yearling  stages,  and  then  quickly  mature  into  middle  of  the  road-­sized  animals,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  breed  extremes.â&#x20AC;?

Genetic  selection  For  the  last  four  years,  the  family  has  been  piecing  together  select  genetics  from  Buffalo  Creek  Red  Angus,  Leland  Red  Angus,  Milk  Creek  Red  Angus  and  West-­ phal  Red  Angus.  In  late  2011,  their  herd  increased  dramati-­ cally  when  they  had  an  oppor-­ tunity  to  purchase  the  entire  Red  Angus  herd  from  Paint  Rock  Angus.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  had  been  watching  the  Paint  Rock  herd  for  several  years  and  were  excited  to  have  the  opportunity  to  buy  cattle  that  were  proven  to  thrive  in  the  same  climate  and  condi-­ tions  that  they  would  face  in  our  area,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  explains  of  the  herd.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Another  very  impor-­ tant  thing  that  we  really  liked  about  the  cattle  was  the  good  feet  and  udder  structure  that  we  saw  through  the  whole  herd.  Purchasing  a  herd  that  the  Mercer  family  had  been  working  on  for  over  30  years  gave  us  a  genetic  jump-­start.â&#x20AC;?

Continued  improvement  Since  obtaining  some  of  the  best  genetics  in  the  Red  Angus  industry,  Jesse  says  they  plan  to  focus  on  improv-­ ing  their  herd  and  the  bulls  that  are  offered  for  sale.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  want  to  build  a  solid  foundation  and  customer  base  that  our  kids  can  benefit  from  years  from  now,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.   To  accomplish  this  task,  they  carefully  select  their  sires.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  important  to  us  that  before  we  select  a  sire,  we  see  him  or  a  lot  of  progeny  out  of  him,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  bull  has  to  have  good  maternal  traits  behind  him  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  a  proven  cow  with  a  good  udder  and  preferably  a  high  MPPA.  Once  again,  we  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  chase  extremes  in  the  sires  that  we  use,  but  we  do  use  artificial  insemination  to  breed  specif-­ ically  for  traits  or  characteris-­

Industry  future Jesse and Charity Crump note that the future of the industry looks positive going forward, but isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t without challenges. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As far as the industry is concerned, we are encouraged by the alliances between breeds, such as the alliance between the Simmental association and Red Angus association that have led to EPD changes that will complement both breeds,â&#x20AC;? says Charity. â&#x20AC;&#x153;There are enough things against the industry as a whole. It is encouraging to see different groups coming together.â&#x20AC;?

Regardless, they marked the economy and working with the public as being more difficult in the beef cattle industry. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As inflation and taxes increase, the amount of buying power left in grocery budgets decreases and as a result, so does the demand for beef,â&#x20AC;? she explains. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thankfully the export markets have been strong, but the global economy seems to be slowing slightly which may impact the export market.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Second, the uneducated public is also challenging,â&#x20AC;? she says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Many people have never had a chance to experience our lifestyle nor do they understand everything that goes into producing beef.â&#x20AC;?

Because of a misunderstanding of the industry, she adds that consumers can easily be swayed by false information and advertising campaigns.

tics  that  need  to  be  corrected  in  individual  cows.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Year  to  year,  it  is  fun  to  see  the  new  genetics  and  to  watch  the  new  calves  we  are  getting  right  now  grow,â&#x20AC;?  Char-­ ity  adds.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;In  the  long  term,  we  are  excited  to  see  our  herd  evolve  and  see  how  the  sires  we  are  choosing  now  affect  our  herd.  Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  rewarding  when  a  mating  that  youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  chosen  produces  a  daughter  that  you  consider  to  be  ideal.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  all  comes  down  to  phenotype,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  continues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  can  have  all  the  num-­ bers  in  the  world,  but  if  they  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  the  phenotype,  they  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  make  it  to  the  sale.  The  bulls  should  be  wide  topped,  long,  have  a  big  hip  and  be  free  moving.â&#x20AC;?  Red  Angus  benefits  Jesse  explains  they  also  make  a  tremendous  outcross  with  most  breeds.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  Red  Angus  cat-­ tle  can  make  a  great  outcross  option  for  Black  Angus  pro-­ ducers,â&#x20AC;?  Jesse  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  are  able  to  give  you  hybrid  vigor,  while  still  maintaining  breed  reliability.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Buyers  can  also  expect  longevity  in  the  bulls  they  purchase  from  us  because  of  how  the  bulls  are  developed,  as  well  as  in  the  many  lines  of  cows  in  our  herd  that  are  several  generations  deep,â&#x20AC;?  he  notes.  After  years  of  running  a  large,  commercial  yearling  operation,  Jesse  says  their  experience  with  just  about  every  breed  or  crossbred  cow  that  could  be  found  in  a  sale  barn  has  proven  invalu-­ able.  When  they  decided  to  start  a  registered  operation,  their  experience  with  the  Red  Angus  breed  through  their  commercial  business  moved  the  breed  to  the  top  of  their  list.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Year  after  year,  the  Red  Angus  or  Red  Angus/Charo-­ lais  cross  calves  were  calmer Â

off  the  trucks  and  in  the  chute,  calmly  left  the  corral  and  went  right  to  grazing,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;They  came  in  weighing  more  than  any  other  breed  we  dealt  with.  For  this  very  reason,  our  commercial  herd  consists  of  Red  Angus  cows  that  we  breed  to  Charolais  bulls.  This Â

cross  produces  heavy  calves  that  we  retain  as  yearlings.  They  are  great  carcass  cattle,  and  are  in  high  demand.â&#x20AC;?  Crump  Red  Angus  will  be  holding  their  bull  sale  this  year  on.  For  more  information,  contact  Jesse  and  Charity  at Â

307-­736-­2282  or  at  jccrump@ rangeweb.net.  Crump  Red  Angus  can  be  found  at  crum-­ predangus.com.   Gayle  Smith  is  a  corre-­ spondent  for  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  roundup@wylr.net.

Family  affair  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Jesse  and  Charity  Crump  are  the  third  generation  on  the  ranch  and  manage  the  opera-­ tion.  Their  children,  (left  to  right)  Echo,  David,  Willow,  Carter  and  Titus  have  been  raised  on  the  ranch.  Courtesy  photo Â

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B8

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

Business  oriented  cattle  operation       Sixty  Bar  Ranch  focuses  on  cattle  business  North  of  Gillette,  the  Sixty  Bar  Ranch  sits  in  a  valley  with  a  long  history.   Rod  and  Katie  Smith  have  lived  on  the  ranch  since  1987,  after  they  left  a  ranch  in  Moorcroft.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;All  I  ever  wanted Â

to  do  was  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  Rod  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  done  other  things,  but  I  love  to  ranch.â&#x20AC;?  With  ranching  as  part  of  their  heritage,  the  Smiths  continue  to  operate  their  cow/calf  and  year-­

ling  operation  focusing  on  raising  quality,  all  natural  beef.

