The Kindest Dog

Cheino (Chee’no) stood in the yard looking and listening to the farm activity.
From the window Caron watched her one-year-old, white German Shepherd. She wondered if dogs could think or if they had feelings.

“Mom,” questioned ten-year-old Caron, “have you noticed how Cheino runs away from Dad? He seems afraid of men. Have you noticed the scars on his feet and his face? I wonder what happened to him before I bought him?”

“Yes, Caron,” replied her mother. “I have noticed. Do you remember last week when we went to pick up Cheino?”

“Oh, I remember it well,” answered Caron. “Cheino lived with a real nice lady on a big farm.”

“That’s right,” said her mother sadly. “The lady was very nice and she wanted to keep Cheino to play with her son, but she said that her husband didn’t like the dog. She said that it was best for Cheino to go where he would be loved. I’m afraid that Cheino was mistreated when he was a puppy and that it will take a long time for him to trust any man again. But if any man can gain Cheino’s trust and love, it will be your father.”

“I hope so. I don’t like to see my dog so afraid,” said Caron sympathetically. “Is it all right if I take David and Trena outside to play?”

“Sure, but keep them away from the chickens. I don’t want your little brother and sister hurt.”

As time went by and the children were playing, Caron forgot her mother’s warning. All of a sudden she heard the chickens squawking. She looked up, surprised to see four-year-old David chasing a chicken. She was amazed and proud to see that Cheino was carefully circling her brother and leading him back to safer territory.

“All right!” shouted Caron with a grin. “I bought myself a super dog.”

At that moment, Caron’s dad, Mr. Sprague, came home. Caron yelled, “Dad, hurry! Come see Cheino take care of David.”

But Cheino, having already protected David, chased the chickens farther way, which also put him farther away from the man.

“Dad,” said Caron, “call him. See if he will come to you.”

　

“I’ll try, but remember, Dear, we have had Cheino only a week. We will have to give him a lot more time before he will trust me.”

“Here Cheino, come here, boy, “ coaxed Mr. Sprague kindly.

Cheino stood there and looked at the man who wanted him to be his friend.

“Well, Caron, at least he didn’t run away, “ said her dad thoughtfully. “I wish that I could erase his past, but I can’t; so I’ll try to help him forget. It’s time for supper. Let’s go in and eat.”

As they sat around the table, Mrs. Sprague said, “I think tonight is the night for Antelope to have her babies. I think the poor goat is going to have a tough time. I want to be around when she delivers.”

“That is a good idea, Honey,” remarked her husband. “Your goats have been having twins and triplets. If Antelope has triplets, they may not survive. We’ll check on her before we go to bed.”

That night, just before bedtime, Mr. and Mrs. Sprague walked out to the barn to check on Antelope. All was well and the nanny was contentedly chewing on her hay.

“She looks fine, Dear,” said Mr. Sprague. “Let’s go to bed.”

But Mrs. Sprague was awakened at two a.m. by a scratching at the door.

“Honey, wake up. There is someone here.”

Together they went to the door. There stood Cheino looking toward the barn where they heard the bleating of the goat.

“Oh, no!” cried Mrs. Sprague. “It must be Antelope.”

They ran toward the barn. There lay Antelope in pain. Beside her lay one baby, but there would be more. An hour later Antelope had three kids. One was a runt.

“Guess we will have to bottle-feed that one,” chuckled Mr. Sprague. “The children will have a great time taking care of him. But now let’s go back to bed. Morning will be here soon.”

The next morning, Mrs. Sprague went out to see her goats. The runt wasn’t doing very well, so she put him in a box and brought him into the house.

“Mommy,” said five-year-old Trena, “May I feed Kiddo? He looks hungry.”

“Kiddo! Where did you come up with that name?” asked her mom, laughingly.

“You told me that a baby goat is called a kid. This one is so small, I thought he must be a kiddo.”

I guess our goat has a name,” said Mrs. Sprague. “Yes, you may feed Kiddo, Trena. Caron, will you let Cheino in the house? He is scratching on the door.”

