Our History:
So many years back, we started dabbling in the bucking bull business. The husband was a professional bullrider but after three shoulder surgeries and a much needed forth, which has never happened, he retired. In order to remain in the sport, we took to raisin' a few bulls. We would just buy, sell and trade in order to increase our herd. The husband had his own fencing business at the time so he would trade fence with stock contractors for bloodline heifers. We knew we couldn't go wrong with quality heifers. Plus we are lucky enough to know people with good bulls that would allow us to breed to them.
In 2002, at Jerry Nelson's bull sale, we had the highest selling bull. He later qualified for the PBR finals. His success was shortlived, however, he broke his leg and was put down.
Our Stock:
We rely heavily on genetics for our breeding program, specifically quality females. If mama and daddy buck, then odds are baby will buck too. When calves are about 6 months old, we load em up and take em to the arena for their first buckin'. This is our first chance to see if they've gotten what it takes to stay on the ranch. The video below shows how we do it.
The box on the back of the calf weighs approximately 8 lbs. It simulates weight on the calf's back and has a remote control to release it and the flank strap (which is located around the calf's flank. It does not go around any boy bits or cause pain.) The box does NOT shock them or cause any pain either.
So once we see how they do, we make a judgement call whether to keep them or send them to the sale. If the bulls show potential, we usually will keep them for 6 more months and re-buck em. We don't re-buck heifers. They get put out to pasture to grow or sold to contractors. Our precentage of keepers is currently around 70-80%.
As for the training question, you don't train bulls to buck. Either they do or they don't. We just hope ours do. It all goes back to the genetics really. If they want to buck, they will and believe me, you can't make one buck. If it doesn't want to, it won't.
The only "training" we do is working them in the chutes. We spend a lot of time trying to calm them down around people and getting them used to being hauled. You want to be able to handle them. I get in trouble by the husband for really calming them down. Like eat out of my hand calm. He doesn't like that!
What we strive for currently is keeping all of our "special" heifers and increasing the quality of our herd. We sell most of our bulls to other stock contractors for them to haul. We would prefer to keep our bulls and haul them ourselves, which we have done in the past, however, it is very time consuming and expensive. It is very rewarding to see them grow and do well whether it be with us or someone else.
So did that answer most of the questions regarding this subject?
**On a different note, I lost a follower yesterday. What happened? What did I do? How can I win you back? Was it something I said? **
31 comments:
I learn something new everyday. I have never seen a calf buck like that. Interesting to watch...but I think I will stick with the ones that we just have to chase around on our farm. lol. Calm is good if you want me to be around them.
Awesome. Luckily our milking heifers did not buck like that or I may not be here today. After milking was done I used to go out and try to ride them. I got plowed into the cement once but the heifer took off and the rest of her herd followed it. It could have been bad, I was a kid and the boys dared me to.
There is just so much more to bucking bulls then we see! Are you familiar with the Bertrand's out of Wellington, KS? They were my first introduction into the bucking bull business! What an eye opener! Great people, Dee is a fireball!
Also - I know you are disappointed about your "follower" loss. Don't take it to heart . . . it could have been any number of things!
Blessings~
P.
Wow! Great calf! I would love to see more videos on how you work with them. Even though we follow rodeo, there is much that we don't know. Thanks for sharing!
I totally agree with Lacey Jo! I want my bulls really calm. Yup eating out of my hand and easily catchable out in the pasture. I don't even like to buy them, I like to raise them.
Ohhh bulls...What is that one? He is awesome! He looks like someone shrink wrapped one of the already at the PBR bulls. Very nice! I am certainly impressed...now if only I could convince my folks I need a calf.
And I think I remember that bull. He was pretty stellar!
WOW! Thank you! I have gone to rodeos, and watched the bucking bulls but never really thought about what went behind it all. This has been educational, and I want to thank you! I would be like you, getting them to eat out of my hands! LOL......
Hey... Even Big Bucks eats McDonald's french fries out of a three year old's hands!
Very interesting I had noidea how you would assess abulls bucking potential.
Thanks for the info. This is great, there is so much to learn - very cool!
I learned a WHOLE bunch I never knew about this sport. To tell you the truth, I had no idea. I just thought some brave soul climbed aboard and off you went. Literally....I guess. So THANK you for reminding me that there is history under that rider.
And hey! I lost a follower yesterday, too. Wonder if it was the same person..I know we have a few overlaps. And for the life of me I don't know who it was that left. Any ideas on yours? I wondered the same thing you're wondering....did I do/not do something? My whole post was about how wonderful I think other people are. How do you go wrong with that?
