October 6, 2021
Jolyn Young
I’m a full time mom, part time writer, and very occasional day worker. My oldest two kids go to school every day while my three-year-old son Levi tags along with me wherever I go. Last week, me and Levi helped a local rancher process cattle for the fall works. The processing chute and corrals are […]
October 4, 2021
Jan Swan Wood
When my son was not quite four years old, we bought a place in the country that was right along a county road. I worried about the traffic as everyone drove it like the Indy 500. Consequently, I had lectured him repeatedly about the dangers of that road and to never, ever get out by […]
September 30, 2021
Jan Swan Wood
It’s early fall right now, with people shipping livestock and doing the fall works on cattle. I rode on pasture cattle for years, so this time of year always makes me think of those days. By this time, my string of horses would be weary along with me. Troublesome bunches of yearlings were gladly seen […]
September 28, 2021
Jolyn Young
The cowboy world has produced many colorful phrases that folks might use and not realize their Western ties. “Ride for the brand,” “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” and “you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink” are common phrases used by country and city people alike. Here […]
September 15, 2021
Jan Swan Wood
When I was a little runt of a kid, probably around five years old, I rode a pony that I loved in spite of his tendency to run off with me. His name was Skipper. I spent hours every day just hanging out with him and riding him around in the corrals with no bridle […]
September 10, 2021
Ruth Nicolaus
There’s a hole a special horse used to fill, at the Gunderson ranch in western North Dakota. H46 Spider, a bucking horse in the Bailey Pro Rodeo string, has passed on to greener pastures. He was originally owned by Montanan Jack Hinland, who sold him to Shane Vaira. The 26-year-old gelding died of colic on […]
September 5, 2021
Jolyn Young
Most horses thrive on a fairly standard diet of hay and water. Grass, alfalfa, oat, or a combination of those types usually provides adequate nutrition and keeps the average horse at a healthy weight. But senior horses can benefit from adding beet pulp to their diet in addition to providing plenty of high quality hay. […]
September 3, 2021
Jan Swan Wood
It had been a very long, hot summer riding on contract cattle. The yearling steers and spayed heifers had pinkeye running rampant, the replacement heifers had footrot going strong, and the cow/calf pairs had the usual bull problems. So, after three months, my string and I were weary. Especially me, as there was only one […]
September 1, 2021
Ruth Nicolaus
A very special horse changed the course of Nikki Steffes Hansen’s life. Because of Sky High Guy, the South Dakota barrel racer is training horses and competing on them instead of being a dentist. This year, she’s decided to retire the seventeen-year-old palomino from professional competition. She and Sky’s paths crossed when he was a […]
August 28, 2021
Jolyn Young
Gastric ulcers in horses are a common condition for performance or using horses. While not as commonly discussed as colic, they cause similar symptoms but require a different treatment plan. Gastric ulcers are sores that occur in the stomach lining and cause great discomfort. Left untreated, they can lead to undesirable behavioral changes and poor […]