Quarterly Corral–Cow Collars, Drought, and Change, Oh My!

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Hello my friends!

Time goes faster the older you get. My mom used to say this and I remember thinking that was the strangest comment, but now I understand it with full clarity. Life gets fuller the older you get and that’s a good thing, but boy does the time fly!

WHAT IS THE QUARTERLY CORRAL?

I’m going to aim this year for quarterly updates, thus the name Quarterly Corral. In between, I’ll be writing in the faith sphere on Substack, so feel free to find me there. I’d love to connect with you. I also have a website for my kidlit work that you’re welcome to check out if that appeals to you.

As for the ranch, life has been interesting the past few months!

COLLARS

We implemented virtual fencing this fall with our cattle herds. A group of Montana State students came out to work with us and learn as well. We love working with students.

We chose to use Halter for our collars, and they’ve been great. There are three towers on the ranch to work between collars and cell phones. We can now create virtual fencing with an app on a phone. It didn’t take the cows long to respect the collars. The collars buzz or pulse when cows get close to a boundary, and they don’t cross that boundary. It takes about 12 minutes to implement new pasture fences.

This doesn’t mean that the phone does everything. The cattle need to be checked. They still are guided when moving big distances. Boundary lines can be adjusted and they’ll often gravitate to new pastures if it’s close by, but cattle moves still happen. However, the collars can be used during moves–you can set them so the cattle move down an invisible lane.

The cows don’t seem to mind their new necklaces. Many tossed their heads for about 10 seconds after coming out of the chute with their new collar, but that was it. We did put collars on the heifers, which we check regularly as they continue to grow. We don’t want them to get tight. A few have lost their collars, but not many.

It’s been a learning curve with software–mostly for my hubby since it’s on his phone–but it’s been an interesting process to see the cattle adapt. It’s also been great to graze pastures along the river bottom where fencing is difficult, but grass is plentiful. The river usually gorges each winter and takes out fences, but this winter has been too warm.

DROUGHT

As for us personally, the drought has impacted our leased land. Irrigation options were decreased. Here it is the beginning of February and we don’t have snow. With only one dusting all winter so far, we are praying for precipitation. Even now, the drought impacted us and we sold our personal herd. It’s a good time to sell, prices are up, but it’s weird to have them gone. The ranch where we live and work is also downsizing this month to accommodate for drought. Here we are feeding our girls one last time before they got on the truck…

CHANGE

This past Christmas season we spent some time with each of our kids, which is always great. We love spending time with them. Our oldest is in her 3rd year of vet school at Kansas State, our middle one is in the process of moving to Texas, and our youngest one proposed to his girlfriend, so we’ll be gaining a daughter-in-love in August! Phew! I’m so thankful that the Lord is working in their lives and leading them to places and situations that He has for them.

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?

Feel free to drop me a line if you ever have questions or comments. I love connecting with you!

Share Your Story!

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You never know what someone else may see in your life.

Replacement heifers are curious, just like students!

Well, it’s been more than a hot minute since I’ve posted. It isn’t because I lacked the words or the desire, but I lacked the heart. Why are my words needed? What can I say that hasn’t already been said? In a world with so much to read, what can I offer that is different from everyone else? Plus, life is full, isn’t it? Everyone’s life is busy.

The rancher’s life is busy, even when it’s not. What do I mean by that? We are on call, all the time. If a car drives through our fence, we need to go put the fence back up. (Yes, the driver was okay.) If a fishermen leaves a gate open, we go put the cows back. If…you get the idea. Many of you are living it, too.

There’s never a shortage of things to do in agriculture. This isn’t said as a complaint, just a statement. It means that it’s easy to let things like blogging go because you’re living life.

But something profound happened yesterday that has me seeing life a bit differently. I went to a meeting on a college campus where my husband was speaking to a group of ranching students. I went because I knew a couple kids and my husband was speaking–I did not intend to come back changed.

Yet these kids asked engaging questions. I got to speak to some of them. And you know what? So many of them are in our boots: starting out as first generation ranchers.

In other professions, if you’re the first in your family to become a doctor or a lawyer, you’re efforts are celebrated. In agriculture, people are more likely to ask, “Why would you want to do that?” Yet, I’ll tell you what: the room was packed with smart, tenacious, hard-working students ready to start down the trail. Even though none of them were my actual kids, I felt the pride of a mother. My momma’s heart celebrates them and their desires.

