This is not part of Cross Creek Cattle Company, but is an example of an over-grazed pasture. Notice the bare areas and absence of tall grass.

For retirees and young families alike, a common dream seems to be for city-dwellers to move out on acreage in the country.  They buy some land, buy some livestock, and enjoy living in the slow-paced rural environment.  Since we live relatively close to Houston, we are personally seeing a huge increase of ex-Houstonians move into our county.  However, some make a common mistake.  They over-graze their pastures.

Over-grazing your pasture is bad for your land and your livestock.  Without adequate grass on your soil, erosion can occur very easily with any rainfall.  A heavy rain and a subsequent flood can devastate your land.  Grass also resists wind erosion, too.

Livestock must have grass to thrive.  Without adequate grass, horses can get sand in their gut and make them sick.  Cows and other ruminants must have plenty of grass, too.  If there is not sufficient grass available, then you must feed hay.  The last thing you want to be doing is feeding hay to your cows in the summer.  Hay is expensive to buy and/or produce; therefore, you will feel the consequences of over-grazing in your pocketbook.

So how do you prevent over-grazing your pastures?  At Cross Creek Cattle Company, we rotate our pastures regularly.  We want our cattle to be on fresh, green grass daily.  We do not want them to lose their good condition simply because we let them crop the grass too low to the ground.

If the grass is left between 4-8″ long, the plant is able to recover more easily.  Under that point, the grass struggles to rebound.  Therefore, we allow our cattle to graze while we monitor the condition of the pasture grass.  We don’t like the grass getting under 6″.

Over-grazing can also occur if you have too many head on a certain amount of acreage.  There is no magic formula for figuring this out as it depends on where you live.  For example, a rancher in Southeast Texas can have more cattle on a less acreage than a West Texas rancher.  In the more arid areas of Texas a rancher has to have thousands of acres for the same amount of cattle elsewhere.

Let me show you some photographs.  These pictures were taken on the same day, September 2, 2010.  The photographs below are of the front pasture on Cross Creek Cattle Company.  Compare the condition of the pasture and grass to the picture at the top of this article, which is of a place down the road less than a mile away.  Therefore, we have received essentially the same amount of rainfall and the same high summer temperatures.  The differences lie in pasture rotation and the amount of livestock on the land.  We have much more livestock on our land.

In the photographs of Cross Creek Cattle Company, our entire herd of cattle and then our nine horses had been grazing for days.  On the other property, a couple of head of cattle and a few horses have been grazing in the same pasture all summer long.  You are just going to have to take my word on it.

One view of the front pasture. Beyond the fence and lake is a second pasture. You can see for yourself the length and condition of our grass.

The same pasture under the trees.

Another angle of the same pasture. There are no bare spots even though the grass has been baking in the sun day after day.

If you are new to ranching or have been doing this for generations like us, we all want what is best for our land, our cattle, and ourselves.  Monitoring the condition of your pasture is an easy place to start to protect all three.  Even with relatively few acres of land, you can implement an effective pasture rotation program.

My husband grew up in a home with three women.  His dad passed away when he was young; therefore, he was surrounded by his mother and two older sisters.  When I met him, he was relieved that I liked beef and knew how to prepare it.  He told me that all they ever ate at his home was chicken.  After all, chicken as everyone knows is much better for you or so his family thought.

This is just an example to illustrate the need to educate yourself.  It is difficult to question your doctor.  They have spent years learning about health and your body.  Who are you to question their expertise?

The cookbook that will change the way you eat.

Well, I question everything.  I read and research for myself.  I am certainly drawn to information in which there seems to be no incentive except for finding the truth.  This is one of the reasons that I appreciate Sally Fallon.  She is the President of the Weston A. Price Foundation and author of the cookbook, Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats.

I wrote a Review of Nourishing Traditions for Texas Homesteader.  If you are interested in learning more about her book, please check it out.  Ms. Fallon has written an interesting article entitled, “It’s the Beef.”  It is a lengthy article full of information, but I wanted to give you a taste by including a small section in this article.

Is Beef Good For You?

What a shame we have demonized red meat because this is one modern food, enjoyed by almost everybody, that is rich in nutrients. Red meat provides complete protein, including sulphur-containing proteins like cysteine. Beef is a wonderful source of taurine and carnitine, needed for healthy eyes and a healthy heart. Beef also provides another key nutrient for the cardiovascular system—coenzyme Q10.

