[J-L]

It sure looks and sounds like the way to go. I’ve been looking at it pretty hard my self. My problem is that I have so much box brichen harness available to me for nothing (or next to it) from people around here that don’t use it anymore.
Looking at it made me think of how good it would be on your horses when mowing hay.
Hope it works well and do keep us posted on how you are converting your harness (hint; maybe take some pictures) and give us your usual good report.

[J-L]

Too far from Wyoming to that gathering. I would love to go out there though. Maybe one year I’ll make that trip. Would love to got to Horse Progress Days as well. That one would be tough for me as we are usually starting to put up hay about then.
Other than a cold snap or two (spit snow on us last week) and some snow in the mountains, it’s been a warm and dry fall so far here. We freeze every night but warm up to 60 or so. Supposed to get some snow here by Monday.
I’ve been doing some elk hunting (hunting not shooting though) in between doing my cow work and fencing. I’ve got a pair of haflingers to work for a gentleman this fall, a pair of mules to work this winter for another fellow, and a pair of paint horses later on. Should stay busy.
John, are you doing any farm work there (Ayrshire) with your horses right now?

[J-L]

I say keep your tongue stout enough. Every time I thought I was doing a favor to my horses/mules by lightening the tongue, it got bent or broke.
With the 3 wheel cart, use a bigger, softer wheel in front. I rode on a haywagon in Idaho with 3 wheel set up. It rode just fine, even across corrigated alfalfa fields. Very stable also. I was told the key to stability was to put the pivot point high enough above the deck.
Geoff (aka George), how do you like your 3 wheel cart by the way?

[J-L]

I’d like to have heard that speech. I need to remember those words of wisdom. Many times we are too ‘busy’ to take that evening and relax a little bit and that may be a mistake. My folks seldom let us do that and it may have pushed one or two siblings away from the ranch. It doesn’t have to be work, work, work day in, day out. We (my family of six) take our supper together whenever possible. We can all see the importance of that. The conversations with our children just flow naturally at meal time.
John, I too remember when neighbors worked together. We did our haying with my Uncle and his boys back in the day. Everyone seems on guard and so involved in their own little world now. Life is faster, unfortunately.
The “bottom line” for my little ranch is not about money. It is a great way to raise my kids. As long as we can pay our bills and have enough to eat it is a success. Probably like many small farms or ranches nowaday.

[J-L]

To me there is a major difference in the 5 acre house sight that many want, and an actual 100 acre farm. 100 acres can be a lot of work. Depending on where it is and what it can and will produce, it may not make a whole lot more than paying expenses.
Of course there are regional differences. There are still a good amount of jobs around here. Most of the fellows I know envy what I’m doing…until they spend a few days stacking hay or days on end out in the blizzards and wind. Or especially when I talk of trading them pay checks.

[J-L]

I’m thinking it would be hard to find 20 people who want to work hard for the small return on 100 acres of farmland. This day and age most make a fairly high wage withouth getting any blisters on their hands or feet.

[J-L]

I’ve still got a bunch to do myself. We will get on the firewood later in October. Mean time I’ve still got some hay to stack (maybe 100 ton) and about 20 acres left to cut and bale yet. The end is in sight at least. Also have cattle to move down out of the high country by the end of this month. Lot’s of fencing to do and vaccinate calves for their second shot. Also have to slip in a pack trip and some elk hunting by the end of the month too. Guess I’d better get my arse off the computer and get in the hay field.

[J-L]

Looks very useful and ingeniuos to me Donn. Flies were bad here for a while this year. Deer flies weren’t quite so bad as the horse flies though.
I too would like to see your ground drive cart. How much or how big a machine do you reckon you can run with it?
I’ve been thinking of either a ground drive or a power cart some time. Would like something that could run a 9′ pull swather or there abouts. That and a manure spreader.
Again, like the face nets. Jason, don’t make Donn a slave to fashion:). Twine is fine.

