Welcome to the Ranch!

It is calving season on Cross Creek Cattle Company.  Through many years of experience, we prefer to have our calves born in the winter.  First of all in our area, winters are generally mild.  Even this year with its many nights of hard freezes and two days of snow, it is still a relatively mild winter compared with other regions of the United States.

When a calf is born in the coolness of our winter weather, its mother cleans it up quickly.  The calf is very anxious to warm itself; therefore, it nurses vigorously.  One of the most important things for a calf to do is nurse within the first four hours of its birth.  The first milk is not milk just like in humans.  It is colostrum; however, a calf will die quickly of illness if it does not receive enough colostrum at the onset of its life.

Colostrum is full of antibodies that prove critical to the calf’s health and well-being.  Unfortunately without it, the calf will die.  In humans, colostrum is important, but it is not a matter of life and death.

Temperatures soar in the summer to well above 100 degrees.  When a calf is born in the summer, the temperature is usually very similar to the temperature in the womb.  On extremely hot days, newborn calves grow listless.  They do not feel the urge to get up and begin nursing.  It is just too hot.  When this happens, we try to intervene.  We tube the calf with store-bought colostrum.  If possible, we milk its mother and tube it that colostrum.  We do what we can, but we prefer the winter when less intervention is needed.

Another reason that we prefer to have calving season in the winter is because fire ants are not a problem.  In the heat of the summer, fire ants build mounds along the surface of the ground.  The tunnels underground reach far and wide under the soil housing millions of ants.  Usually the summer is our driest season.  Therefore, ants will be searching for water and food all along the ground.

When fire ants bite you, it hurts.  A tiny amount of poison irritates your skin.  If you are allergic, it can be life-threatening.  If you are not allergic, too many bites can make you sick or kill you without proper medical attention.  Unfortunately, fire ants have been known to kill calves.  We have not lost a calf to fire ants, but neighboring ranches have.

Soon, I will tell you about the one time we almost lost a calf to fire ants.  Today, I thought I would leave you with pictures of some of our calves.  So far we have had more heifers than bulls.  I just love how cute baby calves are.

A cow and her calf sunning on a warm, February day.

Another cow and calf pair.

A small group of calves.

Angus in the snow.

I could not believe the weather forecast early this week.  Meteorologists were predicting snow.  They were not just saying that there was a chance of snow, but they were predicting anywhere from 2-6 inches of accumulated snow.  It was hard to believe.

We already received snow on December 4th, which was the earliest recorded snowfall in our area.  Then not too long ago, we awoke to find a light dusting of snow had fallen overnight.  This winter has been one of the coldest winters in over the last decade.  We don’t know what to think.

It began raining mid-morning on Tuesday.  Before we knew it, the temperatures began falling and so did sleet.  About 1:30, the first flakes intermingled with the rain and sleet.  It was a real messy mix of precipitation.

The view from the dam.

I decided to stay home instead of traveling to College Station to drop my children off at violin lessons and dance class.  I am glad that I did.  The rain and sleet dissipated as the snow fell heavily.  I have not seen snow like this since my family skied in Colorado.  It was amazing.

Something magical happens when it snows.  There is silence as everything seems to quietly enjoy the beauty of the fallen snow.  Our horses did not mind the snow.  They were dressed warmly in their horse blankets.  I think that they enjoyed the change in scenery.

The cows stayed in the woods.  They enjoyed staying under the natural cover of the evergreen branches.  By the end of the night even the pine trees were covered with snow as if someone lightly flocked them.

The deer were moving at dusk as usual.  Watching a herd of seven does cross the county road, leap across our fence line, and amble across one of our pastures was a beautiful sight.  My husband saw a grey fox earlier that morning in the same pasture.  Our family takes great pleasure in co-existing with wildlife.

Cross Creek Cattle Company is a great place to live any time of the year.  Each season brings about different activities.  Because snow is such an uncommon occurrence here, we tried to enjoy it as much as possible.  The inscription on the James Farley Post Office in New York reads, “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers of the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”

The ranch could have a similar motto, too.  Regardless of the weather, a rancher must take care of the animals.  The herd has to be checked.  The horses need to be fed.  Hay has to be put out to both in the winter.  Ranchers never get the day off.  There is always something that needs to be done.  It just goes with the territory.

The other day I stumbled upon a HBO movie called “Temple Grandin.”  It is based on a true story.  Claire Danes stars in the movie as Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who changes the way most cattle businesses treat cattle.  From sale barns to slaughter houses, Dr. Temple Grandin challenged them to rethink how they worked with cattle.

