May 30, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
Over the years I’ve been blessed with some pretty exceptional horses. I made my living with horsesmost of my life, so they had a chance to prove themselves to me on many levels. My Lily mare was astandout using horse in her long career, with many stellar qualities. Never an assertive horse around other horses, […]
May 23, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
My Dad told me this story years ago and I’ll try to share it with you as I remember it. He was a boy atthe time, around eight or ten years old, and had been hired to help a friend of the family do some stockwork. The man’s name was Willis Rice and he was […]
May 21, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
When I was a kid I remember many milk cow prospect heifers and cows going through the place. Dad was at the cattle sales all winter buying yearlings and if a likely dairy type heifer came through, he’d buyher, run her with a bull and later sell her as a milk cow. Some went to […]
May 15, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
When we bought our place back in 1994, one of the many mysteries about the new place was thelocation of the septic tank. The previous owner didn’t know either. The drainfield came out way west ofthe yard fence, but where it came out was not straight out from the house. Absolutely nothing showedabove the ground. […]
May 10, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
A young guy we thought a lot of had come to help us do some sorting and other cow work in preparation for branding. His name was Scott and he was darned sure a cowboy and good hand. Him and his Dad before him, staunchly believed in not riding mares. Scott and I had argued […]
May 7, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
The mare’s name was Taxes. We’d raised her and my then husband had started her and ridden herquite a bit. She was a good looking mare, great conformation, and fantastic pedigree to boot. But, she was really touchy and hair triggered. Not mean or snaky, just lots of feel and reaction. Her good qualitiesoutweighed her […]
May 1, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
Cody was a well broke, gentle mare. She had been a stellar saddle horse until she was about 16, thengot promoted to broodmare, which she also excelled at. She wouldn’t kick, strike, bite or buck, so a pretty solid horse.When this event happened, it was late fall and I had taken her to the vet […]
April 25, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
Long ago, the cowboss and I were riding together one day and we were checking over some fences,checking water gaps, and water, or lack of, on the far south end of the ranch. As we came to a gate leading into the last pasture, a little bunch of horses spotted us and came trotting up […]
April 22, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
It was the middle of May and the broodmares were getting very close to foaling. They ran out on thehayfield north of the house. Some of the mares were old and needed grained every day, but the closer they got to foaling, the more suspicious they became and wouldn’t come in for grain. So, they […]
April 17, 2024
Jan Swan Wood
The steer had been given to me as a weaned calf. He came from a registered outfit and was destined to be a bull until he broke a hind leg. The owner didn’t need any more for their freezer, so he asked me if Iwanted him. Of course, always glad to get something to feed […]