Rich  history  The  Sixty  Bar  Ranch  is  rich  with  history  and  full  of  colorful  characters.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Everyone  that  has Â

been  on  this  ranch  until  us  was  a  colorful  character,â&#x20AC;?  says  Rod.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  are  only  the  fourth  family  that  has  lived  here  since  it  started.â&#x20AC;?  The  Calhoun  family  homesteaded  the  ranch  in  the  late  1880s,  and  Katie Â

Riding  with  the  cattle  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  The  Smith  family  does  their  cow  work  on  horseback,  which  is  an  important  aspect  of  the  operation.  Daughter  Cin-­ namon  is  accomplished  using  her  cow  horse  and  has  won  numerous  awards  for  the  cow  cutting  event  across  the  country.  Courtesy  photo

R EYES / R USSELL

22ND ANNUAL SALE

y Mon da

February 25, 2013 1:00 p.m.

At the Ranch in Wheatland

6HOOLQJ &RPLQJ <HDU 2OG $QJXV %XOOV <HDUOLQJ $QJXV %XOOV 3$3 7(67(' Â&#x2021; %9' '()(&7 )5(( BULLS RAISED & DEVELOPED IN A REALISTIC RANGE ENVIRONMENT. READY TO GO TO WORK FOR YOU. Your source for high altitude bulls ~ PAP tested at 8,000â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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 Juan  Reyes

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notes  that  the  kitchen  of  their  house  is  the  origi-­ nal  homestead  cabin.  In  1901,  Walter  James  Mon-­ nett  took  over  the  place.  Monnett  partnered  with  Bert  Norfolk.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ironi-­ cally,  Rodâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  grandfather,  Bill  Smith,  was  a  banker  who  split  the  ranch  in  the  1940s,â&#x20AC;?  says  Katie.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  own  half  of  it  today,  and  the  other  half  of  the  origi-­ nal  Monnett-­Norfolk  hold-­ ings  are  owned  by  Clay-­ baugh  Cattle  Company.â&#x20AC;?  Before  the  Smith  fam-­ ily  purchased  the  place,  however,  Rusty  Hol-­ ler  managed  and  owned  the  property  beginning  in  1948  until  Rod  came  to  the  Sixty  Bar  in  1987.

All  natural  beef  The  Smiths  focus  on  raising  all-­natural  beef  in  their  cow/calf  yearling  operation.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  purchased  the  ranch  in  1990  with  a  partner,â&#x20AC;?  explains  Rod,  who  notes  that  they  later  bought  out  their  partner  in  1997.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  run  Angus  cows,  primarily  on  grass.â&#x20AC;?  Because  of  the  unique  environment  on  their  prop-­ erty,  Katie  notes  that  they  feed  very  little  supplement  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  even  in  winter.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  figured  that  the  cows  need  to  take  care  of  us,  rather  than  us  taking  care  of  the  cattle,â&#x20AC;?  says  Rod.  Rod  explains  that  because  of  their  unique  environment,  the  snow  doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  crust,  and  cat-­ tle  have  the  ability  to  eat  grass  throughout  the  year.  However,  he  adds  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  just  put  any  cow  on  the  land  and  expect  it  to  sur-­ vive.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  put  the  genetics  together  to  make  this  work.  We  have  a  cow  that  is  suited  to  our  ranch  lands,â&#x20AC;?  Rod  notes.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because  our  genetics  match  our  ranch,  we  can  pull  those  things  off.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  done  our  best  to  match  the  cows  to  the  environment,â&#x20AC;?  he  says,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;and  I  think  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve  been  successful  at  it.â&#x20AC;?  Under  the  all-­natural  program  by  which  they  market  their  cattle,  Rod  says  they  canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  feed  anti-­ biotics  to  their  livestock  or  use  any  growth  promot-­ ing  products.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;If  we  have  to  doctor  anything,  it  is  pulled  from  the  natural  program,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  can  give  some  approved  shots,  and  we  have  certain  feeds  and  vaccinations  that  we  canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  do.  Basically,  they  are  grass  cattle.â&#x20AC;?  Their  beef  has  been  sold  in  a  number  of  nat-­ ural  programs  through  the  years,  including  to  JBSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  natural  program  and  through  Whole  Foods  gro-­ cery  stores.  Ranch  operations  The  ranch  begins  calv-­ ing  around  April  15,  and  Rod  says  that  usually  there  is  grass  available.  Year-­ lings  are  shipped  in  early Â

September,  and  calves  are  weaned  in  September  and  October.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  weaning  is  unique,â&#x20AC;?  says  Rod.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  works  really  well  for  us.â&#x20AC;?  Rather  than  isolating  calves  in  a  pen,  Rod  notes  they  lock  up  their  cows  and  turn  the  calves  out  to  pasture.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  we  bring  them  in  from  the  summer  coun-­ try,  after  a  week  or  10  days,  we  take  the  calves  off  and  lock  up  the  cows,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  calves  wan-­ der  the  creek,  but  they  are  on  water  and  feed.  We  havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  changed  their  rumen   â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  the  only  thing  that  changes  is  they  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  milk.â&#x20AC;?  Only  after  75  to  90  days  after  they  have  been  weaned,  Rod  says  they  begin  to  move  calves  to  feed  bunks,  and  he  says  the  system  works  well.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  cows  can  take  the  stress  of  being  locked  up  for  a  few  days  in  the  snow,  dust  and  changing  temperatures,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Calves  canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  handle  as  much  stress.  In  two  to  three  days,  they  have  for-­ gotten  that  they  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  milk  and  are  good  to  go.â&#x20AC;?  After  using  the  sys-­ tem  for  over  20  years,  Rod  says,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  a  lot  easier  on  the  cattle,  we  have  a  lot  less  sickness  than  we  used  to  and  our  cattle  seem  to  keep  growing.â&#x20AC;?  During  his  time  ranch-­ ing,  Rod  says  that  both  he  and  Katie  have  lived  on  four  different  ranches,  and  each  was  unique  in  how  it  was  operated.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Each  ranch  is  differ-­ ent,â&#x20AC;?  he  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  key  to  ranching  is  taking  from  what  Mother  Nature  give  you,â&#x20AC;?  Rod  continues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  we  fit  our  management  style  to  the  land,  the  ranch  started  becoming  more  profitable,  easier  to  manage  and  the  lifestyle  got  better.â&#x20AC;?

Challenges  on  the  ranch  For  Rod  and  Katie  Smith,  the  challenges  for  todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  ranchers  are  seen  in  regulatory  hurdles  and  in  passing  the  ranch  to  the  next  generation.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  I  started  ranch-­ ing,  I  could  concentrate  on  production  for  most  of  the  year,â&#x20AC;?  Rod  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;You  could  almost  exclu-­ sively  work  on  production  and  get  by,  but  now  you  canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t.â&#x20AC;?  Between  dealing  with  labor,  production,  busi-­ ness  and  regulations,  he  notes  that  ranching  requires  more  manage-­ ment  skills.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;There  are  very  few  ranchers  who  are  capable  of  keeping  all  of  those  legs  of  the  ranch  running  suc-­ cessfully,  so  they  have  to  find  ways  to  shore  up  their  weaknesses.â&#x20AC;?  he  adds.  Another  hurdle  that  presents  itself  on  the  oper-­ ation  is  labor.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;So  many  of  these  ranches  were  set  up  in  the  post-­World  War  II  era,â&#x20AC;?  explains  Katie.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;That  gen-­

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2013  Winter  Cattlemenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

eration  had  a  lot  of  labor  resources.  One  of  our  biggest  problems  in  the  ranching  industry  today  is  labor.â&#x20AC;?  Because  of  the  issues  in  finding  labor,  Katie  says  they  are  a  low  input  operation.   At  the  end  of  the  day,  Rod  says,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;This  is  just  Wyoming.  I  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  think  we  have  any  more  or  less  challenges  than  anyone  else  in  the  state.  It  can  be  wet,  it  can  be  dry,  there  can  be  deep  snow,  or  no  snow.  Anyone  that  ranches  in  Wyoming  understands.â&#x20AC;?

