Wives of Ranches
- January 8, 2025
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- Anna Foulger
Posted in: Featured, Ranch Life
Waking up early, I bring the baby to the living room, place him on his sheepskin and start on breakfast while the toddler sleeps in a few extra minutes. Eggs, bacon, coffee boiling, toast, as the pitter patter of toddler feet come racing down the hall, “mama, breakfast?” she asks as I serve up plates for three. Taking one plate back into the living room, I see the rancher (my husband) wrapped in his blankets, foot elevated and wrapped in dressing from the surgery, still sore and swollen. Handing him his plate, I start on mine so we can get ready to feed the cows.
Normally, I am just a tag along for feeding through the winter, a happy passenger in the ranch pickup as we bounce along feeding mama cows and bulls. But for a few weeks it’s on me (and my father in law) to do all the feeding alone. Nervous to say the least, I put on a few layers of clothing, and start to layer up the toddler to go with me on this frigid twenty degree morning. Cows, horses, dogs, the milk cow and chopping wood all usually fall into my husband’s hands, as I stay inside and tend to the kids and household.
Trekking out into the snow me and said toddler, scurry along to the barn to put out hay cubes and grain to the horses that stay close to the house. Though these tasks are slow moving with a kid, we feel it is important to bring her up in caretaking of the animals on the ranch and she loves being a part of it. After the barn chores, we load into the feed pickup heading out to put out hay cubes and hay for the heifers, cows and our little herd of mares. This takes about an hour or so, with lots of stopping, between me trying to figure out being efficient in the feed pick up and stops so the toddler can look at cows through her window, uninterrupted. All those nerves for a fairly smooth morning.
Across the road we go, heading to feed our four mares, two currently in foal! This is always my favorite part of chores as I get to see my best mare and love on her. Checking their mineral, we put out four piles of hay cubes and some grain in each pile. Looking over the two mamas, making sure they look good, aren’t losing weight or looking too ragged from carrying babies through the harsh winter of Eastern Montana. Mares look amazing, and we start back up the road to do our final little chores and start a fire in the wood burning stove to keep the house toasty through the afternoon.
Calling all the dogs to the house, me and the toddler grab a few piles of wood to split for the stove. Realizing my husband makes this look easy, I make a wide stance, raise the ax far over my head and let it slam into the logs, one after another to get enough for a few fires today. Log after log, I finally have a little pile. I give a few small pieces to my daughter and loading myself up, we go in to check on dad and the baby. A few trips later it’s time to start the fire. With the fire warm, we all snuggle in for the day to enjoy being home and all the animals well, while the rancher recovers.
This isn’t a story about how amazing I can be, but instead showcasing what thousands of ranch wives have done for years, bringing beef (and other animals or farm based products) to the American table. Ranch wives have been a vital role in ranches since the beginning. Rearing children, feeding the family, taking over when the rancher was down, and helping daily long before a hired man was even an idea. The wives nurse baby calves back to health, tend the garden, doctor cattle, move cows, feed chickens and so much more. Ranches can operate smoothly with the help of wives and this is my favorite women in agriculture story as it is the truest one I can find. Women have and always will be an instrumental part of the agricultural world even if it as, a simple ranch wife.
Posted in: Featured, Ranch Life
About Anna Foulger
Hey there! My name is Anna Foulger, I am a young mom of soon to be two; a toddler daughter and little boy on the way! Me and my husband ranch in Eastern Montana with his family and we love every minute! My background is in...