Facing the Atlas Blizzard

My family is among the western South Dakota ranchers who were directly in the path of winter storm Atlas. While many have heard there was a storm, many have not heard about the devastating loss of livestock, despite ranchers taking every precaution to prevent sickness and death.
This is our Katrina, our Sandy, our extremely rare and deadly tornado. The western plains are dotted with dead animals, some of them my own. Our lifestyle makes us independent, self sufficient people, and while we may not look it on the outside, we are crippled and heartbroken on the inside. This natural disaster has torn people's lives and livelihoods apart.
I cannot fully explain the feelings mixed within me that were almost physically sickening as my family and I rode in the blizzard's aftermath, searching for live cattle and identifying the dead. I did cover some aspects in a firsthand account I wrote for BEEF Magazine that can be read here.
Our animals, both those that lived and those that did not, are our pride and joy, what we have invested our entire financial means into, and what we have happily chosen to spend all our years caring for. There were countless tears as we worked to even make it to our cattle to see how they fared the storm, and many more as we worked through the heartbreaking process of finding animals that didn't survive, and still more here and there as we continue picking up the pieces and working to get past the initial shock, emotional and physical exhaustion so that we can continue to care our cattle that survived.
The thing that is shocking me most is the backlash of people blaming the ranchers, blaming me, for these losses. I cannot comprehend there being a separation between ranchers and animal lovers, as to me they are synonymous, but many feel those two words are on opposite ends of the spectrum. This is not true.
Shame on you for sitting behind the anonymity of a computer screen, in the comfort of your home or business, and slamming me, my friends and my neighbors who are too busy working through this natural disaster to take the time to reply to you, because we are out physically caring for our animals and those belonging to anyone else we happen to find.
I have yet to see one self proclaimed animal lover/hater of ranchers here physically helping and contributing to the welfare of animals, looking us in the eye, and knowing for themselves if their claims against us are justified or misguided.
Just as it is impossible to understand the aftermath of something like Katrina or Sandy, it is also impossible to understand how this natural disaster played out if you weren't front and center for it. My family, and all the people around us, did everything we ever learned in the course of multiple lifetimes in this business to prepare our cattle for the storm. Myself and my friends and neighbors all understand that an animal's needs are different than a humans in weather related situations, and that was also taken into consideration when determining what to do in preparation.
Many commenters have asked why we didn't have all the cattle in barns. There are a few reasons for this. One is that cattle, like wildlife, have the hair coats, hide and internal organs designed for the outdoors, and almost always survive weather events better in areas of natural protection instead of in barns. Another is that it is unfeasible to have the scale of barn it would require to house entire herds, and a huge barn would prevent the area from growing grass, which the cattle need more than a barn 99.9 percent of the time. A third reason is that while barns provide protection from some weather events, there is also increased concern of trampling or sickness when cattle are grouped that close together for an extended period of time, which is often more deadly than the weather event. Lastly, this being what it was, it didn't matter where the cattle were, and I feel very fortunate mine weren't in or near a barn as that is where many people suffered their greatest losses.
Another complaint I've seen in more than one place is this is just another way for us ranchers to get in line for a bailout, government subsidy, or other form of free money and federal help. Excuse me?! First, I have never, in my life, received any form of livestock related government subsidy and have no reason to believe that will change in light of this storm. Secondly, there is no government bailout that I've heard of. My husband and I had insurance, but were informed it will likely not cover our losses. We, and we alone, are financially responsible for our loss. To be perfectly clear, there is no federal government assistance occurring at all, no red cross, no army corps of engineers, and no money being dolled out to us. That is fine, and I am not complaining, simply setting the record straight on this misunderstanding.
Perhaps the most heartbreaking comment was made on the article I linked to above, where a person said that this was a better death than what the animals would have suffered at the hands of us murderous ranchers who take them to slaughter.
That person is wrong for many reasons. Yes, myself and the other ranchers of the area do raise livestock to provide meat to feed people. I understand that some people don't like or understand that concept, and that is their right. The issue I have is the belief of some that because we raise animals to feed people, those animals must be treated poorly their entire lives. That is not correct. I, and everyone else in the ranching industry invest our lives in providing the best care for our animals that we are physically, financially and emotionally able to do. If you can't comprehend or understand that, it's okay, but it is not okay for you to believe the worst of me and my efforts to provide a better lifestyle for my livestock than I do for myself simply because you don't know one way or the other.
I live in a house older than all the barns, working facilities and vehicles used to feed, work and care for our animals. I got my first pedicure for my wedding because every extra dollar I make goes into animal care. I loved that pedicure, but feel extreme guilt pampering myself instead of buying things like hay to feed our cows in the winter months, heat lamp bulbs to keep baby pigs warm or tires for the pickup we use to feed our cattle all winter, so it's unlikely I'll have another anytime soon. My cattle have the best available healthcare plan that is personalized and paid for out of my pocket, and I have the bones basic Aflac injury insurance plan and that is it. I don't do these things in a bid for sympathy, empathy or to "make it look like I care." I do them because I love my animals, and have the opportunity to make my living caring for them while they're alive. To me that opportunity is one of the greatest gifts God has given me.
However, yes, they will die in order to provide beef, and I am not a vicious person who relishes in that fact. If we could just do things as we wanted, just because, in life, I wouldn't ever have an animal die. But that's not reality, and when an animal does die to provide beef, it is done in such a way that it is instant and painless to the animal. Yes, they die, but they do not suffer, and I say that as someone who has done my own research and watched it happen. Decades of research by top universities and animal welfare individuals have created methods that make sure there is no pain for the animal.
So, to say that the animal was better off slowly freezing to death rather than going through an instantaneous, painless death was not correct in any way. It makes me irate that someone would accuse me of purposely harming and abusing an animal in any way, and especially beyond what mother nature does at her absolute worst.
It's fine if you don't know a lot about cattle, ranching, blizzards, western South Dakota or various other factors that were part of this massive natural disaster. But, that does not give you the right to attack and blame me and my friends and neighbors who are on the ground doing the hard labor picking up the pieces of what generations of our families have dedicated themselves to creating because this turned into a catastrophic weather event that resulted in loss of animals.
We did all we could before and during, and are continuing to do all we can after this storm, just as I'm sure people do when facing any major weather event. No one, not a single person, wanted this to happen, and the feelings of what it is like to look out over land your parents, grandparents, and great grandparents worked their entire lives on, and see it ravaged and dotted with deceased animals you've spent your life caring for is unimaginable.