Caron opened the door. “Come in Cheino, but why would you want in on this beautiful day?”

For an answer, Cheino walked over to the crying goat and began licking and nudging him with his nose.

“Look, Mom, “ said Caron. “My boy dog is acting like a mother.”

Cheino continued to mother Kiddo while Trena bottle-fed the goat. Between the two of them the baby was soon sleeping.

“Oh, Mom!“ cried Caron. “Isn’t Cheino the kindest dog you have ever seen?”

“Yes, Dear,” replied her mother thoughtfully. “I think we can learn from Cheino. He came to the house last night to get us, even though he is afraid of your dad. Today he has spent his time trying to make Kiddo happy. Cheino is a very kind and unselfish dog.”

“Daddy is home!” shouted David. “Let’s tell Daddy.”

As soon as Mr. Sprague entered the house, Cheino whined to be let out the back door. As Caron let him out, she wondered if he would ever trust her father.

Everyday Mr. Sprague tried to play with Cheino. At first Cheino stayed far away, but gradually he gained the trust he needed.

One bright day in May, Mr. Sprague got his hammer and nails and went to fix the door on the barn. He was working when the nail slipped and the hammer hit his thumb.

“Ouch! He yelled. “Oh that hurts, ouch!”

Mrs. Sprague and the children ran out to help. They stopped, pleased to see that once again Cheino was doing the mothering.

“Mom! Cried Caron. “Cheino is licking Dad’s hand.”

“Yes, I see,” said Mrs. Sprague smiling. “Cheino now loves and trusts your father.

(This story was written in 1991.  Cheino was a real dog that did love and care for the other animals.  He was very much afraid of my dad when we first got him, but eventually Cheino became my dad's loyal dog.)

What Does Christmas Mean to You?

This is a story that I wrote while in junior high.  

“What Does Christmas Mean To You?”

Marcy’s family belonged to a small country church, so instead of having a Christmas play each child was asked to answer a question about Christmas.

When the Sunday School teacher gave Marcy her question, she said “Marcy, you will find many answers to this question, but I want you to find the true meaning of Christmas.  I know you can do it, so don’t get discouraged.”

Marcy thought that of course Christmas means that it is time for Santa Claus to come. Or does it? Maybe it means something more.

Marcy thought about her question and decided to ask people what Christmas meant to them.  She would start tomorrow in school and write it all down so she wouldn’t forget a word.

The next day she asked Kristine, her best friend, what Christmas meant to her.  Kristine replied with a laugh, “It’s a time when Daddy spends so much money on us he starts complaining, but he always gives us what we want.”

During recess Marcy asked her teacher, Mrs. Gray; “What does Christmas mean to you?”

Mrs. Gray answered, “A time of hurrying.  I rush from place to place trying to find toys and gifts for the children.  If I can’t find it in one store, I rush to another.  What a relief when Christmas is over!”

Next Marcy asked Joey.  Joey’s family didn’t have much money even though his dad worked long, hard hours.

Joey smiled as he said, “Christmas is the one day Dad doesn’t work.  He stays home with Mom and us 10 kids.  It is so much fun to have him home that day as we hardly ever see him.”

That night Marcy went home discouraged. She thought. People don’t have the right meaning for Christmas. They aren’t really happy.  They even dread the thought of Christmas coming.  But then they all seem to think of themselves.  There must be some reason for having Christmas, otherwise why wouldn’t people just quit having it if they hate it so much.  Mr. Green, the policeman, should have a good meaning.  I’ll ask him tomorrow.

The next day Marcy found out Mr. Green didn’t have such a good answer after all.

“Christmas is when I decorate my house inside and outside.” He said, “ You like beautiful lights, don’t you, Marcy?”

“Yes,” she replied. “It makes everything so pretty.

“Well,” Mr. Green continued, “So do a lot of other people.  So I work hard to make my house pretty. That way I feel like I am helping to make some person happy or helping to make one person forget his or her troubles for a while.  It brightens their day.”