Over 25 years ago, we started out as first generation ranchers. We expected to be land owners with a huge ranch by now. Ha! While that hasn’t happened yet, our path and our story applied to so many of them. We shared a lot of what to do and what not to do. Here are some highlights:

  • Be professional. Show up clean and speak clearly. Just because it’s agriculture doesn’t mean you show up with manure on your boots.
  • Value all people–even if you don’t agree with them. Their viewpoints expand your perceptions.
  • Take every opportunity you can. Volunteer to help at events. Join groups. Rub elbows with guest speakers and ask a lot of questions.
  • Do small tasks with excellence. If your mucking out a barn, do it well.
  • Follow passion, but add education. Work for others and learn.
  • Take care of your possessions. You may have the oldest truck in the world, but you can keep it clean.
  • Be proud to be first generation.

The reality is, agriculture takes grit and brains. You won’t make it long in agriculture if you can’t make sure your output is greater than your input. This requires annual planning and spreadsheets galore, while having boots on the ground. It means weathering storms and unpredictable events.

Sometimes, that’s easier said than done, but building a community helps. We need each other. Seeing these kids’ hearts and hopes and a room full of kids wanting to get into the industry shifted my perspective. Maybe my life story is messy, but it just may help someone else.

I don’t know where your life has brought you, but I encourage you to share your story. You may not think it’s much, but there’s a generation that needs to hear it.

Calving Season

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I’ve been contemplating, ruminating, & pondering life this week. Do you ever have phases like that? Seasons where life feels deep? Not because it’s bad—it’s not. I’m truly grateful for each day that God gives me breath in my lungs. 

It’s more like: there’s a yearning for more. A longing for growth. An awareness of a “not yet, but someday moment.” As a deep thinker and feeler, sometimes I miss what’s right in front of me because I’m stuck inside my head. 

So this week, I’ve tried to pay attention to small wonders. They are frequent & everywhere—mighty miracles masked in ordinary rhythms. Sunsets. Raindrops slashing against concrete. The taste of fresh berries. The slurp of a baby calf. 

Right now is calving season. The newborns are frolicking through fields & playing hide-and-seek.

As most of you know, it’s possible when twins are born for the mom not to claim both. We had that happen recently. Mom only claimed one—leaving us with a bottle calf. 

The last couple days, I’ve had the chance to bottle feed. The calf is so excited to see you, they dance to the bottle & head butt you when it’s empty. 

The miracle of life is so grand & yet so simple. Eat, play, love. Watching a baby animal reminds me of the importance of the ordinary. The mighty miracles masked in the ordinary: Food. Shelter. Snuggles. 

When life feels weighty, maybe it’s a reminder to stand in awe of the basics. The kid stuff. The simplicity. We are so fortunate to have each day that we are given—and all the miracles saturating every moment. 

What mighty miracles do you notice in your every day life?

GETTING INTO THE CATTLE BUSINESS

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Having cattle is a business, but it is also a lifestyle. You don’t clock a 9-5 and head home. You’re on call all the time. You live where you work. You work where you live. And you have to learn to relax and play so you don’t go crazy.

My most recent article in Progressive Cattleman included a questionnaire. Have you ever seen the questions asked to see if you’re ready to have kids? It goes something like this…

  1. How do you handle vomit and poop?
  2. Do you value Friday and Saturday nights out on the town?
  3. Can you step on a building block and not cry?
  4. Do you handle finances responsibly? Do you have room in your budget?
  5. Do you know how to hold a baby?
  6. Are your houseplants dying?

The idea is to get people thinking about how their lives will change once they have a child. These quizzes make me laugh because there really isn’t anything that can prepare you for it.

The same is true for owning cattle. You can be prepared as much as possible, but you’ll still find some surprises. To check out the entire article, please click HERE.

Owning cattle is hard and rewarding. Just like parenting.

There’s poop involved. Just like parenting.

And the hours are unpredictable. Just like parenting.

While there are obvious and major differences between owning cattle and parenting–the adage stands: You don’t know what you don’t know…

Until you do it.

Ultimately, if you’re interested in learning about cattle, do it. Read, study, but most importantly, spend time around people who have cattle and be teachable. One of the most annoying things about people starting anything is pretending to know everything when they don’t know much at all. It’s okay to have a starting point. Just be willing to learn and grow from it.

The agriculture industry needs newcomers. We want others to join us. So come!

The End and The Beginning

On By Marci WhitehurstIn My Blog2 Comments
Sometimes the changing of the year feels like a fence–it separates, but the view isn’t totally different from one side or the other.

Hi Friends,

New Years is a time to reflect on how the past year went and what we are looking forward to in the coming year.

But I don’t want to do that.

Maybe that sounds childish, but the past year was intense. I had goals that were “oh-so-close,” but slipped away like a calf under a fence. I had goals that I accomplished.

I follow a lot of people who are posting year-end reviews about their accomplishments and all that God did this year–and I think these are awesome! I applaud my friends’ efforts and I truly am excited for them. Honest.

