Chapter XIV

Branding is Still Done on Most Ranches

After we finished breakfast, all the other hands left. I was helping Consuelo pick up the dishes. Mike was still at the table sipping his coffee. "Jake, we're going to brand some cows this morning. Do you want to help? They are in the north range. I was thinking we would drive them down to the corral so we could run them through the chute. However, after seeing that fancy roping you did the other day on that old bull, I got to thinking you might show us how it's done? We could brand those cows right where they are at."

"Cold or hot?" I put the dishes in the sink and turned around to look at Mike.

"What? Cold or hot what?" Mike blinked a couple times.

"Cold or hot brand? The answer is, I'd love to help. I want to know if you brand them with a cold iron or hot iron?"

"Oh! Well, Jake, think of where you're at." He was grinning at me.

"Hot iron I imagine. Be kind of hard to get liquid nitrogen to chill your branding iron in this part of the world, wouldn't it? I guess it was a dumb question." I picked up a dishtowel to help dry the dishes as Quenswalla washed them.

Mike rose out of his chair. "No, not a dumb question. But a hot iron is more practical in my part of the world. You still game? If you are, come on. Let's get it done."

He said something to Consuelo I didn't understand. She took my dishtowel and shooed me away. I was guessing he told her I was going to help brand cows. I followed Mike out to the barn. Picking up the saddle I had yesterday, I opened up the stall to the little mare I had used when I roped the bull.

Mike stopped me. "Try Tom. You and him seem to get along pretty good together."

Shutting the door to the mare's stall I backed up to look at Mike. "Tom is skittish around a rope. It is going to take him a little while to understand it's not him I'm roping. He also lacks training as a cutting horse. He's not going to know what to do once I get that cow or whatever roped. It will take longer if I use Tom rather than the mare."

"He's not going to learn unless someone teaches him. Do you mind?" Mike was watching my eyes, waiting for an answer.

"No, I don't mind if you don't. Just don't expect instant results out there today. Tom needs a lot of hands on training and a lot of love." I moved back over to Tom's stall and opened the door. He was eying me expecting some petting and feed. That would have to come later after we did our work, not now.

It took us almost two hours of ridding to get out to where Mike's hands were rounding up cows. They had obviously left horses and gear out here the day before and drove out in the truck after breakfast this morning. I shook out my lariat. Tom danced sideways away from the rope. I swung the loop up over my head as I held Tom from bolting. He bounced stiff legged as he ducked the rope. He was wanting to run. Today wasn't a run day unless one of those calves fled before we could get a brand on him. After about ten minutes Tom finally settled down. I dropped my lariat and brought it back up over my head again. Tom bounced but he didn't try and run. We went through the motions several times before Tom would tolerate me swinging that lariat over his head. We were as ready as we would ever be on this particular day. I was wishing I had more time to get Tom ready before we started with live calves.

Looking around for Mike I found him over on the other side of the herd. "Let's give it a try."

Mike whipped out his lariat and missed his calf. Ramone had his lariat up and caught a different one. The calf was bawling his head off as he was pulled from the herd. As the calf was pulled up by the fire one of the other hands picked up a hot iron. I had my rope out and caught the calf's hind legs before Tom had a chance to think about it. I pulled back on the reins trying to get Tom to back up. He didn't understand. The only reason the calf went down was because Ramone pulled him away from us and our rope tightened up. The calf was branded and inoculated at the same time. They slipped Ramone's rope off his head. I loosened up my rope and the calf jumped up and ran, kicking his hind legs free of the rope.

We worked hard all morning and most of the afternoon. It was getting close to sundown and Tom was getting the idea of how it was supposed to happen on a working ranch. He didn't jump every time I threw the rope and he would back up when I pulled back on the reins. Ramone and the four other gauchos took a try at roping the back legs but they didn't catch any. I was expecting it most of the day and finally it happened. A couple dozen cows and calves bolted from the herd. Mike's hands quickly closed in on where cows were starting to stream out following the leader.

"Mike!" I touched Tom with my heels as I shouted for help from Mike.

Mike had just bent over to place an iron back in the fire. He looked up and waved me on. As he ran for his horse. "I'll be there. Cut them off before they get to the canyons."

Tom didn't need any urging to run. He had been waiting to do this most of the day. In less than fifty feet he had stretched out and settled into the distance eating gait he had. I felt goose bumps run down my spine as the raw energy he possessed could be physically felt. Those cows could have been running backwards, we gained on them so quickly. As we caught up with the leader it was almost impossible to get Tom slowed down enough to match speed with her. He was wanting to run and that cow wasn't running fast enough to suit him. As I edged Tom over toward the cow she shied away to her left. The rest of the break away stock followed the leader. We kept circling until we were headed back toward the rest of the herd. If they kept going they would run right back into the herd and stop or else the whole bunch would bolt. I didn't like the option so I kept them turning. We would keep circling until they ran out of steam or they decided being with the rest of the herd wasn't that bad of an idea.

Mike caught up with us, and I shouted at him. "Keep them turning. I have an idea."

Mike moved in where Tom and I had been as I pulled Tom out away from the herd. Then I pointed him back toward the middle of the pack. Tom ran through them, scattering the ones who were following behind. They stopped when they no longer had a leader to blindly follow. We cut those that were still running in half again. They too decided they weren't wanting to run any more. Finally it was down to the leader and three others behind her. I dropped my lariat down beside my leg.