After the storm

Perhaps you watch the weather and heard about the west getting pounded with snow this week? We were right in the path of the storm, and couldn't have been happier about the prospective moisture! However, it did come in blizzard form, which wasn't anyone's first choice, but dry as it has been around here no one was complaining.
When we have a blizzard, we try to get our cattle fed up ahead of time, then we leave them alone during the storm. Our rough, deep draws (small canyons) provide awesome protection, and our cows are used to taking care of themselves. If we were to try to feed in the middle of a blizzard, it would cause the cows to leave their protection, and result in more problems and calf deaths than if we just leave them alone. The cows will hole up somewhere out of the elements, and keep their calves warm and cared for too.
Everyone was fed well on Monday, then left alone as several inches of snow and some serious winds blew through our part of Wyoming Monday afternoon through Tuesday night. Today our top priority was getting our cows fed, which took extra time and equipment compared to a normal feed day. Here's how it went:

First ones out on the county road this morning, which was hard to see at times.

This is always a problem spot. While my mom, sister and I were in the lead until here, we had to stop and wait for backup.

Here he comes, working his way through.

Getting closer. Aside from us, one other family will be grateful for this road being cleared so they can feed their livestock too.

Making an extra pass to help those of us in pickups get through.

I was the cake pickup driver.

My brother and his girlfriend Sam were in the hay pickup. Everyone came to help feed this morning so they could see the cattle, help, and find out how much snow we really got. This is the most moisture we've had in well over a year, and the first blizzard in just as long. We were all excited about the moisture and concerned about our animals.

We got plenty of snow blown into some places, and I got stuck.

and pushed out

 

 

We eventually made it the roughly 6 miles from our house to where we were feeding - a carefully selected, south facing bowl out of the wind and right next to one of our rough draws. This was also where the cattle were fed prior to the storm, after taking into account which direction the wind was expected to blow out of, and which way the cattle would drift as a result. We always make sure we feed in a location that causes the cattle to drift into a draw when a blizzard or cold weather hits.

 

 

 There was more getting stuck, With our sagebrush and rolling plains, sometimes it's very difficult to tell where the snow is deep.

 Dad packed a path in the snow prior to feeding.

 The cows came from various directions,

 However, the majority trickled in from this draw, called Cedar Draw, which was where we hoped they would end up. While you can't see it in my photo, this draw includes shear cliff walls several stories high in places, thick brush and cedar trees, sandstone overhangs, some that are almost caves, and many twists and turns, all of which are about perfect for a cow to weather a storm in. You can only get a horse across it in about four places along its approximately 1/2 mile length.

 As more cows arrived, dad ran a couple straw bales through the hay buster, both to fill and warm up the cows and to give the calves something warm and dry to lay on.

 He unloaded  the bales off the stuck hay pickup, and worked a long time on getting him out of there.

When everyone arrived, we fed the cake and dad ran a combination of oat, grass and alfalfa hay through the hay buster for them.

 

 

 I took a lot of pictures - several of the cute calves. It was great to see so many newborns arrive healthy and alive. It's one thing to know they'll probably be fine, and another to know and see them and make sure all is well. No one rested real well the last couple days as the bad weather went through as a result of worrying over our livestock, in addition to being excited to actually be getting some decent moisture.

 Finally, we headed home. Here's the bunch from the road. Tucked out of the wind, getting full, and still right beside a good draw in case it gets cold and windy tonight.

 Then we ate lunch, while heading out to the second bunch to feed them. Normally our feed days are done at 12:30 p.m. at the latest. We weren't even done with the first bunch by that time today. So, dad and I ate on the go to make sure we had plenty of time to get our second bunch of younger cows fed, regardless of any setbacks we might encounter.

 Off we go, up another one mile of two-track road with our hay and cake.

 Our three year olds were also stragically fed so they would drift into this draw, which also offers great protection. While the cows looked a little rough, I'm not sure these guys even noticed there was a storm. They were happy and content.

 The same process was repeated. They were fed a combination of grass and alfalfa hay and also given a straw bale, mainly as bedding, and filler if they want it.

 Here's my dad laying in some straw in another little bowl that drops right into the draw for the calves in this bunch.

It was immediately put to use.

And after that, at 4 p.m., we were finished for the day. While the blizzard may have made feeding more difficult and time consuming today, it also provided us with desperately needed moisture that will be the difference between selling out and making it another year for some people. We're all very grateful for it, and the chances we have for more later this week!