I just don’t want to count everything that did or didn’t happen this year because it would look something like this:

Year End Review:

  • Got dressed and got moving every day. Except when I was sick, which was more than in previous years, but has been better in the last 6 weeks.
  • Fed my family.
  • Prayed.
  • Slept. Sort-of because my sleep health isn’t ideal–yet.
  • Worked.
  • Prayed.
  • Held a hurting child–who hurt for a very long time.
  • Watched that same child become herself again.
  • Prayed.
  • Read my Bible.
  • Survived a very palatable AI week! (So much better than last year’s AI week!)
  • Had a lovely year of weather–a fair amount of rain and very little smoke in the summer. Although, the winter of 2023 set records for low temps and high snow fall. The ranch bought a snow blower to get in and out of houses and feed cows.
  • Coached high schoolers–this is so rewarding as well as exhausting!
  • Prayed.
  • Wrote. I wrote a lot. Books, magazine articles, and journal entries. Some of it may one day see the light of day. Some of it definitely won’t.
  • Moved cows.
  • Helped my hubby.
  • Sold calves and enjoyed the market.
  • Survived, thrived, and also survived some more.

I can’t put this year into a cute little list of accomplishments, but I can be ever so grateful for the progress–on the ranch, at the school, and in my writing. What I can do is share this:

Next year, I want to live. As in live fully alive.

I’ve been asking the Lord what my take away is from this year and what to look for going into next year and this is what I feel: 2023 drained me. Nothing life altering or terrible happened, but I just feel wiped out. With my schedule and the ranch’s, there is never a “down time” or a “slow season.” My work schedule ramps up when things are a little slower on the ranch. This worked for several years, but it isn’t sustainable. And if sustainability needs to happen in our fields, then it needs to happen in our lives.

So here are the 2 things I know going into 2024:

  1. I’ll not be continuing my job at the school after the first part of February. (Don’t worry, the school is aware, so if anyone stumbles across this, it isn’t a surprise.)
  2. The word for 2024 for me is LIVE. By living, I need to adjust my rhythms for work so that I can be present in the moment. Awake. Listening. Looking for awe and wonder because so much of the past few years turned into surviving instead of thriving–and God wants us to thrive.

I don’t mean this as a downer what-so-ever, but rather a wake-up call to shift my life patterns and habits. Anyone else feeling drained after this year? Here’s a New Year’s prayer for us all:

Father,

Thank you for endings and beginnings. Thank you for holding time in Your hands and carrying our hearts next to Yours. Forgive us for becoming busy with things that didn’t matter and for feeling anxious over things You had in Your control. Cleanse us from the residue of the past year and thank you for the many blessings of 2023! Fuel us for a new beginning. Reignite passions that You want us to have and give us resources to accomplish all You have for us. Thank you that You are hope and peace and joy. We delight ourselves in You and Your Word. Let us see the world through Your lens and let us help others with the blessings You’ve given us. We look forward to all You have for us in 2024. We open our hands to receive from You–thank you for fresh starts!!

Amen.

Healing, Take Two

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I love the feedback and comments on the blog–thank you so much to everyone who reads and engages. Agriculture is a road that works well when walked together! Please feel free to reach out with your own stories. I love hearing from you.

Some of you reached out after my hubby had a bad break in his wrist and had to have surgery, so I’m giving an update: he had surgery again.

The past 15 months have been full of physical therapy and limited motion. He’s still been working–you can’t keep a good man down! Unfortunately, the expected progress didn’t happen, so the surgical team went back in and removed the hardware and fixed some ligaments. Guess what?

He’s in less pain now than he was going into surgery!

In fact, he woke up from surgery asking for barbeque and coffee, so we know he’ll be okay.

God always has a way of working things out, even when it doesn’t seem like anything is happening. It’s amazing what happens under the surface.

Pain is tough though. Many people live with pain day in and day out. I hope that if that’s you, there is relief in sight.

Why Did the Cattle Cross the Road?

On By Marci WhitehurstIn My Blog2 Comments

Because we asked them to.

Does anyone else have to cross roads to get cattle from one pasture to the next?

We don’t have to do it daily, but often enough that we have cattle crossing signs we put up when we cross cattle because we have to move them across a highway.

Yes, a highway.

A busy highway that many semi’s use and tourists use to get to West Yellowstone and Yellowstone National Park.

Usually we duck them across in a couple minutes. The cows are used to it and they shuffled across the highway, barely lifting their heads for the tourists who are taking their picture.

I’m a traffic blocker. My job is to get the flow of traffic to stop. The crew gathers the cattle at the gate. I open the gate and rush into the highway with a truck or side-by-side and flags, stopping cars from hitting our crew and the cows.

Most folks are pretty kind. I know we all have places to be and we are slowing their travel down, so I’m truly grateful when the first vehicle that stops gives a friendly wave and waits.

