A big project we’re working on this spring is a complete irrigation upgrade on the ranch. The project closes a long irrigation diversion ditch that sourced out of the Pahsimeroi River that we shared with about 4 neighbors. All of us have agreed to close the ditch to better ensure sufficient flow in the river over critical Chinook salmon spawning habitat. These fish migrate 900 miles to the Pacific where they live for two years and come back to the Pahsimeroi to spawn (lay eggs). Unfortunately, salmon runs are very low, and all is being done to maintain the species.

Our plan is to pump water out of the river below the critical flow areas—about 2 miles below where our ditch used to divert water. The Nature Conservancy, Bonneville Power Administration, local Soil and Water Conservation Districts and Idaho Department of Fish and Game have been very willing partners in the project.

For us, it will mean far more efficient use of water (leaving more water in the river for fish) and better yield and quality on much of our acres due to more uniform water distribution (to produce even better grassfed beef). It also means working daily with the contractors who are installing the system, and coordinating with all the cooperating parties on a nearly daily basis. It’s been very busy.

Spring on the ranch is the busiest time of year! Fields are being readied for spring, fences being mended, irrigation systems are upgraded, and new calves are being born daily (we are averaging 5 new babies a day). They take a large amount of time as we carefully monitor their health, as well as their moms, and occasionally have to intervene to ensure survival. For instance, we had to capture a cow the other day who inadvertently missed pulling the birth sac off of her newborn (the cows usually are very aggressive about licking the face of their calf off first to clear away anything that might interfere with breathing). We wanted to give her a new baby.

We had an extra calf for this because we have occasional twins or abandoned calves who need a mother—in cows, optimal is one calf per cow, as most cows have trouble counting up to two and will misplace one of their kids if left to themselves. To ensure complete bonding, we remove the skin off of the dead calf and tie it on the ‘graft’ calf so the mom can smell the scent of her original baby. While this sounds grisly, it is actually rather clinical. The dead calf isn’t objectionable, because it has been dead only a short time, but the skin still smells to the cow like her calf.

We catch the cow in the barn or corral, so she cannot run off, and start the new baby on her milk bar. This all sounds very quiet and sweet, but often our wild range cow will put up one incredible western rodeo fight before it is all over, even sending Glenn over the corral fence…

But in the end, mom has a baby. It might take a few days, but it works (don’t try this on a goat, though; Glenn worked on a goat for nearly 3 weeks to take an orphan kid, and finally was met with success). And there is great satisfaction in creating a new bond out of two sad losses: a motherless calf now has a mom, and a cow missing her calf now has a new one to care for.