Welcome to the Ranch!

Lane and Jake DeHaven are herding some of our grass fed calves to another pen.

Shauna Lewis, reporter from The Bryan Eagle, called me last week.  She interviewed me for about one hour over the telephone.  Ms. Lewis was very interested in our grass fed business and how the drought was effecting it.

If you read “Welcome to the Ranch” very often, then you know how much the drought has affected our ranch.  I was more than happy to share this information with Ms. Lewis as well as information about grass fed beef.

The opportunity to be interviewed for The Eagle came the same week of our interview with Dr. Ward Bond for his new show, Think Natural.  Last week was an amazing week for Cross Creek Cattle Company.  I am excited that we are getting media coverage for our business.  Most importantly, I am excited that we can educate others on grass fed beef.  Maybe more ranchers will make the switch.  Maybe more families will, too.

Check out the article, “Drought Can’t Keep Pasture-Raised Beef Market Down,” by Shauna Lewis in today’s Bryan Eagle.

Tuesday was an exciting day at Cross Creek Cattle Company.  Dr. Ward Bond, a nutritionist and television host, arrived with a small camera crew to spend a few hours at our ranch.  Dr. Bond is the host of Nutritional Living, a program that is in its sixth season, which is devoted to showcasing natural products and nutritional information.

A brand-new show, Think Natural, will begin on August 30th.  It will air on ABC’s Live Well Network in Houston, Texas.  Dr. Bond is doing an episode on grass fed beef.  We are honored that he chose our ranch to showcase.  He interviewed my father, Kenton Holliday, who is the owner of Cross Creek Cattle Company, as well as myself.  It was a pleasure to discuss what we do here on our ranch with a nutritionist.  Dr. Bond was well-versed in the health benefits of grass fed beef.

We also enjoyed taking our guests on a walk through our herd.  We showed them the free choice minerals that we mix from kelp meal, stocker salt, and diatomaceous earth.  The camera man was impressed with the condition of the calves that are in the finishing process.

It was also fun for us to invite them to lunch.  What did we serve?  Grass fed beef, of course.  My father grilled hamburger patties prepared simply to showcase the flavor of grass fed beef.  We also served salad and chips.  I think they really liked our beef since they went back for seconds.

The grass fed patties did not exhibit much shrinkage due to the fact that the meat is naturally so lean.  Cooking the patties at a lower temperature and for less time on each side insured that the patties were not dry.  We seasoned them with salt, pepper, and a little garlic powder.  If you don’t mind me saying, they really were delicious.

All in all, Tuesday was a great day for our family and our ranch.  Being able to help spread the word about grass fed beef is an honor.  I will let you know when Cross Creek Cattle Company will be featured on Think Natural.  I hope that you check it out as well as support Dr. Ward Bond as he tries to educate people on health, nutrition, and natural living.

Lane DeHaven, the ranch manager of Cross Creek Cattle Company, attended the 2011 Beef Cattle Short Course last week at Texas A&M University.  He had a great time and learned a lot.  Lane really enjoyed listening to Dr. Temple Grandin speak.  The audience must have enjoyed her speech as much as Lane since they gave her a standing ovation.

He also attended a session about the drought conditions in Texas.  Climatologists have been studying weather patterns for decades and recording the temperatures, rainfall, and other meteorological information.  I was astounded by their hypotheses for the future.  Personally, I knew that we were in the midst of a three year drought.  This year has been the worst.  Earlier this week I read an article from The Texas Tribune by Chris Hooks called, “State Climatologist: Drought Officially Worst on Record.”  It just states what is visible to the layman’s eye.  It is bad.

The unfortunate news is that it doesn’t look like it is going to get any better any time soon.  I kept looking for rain.  Thought like, “Maybe we would have a tropical storm to break the drought.  Maybe this fall would be cool and wet.  Next year would be better.  The drought could not continue, could it?” all circulated in my mind.  However according to these climatologists, this drought cycle will continue for 15 more years.

Are you still standing up or did you pass out?  The current drought cycle began in 1995.  I know that we have had rain since 1995, but we have also had some of our driest years.  Instead of this year being more wet since it is over the midway point, it has been the most severe in recorded history.  So the question is, have we hit the bottom or are we still on the downward slope?