Beef is an excellent source of minerals like magnesium and zinc—you need zinc for clear thinking and a healthy sex life. The fuzzy-headedness that vegetarians mistake for heightened consciousness is really the fog of zinc deficiency. Vitamin B₆ is abundant in meat, especially rare meat. Red meat is one of the best sources of vitamin B₁₂, which is vital to a healthy nervous system and healthy blood. Vegetarians are especially prone to vitamin B₁₂ deficiency. One of the first signs of vitamin B₁₂ deficiency is a tendency to irrational anger-—so much for vegetarian claims that we will have a more peaceful, harmonious world if we all just stop eating meat.

As much as I would like world peace, I do not want to give up the health benefits of grass fed beef.  How boring would that be at dinner time?

I try to post health and diet information on this site as it pertains to beef and/or grass fed beef.  If learning more about health and nutrition interests you, read more on the Weston A. Price Foundation, buy the book Nourishing Traditions, or enroll in the Real Food for Rookies cooking class.

The latter is a new course held by Kelli the Kitchen Kop.  For years she has studied Sally Fallon’s book and methods in addition to being a member of the Weston A. Price Foundation.  She is offering a 12-week cooking course about real food.  To see the class schedule, click here.  Class #4 is all about “Choosing the Right Meats.”

You can take the course on your own time and at your own convenience.  Registration is on-going until September 15th.  Then the first class begins on the 16th.

Whatever you decide to do, educate yourself about the real foods, especially about beef.  You don’t want to miss eating such a versatile and flavorful option for your dinner plate.  You can then say with confidence, “Beef, It’s what’s for dinner.”

Both my dad and my immediate family raise our own vegetable garden.  We enjoy seasonal produce throughout the year.  I am currently preparing my soil for our fall garden.  A long growing season is one of the great things about living in this temperate climate.

Our gardens are good producers.  We eat all we can, put up some more, and give the rest away.  But, we do not sell it to the public.  We farm the land for ourselves.

My family raises hogs once a year.  We milk dairy goats.  We raise chickens and enjoy fresh free-range eggs.  We also raise rabbits and we had a sheep until it recently grew old and died.  We also raise ducks.

All of our animals are for our own consumption.  My husband might make sausage and give it away to family and friends, but it is not for sale.  We might give away a surplus of eggs and occasionally we accept a tip for the eggs, but we do not have enough to go into the egg business.

Twice a day we milk our goat.  She gives more than we can consume in a day.  We freeze some for future use.  We make ice cream and yogurt.  I make and do sell goat milk soap.  But, we are not licensed by the state of Texas to sell raw goat milk nor do we want to seek that route.

If goat milk is what you are interested, I can refer you to a great dairy in the area.  Swede Farm is a family-owned and operated goat dairy that sells pasteurized and raw goat milk and related products.  Tell Tim and Leeanne Carlson that I sent you.

Currently Cross Creek Cattle Company is only in the grass fed beef business.  We are working towards opening a store here on the ranch in which customers can purchase cuts of beef in addition to ordering 1/4, 1/2, and whole portions.  This is our next step.

From there we will see what the needs of our customers are.  We are not ruling out the expansion of our ranch into other meats.  If and when we decide to expand in the future, you will be the first to know.  Until then, let us supply your family with flavorful, healthy grass fed beef.  Call or write today to get on our waiting list.

Some of our Beefmaster cattle.

Over a decade ago, Cross Creek Cattle Company  decided to raise the Beefmaster breed.  Beefmasters are a combination of the Shorthorn, Brahman, and Hereford breeds.  There are “Six Essentials” of the breed.  Beefmasters are known for their disposition, fertility, weight, conformation, milk production, and hardiness.

My dad calls them “fertile and functional”, especially in our climate.  Being able to withstand the heat in the summer and tolerate the cold in the winter is an important characteristic of Beefmasters.

Since this is a family-owned and operated ranch, many different generations help out on the ranch.  From the grandparents to the grandchildren, we all work together to work the cattle.  Therefore, the safety of our family is the most important to us.

I personally have five children ranging in age from 14 to 2.  We live on the ranch.  We enjoy roaming the pastures on walks and bike rides.  We ride horses all over the property.  In doing so, we also mingle with the cattle while they are being rotated from pasture to pasture.

The Beefmaster breed is known for having a great disposition.  It is the number one essential characteristic.  They are naturally docile.  I do not worry about my children amongst the herd.  I do not fear for them when they are helping work the cattle.

Has anything bad ever happened to us in the pasture with the herd?  No.  The cattle are not phased by our presence.  When my husband brings hay in the winter or refills their free-choice minerals, they come greet him.  Even the bull does not make us uneasy.