It was an intriguing movie.  I enjoyed watching it.  Most likely, Claire Danes will be nominated for some award because her performance was outstanding.  If you are interested, the movie trailer is below.  You get to see and hear from Dr. Grandin herself.

As much as I liked the movie, this article is not meant to be a review of the movie.  I wanted to discuss Dr. Grandin and cattle handling techniques.

Dr. Temple Grandin is a professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University.  She is autistic, which she believes allows her to see things differently.  Most importantly, she is a keen observer of animal behavior.  She spent years researching cattle in particular.  Dr. Grandin also designs livestock handling facilities, which incorporate all of her research and years of experience.

As a child raised on a working cattle ranch, I already knew the proper techniques of livestock handling because that was how I was taught.  It was how my daddy ranched.  It was the only way we ever worked with our cattle.  Our herd is our livelihood.  You don’t mistreat your livelihood if you want to stay in business.  I only learned recently that our ways were based on Dr. Grandin’s research.  My dad knew a lot about her, her research, and had read many of her articles.

Why would the way that Cross Creek Cattle Company handles their cattle affect you?  It is simple.  Research shows that livestock handling and stress directly affect the meat quality.  When gentle handling and low-stress techniques are employed, there is good meat quality.  This idea is expounded upon in a lengthy article called “The Relationship Between Good Handling/Stunning and Meat Quality of Beef, Pork, and Lamb.”  Four experts co-wrote this article, one of which was Dr. Grandin.

I think that it is fair to say that Dr. Temple Grandin has made a tremendous impact in the cattle industry.  She has also indirectly affected consumers of meat products with her research.  At the end of the movie, it stated that 80% of all cattle handling facilities in the United States employ Dr. Grandin’s techniques of low-stress management and gentle handling.  She has played a large and important role in our lives.

If you are interested in raising grass fed beef, the book, Grass-Fed Cattle by Julius Ruechel is a great resource.  The author spends a good portion of time discussing proper cattle handling techniques.  He introduced me to terms like flight zone and low-stress handling.  I had no idea at the time that these techniques were based on Dr. Grandin’s research.  To me, they were just common sense ways to work with cows.

I am glad to know about Dr. Temple Grandin and her work.  Even though I grew up on a ranch using her techniques, it feels good to know that her research was the reason.  So thank you, Dr. Temple Grandin.  Thank you for working so hard for humane and respectful practices to be used in the cattle industry.

And if you get a chance to see the movie, I recommend it.  I thought it was fascinating.

Kids of Cross Creek Cattle Company

Most people do not live in rural areas anymore.  A complete switch has taken place.  More people now live in urban areas.  Living in the country has its advantages.  It also has disadvantages.  Like everything in life, you have to weigh both.

My five children have lived on Cross Creek Cattle Company for most if not all of their lives.  They have chores that most kids their age do not have.  They take turns milking our goats.  They feed our chickens, sheep, goats, rabbits, dogs, and cats.  They can grow and harvest vegetables.  They can catch and clean a fish.  They can work cattle.  Depending on their ages, my children are either quite experienced in these areas or they are in training.

All of them are raised to avoid cow patties as they stroll through the pasture.  They know to watch for snakes.  They know where the barbed wire fences are even if the sun makes the wires seem invisible.  They can identify poison ivy regardless of the season.

When people visit the ranch, they are quickly given a crash course in the potential hazards.  Likewise when we travel to urban areas, my children receive a much different training.  Don’t talk to strangers.  Look both ways before crossing the street.

I thought it would be interesting to hear from my children today.  I asked each of them, “What is your favorite thing about living on a ranch?”  The following are their answers.

Clayton said, “I love hunting deer in December.”  He is a great shot.  Clayton also loves observing the plentiful wildlife throughout the year.  Watching the deer is his favorite.

China Berry tree in autumn.

Kyla said, “I love watching the colors change on the leaves.”  About the only trees that change from green to brilliant color are the China Berry trees.  She went on to say that she loves being able to observe God’s creation everyday.

Jake responded, “I love being able to work with the horses all the time.”  He loves horses.  He even writes his own blog about horses called Cross Creek Horsemanship.

Isaac said, “Riding horses!”  He sure loves to ride.

Andrew is too little to answer, but he also loves to ride a horse.  My guess is that he enjoys tractor rides even more.