As Marcy walked on she thought:  He was at least thinking of someone else.  But do pretty lights really give happiness?  There must be something or someone to give happiness.

Then Marcy saw Mr. Miller coming toward her.  He was a manager of a department store. 

“Mr. Miller” she asked “What does Christmas mean to you?”

“Money” he said as he wrung his hands together. “Money! People are so careless with money at Christmas.  They buy a lot of things that that they don't want or need.  But I get rich at Christmas time so don’t tell this to anyone.”

Next Marcy met Mr. Molin, an insurance agent.  She decided to try once more.

“Mr. Molin” she sighed, “What does Christmas mean to you?”

 “Christmas” he frowned “is a time of worry.  People travel a lot during the holidays and we worry about accidents that will cost the company a lot of money.  An accident means quite a loss.”

Money, Money she thought, Money is even more important than human lives.  Is that why people are so unhappy?

As Marcy walked along she looked at the Christmas decorations.  Then she saw it. “Merry Xmas!”

Merry Xmas! What was missing?  It looked so short, but what was wrong.

When Marcy reached home she saw a letter that her brother, Jason, had written to her. Jason was attending a Bible College in Minnesota.   When she turned the envelope over she saw a Christmas seal, which said, “Keep Christ in Christmas.”

Then she knew what was wrong.  People were leaving Christ out of Christmas.  How could people really be happy without Christ?  They don’t only leave Him out of Christmas; they leave Him out of their lives completely.  No wonder Christmas is dreaded by so many.  They don’t have Christ.

She glanced at the letter and remembered that she hadn’t read it yet. 

 

Dear Sis,

 I won’t be home until Christmas Eve this year.  Don’t be disappointed.  I know you had a lot planned but something came up.  My roommate and I decided to get a group together from our Bible College and take Christmas to the slum area.  Marcy, they need Jesus, too!   You can help too!  Pray for us, Okay? It will really help.

 Be sure to tell the folks my plans. I’ll be home as soon as we are finished.  Don’t forget to pray.  If someone finds Jesus as their Savior, they will have a joyful Christmas and we will too! 

 

                              Your brother,

 

                               Jason

 

Christmas Eve, the night of the Christmas program drew quickly near, but Marcy wasn’t worried any more.  She knew what she was going to say.

When Christmas Eve finally came, she waited patiently for her turn.

Christmas seems to have quite a few meanings,” she said bravely.  “People think of money either gaining or losing it.  People think of pretty lights or of Christmas presents.  But the true meaning of Christmas is Christ.  It is the day that we celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ.  We should give Him something.  We should give ourselves to Jesus.  We should win others to Jesus.  Don’t think of us but of others. And keep Christ in Christmas.

After the service Jason took her aside and said, “Sis you did understand.  I’m glad you did.  I figured you were too young, only a second grader, and yet you understood that it is Christ and not Santa Claus that gives true happiness at Christmas.

 

BRRRRRR!

Life on the ranch is a little bit cold at the moment with the temperature reading a negative 13 and the wind blowing at various speeds from 15 - 30 MPH. 

 

We have truly been spoiled for the most part this winter.  On Monday, I walked on green grass around our trees and today I am walking on drifts of snow.

 

We as ranchers know the importance of snow in the winter months, but it does make feeding the livestock a little difficult.  It also makes it difficult for livestock and wildlife although we give them as much protection as possible.

 

Our deer and antelope numbers are down this year due to some harsh spring storms and I am sure the October blizzad that killed so many cows didn't help them at all.

 

Winter is a harsh but beautiful time of year.  The snow will melt in the spring and fill the reservoirs and provide moisture for the soil.  It gives us time to relax, read and work on things we don't have time for the rest of the year.

 

The Time of my Life

Today, I am going to share a few thoughts that I learned from our hunting trip to the Missouri Breaks.

