From the Barns: Taste of winter

A little taste of winter weather has reminded us to get antifreeze checked in the vehicles and winterize all the water tanks. Absentmindedness leads to packing gallons of hot water all over the feedyard and applying it to blocks of ice in less than pleasant conditions; might want to check the forecast for overnight lows!

We always have manure to haul somewhere but this time of year it is more of a recreational pursuit and a nice warm cab to hide out in, especially when a cold wind blows across the prairie.

Doctor Alan was by the other day to preg check the heifers so we could get the opens in the lot and on feed. We always breed a big bunch of heifers and we cull a lot of cows off the other end so we have been keeping just about every black heifer available knowing that the small ones won’t breed but at least they get to grow up out on grass and be a bigger feeder come fall. We will get to preg checking the cow herds as time and weather allow.

Retired Banker Bob, his wife Kathy, Linda, and I share a pile of grandkids, they are all very sports minded so we travel together to lots of contests all year long but more so in the (seems-to-never-end) basketball season. We are now conducting our annual school district quality popcorn analysis and contest and will announce the winner at a date sometime in the spring when the basketball season finally concludes.

My new nemesis at the ranch and more so at our house are the flies that have invaded our home. Researching these pests, I have learned that they are a result of having improved soils and a healthy earthworm population. I did not see that one coming! I am employing a number of eradication methods and have killed lots of flies, but I feel drastically outnumbered. The most annoying part of these pests is their relentless attack on my cell phone as I lie in bed doing my late-night Christmas shopping on Amazon. Yet another of life’s mysteries.

We cleared the decks at the feedyard when fats got to $1.90 and have been busy replacing them with new feeders that had stacked up around the country. We will need all the feeding equipment up and running come Christmas morning if when intend to get to dinner on time! The guys have been offering all the cow groups some supplemental feed as the pastures are done in for the year and the cornstalks are pretty well grazed out, too. A little feed does make the cows a little friendlier and makes gathering a simpler task when we want to work a set of calves.

Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is just around the corner, the election is now history and the political ads have vanished from the television. There is a lot to be thankful for. We wish each of you a blessed Christmas and a prosperous New Year.