Hello all,
Yesterday was my first day branding!!! When we brand the calves, we also castrate the bulls, give them their vaccines and ear tag them at the same time. Angie and I traded off giving vaccines and ear tagging. Here are a few pictures before we started. We were going for the Charlie’s Angels look 😉
Love always,
Keili
Currently we have four orphaned calves that need mothers, which we bottle feed twice every day! I’ve gotten very efficient and figured out how to feed all 4 at one time by putting one bottle in each hand, one in between my knees and one in between my elbow and side. This worlds pretty well and the calves don’t have to fight over the bottles.
Love always,
Keili
Hey guys!
Lately, calving has slowed down and we have only gotten a few calves a day so we keep ourself busy with other chores on the ranch. I’ve learned how to drive a tractor, which we use to scoop up the manure and spread in a pasture!
Love always,
Keili
Hello all,
Things have been very busy on the ranch, so busy that I haven’t been able to keep up with my blog. About two weeks ago, our supervisor (Bob) told us that he had to return home to take care of his wife and to heal his back. This meant that all 3 of us interns would be diving in head first into what calving season in Montana is like!
Remember that first time your parents let you stay home alone, you were so excited but nervous at the same time? That’s exactly how we felt the first few days… We were excited to be trusted with such a huge responsibility of handling the entire calling barn ( including night shifts) but we certainly didn’t want to mess up, and oftentimes we weren’t quite sure what to do with ourselves on this big ranch.
For the first week, none of us got much sleep as we were trying to figure out our new schedules. At one point I was working 6 hrs on and 6 hours off on a rotation, which made figuring out my sleep schedule very difficult! Then we tried having one person do night shift, which wasn’t much fun either. Finally, we have figured out a schedule that works for everyone. We all work from 8 to 6 and then do two hour checks at night. My checks are at 9 pm and 3 am.
I cannot believe how much I have learned so far on this internship! Never would I have imagined that we would be managing the calving barn all by ourselves. I am amazed with how God continues to bless us everyday and the miracles we get to witness. Just a few days ago we ha a cow who didn’t want her calf. Every time we put the calf near her, she tried to Headbutt it. We wanted to see if she would calm down after a few days, so we kept putting her in the chute twice a day to let the calf nurse. Then after she dropped her placenta (afterbirth) we rubbed it over the calf so it would have the same scent. Literally as soon as we stuck the calf in the pen with her, she immediately began talking to it, licking it and letting it nurse. She seemed like a completely different cow!
I’m excited to see what other miracles I’ll be able to witness. We started out with 550 first time heifers and now we have 47 left to calve! These next 16 days will go by way too fast and I know I will cherish every second of them!
Love always,
Keili
Meet “Mad Cow”. We found her laying down one morning on the opposite side of the fence she should be on. She hurt her leg and can’t get up. We feed her every morning and give her a shot but she is always mad and wants to headbutt you. To give her a shot, I have to sit on her back so she doesn’t try to headbutt me. 🙂 Hopefully she will feel better soon and not be as mad 😉
Love always,
Keili (Zona)
Hello all!
Well we had another c-section and I got to assist the vet!! In case you dont know, we have to do c-sections when the calf is too big to deliver vaginally… In this case the calf ended up weighing 110 pounds! He was really big! It was a very cool experience and Scott (the vet) is really knowledgable, and tells us exactly what he is doing so we can learn.. It was a truly “hands-on” learning experience! My dad says I always wanted to learn about working on a cattle ranch and now I’m “elbows deep” in it… Literally! Here are some pictures of what I got to do… WARNING: they are pictures of the inside of a cow, so there is muscle tissue, skin and blood exposed.
Love always,
Keili (Zona)
always,
Hello!
Sorry it has taken me a while to update my blog… I’ve had issues with my Internet. But here is an update from my first week on Tranel Ranch.
This week has been filled with many firsts…
First time driving stick shift…. Ahhh!
First time living away from home…. Homesick!
First time pulling a calf…. Fun!
First time seeing a c-section… Super cool!!
First time chopping ice in the water tank… Freezing!
First time ear tagging… Ear piercing anyone?!
First time becoming a gate master… Montana gates are tricky!!!
Just a quick overview at what my first week on the ranch was like… I’ve now been here for 22 days and love it!! I’m learning something every day! 🙂
Love always,
Keili (Zona)
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Meet spot, aka #30139. He is the first calf I pulled by myself and it was love at first sight! Who couldn’t love such a cutie pie?
Love always,
Keili (Zona)
Hey y’all! Going to hit the hay early tonight! Had a great first full day but I’m pretty tired. Calved lots today, ear tagged and moved lots of cattle, had a great day and Bob ( who I’m shadowing) said I earned an A+ today! Wahoo!!
Love always,
Keili
Well Toto, we’re not in Kansas… Errr Arizona anymore. Today I flew into billings, MT around 12:30 and met the amazing Debbie from the ranch, she was so welcoming and I immediately felt at home. After some shopping and dropping off my luggage, we visited the calving barn (where I will be spending most of my time). Within two minutes of being there, we saw that two cows were calving and needed assistance so I got to watch Bob and Larry (wow… It’s like the veggie tale characters!) assist the cows. As the day went on, I saw several other calves born. It’s been a great day so far although it is a bit colder than Arizona 😉
I shipped all of my heavy duty clothes early so I didn’t have to bring them on the plane, but they haven’t arrived yet. Sooooo I was out working with cattle today in my miss me jeans( always fun!) I thought I would be able to wear my cool pink Carhartt I have been raving about… But it’s actually a kids size jacket…. Good thing I brought extra clothes! Other than those minor mishaps, today has been awesome and I can’t wait to get up at 5 AM tomorrow and learn so much (hopefully how to drie a stick shift because all of the farm trucks are manual). Everyone is super nice an very patient, I may be getting a nickname soon either pu-dah (little sh**) or Zona….. I think I like Zona more 😉 I hope I make Arizona proud though! I love you all and miss you much!
Love always,
Keili (aka Zona)
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