The first thought that came to me while cruising around on the four-wheeler in an area that is bigger than our entire ranch was that I now understood how those South Dakota ranchers felt during the blizzard.  I know that most of South Dakota is not as rugged as the Missouri Breaks, but as I saw yearling cattle spread out all over this ranch, I knew that the rancher would have to take several days to gather them and bring them back home to their winter pasture approximately 20 miles.  The storm was tough on the SD ranchers and they are still dealing with their loss. 

My second thought was that even though I was away from family and friends, memories of them came with me.   First let me paraphrase a few comments because I can’t remember the exact words in each quote.

    1.   It was a successful hunt! I had a great time in the outdoors and came home without the added work of having to gut, skin and process an animal.

   2.    I knew that he had been here before, so I trusted his driving.

     

              3.  It isn’t the kill that makes the hunt successful, it is sharing time with a friend and enjoying the outdoors.

      4. It takes a community to raise a child.

      5.  “You hit it, I’ll git it!”

I have decided that when looking for deer or elk, it does take two drivers.  One to say, “Keep your eyes on the road!”

I did come up with a game plan for the next hunt.  I decided that next time I was going to take a lot of friends on my hunt.  Here is my plan:  KW (She who rides with elk) will bring her horse and ride around each creek bottom. (We watched a hunter do that.)  EW will be available to rope the horns the minute I shoot it so that MS the “You hit it, I’ll git it” man doesn’t have to carry the meat up those steep embankments.

In all seriousness, this was a very successful hunt for me.  Having lived away from the ranch for five years while teaching, I became very depressed my last year away.  I would have an anxiety attack with the first flake of snow that I saw thinking that I would not be able to make it home on the weekend.  I have always liked snow, but I was growing to hate it.  I didn’t want to be snowed out of the ranch and my commitment to my job made me feel obligated to not be snowed in at the ranch. Those feelings do not heal overnight or even in a year’s time.

Last year I did not put in for an elk tag.  I didn’t want to deal with the stress or anxiety.  This year I grudgingly applied telling the lady to make sure that I wasn’t drawn for the Missouri Breaks.  When the tag arrived in the mailed Chip was jubilant and I started to head back toward the edge of the pit of depression. I had decided that this was my last year to even apply for an elk hunt.

The last few months I was becoming agoraphobic to the point that I was going to mention it to my doctor when I go back in for a blood pressure test.  Chip would go to town, I would stay home. I was just happier if I never left the place.

Well, October 24^th arrived and the day was beautiful with a great forecast until Sunday evening.  Chip and I loaded up the camper and headed north.  I remember praying “Lord, please make this hunt easy!’ Then I realized that not everything in life is easy.  Building a relationship with someone is not always easy.  Continuing to build my relationship with God takes work on my part.  He is always there waiting, but I neglect to take time for Him.  So Chip and I discussed that.  It was about a five hour trip and I must admit that I did take a Lorazepam to help me through the day.  We reached our normal camp sight and set up camp.  (I needed some comfort zone.) We unloaded the four-wheeler and decided to look around for elk.

I had the time of my life.  (I do have to say that the 215+ miles that I walked around our deck since February sure helped me on this trip.) We walked over to a neat place where we could sit and just look for miles and miles. We walked up and down hills and the thought I had was now that I have a Garmin wristband, I need to walk up the hill to get our mail and then back home to prepare myself for the next hunt.

On Friday we took the four-wheeler and went west, then south and then we took the pickup and went into town for an appointment.  It was cancelled because the lady called in sick. So I said hello to one of my past students and we went back out to the campsite.  We sat by the camper and watched headlights coming toward us from all directions.

The only time that I was stressed was when I thought that I had to kill an elk.  I had a coveted tag, one that many people have put in for for years and have not been drawn.  I had received my second chance.  Then I would remember that I was having a successful hunt because I was truly enjoying myself with my husband. “It isn’t the kill that makes the hunt successful.”  I am planning on putting in again for an elk tag just so that I can spend time in that area again. The good news is that I can go with Chip on his archery hunt and I won’t even have to think about killing an elk.

