Horsewright
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2011
- Messages
- 13,265
Last week, my wife and I were invited to help a neighboring ranch (couple of ranches down from ours) brand. A branding is the processing of young calves usually 2-3 months old. This work in our area is done traditionally and traditionals were used. Saddle up, kick back and see how traditional folders are used in this world. When we brand soon the invitation will be extended to most of these guys. Ranch neighbors always help the neighbors.
My son works for another neighboring ranch so he too was invited. This is him coming out with the first calf of the morning. While there are many ways of catching and processing calves, on this ranch they ride in and rope the hind legs. The debate goes on and on whether heading and heeling (as we do on our ranch) or just heeling like here is the most gentle and easiest on the calves. The reality is if you have good ropers either way works fine. If you have poor ropers either way can be tough on the cattle. These little guys are our livelihood we try to be as gentle as we possibly can with them.
As the horse brings out the calf the rope is grabbed by one of the guys. This allows the rider to turn around and get shorter on the rope and hold the calves hind legs off the ground. This prevents the calf from struggling. One guy will kneel on the calve's neck and hold the left front leg up towards his chest. This further restrains the calf and allows him to be given the required injections, ear tags, branding and if a bull calf, castration.
Administering some of the shots. Three injections and one that is squirted up the nostril were administered.
Castration:
After the first incision the knife is held in the teeth while the testicles and cords are worked out;
After that is done another quick slice to separate everything:
A quick spray of disinfectant and this bull calf is now a steer.
Burn him with the iron and this calf is done:
The ropers were divided into five groups of 4 to 5 each. Each group rode into the branding pen and did three drafts of 20 calves each. Then a new group of ropers rode in and the others joined the ground crew. More knife shots.
This knife shown above is a Boker. Missing the shield though. This is the owner and he has one of my small damascus fixed blades but "its too nice" so he keeps it in the truck.
My son had finished roping and was now part of the ground crew. He had one of my folding knife pouches on:
He was carrying a Case trapper:
Rick had one of my small damascus fixed blades on in one of my cross draw pancake sheaths:
Rick roping another calf. Notice how the rope is wrapped around the hind legs so that the calf steps into it:
The branding pot. Propane powered, its in the back of a trailer attached to a pick up. We worked the calves on either side of the truck. The pot had four branding irons in it keeping hot and sometimes we had four calves at the fire at once.
Another calf getting worked:
Moore Maker trapper this time:
Another buckaroo pouch. I didn't make this one. However I did make Dave's leggings. These are an old Californio style of chap called armitas.
Tree Brand trapper this time:
Once a group of twenty calves were done we'd let them back out with their mothers to keep down the stress. We also try to work as quickly as possible to keep down the stress. Honestly a calf objects more to the restraint than to the branding , shots or castration. So sometimes it seems like a calf is having everything done to it at once but this is on purpose. There is a guy in the smoke castrating too:
Oops one almost got away:
The wife giving some shots. She's got her little dammy fixed blade on.
"The Drop" Never did catch it in mid air but sometimes the knife would just be dropped from the mouth to the hand for the second cut.
OK. I now stand corrected. In a recent post about trappers and what are the spey blades used for I'd mentioned that I'd never seen a spey blade used for castration. I have now seen one. However this young man used it ever time he cut. Moore Maker again:
The horses are always a big help of course:
Ear tagging one and then the iron. Rule of thumb keep the iron on until the smoke changes color.
Cutting another:
Filling the syringes:
A new draft coming in. The boss counting bull calves and heifers:
Green grass and lots of calves. Good for a man's soul.
The drop again. Gotta be faster on the button:
Another Case I believe:
Jake is holding one down:
Ground crew ready:
By lunchtime we'd processed all 292 calves in this batch.
Thanks for taking a look at our lifestyle. Hope ya enjoyed this little tour of a traditional branding on a cattle ranch here in California and seeing traditional knives in action. Any questions or comments are welcome. Question of that day was "Dave when ya gonna start making folders?"
My son works for another neighboring ranch so he too was invited. This is him coming out with the first calf of the morning. While there are many ways of catching and processing calves, on this ranch they ride in and rope the hind legs. The debate goes on and on whether heading and heeling (as we do on our ranch) or just heeling like here is the most gentle and easiest on the calves. The reality is if you have good ropers either way works fine. If you have poor ropers either way can be tough on the cattle. These little guys are our livelihood we try to be as gentle as we possibly can with them.
As the horse brings out the calf the rope is grabbed by one of the guys. This allows the rider to turn around and get shorter on the rope and hold the calves hind legs off the ground. This prevents the calf from struggling. One guy will kneel on the calve's neck and hold the left front leg up towards his chest. This further restrains the calf and allows him to be given the required injections, ear tags, branding and if a bull calf, castration.
Administering some of the shots. Three injections and one that is squirted up the nostril were administered.
Castration:
After the first incision the knife is held in the teeth while the testicles and cords are worked out;
After that is done another quick slice to separate everything:
A quick spray of disinfectant and this bull calf is now a steer.
Burn him with the iron and this calf is done:
The ropers were divided into five groups of 4 to 5 each. Each group rode into the branding pen and did three drafts of 20 calves each. Then a new group of ropers rode in and the others joined the ground crew. More knife shots.
This knife shown above is a Boker. Missing the shield though. This is the owner and he has one of my small damascus fixed blades but "its too nice" so he keeps it in the truck.
My son had finished roping and was now part of the ground crew. He had one of my folding knife pouches on:
He was carrying a Case trapper:
Rick had one of my small damascus fixed blades on in one of my cross draw pancake sheaths:
Rick roping another calf. Notice how the rope is wrapped around the hind legs so that the calf steps into it:
The branding pot. Propane powered, its in the back of a trailer attached to a pick up. We worked the calves on either side of the truck. The pot had four branding irons in it keeping hot and sometimes we had four calves at the fire at once.
Another calf getting worked:
Moore Maker trapper this time:
Another buckaroo pouch. I didn't make this one. However I did make Dave's leggings. These are an old Californio style of chap called armitas.
Tree Brand trapper this time:
Once a group of twenty calves were done we'd let them back out with their mothers to keep down the stress. We also try to work as quickly as possible to keep down the stress. Honestly a calf objects more to the restraint than to the branding , shots or castration. So sometimes it seems like a calf is having everything done to it at once but this is on purpose. There is a guy in the smoke castrating too:
Oops one almost got away:
The wife giving some shots. She's got her little dammy fixed blade on.
"The Drop" Never did catch it in mid air but sometimes the knife would just be dropped from the mouth to the hand for the second cut.
OK. I now stand corrected. In a recent post about trappers and what are the spey blades used for I'd mentioned that I'd never seen a spey blade used for castration. I have now seen one. However this young man used it ever time he cut. Moore Maker again:
The horses are always a big help of course:
Ear tagging one and then the iron. Rule of thumb keep the iron on until the smoke changes color.
Cutting another:
Filling the syringes:
A new draft coming in. The boss counting bull calves and heifers:
Green grass and lots of calves. Good for a man's soul.
The drop again. Gotta be faster on the button:
Another Case I believe:
Jake is holding one down:
Ground crew ready:
By lunchtime we'd processed all 292 calves in this batch.
Thanks for taking a look at our lifestyle. Hope ya enjoyed this little tour of a traditional branding on a cattle ranch here in California and seeing traditional knives in action. Any questions or comments are welcome. Question of that day was "Dave when ya gonna start making folders?"