Well, the kids have spoken.  They love living on Cross Creek Cattle Company.  And, they have different reasons.  I love the fact that they are growing up on a working ranch.  They have so many opportunities to learn skills and enjoy the outdoors.  Living in a rural area has its perks.

Kenton Holliday

This week the owner of Cross Creek Cattle Company celebrates his birthday.  If it was not for Kenton Holliday, our grass fed beef customers would have to buy beef elsewhere.  4-Hers and members of FFA would have to look for winning show heifers in other places.  My immediate family would live and work somewhere else.  I don’t know about you, but I am grateful that Kenton was born.

Kenton Holliday is living his dream.  As a young boy, he wanted to be a cowboy when he grew up.  This dream never faded.  Instead as Kenton grew closer and closer to his grandfather, the desire only strengthened.  His grandfather was a great man and played a big role in Kenton’s life.

Kenton’s grandfather was born in the late 1800’s and was raised in the Texas Hill Country.  Being a cowboy was second-nature to him.  He began riding horses and working cows as soon as he was physically able.  And, he was a natural.  When duty called during World War I, the United States government ironically put him to work as an infantryman.  He was never even considered to be part of the cavalry.

After the war, he returned to Texas and settled near Houston with his wife.  Together they raised three boys on their working farm.  Many years later Kenton was born.  Kenton is the oldest child of four.  Anytime his family visited the grandparents, he spent the majority of his time with his grandfather.  They had a very special bond.

Kenton learned to shoot guns, to ride and train horses, to grow vegetables, to raise animals, and countless other skills.  His desire to be a rancher and cowboy continued as he went to college.  He graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in Farm and Ranch Management.

Sadly both his grandparents died.  Kenton was starting his own family at the time and moved into his grandparents farmhouse.  After my brother and I were born, Kenton began teaching us the same skills he had acquired from his grandfather.  We tended a humongous vegetable garden, trained horses, raised livestock, etc.

Kenton bought some land in Grimes County.  From this parcel of land, Cross Creek Cattle Company was created.  As real estate became available, Kenton expanded the ranch.  He switched from crossbred cattle to raising the Beefmaster breed.  He left “traditional” ranching.  He goes against the norm by not feeding his herd grain or by giving his cattle antibiotics, hormones, etc.  Like our ancestors, he believes that cattle do best on grass as nature intended.

Under his guidance, Cross Creek Cattle Company offers grass fed beef to the public.  Our business is growing as word of mouth spreads.  Kenton is a rancher and a cowboy in the 21st century.  Through hard work and perseverance, he built and grew a successful cattle ranch.  He never let his dream of becoming a rancher die.

So, here is to Kenton Holliday.  And, here is to following your heart and making your dream come true.  From everyone at Cross Creek Cattle Company, have a very Happy Birthday!!

Yesterday I received a text message from my aunt.  It said, “Can you say global warming?”  As most of you are experiencing, an artic cold front is making about 60% of the mainland United States experience freezing temperatures.  The temperature outside is dropping steadily.  It is already well below freezing with a chance of sleet today and snow flurries tomorrow.  Temperatures are expected to be well below freezing for at least 48 hours.  We are not used to this kind of winter weather.

If we are not used to it, then neither are our animals.  We took extra special precautions yesterday by rounding up horse blankets.  Stores all over the area were selling them like hotcakes.  I personally had to call three different stores and have them hold blankets for us until one of us could make it to town.  Using our fingers to do the walking worked.  We were able to find enough blankets for all of our horses.

Some of the horses were not too enthused about having a blanket strapped around their body.  But, I bet they are thanking us later today.  It is rather awkward to wear a blanket.  Straps go in front of the chest, under the heart girth, and between their back legs.  The latter is the most strange to the horses.  They are not used to feeling straps around and between their legs.  Some of our horses rolled around on the ground trying to lose the blanket.  After several attempts at rubbing the blanket off, they gave up.

In addition to putting blankets on the horses and ensuring that they have plenty of fresh, unfrozen drinking water, we are also increasing the amount of feed they receive.  We expect them to shiver and shake, which burns more calories.  We are trying to account for this by providing them with more fuel for their bodies.

The cows are fine, but they are going through the hay at a much faster rate.  The best part of this time of year (and I say this sarcastically in light of our weather this week) is that it is calving season.  Usually this is not a bad time to be born in Southeast Texas.  The temperature is cool.  The fire ants are down in the ground.  In the dog days of summer, calves have to fight not only extremely high temperatures; fire ants can prove to be fierce predators.  They have been known to blind calves and occasionally even kill them in these parts.  Fortunately, Cross Creek Cattle Company has not lost any calves this way.