We had a nice bucker that would eat out of our hands. He died this year from internal injuries. The other bulls beat him up in the pen. We may have one of his babies on the way, other than that we kind of lost all of our wind with his loss. Hubby sold all but one bull last week. Maybe he'll start over?
Thanks for answering the questions!
Ahhhh.... memories! My step-brother raises buckers in Ceres CA and although I just kind of stood around and watched, it was so interesting !
I think I'll write down my followers, just so I can keep track!
This was very interesting, I like others, had no idea. The 'follower' must have done that accidentally. Your posts are so very interesting, can't imagine someone 'leaving'. I love coming here and learnin'stuff :)
....fourth......
why don't you 'splain about the expensive little embryos?
Sorry....yesterday I was telling my sister about the heart shaped cupcakes and her response was "she can cook?" so I straightened her out right quick!!! p
Not to be too nosy- but what is a medium price for these guys? What If I wanted to buy one and have someone haul it for me? Is that done?
I love that you and your hubby have found a niche in the Rodeo world. When I was a youngster, once you were done with Rodeo it was pretty much done with you. All the cowboys were old, broken and worn out.Then Larry Mahan came along- Whooee! That man changed it for everyone. Sorry- I digress...
Please write more about working and training the bulls, show more pictures. Very interesting.
I'm very sorry to hear you lost a follower, but you most certainly gained one in me. I haven't put my favourite blogs on the "Blogs I Follow" list, mainly because I use Google Reader so I've never needed it, but I think I'll do that today.
I love rodeos, I go to as many as I can and although I've heard bits and pieces about breeding the bulls nothing as detailed as what you can tell us. Yep, I agree, more stories and more videos!
Just wanted to say thanks for all of your interest and comments. The Wife knows a whole lot more about the bucking business than she lets on. I did tell her she could feed the hiefers by hand but Not the bulls. She doesn't listen to me very often. ya, can you believe that. And just a note , that was one of our special girls bucking in the video not a bull. Her name is Turning Trix. thanks again. maybe she'll post more cool videos and info on bucking bulls.
Very cool...thanks for sharing what you guys do. I always thought that would be an awesome "hobby"...raising buckin bulls. Maybe someday.
wow I love it...very interesting.....i love rodeos!!!!
My ex husband used to bullride in the iowa curcuit....way back when!!!! but it so fun to watch now.....i will have to keep an eye on TV.....maybe we will hear your name!!!!! AWESOME post!!!!!
Great video! loved the post!....seems..I've met plenty who've wanted to raise bucking stock, it's real neat to read about folks who are doing it... and are successul at it. Too cute of a name for the little heifer..who thought of that one?? had to be the cowboy/hubby!
My Cowboy rode bulls too, years before all of the protective gear and the modern incredible genetic "bull Business". It is facinating.
I've had to watch a lot of RFDTv...you should have written this months and months ago so I could have done something 'constructive' besides RFDTv!
(I lost a few followers last month, but I had their emails..they quit their blogs...so don't take it to heart)
It's so funny, I was just talking about this with a friend this morning! She is a huge PBR follower and I told her I was on the PBR site last night looking at the top 40 cowboys, then I asked her what a lot of them do when they retire. She said some various things, but that some of them go on and breed bucking stock. Anyway, I am getting more "into" the PBR and hope to attend my first event this spring, so it's good to get a little background information!!
Our neighbors raise bucking bulls........and horses. It's interesting to watch them grow up and either make the cut or get the cut. They "train" them at the local arena in the winter by taking them in as two year olds and letting the wannabe, maybe bullriders get on. They only ever take them a couple of times each during the winter but can at least made a judgment call.
That was a great post...hadn't a clue how it all worked. Glad you posted and will look forward to more!
Great video and post! I have never met anyone that raises bucking bulls before, but I found it very interesting! I have read that you can't make them buck, either they do or they don't. So many animal activists get so out of whack about the Rodeo business and they are so misinformed. So your post will educate many people! :)
My husband would love to buy some bucking stock. He rode bulls too!! He always talks about buying some bucking bulls. We live right around the corner from Harper Morgan Rodeo Company, and they do all the big rodeos in Louisiana. But my husband dreams of it.
And dang that little guy can buck!! I was watching the PRCA Extreme Bulls last night and there are a lot of little squirmy ones that are hard to ride!!
Great post, and I will have to have my husband read this one!
I'm so glad you posted this! I know you've written about bucking before but I wasn't sure what it involved. We raised hogs growing up, so cows are a whole new area to me!
Very interesting! I grew up on a farm, but we only had about a dozen cattle -- cows for milk and for birthing the steers that we raised for our own meat.
Post a Comment