I have learned to like snow again.  I have enjoyed being snowed in a few times on the ranch already this year.  Am I ready to be mudded in or snowed in up in the Missouri Breaks?  Probably not for more than a day or possibly two.  Besides, it was a little chilly up there between 5 A.M to 8 A.M.

The best times of the hunt were the discussions with my husband, the four-wheeler rides and enjoying all of God’s creations.

 

 

 

 



Memories of Bozette

Bozette

Spring of 2001

Springtime brings calving and lambing which is a real neat time. I love seeing all the little animals running around the ranch.  This year I ended up with a bum calf.  I didn’t pay much attention to it in the beginning.  I fed it and talked to it.  I thought that it was kind of dumb.  I called “him” Bozo.  After a few days, I decided that I should find out if it was a male or a female.  (My male bums go to market or in the freezer after they grow up, but the females I get to keep.)  I found out that Bozo was a Bozette.  She was not a healthy calf in the beginning.  In fact, we almost lost her. We called the vet, he gave us some ideas and now she is about 400 pounds.  She comes to the house for her bottle and then goes back to the shed.  Chip gives her the bottle and lets her chase it around the yard.  Unfortunately, Bozette hasn’t learned to bring it back yet.  Last night, I saw her coming to the yard. I ignored her and went downstairs to sew. In a while she was down at the basement window grazing.  After it was quite dark outside (Chip was at a sale) I heard this bawl.  After my heart stopped pounding, I shut off all the lights and turned on the yard light.  She was standing at the door with a sad look on her face waiting.  I finished what I was doing and went upstairs.  It didn’t take her long to come up to the kitchen door and start begging.  Since I didn’t know where she had left the bottle, I gave her the milk in an ice cream bucket.  She finally figured out that that was some pretty good stuff, but she still wanted her bottle.  She is quite spoiled!  We do need to wean her but…..

Bozette became very good at coming up to the house, butting her head on the side of the house to let me know that she wanted her bottle. After she drank her bottle, she would walk out of the yard and go back to grazing.  She drank from a bottle far longer than she should have.

One time while feeding her a bottle, she inhaled and the milk went down the wrong tube.  She did some swaying back and forth, but finally came out of the situation without going down on me.  I was a tad bit nervous.

June is always branding time.  I remember the year we put Chip’s brand R/D on Bozette.  She sulked for days and would have nothing to do with us.  It broke my heart as I laughed at her attitude.

Actually, I remember several times when she gave us that sulking attitude—the one that said, “I really am not a cow so please treat me more respectfully like a person.”

As I went through 10 years of Life on the Ranch notes, I realized that the fun stories of Bozette were in the first two years of her life.  I didn’t start saving my emails until 2003.

October 25, 2003

We did preg testing yesterday.  Yes, Bozette is to be a mother in April.  That is good!  With cattle prices the way they are, I don’t think I could have justified keeping her around another year if she wasn’t going to calve.

December 28, 2003

Chip and I went out to cake the cows the other day.  I called Bozette and she came up from the back of the group.  The next day I couldn’t find her.  I called and called.  Chip said, “Dru” and pointed at this cow by the back of the pickup.  Bozette was too busy eating cake out of the pickup to pay any attention to me.

February 29, 2004

Last night Chip went out and brought the sheep in and the cows followed. A couple of hours later Chip went back outside!  There were about thirty head of cows in the yard.  He said that they acted like little kids who had been caught doing something wrong.  They just frolicked out of the yard with grins on their faces.  That is all but one.  You guessed it!  Bozette thinks she owns the yard.  Chip went out to her and started petting her and talking to her.  He asked her if she was pregnant and ---she turned her head and gave him a great big, sloppy kiss with her tongue.  Later that night, I gave Chip a kiss on his cheek when I remembered Bozette.  I asked him if he had washed his face.  He said “No!”  He is a Montana rancher; your guess is as good as mine!

March 27, 2004

Bozette came wandering in yesterday.  Chip said that he set a trap for her.  She is now in the corral in front of the house so that we can watch her.  Yes, we will soon have a grand calf and Chip knows that this one has to live.  After the storm we heard her moo.  Believe it or not, Chip put on his shoes, grabbed a flashlight and went to check on her.

