I’ve always been a bit hesitant to post full videos of branding… there’s so much going on… but I’ve done this blog since 2008, and I imagine I’ve posted so many photos, that by now, it doesn’t really matter that it’s a video!

If you have a legitimate question, I’ll always answer them… just check out the Questions&Answers tab at the top of this blog.

Before you ask, you might want to review this post from 2014 entitled Ten Things You May Not Know About: Branding.

Daniel is roping on Zip. Zip is a very calm horse in the roping pen with the calves. Not every horse is cut out for that job. Calves are roped by their heels, both are preferred, but one is fine. The “wrestlers” position the calf on the right side since our brand is on the left rib. To hold a calf, strength is good, but leverage can work for you, too. Victoria still wrestles calves, and I wrestled my share back in the day! Calves are given shots to prevent illness and a boost of minerals for good health. To keep track of which calves have received which shots, you mark them with colored “chalk”, which is a job little kids love to do! Tess, Megan, and Vernon gave the shots at this branding. Johnny, Brandon, and I branded the calves. Quinlan, Jaxon, and even Lacee helped hold calves, crawling in the laps of experienced wrestlers and hanging on for dear life! Great neighbors filled in the jobs of ropers and wrestlers and fire-tenders.

It is mass chaos until you figure out the method. It’s also a dangerous place with horses, ropes, calves, sharp needles, and hot irons looking for ways to hurt you! We’ve never had a bad wreck, thank goodness, just small ones!