October is a month which starts with glorious colors as the leaves drop their summer green and segue into the yellows, reds and browns of a brief, glorious orgy. Now, as the month winds its way down toward Halloween, tans and greys prevail, as the trees stand bare and the fields lay fallow. In the last couple of days, we have had wet welcome snow. The growing season is long past, but after this record dry year, moisture is a miracle, and we hope a portent of things to come.
It is also a season of endings. After the burst of life that comes forth with the births of new lambs and calves, it is now shipping time. The lambs are being loaded onto trucks, destined for the feedlot in South Dakota, and the calves have been sold. Both will be fed until they are the right size to be slaughtered for food. We have also retained ewe lambs, which will become our replacement ewes next year, and sold replacement heifer calves, which will become someone’s cows. We also have replacement heifer calves, destined to become our future cows. Soon, all this season’s babies will be gone, or at least weaned, and we will go into our winter season with the animals who stay.
lambs in front f the cow barn
Pepe at the sorting chute
lambs
Edgar and Richar pushing the short term ewes up. They go to Iowa.
Edgar, Meghan, Filomeno and Richar at the loading chute
Filomeno working the chute
Meghan risking all to load the truck
Tiarnan and Pepe greet Maria
Cows, watching the calves being loaded
calves, bound for the feedlot
Ned inspecting the sold replacement heifers
heifer loading crew: Meghan, Dan, Gaylon, Eamon, Ned, Marley
Abby is hitching a ride toward Massachusetts on Dan’s truck
Ladder Ranch
