January 2019

I'm writing this on January 68th...this is the month that would seemingly never end. The New Year around here is always brought in close to home.  We start our calving season as close to the 1st of January as possible.  It doesn't work for everyone but we are able to provide good shelter for cows calving in the sometimes-harsh Wisconsin winter.  All of the cows that calve that time of year are either pregnant to an artificial breeding or are a recipient carrying an embryo so we have a really good idea of when a cow is going to calve that time of year based on a breeding date and of course, our visual observations of how her body is changing as she gets closer to her expected due date.

Res Champion Junior Pen of 3 Heifers

In among calving cows heavy duty in January, our annual trek to Denver occurs early in the month which is filled with lots of preparation with the cattle we take and lots of preparation of our equipment; much of which is only used for this one event. And then we have to pack all this up and travel 1000 miles!  It is challenging, hard on the people and sometimes even exhausting but is incredibly rewarding.  We feel so blessed to be able to live out this dream of ours.  This year marked the beginning of the end of "The Yards" in Denver where the facility will be going through a major renovation.  I think this topic deserves more attention than a paragraph so I will write more on this experience in a later post.  Long story short, we had another amazing year with our cattle and crew.

New babies and their mommas

Upon returning from the mild weather of Denver, the upper Midwest slipped into an arctic abyss and pretty much stayed there the latter portion of the month.  We received about 18" of snow in the last few weeks followed quickly by subzero temps lovingly referred to as the Polar Vortex.  We spent the days leading up to the final 10" snowfall and -50F wind chills piling some hay for an additional windbreak for cows that had already calved and consolidating some groups of cattle so that feeding could be more efficient during this time.  All of the new babies, 28 in total by the end of the month, were snuggled into straw and were remarkably resilient.  This weather is hardest on the young and the old just like it is with humans.  Less fat on their bodies and physically not being able to regulate their body temps makes these temperatures a real challenge but with the right tools (like clean straw and a roof over their heads) they are pretty tough cookies.  We got 4 calves (thank God it was only 4) during a 5 day stretch of below zero temps which conveniently came staggered apart enough that we were able to accommodate them all at various times in an insulated room.  We are able to watch the cows close to calving on a camera system from anywhere on our phones which allows us to be right there when we need to be.  You gotta love technology, right?!

Frosty, but what you can't see is that she
is chewing her cud!
She is surprisingly happy!

I think back on this month with a lot of gratitude.  There were a lot of things that went right but some challenges too that we had to work through for the sake of the cattle.  In the moments we are living those challenges, I can't say that I ever think about the time it takes or the conditions you sometimes have to work in.  Even the sometimes less than desirable outcomes or circumstances we face generally don’t cross my mind at the time.  I mostly feel determined.  I never feel like I need credit and I think most all farmers feel the same way.  They don't need a thank you or an atta boy to go out at 2:30 in the morning when its -29F to warm a new born baby.  They don't need a well done for thawing a frozen water source.  Farmers and ranchers are going to keep on doing what is best for their land and their livestock because it is the right thing to do.  It is a priority.  And when the work has slowed and we get to reflect on the opportunity we have to live this life we have chosen, well, that is enough for me.  And I'm going to get up and do it all again tomorrow.