Reality Ranch — From Trail Drives to the

Reality Ranching –From Trail Drives to the Millennium

Part 1

by Sid Goodloe

Recently a young man asked me how he could get into the ranching business. I told him there were two ways: inherit a million dollars or win the lottery, then ranch ‘til it runs out: Even those of us who have been in the ranching business for several decades are scrambling to make a profit. I find that a good reality check is to compare the number of calves it takes to buy a new pickup now and when I started 65 years ago. The weaning weight of steer calves has risen from about 325 lbs. to over 650 lbs. and the price has risen from 18 cents/lb. to $1.40/lb. And yet it takes almost twice as many calves today to buy a pickup as it did in 1956. So, how does a rancher stay in business when we buy our supplies and equipment at retail and sell what we produce at wholesale?

It can be done, of course, but mostly by those who inherited a large piece of land or large estate and have no kids in college. Realistically, those of us who are hanging on usually have alternate sources of income. This can be recreation (fee hunting, trail rides, guest ranch, etc.) other natural resources (timber, fire wood, fence posts, gravel pit, etc.) or an outside job (drive the school bus). As a matter of fact, many of us are able to continue ranching because our land values continue to rise and we can borrow against the increased value of our ranch. The real cop-out, however, is to sell the north forty to a developer. I call that a cop-out, but can we really blame a rancher who, after 50 or 60 years of scrambling to raise a family and never really getting ahead, decides to sell a small parcel of land that might run four or five cows, for 10 or even 20 times what he paid for it?

Where did this all start: What was it like in the ‘old west’? What will ranching be like in the ‘new west’? To put this in perspective, let’s go back to the days just after the Civil

Sid Goodloe War. Cattle in Texas and other southern states had multiplied during the war to the point that a few good cowboys could put together a herd of free-roaming cattle and head up the trail to Dodge City. If they survived the stampedes, floods, Jay Hawkers and Indians, they could make a profit. There was enough demand for beef back east to provide a good market for three- to fiveyear-old steers that could be had for a song. The female stock came here to New, Mexico, Arizona and states north all the way to Canada and by the turn of the century, the cattle boom in the West was at its peak. As an example, in the Smokey Bear District of the Lincoln National Forest, there were

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82,000 head of livestock in 1902. Today there are less than 5,000.

When I was a kid cowboyin’ on ranches near Albany, Texas, I was fortunate enough to ride and work cattle with older cowboys who had actually ‘gone up the trail’ with those herds. They were my heroes – gentlemen, wiry, and tough and they knew which way a cow was going to turn before she took a step. I was able to absorb their philosophy and understand those things that counted most to them: which horses in your string would buck; which horse you could depend on to stay in a mile-eating lope when you had to ride the outside circle; which horse you could use to cut cattle out of the herd (and you made sure no one else rode him!); when and where was the next rodeo and how many cases of screwworms did we pick up today? There was always talk of rain, fences and Saturday night. Good-natured competition on ranches and between ranches was always present. All of those things were part of cowboy camaraderie and they were much more in vogue than range condition, biodiversity and endangered species. In those days, living close to animals and the land was wonderful therapy. There is no feeling like catching the old wild cow that escaped the last three roundups or feeling the strength and willingness of a good horse under you as day breaks miles from the nearest house or road. So trailing cattle north and establishing ranches, then finally settling down to raise a family on those ranches occurred as the frontier came to an end. Although the American way of life became steadily more urban and industrialized, ranching in the west remained relatively unchanged. Hollywood nurtured the cowboy or rancher image as a little wild when he got to town, but he was honest, a respecter of women, and his word was his bond. For the most part, I this found to be true. Those cowboys and ranchers that I worked with became role models for young men like me. As far as land stewardship was concerned the emphasis was on livestock, water, fences and round-ups rather than ecosystems. It was not until 1970 when the first Earth Day was observed that I, at least, became aware of the environmental movement. As Congress passed more and more environmental legislation and the public developed an environmental conscience, ranchers, miners and loggers became targets. Ranchers were told, usually by young, over-zealous, inadequately informed people, that they were incapable of properly managing their ranches and permits. This, of course, was true in some cases, but the majority of those individuals had for more than a hundred years been engaged in a cumulative and ambitious race to modify and gain control of the environment. Neither they nor their offspring were programmed to take corrective advice from anyone who had not walked the walk.