No one seems to know.  Evelyn Browning-Garriss, the climatologist who spoke at the Short Course, writes The Browning Newsletter. You can download a sample copy at her website.  In her newsletter, she explains the climate change and its impact on Texas and the Southwest.  Colored diagrams, charts, and maps help you visualize the weather patterns.  If you are interested in trying to understand the why, then this newsletter would be valuable.

However if you are like myself, all you want to know is when is the drought going to be memory.  There is no answer except for a possible fifteen more years of dry conditions.

The forecast for this winter is unfortunate.  Climatologists are expecting an extremely cold and ironically wet winter in Texas.  Ms. Browning-Garriss was clear that the amount of rain would not come close to breaking the drought.  It would be just enough to make everyone miserable.

So what does a rancher do with this information?  Right now I do not have a definitive answer.  I am honestly still processing the information.  It is time to make hard decisions.  The one thing I do know is that Cross Creek Cattle Company is committed to ranching.  It is in our blood.  We cannot deny it regardless of the weather forecast.  However, we don’t know what the future holds.  At least we have expert opinions on what might be in store for us so we can plan accordingly.  I thought it was information worth sharing.

Dolly and my daughter, Kyla

You know it is hot when you look out on your porch at 6:00 p.m. and see that the temperature is 104 degrees.  Temperatures that high that late in the day are becoming the new normal this August.  Unfortunately, it it just the beginning of the hottest month of the year.

Most people know the warning signs for heat exhaustion or stroke in people.  Symptoms include excessive sweating, lightheadedness, nausea, and a bad headache.  If you ignore those warning signs, then you can quickly suffer a heat stroke.  Symptoms of a heat stroke are disorientation, rapid pulse, the absence of sweating, and/or difficulty breathing.  Staying hydrated is one of the best ways to combat the effects of such extreme heat.

Animals can also suffer heat exhaustion or stroke.  In fact despite all the water and shade we offer our livestock, one of our older horses, Dolly, gave us quite a scare last Saturday.  Most of my immediate family was not at the ranch.  We had gone to a home school convention and family conference.  My two youngest children were staying with their grandparents, the owners of Cross Creek Cattle Company.  As they looked across the pasture, Dolly laying on her side caught their attention.

Horses will sometimes lay down and sun.  They will also roll in dirt.  However, horses don’t usually lay down for an extended period of time.  If they do, it means that something is wrong.  A down horse is not good.  My dad walked out to inspect her.  Typically when nothing is wrong with the horse, it will get up if it hears you approaching.  Not Dolly.  She just laid there.  This was alarming.

My dad enlisted the help of his wife and together they began trying to get Dolly up.  My dad was literally rocking her body, but she continued to lay there.  She was lethargic.  They wanted to try and cool her off with water, but they had to go home to get the supplies they needed.  On their way back, they immediately noticed that Dolly had gotten herself up.

She was staggering like a drunken mare to the barn.  My dad put a halter on her and led her to a shade tree.  He began spraying her down with cool well water.  I have heard of horses going in to shock by cooling them down too quickly.  Start spraying water at the hooves and work your way up the legs.  Then douse their body and neck.

Dolly stayed in her stall the rest of the day and night with a fan on her.  She has major anxiety when she is separated from the other horses so they stalled all the horse earlier than usual that evening.  The next morning she was back to her normal self; however, I noticed that she stayed in the shade the entire day unlike the other horses who would periodically graze in the open pasture.

We are lucky that Dolly rebounded so well from her bout with heat exhaustion.  It reminds us that despite the safeguards you provide, the safety and health of your livestock is not guaranteed.  Just like infants, the elderly, athletes, and people who physically exert themselves outside are the most susceptible to suffering from a heat-related illness, young and old horses are the most susceptible.  In addition, ones that are physically exerting themselves are more likely to show symptoms of heat exhaustion. If you want to read more on the subject, “Heat Stress in Cattle–Know the Warning Signs!” by Kevin Gould, is a good article.

As the high temperatures continue and possibly grow worse this month, keep your personal safety and the safety of your livestock in mind.  Stay hydrated and stay in the shade as much as possible.  When you have to physically exert yourself, do it in the early morning or late evening if at all possible.  Twelve individuals have died in Dallas already this summer; this is not a laughing matter.