[J-L]

Donn, I forgive you for using the tractor!
Wish I had your hay drying weather (we normally do), I knocked down 25 acres of grass hay (one cut is all we get, used two swathers) yesterday afternoon and it rained on it last night. I’m shutting water off and haying like a mad man for the next month or so while I have the kids home to help.
Good luck with the new horse. Keep us posted.

[J-L]

It’s a constant battle down here dominiquer60. Who knows what the intent was with the food safety bill. I can see how it concerns the market garden folks. If I were in their boots I’d be concerned too.
As far as the ‘death tax’ goes, that is a serious problem for those of us in agriculture. Most people think of the Rockefeller crowd when they think of that inheretance tax. What most don’t realize is that when it reverts back to the $650,000 ceiling that it will affect most small ranches and farms. It seems extremely unfair to make the heirs buy back their family’s business from the government.
Everything above that sum will be taxed at 55%! It doesn’t take much of an estate this day and age to go above that limit. This will cause a great deal of hardship to the small family ranches and farms. Our income won’t allow us to come close to paying that. The country will stand to lose still more farm and ranch land to development with this thing set up the way it is.

[J-L]

I thought those horses were a tad smaller than most horses I’ve seen lately. Lot’s more to my liking. Using horses for ranch work and not much plowing, I tend to lean toward 1600 lb. animals or smaller. They are a nice looking team for sure.
As to the dog thing, my dogs are probably much the same as yours. We use them a bunch herding cows, guarding stackyards while I’m feeding and working cattle. He just ran in front of the mower (7′ New Holland on JD tractor) one day. We’d been haying for a couple weeks and thought nothing of him being there. My guess was he got to hunting mice and not paying attention.
The dog who lost his legs was a 3 yr old. Very savvy and a lot of guts for a border collie. I was fortunate enough to have one litter of pups out of him though and still am working with that line of dogs.

[J-L]

Hi Colttrainer. Nice looking team and mower. I’ll echo what Iron Rose said on the dog. 4 years ago my son took 3 legs off my best border collie. Very traumatic deal for him and I didn’t enjoy puttin that dog down either.
Your country sure looks wet and green. We’ve been drier than dry here. The only green is right where the irrigation water is running.
We’re going to start knocking down the grass hay in a week. Just mowed 1st cutting alfalfa two days ago and should bale tomorrow.
Tell me a bit about your horses.

[J-L]

I made my last one 8’x14′. I thought I would like the extra width but have hated it since I made it. 7′ fits through tight spots much better. I use mine feeding hay every day when not hooked to a bobsled and then use it in the spring and summer for many other chores. 8′ wide just barely rubs through some of my gates and is always catching on the brush.
When I rebuild it again it’ll be 7′ wide and 16′ long. I have one wagon that’s only 12′ long and it’s never big enough.

[J-L]

I use two Border Collies and an Australian Shepherd. They are with me daily and guard stackyards all winter so I don’t have to shut the gates when I’m feeding. All year they herd cows with me whenever we move. They are essential. Much of the time it’s me and the dogs moving up to 275 cows around and I couldn’t do it without them.
Yesterday I was moving one of my bulls out of my neighbors cows. He got on the fight and was hitting our horses and finally knocked over my daughter’s horse (she’s quick and got away from the wreck before she got hurt) and sent him flying about 4 feet up and sideways. When an animal as big as him (I guess about 2200 lb.) decides he’s through doing what you want him to there isn’t much room for argument. He was too big to rope so I put the dogs on him. After about 2 or 3 minutes of fighting with a collie on his nose and the other on his arse, he decided to get moving. Took us about 3 hours to move him a half mile. Could never have done it without my dogs Babe and Dot, mother and daughter team.

[J-L]

He just pulled off his yoke strap and pole strap from his farm harness to get it out of the way. Then put his quarter straps up out of the road. The brichen doesn’t have anything to keep it forward. It’s not out of adjustment, just out of use. Probably the quickest way to go from farming to loggin with the same set of box brichen harness.
I have done similar when working in places with lots of snags ground skidding. No brichen necessary but easier to just take a few things off rather than readjust everything. Glad no one took a picture of it!
Looks like a good hand with a nice team.

[Author]

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