Herein lies the root of misunderstanding and subsequent conflict in the western states. No credit was given to those who had settled the West in spite of their immeasurable hardships such as drought, blizzards, lawlessness, rustlers and family tragedies. They were condemned for their lack of concern for the health of the land. No allowance was given for their lack of knowledge of the brittle environment they found as they moved west from areas of higher precipitation where you could run an animal unit to eight to ten acres instead of 40 to 60 acres. If those pioneer cattlemen came west in a good year, they thought they had found Paradise, not knowing that a three-year drought might be just around the corner. Their priorities were family security, homes, schools, water, barns, building corrals and fences, livestock and land ownership – not biodiversity. ▫

ANIMAL & RANGE animal & range SCIENCES sCienCes

The Department of Animal & Range Sciences is part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences The Department of Animal & Range Sciences is part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences Four on-campus animal facilities house: beeF CaTTle/horses/swine/sheep Students can major in Animal or Rangeland Resources and are provided with the very best of “hands on” academic instruction by our faculty. Fully equipped labs allow students access to cutting-edge research in:

LIVESTOCKNUTRITION / GENETICS / PHYSIOLOGY / ENDOCRINOLOGY / MEAT SCIENCE / WOOL / TOXICOLOGY / WATERSHED & RANGELANDECOLOGY / WEED & BRUSHCONTROL / PLANTSYSTEMATICS / GRAZINGMANAGEMENT

The Department also offers pre-veterinary studies –our graduates have a high acceptance rate into veterinary medicine programs. We offer graduate degrees at the Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy levels. The M.S. or Ph.D. in Animal Science can emphasize nutrition or physiology, and offers a Ph.D. in Range Science to study range management, range ecology and watershed management. THE DEPARTMENT ALSO OPERATES

• The Chihuahuan Desert Rangeland

Research Center (The College Ranch) – 64,000 acre ranch just outside of

Las Cruces • The Corona Range & Livestock Research

Center – 28,000 acre ranch & facilities in

Corona, NM • Student organizations, including a

Block & Bridle Club, Pre-Vet Club,

Range Club, Horsemen’s Association,

Therapeutic Riding Club, &

Judging Teams • Clayton Research Center hosts research on shipping protocols, particularly evaluating the health and performance of newly received cattle, and nutrition and management from feedlot to slaughter

Dr. Shanna Ivey – 575-646-2515 • Dr. John Campbell – 575-646-6180 Dr. John Campbell –575/646-6180 / Dr. Dennis hallford –575-646-2515 http://aces.nmsu.edu/academics/anrs http://aces.nmsu.edu/academics/anrs/

Plan your advertising for the coming year! JANUARY — Wildlife; Gelbvieh; Joint Stockmen’s Convention Results FEBRUARY — Beefmasters; Texas Longhorns MARCH — Limousin; Santa Gertrudis APRIL — Dairy MAY — News of the Day JUNE — Sheepman of the Year JULY — Directory of Agriculture AUGUST — The Horse Industry SEPTEMBER — Charolais; Fairs Across the Southwest Editorial Calendar If you would like to see your breed featured email caren@aaalivestock.com To Reserve Advertising Space email chris@aaalivestock.com or call Chris at 505.243.9515, ext. 2 OCTOBER — Hereford; New Mexico State Fair Results NOVEMBER — Cattleman of the Year; Joint Stockmen’s Convention Preview; Angus, Brangus, Red Angus DECEMBER — Bull Buyers Guide