April 2, 2004

Just to let you all know that Bozette is the proud mother of a baby girl calf born on my mother’s birthday (today).  We can hear her talking to her calf constantly.  Yes, I have taken pictures.

Chip had an easy time pulling the calf.  He just walked up behind Bozette and pulled the calf.  The calf is all black.  I need ideas for names.  She may be a keeper as I’m sure she will be quite tame.

April 4, 2004

Watching Bozette and Rozette is a lot of fun.  Bozette is the typical new mother who is very protective of her child.  Rozette didn’t mind for the first 12 hours, but now she wants to be where the action is.  (They grow up so fast!) The action is right next to the hay feeder where she can get stepped on.  Bozette doesn’t like that at all.  The only thing that distracts Boze from Roze is cake.  Boze went running for it.  When Rozette found out she was alone, she went nuts and set up a howl.  Bozette went running back to see what the problem was but didn’t get too concerned when she saw us.  They are like a three-ring circus and they keep all three rings full at about the same time.

September 19, 2004

Bozette and Rozette were in the driveway to say good-bye to me on Tuesday.  Bozette knew that I didn’t have any cake to give her so she wasn’t real excited about seeing me.

November 28, 2004

I went with Chip to feed the calves this morning.  Tarzan was right there waiting for his more than fair share.  Rozette wasn’t too far behind.  Chip started the tractor and it wasn’t long before the cows headed our way.  You guessed it!  Bozette was the first in line. She came up to me and then to Chip wanting to know where her cake was.  They will all be down at the ranch within a couple of days as we left all of the gates open.  Chip vaccinated the calves yesterday as Floppy was looking a little ill.  Rozette didn’t appreciate the shot, but I guess she got over it.

December 26, 2004

Last Wednesday, I heard a cow in the yard.  I looked out to see a black cow by the corral gate looking at the water tank. I opened the door and said, “Bozette, is that you?”  She turned around and plodded over to the door.  She had one foot on the step when I decided that she was thinking about coming in for a visit.  I closed the door and she went another direction.  I am not afraid of her; I just respect her size and the fact that she doesn’t understand English all that well.

January 10, 2005

My sister sent a Santa hat for Bozette.  I tried to put it on her.  She would have nothing to do with it.  She didn’t like the elastic going around her neck.  She threw it off and all the other cows took a couple of steps away from it.  We quit before she got mad at us.  Chip said that Bozette is big enough to hurt us if she started to fight us.  I didn’t want to get her into that habit.

January 30^, 2006

Chip went over to feed this morning and I told him to bring back a real good story.  Bozette, Rozette and Big Red along with the rest of the cows have been wintering over across the road where we do our branding.  They should be back here to harass us next week, which means that I will have frozen cow pies to drive over every morning.  The little babies will be arriving in April.  Bozette will be having her third calf and Rozette will be having her first one.  They look about alike and definitely act alike.  Totally Spoiled!

February 2, 2006

Comparing Bozette to a soap opera:

The Bold and Beautiful:  I guess Bozette fits this category.  She is definitely bold when it comes to pushing her way into the middle of food.  Beautiful---For a cow, she is beautiful with a very spoiled personality.  She is also beautiful to me because she helps line my pocket book with cash.

April 2, 2006

(The second birthday of Rozette)

Bozette is a Grandma!  Rozette is a Mom.  Beautiful black calf!  We haven’t checked the gender.  We woke up to a pile of snow, which is almost gone at the moment.  Rozette went into the shed to have her calf.  Smart Cow!

April 3, 2006

Bozette is a mom again.  Rozette has another sibling.  Once again, we haven’t checked the gender.  All four are doing well.

May 21, 2006

Yesterday, I helped Chip feed which means that I drive.  We got to the center location of the cows and I stopped.  Just that quick I had a black cow at my window.  You guessed it, it was Bozette.  Then Chip said, “Well, Well who do we have here?” You are right again, it was Rozette at his window.

