Working cattle, a Spring ritual.

As exciting and rewarding calving season is, Bruce is always ready for the end of May so the cows and calves can go to the pasture. Because they poop, a lot, Bruce spends a lot of time doing this.

And dumping this....

...and spreading that....

....you might even say that in the spring, poop is his life.

Bruce chose well when he picked the cattle working day, we had day after day of rain but this day dawned warm and sunny. We have a new vet who joined the clinic, Lisa, she and veteran, Mark, came out to work the cattle. The cows go through first....

....when they are done they get to go to the pasture. They know it and waste no time heading for the gate.

"YEE HAW!!"

Meanwhile, back in the chute it's the calves turn, they get jabbed and stuck and the boys get castrated.

They all get a spray up their nose to keep them healthy.

Suddenly the cows appear, they just realized that they left their babies behind and being the conscientious mothers that they are, they left the lush pasture and returned to find the kids.

Our faithful wranglers, Roger, who was a little shy that day......

.....and Freddy Boy.

Some calves are very stoic about all the indignities they suffer....this one was not.

"I want my MAMA!!"

"I want my BABY!!"

Most calves bound out of the chute like this...

....Bruce had to shove this one out.

He fell in a heap so Mark drug him out of the way...

....and lay in a heap, refusing to get up.

"I can't believe what they did to me!"

Then it was the best time of day, the reward for a hard morning's work....

...cold soda and fresh pecan rolls with butter. YUM!

After every one had their fill and went on their way, it was time to take the calves to the pasture and what a job. Bruce is pushing Fancy's new baby through the mud, we should have loaded the youngest in the crate and hauled them down.

Note to self, remember this next year, calves do not drive.

We were all exhausted by the time we got all the babies to the pasture and reunited with their mothers.

With the cows and calves happily situated in the pasture, there was just one job between Bruce and fishing in MN, making hay.

We were finally given a reprieve from the rain, Bruce baled his first crop of alfalfa, cleaned up the boat and set out for the cabin.

Life is good!