Passing  it  on  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Right  now,  we  are  settling  my  fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  estate,â&#x20AC;?  comments  Rod,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;and  we  are  at  the  age  that  we  need  to  be  planning  for  our  estate  so  we  can  pass  on  the  ranch  to  the  next  generation  in  manner  that  they  can  keep  operating.â&#x20AC;?  For  the  first  time  in Â

history,  Katie  notes  that  the  Sixty  Bar  Ranch  is  owned  by  a  sole  owner  and  will  pass  down  to  the  next  generation.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;This  ranch  was  never  passed  from  one  gener-­ ation  to  the  next,  it  was  always  sold,â&#x20AC;?  says  Rod.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  are  working  on  bring  the  next  generation  back.  Merritt  and  Cinnamon  both  want  to  come  back  to  the  ranch,  and  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re  really  happy  about  that.â&#x20AC;?  Their  son  Merritt  and  his  wife  Sarah  now  live  on  the  ranch  and  are  becom-­ ing  established.  Daughter  Cinnamon,  who  is  attend-­ ing  the  University  of  Wyo-­ ming,  also  plans  to  return  home  to  ranch  after  com-­ pleting  her  education.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  think  there  are  some  opportunities  for  young  people,  as  long  as  we  can  help  them  get  their  feet  on  the  ground,â&#x20AC;?  says  Rod.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  world  equation Â

for  protein  is  really  good  right  now,â&#x20AC;?  adds  Katie.  Katie  also  comments  that  they  have  been  work-­ ing  to  integrate  Sarah  into  the  operation  and  teach  her  about  the  ranch.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Both  of  us  were  raised  on  a  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  she Â

continues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  have  an  understanding  and  a  love  for  it,  and  we  want  to  pass  it  on  to  our  kids.â&#x20AC;?  Saige  Albert  is  manag-­ ing  editor  of  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup  and  can  be  reached  at  saige@ wylr.net.

 T

he key to ranching is taking from the land what Mother Nature give you. When we fit our management style to the land, the ranch started becoming more profitable, easier to manage and the lifestyle got better.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Rod Smith

Family  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  The  Sixty  Bar  Ranch  is  home  to  two  generations  of  the  Smith  family.  Katie,  Sarah,  Merritt,  Cinnamon  and  Rod  (from  left  to  right)  all  enjoy  the  ranching  lifestyle.  Courtesy  photo

0- } 3TAKDSSD #NTMSX &@HQFQNTMCR

Preview and Sale inside the heated barn

#7% t 1"1 t 'FSUJMJUZ t 5SJDI 5FTUFE Diamond Hoover Dam 1070 CED:  +14  BW:  -­3.6  WW:  +40  YW:  +82  M:  +31  SC:  +1.42  Marb.:  +.34  RE:  +.51  $B:  +55.05 Diamond  Hoover  Dam  1070  is  our  new  calving  ease  herd  sire.  He  was  the  high  selling  bull  in  the  2011  Diamond  Dot  Sale  in  Montana.  He  stacks  14  consecutive  dams  with  negative  birth  weight  epds.  Semen  is  available  through  ORIgen.

The Proud Home of Diamond Steakhouse 9378!

Steakhouse  sired  the  high  selling  bull  and  female  at  the  recent  Stevensonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  Diamond  Dot  sale  in  0RQWDQD 7KLV \HDUÂśV EXOO VDOH ZLOO IHDWXUH RXU ÂżUVW offering  of  Steakhouse  sons.  We  believe  you  will  like  what  you  see!

What makes our program unique is the fact that we PAP test each bull twice prior to the sale. Not only that but every sire of the bulls offered in our sale has been PAP tested as well!

You can feel confident that, by purchasing a bull from Jensen Angus, you are buying from a program that is committed to having high altitude PAP tested cows, not just PAP tested bulls to sell. We also believe passionately in the idea that high altitude cattle can possess performance and carcass quality traits while at the same time being able to thrive in our high altitude environment. We formed our herd with a base of Shamrock Angus genetics and are now being very progressive in our genetic selection to insure Jensen Angus will be able to offer our customers leading edge high altitude bulls for years to come.

Also Featuring Sons of: 4UFWFOTPO .POFZNBLFS 6 6 t 47' 4IBNSPDL $PQZSJHIU 4IBNSPDL /FX %FTJHO t 47' 4IBNSPDL 1BZXFJHIU 5 4IBNSPDL /FX %FTJHO 6 t 4IBNSPDL /FX %FTJHO 6

For a catalog please contact:

JUSTIN & RENEE JENSEN FAMILY

0 / "/8 } "/5,$%2 79 } rjj@wyoming.com

B10

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

Bitter  Creek  Ranch       Oedekovens  commercial  cattle  focuses  on  continued  improvement  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our  ranch  is  an  old  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  says  Fred  Oede-­ koven.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Neils  Anderson  homesteaded  when  he  and  the  Cutler  family  came  to  the  area  on  Bitter  Creek.  It  was  around  the  turn  of  the  century.â&#x20AC;?  Fred  notes  that  they  were  among  the  first  people  who  homesteaded  the  area, Â

and  his  grandfather  pur-­ chased  the  Anderson  place  in  the  1950s.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;He  has  owned  the  place  above  the  Cut-­ ler  homestead  since  the  1930s,â&#x20AC;?  adds  Fred,  who  notes  a  family  gave  his  grandfather  the  deed  to  their  land  to  pay  off  bills.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;When  I  was  a  kid,  there Â

were  still  a  lot  of  peo-­ ple  at  the  back  end  of  the  ranch,  but  my  grandpa  and  uncle  bought  the  land  in  the  1950s.â&#x20AC;?  The  Oedekovens  also  run  on  land  near  Recluse.  Cheri  says  her  father  Fred  is  semi-­retired,  but  still  spends  time  working  on  the  ranch  with  her  hus-­

band  Jason  Irvin  and  her-­ self.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;My  mom  Mary  Ann  and  Dad  continue  to  run  cows,  which  is  great,â&#x20AC;?  Cheri  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Jason  and  I  will  continue  to  build  our  herd.â&#x20AC;?  She  adds  that  Jason  does  much  of  the  day  to  day  work,  including  feed-­

Black  baldies  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  While  Fred  Oedekovenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  father  ran  Herefords,  he  began  to  switch  to  black  baldies  and  Black  Angus  in  the  early  1990s.  Saige  Albert  photo

ATTENTION Â CATTLEMEN: WE Â ARE Â NOW Â SELLING Â OUR Â 2012 Â BULLS. Â Â BUY Â THE Â BULL Â YOU Â WANT Â AT Â THE Â PRICE Â YOU Â CAN Â AFFORD Â AND Â WE Â WILL Â WINTER Â THEM Â FOR Â FREE.