October 7, 2006

Thursday was a very foggy morning, but we went out to get the sheep in anyway.  They were a little difficult to find in the fog, but we managed.  Chip had the blue pickup and I had the red one. Things were going really well until all of a sudden I heard a bellow and looked behind me to see a cow charging after me.  I said to myself, “Bozette, is that you?” Her just as spoiled daughter, Rozette, quickly caught up to me and I quickly rolled up my window so that I didn’t have her head joining mine.  Getting kissed by a cow has never been one of my lifetime dreams.  I thought that she might want to help bring the sheep in, but she was definitely telling me that she hadn’t had any cake in a very long time and she wanted to know when she was going to get some.

October 30, 2006

We did preg testing this past week and Bozette and Rozette are still in the running.

April 10, 2007

Just to let you all know that Bozette gave birth to a black heifer this morning.  She was born with a pink ear tag in her ear.  Chip said that Bozette was out on the feed ground this morning when he brought the cows the hay.  All of a sudden she put up her tail and took off.  Those labor pains must come quickly for some of those cows.  No name has been picked at this point.

April 11, 2007

Bozette has come in a couple of times for cake or hay but she hasn’t brought her calf with her.  Just to let you know that Bozette is not a spring chicken or in this case a spring cow anymore.  She is now 6 years old, is starting to get old and won’t be with us forever. I am just warning you all that someday we will all mourn the loss of Bozette, but I am sure that she is a cow that will go down in history, at least the history of the ranch second only to big Red.  We still have a few years to enjoy her personality though.

November 11, 2007

Yesterday, we left the gate open to the hay bales while we were hunting.  When we came back the cows were in the field.  I got out of the pickup and Chip zipped around them.  I went to shoo one cow away from the bale.  She just kept circling the bale.  When I caught a glimpse of#55 on her ear tag, I knew what the problem was.  Bozette, the spoiled old thing, doesn’t think she has to live by the rules!

April 21, 2012

Chip came in from feeding hay and asked for my help.  He told me that Bozette had calved but he didn’t think the calf had sucked.  She gets really big teats, which is caused by having too much mild.  The calf can’t get her mouth around it.  Chip decided to give them time.

We decided to head to Miles City and give Bozette time.

We came back home and had to deal with Bozette.  She is as spoiled and crazy as ever. We put her calf in the back of the pickup and she followed us to the house. Chip was going to lure her out of the pasture with cake, but then he remembered #122 and stuck to the pickup idea. We got to one gate that I couldn’t open so I held the rope that held the calf when Jake decided to make an appearance.  Bozette let him know what she thought of that idea and put him back in the pickup.  I was standing by the pickup when she stampeded by me.

Chip was going to put her in the squeeze chute when he saw that it needed to be welded.  I picked it up with the tractor and we took it to the shop.  He welded it and drove it back.  We finally had it ready for Bozette just as it was getting dark.  We put her in the squeeze chute. This is the only cow that can be lured into the chute with cake. I was feeding her cake and Chip was milking her. All was going well until she lay down and wouldn’t or couldn’t get up.  Finally Chip loosened everything up and we took her into the shed as it began to rain.  I fed her cake while Chip got the calf to suck.

Bozette is 11 years old this year.  I don’t think she has too many teeth any more as I didn’t get bit, just gummed. She eats like a pig when it comes to cake.  She shouldn’t have it as it gives her more milk.

It is now 10 pm. The bums have been fed and Bozette and calf are locked up for the night.

March 30, 2013

Wednesday was an exciting day for me.  Chip’s first words as he looked out the kitchen window were “I think Bozette might calve today.”  That is all I needed to get my jacket and camera and head outside.  I took lots of pictures, a video, and put a mile on my Nike wristband waiting for the calf to be born.  The calf now wears a pink ear tag with the #55 in it. (Bozette, Rozette and ? all wear 55 tags.  Chip likes to humor me!) 