There are those cars, though. The ones that duck and weave past us and scatter cattle because they just can’t bother to be stopped.

My favorite lately are the semis. If the semi is the first to stop, they are big enough that everyone stops without question. The drivers this summer have waved and been so patient as the riders duck a couple hundred cattle across the highway and into the gate across the road.

Agriculture is full of unknowns and uncertainty–crossing the road is no different. However, we sure are grateful for patient drivers.

We’ve seen a lot of cell phones and cameras this summer as the cattle moved along–so if you saw us, please feel free to share you pictures here. Our hope is that what you saw gave you appreciation for the agricultural industry as a whole. It’s our goal to model good practices and stewardship that help the industry. We are all in this together.

Some summer highlights:

We moved our oldest across the nation for veterinary school. (We are excited for her, but miss her.)

We attended some weddings and celebrations.

The crew moved cattle, ran irrigation, fix/built fence, etc.

We finished AI the first week of July.

We spent time with family–including our middle daughter who is at college.

Summer is full of busyness with seasonal work on the ranch!

NEW ADVENTURES

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The last month has been a whirlwind!!

We finally saw the sun about four weeks ago after a winter to end all winters! We had snow through the end of April. We were beginning to wonder if Montana would ever get above 30 degrees again.

Then bam! Here came warm temps and the spring works were underway. Plus, we calve in April and May. Then there are track meets, school programs, and this year–our oldest daughter graduated from Montana State University and will be headed to Kansas for veterinary school.

It’s a new adventure for her–she doesn’t know anyone in her new hometown, but God led her there, so He will be providing friendships. She has friends about 4 hours away, so I imagine on long weekends, she’ll skip over to see them.

Really, it’s a new adventure for us as well. We’ve been in the zone of raising a family and a herd, so we’ve been excited to see new parts of the country. And let me just say–the parts of Kansas we’ve seen are beautiful. Granted, I love my mountains and the flats seem to go on and on when you’re driving cross country, but the rolling green hills and the sunsets–well, it’s quite exquisite. We prayed for the drought to end as we traveled across the miles–and on our way home, the rain began to pour. I sure hope it continues and spreads across Oklahoma, Missouri, and beyond.

Anyone else experiencing new adventures? Spring is a time for rebirth–so may blessings abound as we consider the new mercies of every day.

Cross Country Cattle Drive

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Before you look at the title and think we crossed multiple states horseback, check out the picture. Let me tell you something: skis were involved.

I know the proper way to move cattle by most cowboy standards is horseback.

However, sometimes, a little ingenuity is needed.

Here’s what happened:

It was spring break. Our daughter was home visiting. We decided to throw on our cross country skis and make a loop in the field.

We knew that the guys were bringing the cattle up from a lower pasture, but after getting fed all winter, we thought they’d follow the hay into the pasture. They often do, but sometimes there are stragglers. You know the cows. They are like the kids that draw in the dirt during baseball practice (also one of my kids). They meander. They come…eventually.

Our daughter and I saw the gap between the front and the stragglers was growing as we skimmed across freshly fallen snow and frozen cow pies. The obvious thing to do was to help out–on skis!

Before you write me off as some weirdo, let me just say it was fun. It worked. We got to help move cows and we got to ski!! Win, win!

If you’ve never done it before, I’d highly recommend it.

However, since it supposed to be spring, I hope that you get the chance next winter!!

**As you can tell, sometimes we use a side-by-side for a moving pastures. I also enjoy 4 wheelers and side-by-sides. Horses are amazing, but we are thankful for options!

AN UPDATE

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Grazy Days

Last time I wrote, my husband had just broken bones and had surgery. What most of you want to know is:

Is he a good patient?

In the past, I would’ve grimaced and struggled to spit out a congenial answer. Today, I’m happy to report that he is a good patient.

Yes, there were days when pride frustrated him because he couldn’t saddle his own horse. (Of course he still rode–is that even a question? He’s a good rider on a horse that shares his personality, so it worked out.) He wanted to lift something heavy or pick up a shovel, but couldn’t because he’d reinjure his arm. However, he didn’t complain about pain. He wanted it healed in two days, but he followed the doctor’s orders so he would heal in due time.

He had his follow-up x-ray last week and the break is healed! He still has to work on mobility because of damage to ligaments and tendons, but he’s been using his hand and he’s happy.

We are also pleased to report that fall works went well last week–the calves are vaccinated and gaining nicely. The weather has been beautiful–no snow! It’s so nice to give shots and keep records without also trying to manage gloves. If you’ve done this before, you know that gloves can slow down the process. It was the calves first time through the chute and a few were tentative, but for the most part, they did well. There’s always that one that tries to turn around…

The cows are grazing in front of the house now and it is always a gift to drive home and see them in the field. There’s something about happy cows on good pasture that warms the heart.