Believe it or not, Mycha’s calf Myco, who was born on range, is almost two months old and it is time to think about castration, branding, and vaccination for the little guy. To this end, Madi and I brought Mycha and Myco off range to El Potrero on Wednesday.

Madi and I had spent a lot of time ahead of time exploring different strategies depending on where we found the cows. Walking the trails together and preparing for various scenarios gave us flexibility and confidence on moving day. The cows themselves made the first part easy, as they showed up at the Fenceline Drinker about 5 minutes after we arrived looking for them!  Wow. Good cows. A highlight of the day was that Madi walked the herd from the Fenceline Drinker Wash to the Lower Drinker on the main cow trail by herself.  Great to see her animal-handling skills and confidence blossoming!

We were met at the corral at the Lower Drinker by Tom T. and Trevor, and this was where the fun started. We learned some lessons about how well the corral is set up to handle a calf. Mycha, of course, hopped right in the trailer where the hay was, but the calf wanted to go every which way but in!  Only our last-minute, Pat-Corbett-style, makeshift fix constructed out of an old tarp and the spare tire off the trailer wedged into a gaping hole made the transfer from pen to trailer possible at all, along with some quick saves at the floppy barbed-wire fence, and Tom’s persistent calm presence inside the pen.  A make-over to this corral is definitely on the To Do List… 

Once in the trailer, though, all went smoothly and the two are settled in at El Potrero.  Whew!!