We are about half way finished with calving.  Chip stayed home from church last Sunday to babysit the heifers as it was a chilly day.  He almost messed up!  He watched Dr. Jeremiah and Dr. Stanley on T.V. before going out to check the heifers.  He found one chilled down and brought it in the house to warm it up.  Chip said that there was something wrong with the bones or joints so it took longer than normal to stand up.  Also a heifer isn’t always “Johnny on the spot” to start licking her calf to encourage it to get up.  I watched a brand new calf yesterday from the window and it seemed like forever before it even tried to stand up.  Bozette had her calf up in a few minutes.

The new mamas and their calves are out in the shelterbelt for now.  As I look out the kitchen window, every once in a while I can see a streak of black or two streaks of black run by the gate.  Calves are so cute to watch as they play with each other.

October 15, 2013

After the second snow of the season, we let the cows and sheep out of the shelter belt.  At the same time, Chip noticed Bozette coming down the lane to the gate.  He let her in the corral and put her in the horse barn.  He said that she was in very poor shape.

I went out to see her and talk to her.  I really feel that she had come home to die.  She lived in the horse barn when I first started to bottle feed her, almost died in the corral when she was a few months old, had given birth to several calves in that corral, and she knew that we would be there doing what we could to help her.

Chip and I handled her imminent death in different ways.  He did everything he could for her to bring her back on her feet including putting a blanket over her.  I spent two days crying for her, petting her and talking to her.  I am thankful that she came home to gracefully die.

 

 

Down Memory Lane

Terraville

This past Sunday, with my husband by my side, I mustered up my courage and we headed to the Terraville Reunion in Deadwood.  I had not seen the majority of these people since 1967 when we moved to Nevada Gulch just outside of Lead, SD.   Some of them had moved out of town before we did and then there were those who lived there before or after we did. It was not that I was afraid to meet these people; it was that sometimes I just don’t know what to talk about.

I found this reunion to be very exciting.  We all had one thing in common and that was Terraville.  One lady, who lived there before my family did, told me where she lived.  It took a minute for it to register and I said, “That is where I lived!” I am a little slow these days and I finally figured out that she lived there before we did, because I knew that no one lived there after we did.  We not only had the town and the house in common, we both remembered wonderful Christmases with the bay window.  (I came home and asked Chip if we could have a bay window!) We both had 4 siblings and remembered the yard and the outhouse.  Thankfully, we had indoor plumbing when we lived there. I asked her if she had left a poster behind called “Pharaoh’s Horses” and she did not remember it.  My brother and sister very carefully took the poster off the wall when Dad tore the house down.  I still have it!  Guess I will have to take it to the next reunion, which just may be where Terraville was located.

Special thanks go to Melody Shoop Helsing for preserving the history in photos and newspaper articles, and for the yearly planning of the reunion.

Someday there will be a reunion in Heaven. Thankfully, I don’t have to muster up courage to go there since I don’t know the day of my passing.  There will be a lot of people there that I haven’t met, but we will all have one thing in common and that is Jesus. I am sure that we will share our testimonies of how we came to know Christ as personal Savior and how He led us daily in our Christian lives.    We will have so much to talk about with all the saints of the past.

I am sure that many plans have been made for that special reunion in Heaven when “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ will rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.  Wherefore comfort one another with these words. ( I Thessalonians 4:16-18) 

Tears

Tears seem to be something that we all dread.  I, for one, hate tears, but I have an overabundance of them.   Do we dread them because they are there due to pain or that they make us appear weak?  I believe that tears are an unspoken language that the whole world can understand.  We understand tears by the actions of the person before the tears begin.

When a person laughs so hard that they cry, we know that the person thought something was funny.  If a person hits his thumb with a hammer and cries, we know that it was a very painful hit.  If a person hears sad news and the tears flow down his face, we know that the person is sad.  If we attend a funeral and do not know what words to say, a hand clasp, a hug and tears tell the person that we grieve with him or her.

So for those of us, who seem to have an abundance of emotions shown by tears, please don’t dread them.  God made us that way and tears can say just the right “words” to the person who sees them and wants to understand them.