ing,  fencing,  haying  and  calving,  while  she  works  at  the  family  business,  Oede-­ koven  Water  and  Hot  Oil. Commercial  cattle  operation  â&#x20AC;&#x153;This  has  always  been  a  commercial  cattle  ranch,â&#x20AC;?  Fred  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;In  the  40s  and  50s,  my  uncle  had  a  registered  Hereford  herd,  and  he  sold  a  lot  of  bulls,  but  it  was  primarily  a  com-­ mercial  herd.â&#x20AC;?  The  family  ranch  has  run  Herefords  for  many  years  and  was  a  Hereford  ranch  until  1993  when  Fredâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  uncle  passed  away.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  convinced  him  the  year  before  to  put  black  bulls  on  the  Herefords,â&#x20AC;?  says  Fred.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;That  year,  he  sold  his  cows  for  more  money  than  he  has  ever  sold  them  before.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Buyers  seem  to  like  the  cross,â&#x20AC;?  says  Fred,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;and  I  gradually  converted  the  whole  ranch  to  black  and  black  baldies.â&#x20AC;?  He  adds  that  they  like  to  keep  between  25  and  50  percent  of  their  cattle  as  crossbreds.  The  crossbred  cattle  also  provide  some  addi-­

tional  benefits.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  get  a  little  more  milk  from  the  Herefords,â&#x20AC;?  explains  Fred.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  blacks  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  pink  eye  and  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  a  problem  with  sunburned  bags.â&#x20AC;?  Cheri  also  adds  that  they  have  quite  a  few  black  cows  because,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;That  is  what  the  buyers  seem  to  like.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;There  are  a  lot  of  rea-­ sons  we  went  black,â&#x20AC;?  Fred  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;You  have  to  raise  what  buyers  want,  and  they  are  a  lot  healthier  ani-­ mals.â&#x20AC;?   In  feeding  their  cows,  Fred  notes  that  they  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  just  roll  out  round  bales.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  have  a  hay  processor,  so  we  grind  up  the  hay,â&#x20AC;?  he  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;If  you  feed  on  the  ground,  the  cows  lay  on  it,  so  you  have  about  one-­ third  waste.  With  the  hay  processor,  we  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  have  any  waste.â&#x20AC;?  The  strategy  also  helps  them  to  become  more  effi-­ cient  in  their  mineral  pro-­ gram.

Developing  Over  the  years,  Fred  notes  that  they  have  made  a  number  of  developments, Â

The  average  EPDs  of  Angus  Bulls  offered  are

BW  +  0.7 WW  +48 YW  +87 Milk  +26 Go  84s  New  Standard  229w $QJXV VLUHV %ULOOLDQFH Â&#x2021; )URQWPDQ Â&#x2021; )URQWUDQJH Â&#x2021; ,Q )RFXV 6SHFLDO )RFXV 'DNRWD *ROG Â&#x2021; 8SZDUG Â&#x2021; 5HVXPH Â&#x2021; 6WLPXOXV

The  average  EPDs  of  Hereford  Bulls  offered  are

Riding  the  bull  -­  Elmer  Oedekoven  holds  Fred  Oedekoven  on  their  Hereford  bull.  Courtesy  photo

BW  +2.3 WW  +53 YW  +85 Milk  +27 GO  MS  Outcross  X76

Two-­time  National  Champion  raised  by  the  ranch. +HUHIRUG 6LUHV *R $EH 7 Â&#x2021; 5HYROXWLRQ 9LFWRU 7 Â&#x2021; &/ 'RPLQR : &/ 'RPLQR Â&#x2021; 836 'RPLQR Â&#x2021; .DKXQD Â&#x2021; *2 $GYDQFH : We  produce  problem  free  cattle  with  low  birth  weights,  high  performance,  and  maternal  ability.   Our  cattle  produce  champions  at  the  local,  state  and  national  level.   Let  our  genetics  work  for  you.   Give  us  a  call  or  visit  our  website  www.qualitybulls.com  for  more  information  on  the  cattle  we  have  for  sale. Â

Rod  &  Debbie (307)  532-­2457 George  &  Ruby

(307)  532-­5892

Steve  &  Dixie  Roth (307)  532-­7191 Torrington,  Wyoming

Blake  &  Chrissy

(307)  532-­3282

Holding  the  house  together  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Mary  Ann  Oedekoven,  Fredâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  wife  and  Cheriâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  mother,  runs  the  kitchen,  says  Cheri.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  what  she  was  born  to  do,â&#x20AC;?  Cheri  adds.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;She  is  fabulous  cook  and  knows  how  to  put  on  a  meal  after  a  hard  daysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;  work.â&#x20AC;?  Courtesy  photo

B11

2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

particularly in the form of hay ground.

“Our ranch didn’t have enough hay base,” he says.

“We are in an area where it requires a lot of feed.”

On top of a lack of hay, Fred notes than an abun-­ dance of pine trees results in bed of pine needles, which can cause abortions if they are eaten by cattle.

“Getting away from the pine trees required redo-­ ing our fence lines, chang-­ ing everything to fence the creek bottoms,” adds Fred. “We also didn’t have enough winter pastures.”

Fred also notes that he bought a blade and scraper to make more hay land.

“With the equipment, we made more of a hay base,” he says. “We have the ability to raise a lot more cattle, and in good years, I can raise between 3,000 and 3,500 round bales where I was lucky to put up 1,500 before.”

The developments made of the ranch means that the Oedekoven fam-­ ily no longer buys hay, and they are more profitable and efficient.

They have also gone through and replaced fences throughout the prop-­ erty, putting up four and five wire fences to replace old fences.

“I also put in 3.5 miles of water lines in the back end of the place,” says Fred. “These are all things we have done to make things more profitable.”

“We put some money out, but it is coming back,” he continues. “We are able to raise more numbers and more hay.”

Though they love ranching and enjoy where they live, the environment is not without challenges.

“This country is really rough, so your bulls break down a lot quicker than on flatland,” explains Cheri.

“We also have to use more bulls than you would on flat lands.”

“We always meet chal-­ lenges,” says Fred.

Responding to change In being innovative in developing the ranch, Fred says changing has helped them to improve.

“A lot of people aren’t subject to change,” he com-­ ments. “Their grandpa did things one way, so their dad did it that way, so they do it the same way.”

“There are a lot of dif-­ ferent way to run a ranch,” Fred continues, “and there are a lot of ways, with tech-­ nology and other things that are happening, to ranch.”

For example, Fred says they used to feed cat-­ tle using teams, and it took all day to feed 200 to 300 head of cattle. Today, uti-­ lizing modern technology, they can feed 400 head in several hours.

Other technologies, such as genetics and use of EPDs, have caused drastic changes to the ranch.

“When I was a kid, a 300 to 450 pound calf was great,” he says. “Today, we are disappointed if we don’t sell 550 to 600 pound calves.”

They seek light birth weights and heavy weaning weights in bulls, so rather than pulling 30 to 40 per-­ cent of calves, as they did when Fred was a child, they pull one to two percent.

The response to chal-­ lenges and the changes made in the operation have resulted in their ability to remain profitable and sus-­ tainable.

“We have to watch our cost and increase profit-­ ability,” says Fred. “The only thing we have to sell is pounds on our livestock.

We can improve carrying capacity with water and such, but there are some restrictions.”

“We hope cattle prices are high, we strive for effi-­ ciency and we cut costs where we can,” he adds.

At the end of the day, they have continued to improve the ranch to ensure its viability into the future.

“To me, it’s very impor-­ tant that the ranch was my grandparents, my parents and my uncles. It means a lot to me,” he says. “I hope it is able to stay in our fam-­ ily.”