"Tom, you run sideways on me and I promise to have you skinned before the night is up." Of course I really wouldn't, and I don't believe Tom could understand what I said. The funny part is, when I got into position over to the right of the cow where I could throw? When I brought my loop up over my head? Tom didn't dance away nor did he do any of his stiff legged running like he tried before. We had the leader and I pulled back on the reins expecting Tom to resist. He didn't. He plowed to a stop and I nearly went out over his head as he planted his feet in the ground. Either he understood a lot more than I gave him credit for or it was a fluke. I don't think it was a fluke. That cow came to the end of her rope and Tom was already stopped. I expected Tom to be dragged forward as both animals gave a little. Tom wasn't in the giving mood. He squatted on his haunches and dug in. It darn near yanked the saddle off Tom as that cow was stopped short. She did a flip and landed on her side. The other cows behind her stopped as they no longer had a leader to follow. I was wondering if we had killed Mike’s cow? She laid there not moving. I eased Tom forward, the rope slacked off on the cow and still she didn't move. I was positive we had broke her neck.

Mike rode up beside us. "Mike, I think I killed your cow."

He looked down at the cow and then back over at me. "Well, I guess we will have to butcher her tonight before we go to bed then."

I slid out of the saddle to remove my rope off her. When I pulled my rope off her neck she staggered to her feet.

"Jake, it looks like you're not going to get that fresh steak after all." Mike was laughing as the cow staggered off toward the herd. She had enough of freedom. She didn't want any more of that.

"Boy am I glad. I was sure I had killed her. I didn't expect Tom to be so stubborn about giving a little as I pulled him in." I reached up and scratched Tom around the ears. He wasn't even hot after that little exercise. Eighty percent of the horses would have been breathing hard. Tom wasn't. To him it was a little stroll. He was such a magnificent animal. I had never met another horse like him. Even those thoroughbred racehorses at Valley Downs Farms couldn't compare to Tom. I didn't think any of them could out run him and I knew none of them could out last him.

"Jake, let's drive the stragglers back and finish up the branding if you're not getting tired of doing all the work around here?" Mike was ready to get this over with and go back to the house.

Tom let me get back into the saddle without stepping away from me. We had become friends. "I'm not doing anything. Roping their back legs isn't work. You and your hands are doing all the hard stuff."

Mike was grinning from ear to ear. "Okay, so why is it none of us can catch those back feet? It sure isn't from trying. I've never seen anyone control a rope like you do Miss McDonald. It's as if that rope was a part of you. Jesus, Ramone, and Andie are better than most with a rope. Yet, I notice when you throw it's a ballet in motion. I think throw is the wrong word here because that is what the rest of us do. We throw a rope. You pass a rope."

"Thanks for the compliment Mike. I'm not that good. I'm just lucky most of the time." Tom turned out where the rest of the stragglers were still trying to make up their mind if they wanted back in the herd or not.

Mike rode up beside us. "Don't shortchange yourself Jake. You aren't lucky and you know it. You're gifted. When you get a rope in your hands, you become a whole different person. I see it and so have the others. They have been talking about you all day. Every time you bring your rope up they want to watch. Your wrist action, the position you take in the saddle, the ease with which you lay that loop out is fascinating to all of us. I believe every one of us has missed a dozen or more times today. All except one, she hasn't missed a single throw."

I was ready to change the subject. Mike was embarrassing me. "How many we have left to brand and vaccinate?"

"Nine hard ones. They won't move away from their mothers so it's making it twice as hard and twice as slow."

"I need two ropes."

Mike looked at me kind of funny before he handed me his.

It wasn't hard to pick put the calves who didn't have a brand on their hip yet. Mike was right about them hugging the sides of their mothers. I swung out a loop and let Tom charge the first pair. When the mother turned to run the calf was a split second late doing the same. I had him before he could close in on his mother's side again. We dragged him crying and bawling from the herd. "Ramone, drop a loop on his head."

As soon as Ramone had his rope over the calf's head, I dropped my lariat and uncoiled the second rope. A light toss and I had the back legs. The calf was branded and inoculated before he knew what was happening.

Jesus slipped the ropes off the calf and handed me the spare rope again. Everyone had the idea of how we were going to finish up this branding.

It was late when we got back to the barn that night. I took my time with Tom even though I was dog tired. I could imagine how Tom must have felt, his first time out as a working ranch horse. He deserved and received a double handful of grain along with a block of hay. Talking to him all the time I was brushing him down, I was careful about those back feet of his. Tom was tired, I was tired and it was a good way to get hurt.

Back in the house, I was too exhausted to care about eating. A quick bath to get rid of the dirt and grim and I was asleep as my body fell in bed.

I thought I was an early riser. Forget that nonsense. I heard men talking and the clatter of dishes before I managed to get my eyes open the next morning. Looking at my watch told me it was twenty eight minutes after four. Didn't those ranch hands ever sleep? Rolling out of bed, I managed to find my clothes and get dressed before I stumbled into the kitchen half asleep. Most of the hands were finishing breakfast, Ramon and Miguel were headed out the door as I walked into the kitchen. They stopped, Ramon said something and smiled before letting the door shut behind him.

Consuelo dropped a plate down on the table loaded with scrambled eggs and toast before I found my chair. The chair was warm. The other Ramone must have just left it. Mike was watching as the other hands left.

"Jake, what's your plans for today?" Mike leaned back in his chair as he took a sip of coffee.

"I guess I'll help Consuelo with the housework first, check on Albert, and then see what I can do to help the men." Those eggs Consuelo had set in front of me were delicious. Missing supper last night brought my appetite into sharp focus.

Mike set his coffee down on the table. "I could use that arm of yours out on the south end this morning. I have some stock I need to get up out of the hills. The hands are busy fixing fence over by the arrow where some of the stock ran through it a couple days ago.”

“Sure, I’d like that. Let me check on Albert before we leave.”