Have we ever had an accident while working cattle?  Yes, but only a few in all the years we have raised them.  This is the most dangerous time around cattle.  You are moving them.  They are stirred up.  You are pushing them down a narrow alleyway or in a squeeze chute.  They outweigh you about 5 times.  Something is bound to happen every once in a while.

Without the great disposition of the Beefmaster breed, many more accidents would occur.  We would not feel comfortable with our children helping and working by our side.  Working cattle would be much more dangerous, limited to only older, stronger, and experienced cowboys.

If you are looking into different breeds of cattle for your ranch, we recommend Beefmasters, especially if you are planning to involve your family in the venture.  To learn more about the breed, go to Beefmaster Breeders United.  Being a family operated ranch is very important to us at Cross Creek Cattle Company.  Raising the next generation of ranchers is near and dear to our hearts.

It is a great event in the ranching community that draws people from all over the world.  Dr. Jason Cleere, who grew up in the same area as we live, heads the whole course.  TAMU is known world-wide for its premiere agriculture and animal science programs and research.  At this short course, the university combines its knowledge and discoveries in various seminars with a trade show and social events.

The Beef Cattle Short Course is not only informative, but it is fun.  It is a way to meet and mingle with fellow ranchers and make contacts.  The trade show provides an opportunity to see and hear what is new in the cattle industry.

Last year, the short course actually told ranchers to not get involved with grass fed beef.  They claimed that it was a fad and was hurting the cattle industry.  My husband just rolled his eyes.  Sometimes it takes people a long time to accept change.

This year they put on an entire seminar explaining the differences between organic, all-natural, and grass fed beef.  A woman rancher spoke about her grass fed operation in Texas.  I think the tide has turned.  Perhaps, TAMU is seeing that consumers want an opportunity to purchase beef that is raised naturally on the range.  They want a healthier alternative to traditionally raised beef.  Maybe they realize that grass fed beef is not a fad, but here to stay.

Regardless of TAMU’s stance on grass fed beef, the Beef Cattle Short Course is a valuable tool for the modern-day rancher.  You learn a vast amount of information.  You take home an immense volume that includes all the slides and information from each seminar.  This way you get all the information and do not worry about missing something or choosing the wrong seminar to attend.

My husband said there were about 1300 ranchers in attendance.  If you are interested in attending the 2011 Beef Cattle Short Course, check out course’s website for all the information and the dates.  I will try my best to remind you in an article here on “Welcome to the Ranch.”

For years someone from Cross Creek Cattle Company has attended the short course.  We feel it is a small investment in our future.  We have been ranching for so long in our family, but there is always something new to learn.  The cattle market and industry change, and we like to keep abreast of the climate to better serve our ranch and, of course, our grass fed customers.  We highly recommend the three-day course for anyone interested in ranching.

Steve and Jake with Ladd on Jake's birthday.

Years ago when we were looking to purchase good, broke horses for my children to ride, we met Steve Prewitt and his family.  We were struck by his honesty and knowledge.  Steve was a working cowboy at the time as well as training to be a preacher.

We ended up purchasing a paint mare that we named Cheyenne from him.  My dad was sold when he saw the picture of Steve standing in the saddle swinging a rope.  The young mare just stood still, completely desensitized.  My husband fell in love with this horse and he rides her every chance he gets.

Steve also helped us find another mare.  We named her Roxie.  It was not even his horse, but he drove us out to the stables where she was kept and let us ride her in the parking lot.  It was getting very dark.  The parking lot light threw shadows all over the ground, which will spook most horses.  With only a halter and a lead rope, our family rode her around.  She did not spook.  She responded to our commands without a bit.

Now my son Clayton rides her.  He loves Roxie and together they work well together.  If it is riding around Cross Creek Cattle Company, down a busy street during a parade, or in the rodeo arena, Roxie and Clayton make a good pair.

My son, Jake, and Steve hit it off immediately.  They both have a passion for horses.  When our ranch first hired Steve to train and work with our horses, he spent hours with Jake training him as well.  For a while there, I thought I would get sick of Steve’s name because he is all Jake talked about.  I appreciated the fact that Steve took the time to be a good role model for Jake.  Not only is he a good man, but Steve made time for Jake.

For one of Jake’s birthdays, we had a family and friend trail ride.  I think he was more excited when Steve Prewitt drove up with his wife, Dee, to present Jake with a brand-new rope.  It meant a lot to Jake; therefore, the act meant a lot to me.