Saige Albert is manag-­ ing editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup and can be reached at saige@wylr. net.

A look back – This photo, taken at Bitter Creek Ranch, shows Edna, James, Fred and Richard Oedekoven. Courtesy photo

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B12

Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup

New  faces   ongoing  challenges      Campbell  County  Conservation  District  overcomes  adversity  Sometimes,  the  more  things  change,  the  more  they  really  do  stay  the  same,  at  least  for  the  Campbell  County  Con-­ servation  District  (CCCD). Â

Change  came  in  the  form  of  new  supervisors  and  person-­ nel  joining  the  district  in  2012,  but  the  issues  facing  agricul-­ ture  and  conservation  in  2013 Â

Water  monitoring  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  Water  Range  Technician  Kevin  Quick  of  the  Campbell  County  Conservation  District  and  Levi  Jensen  with  the  City  of  the  Gillette  talked  with  the  students  on  the  importance  of  macroinvertabrates  in  streams  during  World  Water  Monitoring  Day.  Students  were  able  to  look  at  actual  aquatic  insects  found  in  Gillette  Fishing  Lake.  Courtesy  photo

have  stayed  the  same.  The  CCCD  has  been  assisting  agriculture  produc-­ ers  and  Campbell  County  res-­ idents  for  more  than  60  years.  Today,  the  work  of  the  CCCD  is  directed  by  a  board  of  five  locally  elected  supervisors  and  has  four  full-­time  employees.  They  work  in  partnership  with  other  local  agencies,  including  the  Natural  Resources  Con-­ servation  Service  and  orga-­ nizations  on  issues  affecting  county  soil,  water,  agriculture  and  other  natural  resources.

New  faces  Three  new  supervisors  were  elected  to  the  Campbell  County  Conservation  District  (CCCD)  in  2012.  Travis  Hak-­ ert,  Lindsay  Wood  and  Bob  Maul  were  elected  to  serve  the  county  last  November. Â

They  join  Chairman  Brenda  Schladweiler  and  Jonathan  Mau  on  the  board  of  supervi-­ sors.   Tim  Morrison  joined  the  CCCD  in  October  as  the  new  district  manager,  replacing  Michelle  Cook.  Morrison  pre-­ viously  worked  with  the  Lit-­ tle  Snake  River  and  Meetee-­ tse  Conservation  Districts,  as  well  as  the  Arizona  Associa-­ tion  of  Conservation  Districts.  Kevin  Quick  was  hired  as  the  water  range  technician  in  fall  of  2012  as  well.

District  challenges  The  challenges  fac-­ ing  agriculture  and  natural  resources  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  slow  down  for  district  newcomers.  District  personnel  con-­ tinue  to  implement  the  water-­ shed  plans  and  water  quality  sampling  for  Donkey  Creek,  Stonepile  Creek,  Little  Pow-­ der  River  and  the  Middle  Prong  of  Wild  Horse  Creek.  The  CCCD  is  also  working  with  its  partners  on  a  TMDL  process  for  the  Belle  Fourche  River  and  Gillette  Fishing  Lake.   In  addition  to  sam-­ pling  and  reporting  efforts,  the  CCCD  has  also  assisted  landowners  in  implementing  best  management  practices  like  prescribed  grazing  sys-­ tems,  windbreaks  and  fenc-­ ing  to  help  improve  watershed  conditions.  Personnel  also  helped  educate  the  public  on  the  effects  of  proper  disposal  of  pet  and  RV  waste,  septic  maintenance  and  livestock  grazing  on  the  watershed.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  just  finished  our  sampling  for  the  season,  but  water  quality  and  imple-­ menting  watershed  plans  is  an  ongoing  effort  for  the  dis-­ trict,â&#x20AC;?  says  Morrison.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  district  samples  19  sites  dur-­ ing  the  recreation  season.  We  have  ongoing  grants  for  mon-­ itoring  through  the  Wyoming  DEQ  (Department  of  Envi-­ ronmental  Quality)  and  Wyo-­ ming  Department  of  Agricul-­ ture.â&#x20AC;?  Morrison  says  the  CCCD  is  also  gearing  up  to  help  pro-­ ducers  with  drought  mitiga-­

tion  this  spring  and  summer.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  think  just  about  every  place  in  Wyoming  failed  to  get  good  precipitation  last  spring  and  summer.  That  cer-­ tainly  impacted  production,â&#x20AC;?  he  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m  still  trying  to  get  a  feel  for  how  producers  here  in  Campbell  County  were  affected.  But  the  district  is  pre-­ paring  to  help  producers  any  we  can,  whether  that  be  estab-­ lishing  new  range  monitoring  practices  or  grazing  plans,  or  possibly  helping  them.â&#x20AC;?  The  CCCD  board  is  also  considering  what  role  it  might  play,  if  any,  in  the  Powder  River  Basin  Initiative.  The  initiative,  led  by  the  BLMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  High  Plains  District  Office,  is  an  effort  to  integrate  the  many  habitat  improvement  programs  and  projects  being  conducted  by  local,  state  and  national  agencies.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  possibility  of  the  sage  grouse  being  listed  as  endangered  continues  to  be  a  concern  for  Campbell  County.  The  Powder  River  Basin  Ini-­ tiative  effort  is  being  driven  by  concerns  over  a  possible  sage  grouse  listing.  The  idea  is  basically  to  better  coordi-­ nate  the  time  and  effort  a  lot  of  different  groups  are  spend-­ ing  on  sage  grouse  habitat  improvement  and  reclama-­ tion.  Our  board  is  still  discuss-­ ing  what  role  to  play  in  the  ini-­ tiative,  but  weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll  continue  to  assist  in  sage  grouse  conser-­ vation  efforts  here  in  the  dis-­ trict,â&#x20AC;?  Morrison  says.

Education  for  all  Educating  students  and  the  public  in  general  is  an  ongoing  effort  for  the  CCCD.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Education  continues  to  be  an  important  facet  of  the  district,â&#x20AC;?  says  Morrison.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  staff  has  done  an  excellent  job  of  keeping  ag  producers  and  small  acreage  landowners  up  to  date  on  issues  affecting  them  through  brochures,  sem-­ inars  and  the  district  newslet-­ ter.  We  also  work  at  educat-­ ing  the  next  generation  about  agriculture,  water  quality  and  range  management.â&#x20AC;?  Each  year,  the  CCCD  hosts  the  World  Water  Moni-­

toring  Day  at  Gillette  Fishing  Lake.  Area  junior  high  stu-­ dents  tested  four  basic  indi-­ cators  of  water  quality  and  learned  about  other  aspects  of  a  healthy  watershed,  like  ripar-­ ian  vegetation,  flood  plans  and  sediment.  Adults  from  the  CCCD  as  well  as  NRCS,  the  City  of  Gillette  and  Weed  and  Pest  also  helped  teach  stu-­ dents  about  their  role  in  safe-­ guarding  natural  resources.  District  personnel  also  presented  the  Enviroscape  Model  educational  activity  at  the  Gillette  Fishing  Lake  Nature  Camp,  local  service  organizations  and  at  local  schools.  The  Enviroscape  Model  is  a  hands-­on  model  that  helps  students  better  understand  the  sources  and  prevention  of  water  pollution,  explains  Mor-­ rison.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  a  great  tool  for  stu-­ dents  to  really  see  how  their  actions  can  affect  water  qual-­ ity  and  an  entire  watershed,â&#x20AC;?  he  explained.

