If at first you don't succeed, try again. Last fall we weaned our two calves for two weeks. Then, threw them back in the herd. I knew there was a bit of a risk in doing that so soon, but you never know until you try. Turns out, two weeks of separation isn't always enough time to fully wean.
Long story short, I caught the black calf nursing the red cow two weeks ago. Knowing the only way to get them fully weaned was to separate them until summer, Peter and I set up a catch pen and got to work.
With the wind blowing hard from the north, the horses wanted nothing to do with being caught. So we grabbed Jack's steal horse and gathered them up.
It was a race against the clock, as that norther was coming in strong and fast.
The cows went right the pen. And we cut out what we didn't need.
Then jumped smokey and blacky into the trailer, and headed for Worland.
We'll just feed them over here for the next few months. It'll give Dad something to do and Mom something to keep an eye on.
A netted round bale of grass should do them good for a long time.
So we kicked them out.
Have fun.
Unconventional ranching has its ups and downs. Running freshly weaned calves back in with the rest of the herd may sound good in principle, but doesn't necessarily work in reality. In time, we'll get everything back together. But for now, Red cow needs to focus on her new calf to come. And, black calf needs to learn how to live on her own. Ranch on!
