Remuda on the move.
Yesterday morning entertainment and exercise.
Just before daybreak, while getting my second cup, I looked out into my fall pasture noticed my bunch of loose horses and mules were not visible. I grabbed my binoculars off the counter and stepped onto the deck and began scanning in the predawn light
Found them in the subdivision to the south, Oh #%&@, all hands on deck, called SIL on his way to work to come assist, wife jumped in truck with trailer, me astride the 4 whlr.
Got them pushed into the open area of a cul de sac lot. They were buzzed up and refused to be caught except for one 23 YO mule and a 22 Yo gelding. Normally they will all fight to get on the trailer first, not this time they were too excited.
We we’re able to push them back through four properties and yards, through a worked field and back to their pasture. Took us nearly two hours pushing them easy to avoid tearing up yards as much as possible.
Found where they pushed or got pushed through the fence and got that repaired and stretched.
They are happy campers this morning.
Not sure if our local mountain lion made its monthly pass through or a moose. Either or, I am pretty sure it was my 1800# Percheron mares that initially took the fence down as they are big chickenshits, over deer, moose, luckily no one was cut so none the worse for wear.
One homeowner who came out to talk had them on security camera at 03:30 going through her yard and was really good about it.
I told her that I wouldn’t charge her for aerating her yard and if any sprinkler heads were broken, that I would fix.
How did your day start yesterday LOL.
Never a dull moment owning livestock.
Mule
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Growing up we had Herefords, then Hereford/Angus mix. At least once or twice a year one would find a tree down on a fence or push its way through.
Walked the gravel road many times with a whip or switch herding them home.
Yesterday started with a sleep in on a chilly morning. 😆
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Well a man has to have something to do.
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I believe Houdini learned every thing he knew about escaping from watching calves.
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Spent a large portion of my early life around critters. Always something with those things it seems. Glad you got everybody rounded up, mule.
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The only good thing about livestock is the taste.
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Glad you were able to get it all sorted and that the affected parties were kind and not upset.
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Heh, heh, heh, ,,,,,,,,, 😉
David, my mules bonded (as usual) with an old cutting horse mare and you couldn’t drive her off the place. Thus, ol’ long ears were always within a short distance away. However, taking the mare to the vet caused a chorus of loud ‘brays’ until she returned home. 🙄
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Not your first rodeo
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forgemonkey: 30632337061915/comments/30632355206939
Heh, heh, heh, ,,,,,,,,, 😉
David, my mules bonded (as usual) with an old cutting horse mare and you couldn’t drive her off the place. Thus, ol’ long ears were always within a short distance away. However, taking the mare to the vet caused a chorus of loud ‘brays’ until she returned home. 🙄
My mules do similar and follow my blue bell mare to hell and back, but I think when the big girls went through the fence, they just played follow the leader.
You know the drill. Something scared you you so I’m scared too ! LOL.
I just feel dang fortunate that nobody got wire cut.
Mule
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Worst thing at night right after you go to bed. Phone rings and a voice says, "your cows are out"
I have been stomped, kicked, bitten, shat on, you name it in my younger years. Thought my name was "go check the fence".
No live stock for me unless it is medium rare and on a plate and plate is not necessary.
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Nice to get a 2am call from the neighbor half a mile away telling me my horse is on her back porch eating the cat food. Seems everything likes cat food. When I went a got him there was a couple of coons and a possum hanging out at the edge of the yard.
I'm glad I had a good corral to put them in so I could go back to bed and check the fence the next day.
One day I caught up three horses that happened by and put them in my corral. They could be seen from the road. About mid day a man from about 5 miles away stopped and claimed them. We rode some together after that, he was fairly nice guy.
BTW, be careful teaching a mule to jump a fence over your coat. Turns our some forget about the coat.
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A friend got a call that one of his Santa Gertrudis bulls was out on the interstate charging cars! LOL He saddled up and went out to discover the bull was really stirred up, and refused to be driven back toward his pasture. The state police had stopped all traffic, and it was piling up fast. David finally gave up and pulled out a S&W 357 and shot the bull in the forehead, which only stunned him. But it calmed him down and he sauntered back to the fence and easily went home, where he lived happily for several more years with his girlfriends. I told David that he had given the bull a lobotomy!
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Glad that worked out. At least they didn't pull a Yantis on him..
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Back in the '60's Dad and Grandad decided to pasture off some winter wheat so they bought a load of "Baldy Black" (Herford/ Angus cross, black body with white faces) calves and put them in the corral to get them settled from the truck ride before turning them into the wheat field.
That night dad got a call from the Highway Patrol. Several had gotten onto US60, a newly paved 4-lane highway about two miles away. It was so new the lines weren't painted yet. Seems a HP Sergeant in his new cruiser was headed for the scene and thought he saw something ahead, flicked his high beams on and the black calf that had been headed away from him spun around and decided to charge him. Totaled cruiser, but not radio.
At daylight they were scattered for a three mile radius. They had gone through a good, tight 5-wire barb-wire fence with solid posts so we knew they were spooked bad. After rounding up the live ones they started gathering up the dead ones.
Found several with the membrane between their nostrils torn so they knew it was dogs, not coyotes. Since there was proof of animal predation and the fences were above the expected quality there were no charges.
Six of them ended up on the Santa Fe tracks and were hit by a train.
Carcasses were gathered up and buried near the tracks and, since SF will pay for any livestock that accidentally gets on the tracks (to avoid having to fence and maintain how many miles of fence and gates???) dad filed a claim for the calves.
Lawyers did their thing and drug the claim out until mid-summer when the judge had had enough and ordered them to pay up. They tried one last stall tactic, hoping dad would give up. They wanted him to dig the calves up so they could count them.
Judge would have none of it and they had to pay.
What they didn't notice was that in February the calves were kinda scrawny, but by the time they had wasted dad's time, etc those calves had steadily gained weight and were pretty good sized so buying them by the pound got fairly expensive
If the judge noticed or suspected the weight gain he didn't say anything, they'd wasted enough of his time too.😉
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Too bad a 'subdivision' was involved.
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