Tree  program  Seedling  tree  sales  are  in  full  swing  at  the  CCCD.  Last  year,  the  district  sold  more  than  8,000  seedling  trees  to  area  landowners.  Morrison  says  more  than  40  different  species  of  trees  are  offered,  including  bareroot  trees  like  native  plum,  chokecherry  and  lilac,  as  well  as  potted  trees  like  aspen,  ponderosa  pine  and  white  fir.  Trees  are  available  to  landowners  with  at  least  one  acre  of  land  and  cannot  be  used  for  ornamental  or  land-­ scape  purposes.  The  district,  in  coordination  with  NRCS,  can  provide  technical  assis-­ tance  in  windbreak  and  shel-­ terbelt  design  and  planting.  For  more  information  on  the  seedling  tree  program,  publications  or  other  services  offered  by  the  CCCD,  visit  the  district  Web  site  at  cccdwy.net  or  call  307-­682-­1824.  Teresa  Milner  is  a  correspondent  for  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  roundup@wylr. net.

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B13

2013  Winter  Cattlemenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Range  management      Wood  focuses  on  improving  grazing  lands  Lindsay  Wood,  who  lives  near  Spotted  Horse  and  oper-­ ates  a  cow/calf  operation,  notes  that  grazing  manage-­ ment  and  utilizing  the  range  to  its  best  capacity  has  been  inte-­ gral  in  the  success  of  the  oper-­ ation.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  are  a  primarily  cow/ calf  operation,â&#x20AC;?  says  Lind-­ say.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  run  all  the  heifers  to  yearlings,  and  we  are  work-­ ing  on  developing  a  commer-­ cial  replacement  heifer  enter-­ prise.â&#x20AC;?

Commercial  operation  She  notes  that  they  strive  for  a  low  input  operation,  with  efficient,  productive  cows.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  range  calve  every-­ thing  in  May,â&#x20AC;?  she  says,  add-­ ing,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  assist  unless  it  is  critical.â&#x20AC;?  Don  Spellman  owns  the  operation,  and  Wood  runs  it  on  a  day-­to-­day  basis.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Don  ran  commer-­ cial  Angus  to  start,  so  that  is  what  we  stuck  with,â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;He  also  used  pure-­ bred  bulls,  and  we  stuck  with  that  because  we  think  we  can  use  the  livestock  that  we  have  with  any  herd.â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  notes  that  they  pick  their  cows  based  on  their  production  and  utilize  bulls  from  a  neighbor  that  they  work  with.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  look  for  moderate  frame  sized  bulls,â&#x20AC;?  she  says  of  their  genetics  strategy.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  also  pay  attention  to  scrotal  circumference,  because  it  is  linked  to  fertility  in  the  daugh-­ ters.â&#x20AC;?  They  also  seek  low  birth  weight  bulls,  even  for  the  cows,  says  Lindsay,  because  they  are  able  to  breed  the  trait  into  the  herd.  The  cattle  are  also  grazed  on  range  in  a  low Â

input  system.

Grazing  management  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  do  intensive  grazing  management,â&#x20AC;?  she  adds,  not-­ ing  that  rather  than  putting  up  hay,  they  graze  many  of  their  hay  fields.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  do  a  lot  of  temporary  electric  and  perma-­ nent  fencing.â&#x20AC;?  The  intensive  grazing  management  helps  them  to  better  utilize  their  available  grass,  she  says.   â&#x20AC;&#x153;On  our  own  place,  we  are  very  intensive,â&#x20AC;?  she  says,  â&#x20AC;&#x153;so  every  year,  I  come  up  with  a  grazing  plan  for  when  and  how  long  I  can  leave  livestock  in  pastures.â&#x20AC;?  She  notes  that  they  work  to  avoid  utilizing  the  same  pastures  at  the  same  times  from  year  to  year  because  it  helps  improve  variety  of  for-­ age.  A  management  intensive  grazing  system  involves  using  management  to  best  graze  available  forage.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Jim  Gerrish  has  done  a  lot  of  work  with  these  sys-­ tems,â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;In  the  system,  we  arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  trying  to  intensively  utilize  the  forage,  we  are  really  managing  inten-­ sively  for  best  use.â&#x20AC;?  Her  grazing  plan  involves  moving  cows  every  three  to  four  days  in  the  summer,  depending  on  the  livestock  numbers  and  feed.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;For  instance,  we  have  100  head  of  yearling  heifers  that  are  moved  every  three  days  and  put  in  10  acre  pas-­ tures,â&#x20AC;?  she  describes,  adding  that  the  system  works  well  for  their  operation.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;With  current  market  con-­ ditions,  there  isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  a  lot  of  con-­ trol  on  prices,  so  we  have  to  control  costs,â&#x20AC;?  she  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  leave  a  lot  more  residual  feed, Â

leave  more  litter  and  we  can  capture  more  moisture  with  this  system.â&#x20AC;?  All  of  these  benefits  allow  for  drought  mitigation  and  helps  to  keep  costs  low.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  ran  more  numbers  through  the  drought  years  than  the  years  prior,â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  men-­ tions.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;We  get  better  utiliza-­ tion  because  we  can  put  them  in  areas  that  they  wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  nor-­ mally  use  with  these  smaller  pastures.â&#x20AC;?  Overall,  the  intensive  grazing  allows  Lindsay  to  effectively  manage  her  grass  resources.    Because  of  a  number  of  considerations  for  graz-­ ing  in  the  current  economic  and  political  climate,  Lindsay  says  she  has  been  able  to  turn  developing  grazing  plans  into  a  business.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Many  NRCS  programs  require  or  strongly  encour-­ age  producers  to  have  graz-­ ing  plans  to  participate,â&#x20AC;?  she  notes.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Especially  under  the  sage  grouse  initiative,  the  plans  are  important.â&#x20AC;?  She  begins  developing  a  grazing  plan  by  doing  an  inventory  of  the  range  and  cat-­ aloging  species  available.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  do  a  range  inventory  on  the  place  and  get  an  idea  of  the  production,â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  also  ask  the  pro-­ ducers  about  livestock  num-­ bers  and  what  production  sys-­ tem  fits  with  their  manage-­ ment.â&#x20AC;?   â&#x20AC;&#x153;Not  everyone  can  do  a  management  intensive  sys-­ tem,  and  not  every  pasture  can  be  used  in  that  way,â&#x20AC;?  she  con-­ tinues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then,  I  can  help  them  with  a  grazing  plan.â&#x20AC;?  Her  consulting  business  is  called  Chicken  Creek  Con-­ sulting.

Spotlight on Genetics Wyoming Beef Cattle Improvement Association Bull Test

Challenges  in  agriculture  In  the  agriculture  indus-­ try,  Lindsay  says  things  arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t  easy.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;For  us,  drought  is  the  number  one  issue,â&#x20AC;?  she  says.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Environmentally,  that  is  true  for  everyone  in  the  state,  and  we  all  deal  with  something  different.â&#x20AC;?  As  far  as  labor  is  con-­ cerned,  she  notes  that  they  strive  to  manage  an  operation  that  is  not  labor  intensive.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;Don  and  his  wife  go  to  Arizona  in  the  winters,  and  my  husband  works  in  town,â&#x20AC;?  she  explains.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;The  ranch  is  my  thing,  and  we  have  a  system Â

that  fits  that.â&#x20AC;?  Because  Lindsay  runs  the  ranch  largely  by  herself,  she  says  that  she  has  to  be  con-­ scious  of  tasks  she  can  do  effi-­ ciently.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  have  to  focus  on  the  management  side  of  the  oper-­ ation,â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  comments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  work  smarter  â&#x20AC;&#x201C;  not  harder.â&#x20AC;?