Steve has helped Lane be a better rider.  They worked together to be able to open and close gates on horseback.  Lane has watched and taken mental notes of how Steve does groundwork in the round pen.  Lane, too, has enjoyed Steve working here on the ranch.

Now Steve is moving.  He has found a great job about an hour away.  We are excited for him and his family as they embark on a new journey.  It is a bittersweet moment for us, though.  We are losing a great cowboy, horseman, and role model.

Thank you, Steve, for being a part of Cross Creek Cattle Company.  We appreciate all that you did for us.  And, we wish you the best in your new adventure.  We are going to miss you.

Our dog Maggie.

We are coming into the last days of July, which is when the days really start heating up here in Texas.  Now through  early September are generally the hottest days of the summer.  The ancient Greeks coined the term based on the belief that Sirius, a.k.a. the Dog Star, was responsible for the extreme heat.

Regardless of who is responsible for the heat, everyone needs to be cautious at this time of the year.  At Cross Creek Cattle Company, we are concerned for ourselves and our animals.  Our cattle herd, horses, and pets are all susceptible to the heat.  The soaring heat index is not selective between human or beast.

Our biggest priority is our family.  We drink large quantities of water and drinks with electrolytes.  We wear hats to keep the sun from baking our heads and necks.  My husband wears a chill tie around his neck.  We try to do our hardest work in the morning and evening.  During the afternoon, we try to do work indoors or in the barn.  We also watch ourselves for signs of heat exhaustion like heavy sweating, dizziness, nausea, and muscle cramps.

Learning to monitor ourselves is the first step in preventing either heat exhaustion or the potentially fatal heat stroke.  If you stop sweating when you should be, then you are in danger of heat stroke and should immediately seek medical attention.  None of us are doctors nor are we trained in the medical field, but we do our own research.  We encourage you to research other ways to prevent either heat induced illness.

Last year we were not as vigilant in watching for signs of heat exhaustion.  Unfortunately, my husband, the ranch manager, fell ill.  He suffered from vertigo, which was heat induced.  It took weeks before he was able to get back to his full work load.  He was miserable.  We have learned from our mistakes and we hope that you can learn from it too.

As far as our animals are concerned, they have similar needs.  They need to rest during the heat of the day.  They need plenty of fresh water.  They need to be in a pasture with plenty of shade, either artificial or natural.  So if your pen or pasture does not have shade trees, then you need to consider constructing a permanent or temporary source of shade.

Having lived in Southeast Texas our entire lives, we knew our climate well before choosing our breed of cattle.  We knew how hot the summers were.  We knew the high humidity all too well.  We also knew that the heat index most often soars higher than the actual temperature during the summer.  It was important to us to raise a breed that was well suited to our climate, which is why we choose to raise Beefmasters.

Hairy Cows from Scotland. Photo from Wikipedia.

It is not the only breed that is suitable to Texas’ summers, but it was our pick.  Before buying cattle, consider your year-round climate.  Can you imagine the Highland cattle of Scotland trying to make it here?  Their survival would be questionable.  Beefmasters not only survive, but they thrive here at Cross Creek Cattle Company even during the dog days of summer.

Take the necessary precautions for your family, herd, and pets for the next month or so.  Be aware of the weather conditions and provide for the needs of everyone based on the heat.  Most importantly, be safe.  The coolness of autumn will be here soon enough.

Some of our horses with the pond in the background.

Nine horses call Cross Creek Cattle Company home.  During the fall and winter, they graze in small fenced-in pastures. Then we lead them to their stall in the horse barn to spend the night.  We feed them grain and plenty of fresh hay.  In the morning we feed them grain again and then lead them back to the small pasture for exercise, fresh air, and some grass.  Then we can spend two hours a day cleaning the stalls.

Compared with the Beefmaster cattle we raise, horses are much more time-consuming and expensive to raise.  We buy their feed, supplements, and hay.  Shavings are needed to spread over the floor of their stalls.  These things all cost money.  Horses also require training, exercising, and riding. And, this requires time.  In addition, the ferrier comes out every six weeks to trim hooves.  Horses are high-maintenance, plain and simple.

With the wonderful rain that we have been receiving this summer, our pastures are filled with tall, green grass.  We always have our cattle rotating pastures to ensure that plenty of fresh grass is being consumed.  While the cattle are eating grass in one pasture, the grass in the other pastures are growing.

This summer we have also let the horses have a vacation from their routine.  We have released them into a large pasture full of grass that also has a 3 acre pond.  At first the horses’ heads went down to taste the tall grass.  It did not take long before the excitement of being in a new place caused them to forget the grass and run as a herd.

