My wife and son went out of town last weekend. I chose to stay home, partly because someone has to feed all weekend, but I also had rat killing to do around the place. Mainly, I wanted to build a horse lot and cut some more firewood. I thought I’d have a nice relaxing weekend piddling around the farm by myself.
My uncle called about mid morning Saturday and rats had chewed the wires on his diesel pickup, it wouldn’t start. It’s the only pickup he has with a gooseneck hitch. So, he called me and asked if I could haul some calves to the sale for him. I went over and hooked up to his little stock trailer. His lots are fairly user friendly, so in just a few minutes I was headed out.
He insisted on giving me twenty bucks to get a sale barn hamburger. Our local salebarn makes the best hamburgers in the county. The food is awesome and cheap, that makes it a five star restaurant in my book.
I figured I’d hang out around the salebarn and see if I could buy a bargain price roping calf for my son. It’s hard to get calves small enough for him to be able to flank and tie, yet old enough to eat feed. Long ago I swore I’d never bottle feed another calf. I don’t like being licked to death by those durned bottle calves.
Most calf ropers buy good quality beef calves so they will fetch a decent price when they sell them later on. Calf ropers can usually make some money on their old roping calves. However, team ropers typically lose money when they sell their old roping steers. Nobody wants a correinte steer, they don’t have much meat on them. They can also be a bit stupid, it seems I’ve had more than my fair share of wild and stupid corriente calves.
I bought the first calf that came through the sale ring. It was the perfect size for Jakob. I ended up with two really good calves for him and a bigger corriente calf. I bought it because it was really cheap. I also bought a calf with an infected naval cord for ten dollars, I’m going to see if I can heal it up and then sell it for a profit.
I got home after dark and unloaded all the calves in my lot beside the roping arena. I gave them plenty of feed and they already had a round bale. I fed the horses, goats and a show pig that’s here for a day or two more until the new owners come get it.
I was excited to have the TV and house to myself. I watched Lonesome Dove and an episode of Matt Dillion before I went to bed. I woke up before daylight and fixed some breakfast. I’m the one only in my house that likes fried eggs burnt and covered in seasoned salt. So, I was excited about breakfast.
All of a sudden my phone started beeping and vibrating. A neighbor asked if I had a calf out. He sent me a picture of it and it was that danged corriente calf. I went out and checked to see how many got out. It was the only one missing.
I grabbed an old rope and tossed in the back of the side by side and took off. It took me about thirty minutes to find that calf. It was on the side of the highway coming out of a brushy place. I headed it back towards pastures I knew had good lots. I figured for sure that calf would run through a fence and go hang out with someone’s cows until we could get it in a lot. No big deal, I know about everyone around.
The calf was tired, I guess it had been running all morning looking for home or it’s momma. It got up on the highway and trotted right down the middle of the road.
I thought to myself if I can hold the steering wheel with my right hand I can lean out the drivers side, swing the rope left handed and maybe rope this sucker. So reached in the back and re-rolled the rope up left handed, all while driving down the highway behind the calf.
Now my side by side needs a new front end. It darts all over the road if you drive it very fast at all. So, I got my loop built and kind of leaned out swinging it and at the same time I kind of gunned it to get close enough to the calf.
I was on the curve west of Heavener on the Wister lake highway. As all this was going on, in the back of my mind I said Lord please don’t let any semi trucks come around the curve and keep this side by side running straight while I’m hanging out the side of it.
I couldn’t believe the loop went around his head and I got a front foot in it as well. I kind of followed the calf down to where they work on those semis on the curve. Once I was off the highway I flanked the calf to the ground and fixed the loop where it wouldn’t choke the calf. Then I tied the end of the rope to the side by side. After he wrestled around a good bit and got still I shortened the rope up until I had his head almost beside me as I drove. We took off down the side of the road all the way home. I don’t know how he got out last night, so I put him back in the trailer and not back in the lot. He has wore out his welcome at my house. He’s going bye-bye.
Now it’s off to cut some wood before it gets really warm. Then maybe I’ll work on that horse lot this evening. It’s just a typical day on the farm.
James Lockhart lives near the Kiamichi mountains in southeast Oklahoma. He fools with horses, cows and writes stories.
Get Local News!