But I digress, this week will be unlike most winter weather patterns we experience.  This is not good when cows are having babies.  The calves can literally go into shock.  Think about it.  Calves have been happily enjoying living in an “oven” at about 103 degrees.  Suddenly they are pushed out, hit the ground, and it is 15 degrees.  Not only is their body having trouble adjusting to the rapid change in temperature, but the wind chill is in the single digits.  It can be a potentially dangerous situation for the health of the newborn calf.

What does this mean for my husband, the ranch manager?  It means keeping close watch over the herd.  It means being ready to intervene with blankets, colostrum, etc. as needed.  It means walking quite a distance in below freezing conditions off and on all day long for days.  He has to walk now because he almost got stuck this morning.  The rain that came before the front soaked the already saturated ground.  It means discomfort for the ranch manager.

As my dad always says when things on the ranch don’t go smoothly, “Welcome to the ranch!”  It is part of the life of a cowboy.  It is part of the life of anyone running a ranch.  The animals are our livelihood.  You have to take care of them regardless of the weather.  Thankfully, it will be 40 degrees again soon enough.  I don’t know how the ranchers do it in Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, or everywhere else where this weather pattern is the usual.

I just hope that everything does go well for us, our home, and our animals.  I will let you know.

Last night a big thunderstorm awoke us in the middle of the night.  I was waiting to hear the sound of a train whistle signaling a tornado.  The wind-driven rain was striking the house in all directions.  Luckily we escaped any major or minor damage, but the pastures are very muddy this morning.

I am proud to announce that Cross Creek Cattle Company has been named Cattle Ranch of the Week by Texas Born Texas Strong.  It is an honor to be profiled and showcased on this website.  We want to thank them for choosing our ranch.  Check it out and leave a comment, if you would.  The power of word of mouth is amazing.

As this year winds down and the holiday season is in full-swing, everyone at Cross Creek Cattle Company wishes each and every one of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!  I will resume writing in January; until then,  have a great holiday season.

Lane is cauterizing the horn while Clayton hold its head and Jake stands ready with medicine.

It was a beautiful Scottish day at Cross Creek Cattle  Company.  The overcast sky and the cool day was highlighted with constant drizzle that dampened your hair, clothing, etc.  This of course made everything feel even colder.

My immediate family stood in the barn with my father discussing the day’s plans.  Sorting, de-horning, branding, vaccinating, and castrating were the items on the agenda.  We divided up the jobs and got to work.

We are all experienced cowboys having worked cattle for most of our lives.  Even my eight-year old son is competent in many areas of cattle work.  My dad is the most experienced of us all.  He worked side-by-side with his grandfather since he could walk.  Isn’t funny how cyclical life can be?  Here my dad was working alongside his grandchildren.

This particular kind of cattle work is not for the faint at heart.  You are going to see blood.  You are going to smell the scent of burning flesh.  It is one of the most unpleasant parts of living on a working ranch.

Daddy is branding. Clay is holding the vaccines waiting for his turn to work.

It is easier than in the past.  We have squeeze chutes that hold the calf still while you work on them.  You do not have to rope, tackle, and throw the calf.  We have electric branding irons and a cauterizing instrument.  We do not have to keep a fire going with metal brands sitting in the fire until they have red-hot tips.

We do give two vaccinations.  Each calf receives an 8-Way Blackleg and IBR4 vaccine.  The first prevents a fatal disease called Blackleg.  The most susceptible calves are ones thriving with great weight gain by eating nutritious grass.  A certain spore in the ground causes this disease and it is completely preventable with the vaccine.  The latter prevents the Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) disease.  It is a transmittable disease via contact.  We have never had any of our cattle with this illness, but there are other herds nearby.  Occasionally we find a stray cow in our herd from a neighbor’s pasture.  Both vaccines are ones that we deem necessary to prevent for the health of our herd.

We brand the cows we intend to keep.  Believe it or not, but there are still cattle rustlers.  People steal cattle and usually take them directly to the sale.  A brand is one sure way to prove that a cow belongs to you.  You have to register your brand with the state.  Our brand is a C with a squiggly line beneath it.  The C stands for the alliteration in the name of our ranch.  The line symbolizes the creeks that cross the ranch.