It was one of the times I wished that I had my video camera.  It was a beautiful sight to behold.  Like a herd of wild horses, they ran over the pasture, up a hill, down the hill, around in large circles, in figure eights, etc.  I don’t know what was more beautiful: the beauty of the horses themselves moving as one or if it was the landscape in which the ran.  The sky was bluer than blue; the grass was swaying in the light breeze.  Thinking back, it had to be the combination of the two.

All the pretty horses.

They settled down and then noticed the pond.  Every single one of the horses stepped out into the water.  Some literally went for a swim.  They were completely enjoying themselves.

Weeks later, the horses are still enjoying their freedom.  They have all kept up their condition on grass only, including the oldest horse, Ladd.  We are enjoying not having to clean any stalls.  Raising horses on grass is much more economical, which is why both equine and human alike are enjoying the summer here at Cross Creek Cattle Company.

Before ordering from Cross Creek Cattle Company, they had never eaten grass fed beef before.  They found our website by a link on the website, Mark’s Daily Apple: Primal Living in the Modern World.  And, they are happy with their purchase.

They really like grass fed beef, especially the t-bones.  This cut is their favorite.  The Brooks family said, they “love the flavor and tenderness” of our beef.  The only criticism the family had was that our roasts were too small; however, the “Pike’s Peak Roast was perfect.”

This is the nature of raising grass fed beef.  We cannot guarantee the size of the cuts nor the amount of beef you will receive, which is why we sell the beef at $3.50 a pound instead of a base price.  Each animal is built a little differently from another, just like people.  We cannot make uniform and identical sides of beef.

It is one way to know that we are raising beef the natural way.  We do not feed our cattle grain to make them gain weight rapidly.  We do not give them growth hormones in order to achieve a certain size.  Instead we do things differently from traditionally raised beef.  We give the herd fresh, green grass and plenty of fresh water.  We give them pastures in which to roam.  In turn, our cattle produce lean, flavorful beef.

The Brooks family said they would definitely order grass fed beef from us again.  They only thing they would do differently is “order more.”

We could not be more thrilled with this feedback from one of our beef customers.  Thank you, Brooks family!  We look forward to doing more business with you.

A 6 lb. bass swallowed Isaac's arm.

Summer would not be complete for my family unless we went fishing.  At Cross Creek Cattle Company we have several stocked ponds.  One has catfish.  The others have bass and crappie.  With so much work to do on the ranch, it is nice to carve out time to enjoy living here.

Last weekend my boys went fishing with their dad.  They did not catch many, but what they did catch was huge.  You cannot help but get excited when you hook a big bass on your line.  This one in particular put up a fight.  Catching fish is very rewarding.

Fishing is a great way to encourage father/son bonding.  I am not saying that my daughter and I do not fish because we do.  It is fun for me to see the way that my husband teaches the little ones how to fish.  He has so much patience with them.

Once Jake hooked Lane, my husband, in the forehead with a treble hook.  Actually he hooked him twice in the forehead by casting too soon before Lane was out of the way.  Lane calmly asked me to remove the hook.  When I saw that two hooks were buried in his skin, I got sick to my stomach.  I tried to move them, but they would not budge.  Lane had to remove them himself.

I will never forget how he did not yell and scream at anyone. Jake already looked sick.  He was only five at the time.  I think Lane knew that he had learned his lesson already.  Lane just asked him to not do that again.

When my step-father takes little ones fishing, he always cuts the tips of the hooks off.  The hook still catches fish, but it does not catch him.  A great tip for anyone fishing with young children.

Multiple generations like to come out here to fish.  Grandfathers and grandsons, uncles and nephews, fathers and sons enjoy the day together.  Friends are always welcome, too.

My dad has a friend who visited here two months ago.  He is an avid fisherman.  He began fishing early in the morning and fished most of the day.  He caught over 40 fish.  My dad said he has never seen anything like it.  Almost every time his friend cast out, he pulled in a fish.

We don’t always have luck.  Sometime we catch nothing, but those days are few and far between.  I tell my kids, “That is why it is called fishing and not catching.”

I find it relaxing to sit and watch your bobber float on the surface of the water.  My children prefer fishing with lures because there is always something to do.  They can reel in and cast out as much as they want.

We usually stop fishing as soon as we have enough for dinner.  The taste of fresh fish coupled with homegrown vegetables is out of this world.  There is nothing better than eating what you raise, forage, and/or catch.  Living on or visiting Cross Creek Cattle Company enables you to experience a taste of self-sufficiency.