Benefits  of  ag  Agriculture  is  an  enjoy-­ able  field  to  work  in,  and  Lindsey  says  she  really  enjoys  ranching.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;There  is  a  lot  of  flexi-­ bility  in  ranching,â&#x20AC;?  she  com-­ ments.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It  is  different  every  day  and  you  get  the  chance  to Â

work  with  a  whole  range  of  skill  sets.â&#x20AC;?  â&#x20AC;&#x153;I  liked  working  in  other  jobs,  but  you  do  the  same  thing  day  after  day,â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  continues.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;In  this  business,  we  are  the  accountant,  busi-­ ness  manager,  officer  man-­ ager,  labor  and  the  one  who  makes  the  genetics  decisions.  We  are  doing  a  lot  of  things,  and  it  is  fun.â&#x20AC;?  Lindsay  Wood  can  be  reached  at  Chicken  Creek  Consulting  at  307-­670-­0171.  Saige  Albert  is  managing  edi-­ tor  of  the  Wyoming  Livestock  Roundup.  Send  comments  on  this  article  to  saige@wylr.net.

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Annual Angus Bull Sale Thursday, April 4, 2013

1 PM t Belle Fourche Livestock t Belle Fourche, SD Selling 65 2-Year-Old Bulls & 5 Select ET Yearling Angus Bulls Featuring Sons Of:

Bulls  will  be  Performance,carcass  and  BVD  Tested

Cole Creek Full Bore 730 Â

OCC Plainsman 845R AAA# 15461954 Great Plains x Emblazon

AAA# 16720408 Black Cedar x HRB Encore

20

6DOH

13

Selling 110 Â Bulls

27th  Annual  Sale April  6th,  2013  ~  1:00  p.m.

Pingetzer's  Bull  &  Heifer  Development  Center   Shoshoni,  Wyoming

View  the  auction  live!   Bid  onlineâ&#x20AC;Śyouâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re  ringside  right  at  your  own  desk!

This sale will feature a handful of our top ET yearling bulls sired by Full Bore out of our two top donors OCC Dixie Erica 928L & OCC Juanada 604N

Other Featured Sires: *NBHF .BLFS t 0$$ 3JHIU 0O t )" 1PXFS "MMJBODF t 4JODMBJS *O 5JNF 35 %)% 5SBWFMFS t 4JODMBJS &NVMBUJPO 91 t / #BS &NVMBUJPO &95 4JNNFOUBM &YPSDJTU #)$$ 3BODI )BOE

Semen available on all of our sires! Â

Ryan Neiman P.O. Box 218 ~ Hulett, WY Cell (307) 290-0791

www.dvauction.com Visit  our  websiteâ&#x20AC;Śfor  more  information  and  registering  to  bid!   Call  Tami  McIntosh  308-­870-­3661

For Further Test Information Contact:

Robert  Pingetzer  :  (307)  856-4401  or  Scott  Lake:  (307)  766-3892

www.wbcia.org

Females, Semen, Flushes and Embryos For Sale Private Treaty

B14

Wyoming Livestock Roundup

Sustaining a ranch Mooneys focus on sustaining the ranch for future generations When Elias and Emma Mooney traveled to Wyo-­ ming from their Kansas home in the late 1890s, they were searching for a better life. The tall grass and abundant water drew them to northeast Wyo-­ ming, where they eventu-­ ally settled near Buffalo.

Elias and his son Burt went to work for the Chi-­ cago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad near Arvada. In 1910, the prai-­ rie called, and Burt moved to Felix, which was a rail-­ road siding about 19 miles north of Gillette. A year later, the rest of the family moved to the area by cov-­ ered wagon and settled on what is now their 7,500-­ acre ranch.

Developing the ranch Dan and Allen Mooney are the fourth genera-­ tion of Mooneys to run the historic family ranch.

According to Dan, Elias would be surprised at the changes that have taken place on the ranch over the years.

The development of oil and gas, and particu-­ larly methane, has been of great benefit to many ranchers in Campbell County.

“The development of coal bed methane has helped a lot of people,” he explains. “The water they have produced from

those wells is good water.

We have used it for flood irrigation, and the cows love it. The place we lease for summer grass wasn’t very well watered, so the addition of methane water there h as b een a l ifesaver.”

He notes, “They have been here 12 to 14 years now, and no one knows how much longer it will last. They are always developing new technol-­ ogy, so we are hopeful it will last a while longer.”

The development of more water sources has also lead to better grass utilization.

The brothers have also been able to cross fence the ranch, adding more pastures they can rotate through.

Dan says they also installed a pipeline sys-­ tem to help provide water in the corners of pastures where grass utilization is poor. The development of so many water sources has allowed the cattle to graze more uniformly and has improved the recovery of the pastures.

The cattle graze throughout the year.

“We put up some hay during the summer, and feed it in the winter,” Dan explains. “We save pas-­ tures down on the creek that are easy to get to dur-­ ing the winter. We supple-­

ment the cows with hay and cake.”

Ranching partners The brothers formed a partnership and manage a commercial Angus opera-­ tion on the ranch. In addi-­ tion to their own land, Dan said they lease 2,200 acres they use during the sum-­ mer.

Since both brothers work off the ranch, they have moved their calving date b ack t o A pril t his y ear in hopes of nicer weather and less calving issues.

“The calves won’t wean as heavy,” Dan explains, “but they will be worth more money when we sell them.”

They have been pleased with the weaning weights of the calves from both the cows and heifers.

A fresh pasture on the creek bottom is used for calving, giving them pro-­ tection from any storms and cold weather.

“The cattle are pasture calved,” Dan explains.

“But, we do have a calv-­ ing shed we can use for any calving problems or to help pair up cows and calves.”

The Mooneys pur-­ chase calving ease bulls to use on their heifers. When the bulls get too big, they are used on the cows.

“This system has worked well for us,” he

says.

Building a cowherd Thirty years ago, the ranchers used artificial insemination extensively to make improvements to their cowherd. However, it wasn’t long before they found it to be too labor intensive for brothers who both work outside the ranch.

“Our ranch is not that big,” Dan explains. “My brother and I both had to work outside the ranch at jobs so we could keep running this place. If cow prices had gone up like everything else had, we could probably make a living just ranching. But since they didn’t, you have to do what you have to do.”

They retain their own replacement heifers, selecting them based on birth weight, what they look like at weaning time, what kind of mothers they had, and how much milk the mother produced.

Fertility is also impor-­ tant.

“We look at the birth dates, and then at when the mothers have calved during the calving sea-­ son,” he says. “We are looking for replacement heifers with mothers that calve consistently in the beginning of the calving period.”

W

e are looking for replacement heifers with mothers that calve consistently in the beginning of the calving period.” – Dan Mooney “We keep a lot of records on our cattle. We tag the calves at birth, and the cows all have cow cards,” he adds.

Most of the cows remain in the herd until they are 10 years old.

“We cull anything that is open when we preg-­ nancy check or cows that have any problems,” he explains.

