It’s that time of year again. The favorite time of year for any ranch cowboy: Branding season.
It’s long. We start the first week of May and hope to end around the first of July. If the weather cooperates.
It’s hard. Very physically demanding. Wrestling fighting, kicking, calves, walking untold miles on uneven dirt surfaces, bending over thousands of times, and dealing with wind, rain, and heat, often all in the same day.
And it’s fun. Much like fly fishermen practicing “catch and release”. Roping is a skill. A passion. And a cowboy can’t get enough of it.
It’s also an opportunity to develop young horses and take them to the next level. Just about every situation they will ever encounter will take place during branding season. Gathering, sorting, pulling weight, ground activity, ropes, waspy calves on the ends of those ropes, and just good old wet saddle blankets.
The other monotonous procedures which are not so fun, are easier to put up with as long as a cowboy knows at some point he will get to give his feet a rest, and put his roping arm to work. Those family members who show up to help, and rarely, or never rope, are dedicated heroes who have my utmost appreciation.
Branding and associated tasks are a vital part of ranch management. The brand itself is very necessary. It’s a permanent, visible, mark of ownership.
A brand is a cow’s return address should she stray onto someone else’s range, or wander over the top of the unfenced mountain range into Idaho. Any cattle being sold or moved in the state of Montana are required by law to be brand inspected.
The entire branding process, from the time a calf is roped, to the time it's released to return to the herd, is about 60 seconds. Brands do not break the tough hide on a calf, in fact the hair grows back.
We branded close to 1,000 calves this week. When they are small, we rope them around the neck, and a team of wrestlers, or flankers, will hold the calf on the ground so the ground crew can safely perform their work.
We will probably start using nordforks before the next week is over. Nordforks are a simple u-shaped metal contraption, with a straight handle, attached to a stake in the ground by rope tied to several layers of innertube. It's a much simpler, safer way to brand larger calves.
Both hind feet are roped, and the calf is dragged to one of the open nordforks. A ground crew member drops the u-shaped collar over the back of the calf's neck while the roper continues forward momentum until the band attached to the stake becomes tight. The feet are held by the roper until it's time to turn the calf losse.
The method allows for a smaller crew, less injuries, and less stress on the calf as well as the crew. And after two months of grit, grime, rope, and smoke; anything to make the job a little easier is most welcome.
Both hind feet are roped, and the calf is dragged to one of the open nordforks. A ground crew member drops the u-shaped collar over the back of the calf's neck while the roper continues forward momentum until the band attached to the stake becomes tight. The feet are held by the roper until it's time to turn the calf losse.
The method allows for a smaller crew, less injuries, and less stress on the calf as well as the crew. And after two months of grit, grime, rope, and smoke; anything to make the job a little easier is most welcome.
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