We de-horn for safety purposes.  Our cattle are docile and easy-going.  Regardless of the naturally good disposition, it is always safer to work around cows without sharp-tipped horns.  There are several ways to remove horns.  If you act when the calf is very young, you can scoop out the horns.  You can pay for a veterinarian to perform cosmetic surgery in a sense to remove the horns.  You can also remove the tips.  The horns will not continue to grow so the cow will have blunt nubs.  We chose the do the latter this time.  It is important to cauterize the bleeding because a cow can lose a lot of blood if you do not act.

It was a successful day.  We worked together as a team.  Nobody got hurt.  The cattle are doing fine.  Cross Creek Cattle Company is literally a family-owned and operated ranch.  We are teaching the next generation so that high quality cattle and grass fed beef can continue for generations to come.

Our snowman last December.

While most of the United States of America is accustomed to snow in their winter weather forecast, it is a rarity in Southeast Texas.  We actually have a chance of this beautiful precipitation on Friday and Saturday.  Already this week it has snowed in El Paso, Lubbock, and Dallas.

Last year two weeks before Christmas it snowed.  It snowed hard during the evening hours.  My kids bundled up and went out in the darkness to play in the snow because we knew it probably would not last until the morning.  They built a 8 inch snowman and a extra large snowball.  They made snow angels on the trampoline.  As funny as this might sound to someone in Colorado, we had a blast.

Hopefully it will snow again this year at Cross Creek Cattle Company.  We don’t need it.  It is not a necessity; however, a little snowfall is good for the soul.  It brings the kid out of anyone regardless how old.  It brings a sense of quiet to the ranch as even the animals stop to admire the beauty of a falling snowflake.  They have no idea what it is, but they know it is special.

When we have a winter blast of cold weather, we do have to take precautions for our animals.  We put the cows on a pasture with a wind block to the North.  Usually a solid, thick portion of a wooded pasture helps block out the bitter, cold wind.  Sometimes it is the dam on the lake.  Whatever the form of the wind block, we make sure that our cattle are as warm as possible.  We also give them plenty of hay as the grass in the pastures are gone until spring.

We have a very old horse named Ladd.  He starts shivering at 50 degrees; therefore, he wears a horse blanket when the temperatures dip.  The blanket does a great job holding in his body heat.  Ladd quite enjoys his occasional winter outfit.

Of course if it does freeze, our main concern is water.  We have to ensure that all of our animals have access to fresh drinking water.  When I was a child living on this ranch, I raised animals for 4-H.  I remember many mornings before the sun rose above the horizon that I was outside with a flashlight breaking the ice off of the top of the water troughs.

Winters here at the ranch are typically mild, which is great for our cattle and horses. They do not have to endure long freezing cold winters.  However this weekend we wait with anticipation to see if we will receive any snow.

November on the ranch.

Autumn is a beautiful time of year.  Some leaves are changing color.  Some evergreens are bearing bright red berries.  The air is crisp and cool.  The wind reminds you to put on a sweater.  Autumn is a great season to enjoy the outdoors.  The months of September, October, and November mark a busy time of year as well as several holidays.

My father’s favorite holiday is Thanksgiving.  Families come together to celebrate the many blessings that God has bestowed on us.  It is a holiday without the pressures of Christmas.  You don’t have to worry about buying and giving gifts.  You only have to cook and eat delicious foods prepared with loving hands.

Thanksgiving is also time of reflection.  A chance to reflect on your year and remember how blessed you are.  In the spirit of this holiday, I want to share with you some of the things that we are thankful for at Cross Creek Cattle Company.

• We are thankful for our loving and close-knit family.
• We are blessed to have so many good friends.
• We love being able to enjoy healthy,  delicious meat on our dinner table whether from our grass fed herd or from the wild boars and deer that wander in the woods.
• We are thankful to have good horses on which to ride and survey the beautiful scenery around the ranch regardless of the season.
• We have been blessed with fat cows and green grass.
• We are very thankful that health has been restored to the ranch manager after his accident.
• We are lucky to have a substantial store of hay ready to supply our animals with needed food no matter how hard the winter gets.
• We are thankful to have made it through the drought and to have finally received the much-needed rainfall.
• We are grateful that we can live our lifestyle in the 21st century.
• Last but not least, we are grateful for our customers who help support our family-owned and operated ranch.

From everyone at Cross Creek Cattle Company, we wish everyone a very “Happy Thanksgiving!”  May God continue to bless each and every one of us.