Selling calves When the calves are weaned in the fall, they are sold privately to a buyer who owns a feedlot in Iowa.

“We contract with him to sell them right off the cow in October,” Dan explains.

The family remains optimistic about the future of their operation and the fifth generation that will take over the ranch some-­ day.

“You have to enjoy this lifestyle or you wouldn’t be doing it,” Dan says. “This place has been in the family for over 100 years. We work hard to keep it going and make improvements for the next

generation that will take over.”

Dan remains optimis-­ tic about the future of the cattle industry, as well.

“During the last few years, prices have come up, and I think things are looking up for beef.

Despite everything, it is becoming harder to ranch without outside income.

There are a lot of people out there who aren’t work-­ ing another job that won’t be able to make it,” he adds.

Despite the drought that plagued most of Wyo-­ ming in 2012, Dan says they were able to carry over enough hay that they didn’t have to buy any this winter.

“We have received a little rain,” he says. “I think we will be able to hang on and be in good shape as long as the drought doesn’t carry on too long.”

Gayle Smith is a cor-­ respondent for the Wyo-­ ming Livestock Roundup.

Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr. net.

B15

2013 Winter Cattlemen’s

Starting seedstock Kretschman family turns commercial operation purebred Kale Kretschman, a third generation rancher, says he always wanted to be a seed-­ stock breeder.

“Since we were married, all we’ve talked about is rais-­ ing registered cattle,” com-­ ments his wife Kim. “It’s what I love to do,” Kale adds, and in recent years, they have begun to sell their commercial cattle, replacing them with registered Black Angus and starting Rafter T Angus.

Kale and Kim, with their 13-­year-­old son Galen, work as a family on their multifac-­ eted operation.

Making a change “My dad operated a com-­ mercial cow/calf operation,” comments Kale. “We were selling commercial bulls for a while, and we had the oppor-­ tunity to buy some registered cows out of Montana.”

Kale and his brother pur-­ chased and split the whole herd, beginning his registered Angus operation nearly five years ago.

“We were selling some commercial bulls,” he says, “so we jumped into the regis-­ tered end of it.”

In their Angus bulls, Kale notes that they focus on the maternal end, also looking for bulls that can handle the coun-­ try the Kretschmans graze.

“We try to balance out the maternal traits with growth and performance, as well,” he says, “but the cow is what we mainly select for.”

He continues, “They have to have good feet under them and be easy fleshing to survive out here.”

While they still have a small herd of commercial cows, Kim notes that they sell all the calves and are slowly getting out of the commercial business.

Getting started Getting started in the reg-­ istered cattle business is no easy feat, says Kale and he recommends that young pro-­ ducers be honest and find genetics that work with the environment.

“Being honest will get you farther in the seedstock industry than anything,” says Kale. “The toughest part of

this is also finding genetics that work with your cows.”

Kim also adds that it is important to run the operation like a business, making sure to take time off.

“You have to take time off because you have to stay married and stay happy,” says Kim. Raising cattle Their cattle spend most of the year on the range.

“The majority of their cows go to leased pastures,” says Kim. “Our cows aren’t pampered.”

“We hear of a lot of cows throughout the industry that aren’t fed,” says Kale, “but these registered cows run with our commercial cows. They don’t get any special treat-­ ment.”

The ability of the cattle to maintain body condition is also important on the opera-­ tion and is one of the factors that they consider when cull-­ ing.

“If they don’t hold a cer-­ tain body condition, we get rid of them,” says Kale. “We have to have cows that work.”

“We also put up dryland hay – nothing irrigated,” com-­ ments Kim. While they have hay, Kale notes that they don’t start feed-­ ing until the grass is gone.

“Usually we don’t start feeding until the middle of January or early February,” explains Kale.

A year at Kretschman’s The Kretschmans begin calving their heifers the begin-­ ning of February, with com-­ mercial cows starting March 10. The registered cows begin calving March 1.

“If we had more shed space, we could calve every-­ thing earlier, but we try to spread it out so we have enough room,” says Kale.

After calving, they start branding and work to artifi-­ cially inseminate their cattle.

“We try to get everything branded, AI’ed and out to pas-­ ture by June,” says Kim. “Our closest pastures are five miles away, so it’s a process to get everything out.”

Weaning begins around the first part of September with the registered herd, and

Developing relationships After beginning their seedstock business, Kim and Kale Kretschman developed a relationship with Neal and Amanda Sorenson at Powder River Angus. The couples help each other in many facets of their operations.

Neal notes that the arrangement is beneficial to their operation, and they appreciate working with the Kretschman family. Kretschmans also sell their bulls with Powder River Angus.

“Kim and Kale Kretschman run under many of the same conditions, and we have been working with them for several years,” says Neal.

“Kale has a tremendous eye for cattle,” comments Neal.

“He can find a bull that is good and one that we might never consider.”

Amanda also adds, “Working with Kretschmans has rejuvenated us and helped us refocus. We get to share the misery, and we get to share the good things, too.”

Kretschmans also note that the relationship with Neal and Amanda has been great.

Kale notes, “It is nice to have someone that has been in business, like Neal and Amanda, that helps out.”

“We are very fortunate to be able to sell our bulls in front of their customers,” says Kim. “They have worked a long time and worked hard to build up their clientele.”

Kim notes that they have the chance to learn from Neal and Amanda’s marketing and advertising experience, as well as their skill in developing a registered herd.

“We owe them a huge thank you for taking us under their wing,” says Kim.

the commercial calves are weaned toward the end of the month.

“We usually sell our com-­ mercial calves right off the cow,” says Kale. “They are sold privately to a producer in Iowa who has been buying our calves for 20 years.”

They also hold their bull sale in the middle of February each year, in conjunction with Powder River Angus. For the first time this year, they will take videos of their bulls to put on the Internet to increase marketing reach.

Their bulls are developed in Buffalo at a feedlot prior to their sale, and this year, their replacement heifer calves are being developed there as well.

Challenges to success Because of their environ-­ ment, and because they lease much of their grazing land, Kim says, “Finding grass is a big challenge. We lease land, and it is very difficult, consid-­ ering the drought.”

Drought has made land resources more valuable and,

as a result, harder to obtain.

Water is also difficult to come by and keep during drought.

“We relied solely on methane water for the last five years on the places that we lease, and in the last year, that has tapered off,” Kim explains. “In some places, we are relying on windmills.”

Kale adds that they are working with landowners to get older wells going again,

and some methane companies have turned over their water wells.

Living on a ranch Despite the challenges in agriculture, Kale says, “This is a good place to raise a fam-­ ily, and it is what I’ve always wanted to do.”

Kim adds, “It is really great watching Galen, and it’s great that he has the opportu-­ nity to start at his age.”

Kim notes that Galen has

four registered cows, plus show steers currently. He also adds that he really enjoys showing.

“We’re working towards growing our operation, phas-­ ing out the commercial oper-­ ation and going strictly reg-­ istered,” says Kale. “That’s where we are headed.”

Saige Albert is managing editor of the Wyoming Live-­ stock Roundup and can be reached at saige@wylr.net.

Family operation – Kale, Galen and Kim Kretschman (from left to right) live on a cattle ranch between Spotted Horse and Gillette. They have both a commercial cow/calf herd and a registered Angus opera-­ tion. Saige Albert photo

B16

Wyoming Livestock Roundup