Karbon Kounty Moos

That’s as close as I get. No, not to her, but to having anything resembling good luck. After a morning full of delays - waiting for someone, I took off for Billings with the stock trailer yesterday. I had three old cows and three huge steers of my father-in-law’s to bring down to the yards. Sugar came along for the ride, which was relatively uneventful - on the way down. After I unloaded the cattle I discovered that I couldn’t close the trailer door. Hmmmm. . . one the helpful employees of Billings Live took the panel off and we put it in the trailer. I closed the middle gate behind it, wondering why I’d changed into clean boots and Levi’s. Where would I be without that ubitquitous orange twine?

It has saved me on several occasions. I always pick it up, being sure to have some in every vehicle. Along with gloves, sunglasses, tarp straps, toilet paper, blankets, dog hair, horse treats, knives and miscellaneous tools. When I drove through Silesia, an oncoming vehicle kicked up a stone that cracked my windshield. Between Edgar and Fromberg, the mailman pulled out right in front of me. Thank goodness the trailer was empty (not counting manure), because if I still had my fat load on it, I would not have been able to brake like I was forced to. Note to mailman: that little flashing light on the top of your car does not give you the right to pull out in front of everyone. Try looking first. At Fromberg, I stopped for a calming cup of coffee. It was either that or wait for the mailman.

Oh, what a surprise. More snow and wind. If you click on the photo you can view the lovely sheet of ice beneath the snow. It has been like this everywhere on the place since before Christmas. I’m on osteoporosis medication, and have to tread gingerly. How cold is it? I have my earflaps down.

I was in the feedlot, bedding down the steers and bulls. I had a bale of straw in the bucket and a bale on the spear. I dumped the bucket, to distract the boys from what I was doing at the rear of the tractor. Cattle get excited when you bring them straw, they start jumping and leaping, slamming their heads into the dry bedding. While they concentrated on the bale I had dropped, I worked on the speared bale. A large part of the bale was frozen solid, so I was having quite a time cutting and pulling the twine off. I knew that some of the cattle were banging into the other side of the bale as I worked, so I paid attention to that, too. From around the back of the bale came Bull #508. The photo below was taken eight months ago, he’s quite a bit larger and heavier now.

Uh-oh. . . He looked like he had on a halter. Except it was made out of orange baling twine. He must have buried his head in the bale that I had dropped, and got caught in it. It was wrapped around his muzzle and ears. It was tightly wrapped around his foreleg which he held off the ground up to his head. He had probably twenty pieces of uncut twine wrapped around him - taut. He had twine between his back toes, and around his legs. He was starting to freak out, and some of the other boys were taking an interest in his dilemma. They were playing - yes, heavy cattle do frolic - which can be fun to watch. But he was panicking. I was getting close to panic myself. Straw is not something you want to have to run on - it’s slick. I called Lynn on my cell, “You’re not going to believe this one, I’ve got a bull who is completely wrapped in twine. I’m in the bull pen. This is bad“. 508 ran as well as he could on three legs, with two bulls following and a bunch of steers. I watched and followed them. He went by the self-waterer, and then behind the bale. I half hid on the side of the bale and reached out with my knife. The twine was so tight it cut easily. As soon as he got his right leg back on the ground the rest loosened. I called Lynn, “I got him out.” Lynn came down to check on me anyway. By then I had all the straw spread and the twine picked up. Too much excitement to attempt any photos.

It shouldn’t be too long, though. I put the bulls in on the 20th of May. A cow’s gestation period is 283 days. There can be extremes either side of those days. I’m hoping that the girls start around the first week of March. According to the weather forecasts it should be warmer and drier then. We’ll see. . .

This little bull was born to one of Lynn’s first calf heifers.