A Look Back on the Summer: Once the Dust Settles

July - September

"Everything will get better once the dust settles."

I heard this the other day and thought to myself, "In this kind of whirlwind?" There are far too many factors in our livelihood that make up this whirlwind. Political agendas, misinformation, price increases, and much more. If I broaden my horizon too much, the light of hope seems dimmer, so I narrow my scope at times just to ease the ever-increasing tension and focus on what I can do now to make a change. Let's be honest, there seem to be far more things against us than for us in this world, but I have faith in knowing that trials and struggles only sharpen us.

For instance, I got to thinking about the trickling effects of decisions made initially in good faith and how the repercussions are affecting us today. This happens in daily life and in other various ways. In the world of the public land it seems to be a tangled mess of sometimes good intentions, a good dose of misunderstandings, and ever-changing political agendas that make it even harder to deal with. Expectation and reality rarely line up, and this last week had me as stirred as our cattle.

Since early last week (mid-July), we've doctored almost 100 head of calves for dust pneumonia and found a few walking wounded calves (attacked by a bear or wolf, but not killed). These are heartbreaking to find since you know they have suffered and we have to do the dirty work of putting the animal down in some cases. While we raise cattle ultimately for consumption and use of their byproducts, we still want the animal to have as healthy and stress-free a life as possible. Both of those have been tested by conflicts with Grizzly bears and wolves. Because of these encounters, almost daily, the cattle have been pushed to move quickly from one area to another causing pneumonia in the calves. It's hard to manage our livestock and the land when a predator calls the shots. It would be foolish to think that we may see less weight on the calves and spayed heifers and lower pregnancy rates overall.

It makes me wonder how we can make management decisions when our hands are tied, so to speak, in the continued bear-wolf saga. Because we rely so heavily on public lands to make our business work, we are also fighting for the right to use the land. Some want livestock grazing to leave completely and that narrative needs to change. Luckily, a few cooperative groups are working together as we speak to help with predation across the western United States and I'm hopeful that continued efforts will provide the assistance we need in predator mitigation. Maybe even make the dust settle. Real change needs to be made in predator management so we can make decisions that will ultimately benefit all. We can only manage as well as the system allows.

So what can we do? We work to change misunderstanding into cooperative decision-making, keep working closely with groups who manage our wildlife and public lands, and have an open mind to find new ways to keep doing what we love.

What have we done this summer? Haying season, fencing projects, and personal time off. These beautiful summer months always seem to go by too quickly when we have so much to do and this one was no different. As I conclude this blog, it's October 1st and Sublette County saw snow, hail, lightning, wind, and more all in one day. A sure sign that fall is here.