Intern•Tales

“Lost in the Sauce”

#bfrdpwy #aginternship #RightRisk

This‬‭ second‬‭ to‬‭ last‬‭ week‬‭ has‬‭ been‬‭ spent‬‭ doing‬‭ much‬‭ of‬‭ the‬‭ same‬‭ as‬‭ the‬‭ other‬‭ weeks‬‭ of‬‭ being‬ on‬‭ the‬‭ ranch.‬‭ Water‬‭ checks,‬‭ fence‬‭ checks,‬‭ forage‬‭ checks,‬‭ livestock‬‭ condition‬‭ and‬‭ location‬ checks‬‭ as‬‭ well‬‭ as‬‭ spraying‬‭ weeds‬‭ and‬‭ finding‬‭ those‬‭ other‬‭ little‬‭ things‬‭ that‬‭ need‬‭ to‬‭ be‬‭ taken‬‭ care‬ of‬‭ during‬‭ the‬‭ interim‬‭ of‬‭ the‬‭ “busy” seasons.‬‭ While‬‭ this‬‭ time‬‭ is‬‭ best‬‭ served‬‭ as‬‭ a‬‭ time‬‭ of‬‭ reflection‬ and‬‭ possibly‬‭ planning‬‭ future‬‭ endeavors‬‭ it’s‬‭ easy‬‭ to‬‭ get‬‭ caught‬‭ in‬‭ the‬‭ rut‬‭ of‬‭ just‬‭ doing‬‭ the‬‭ daily‬ tasks‬‭ and‬‭ not‬‭ really‬‭ thinking‬‭ about‬‭ anything‬‭ too‬‭ very‬‭ much.‬

I‬‭ cannot‬‭ lie,‬‭ I‬‭ have‬‭ found‬‭ myself‬‭ more‬‭ so‬‭ in‬‭ the‬‭ attitude‬‭ of‬‭ just‬‭ doing‬‭ the‬‭ daily‬‭ tasks‬‭ and‬ preparing‬‭ for‬‭ my‬‭ continued‬‭ adventure‬‭ at‬‭ school‬‭ in‬‭ Southern‬‭ Wyoming‬‭ than‬‭ I‬‭ have‬‭ been‬ reflecting‬‭ on‬‭ my‬‭ time‬‭ on‬‭ the‬‭ ranch‬‭ and‬‭ the‬‭ knowledge‬‭ and‬‭ experience‬‭ I‬‭ have‬‭ gained.‬‭ With‬‭ this‬ realization‬‭ it‬‭ has‬‭ been‬‭ imperative‬‭ to‬‭ make‬‭ the‬‭ conscious‬‭ effort‬‭ towards‬‭ reflection‬‭ in‬‭ these‬‭ last‬ days‬‭ of‬‭ my‬‭ internship.‬

The‬‭ breadth‬‭ of‬‭ knowledge‬‭ that‬‭ I‬‭ have‬‭ gained‬‭ from‬‭ my‬‭ time‬‭ on‬‭ the‬‭ ranch‬‭ and‬‭ the‬‭ experiences‬‭ I‬ have‬‭ had‬‭ through‬‭ the‬‭ assistance‬‭ of‬‭ my‬‭ hosts‬‭ as‬‭ well‬‭ as‬‭ that‬‭ of‬‭ their‬‭ immediate‬‭ and‬‭ extended‬ families‬‭ has‬‭ been‬‭ extensive‬‭ to‬‭ put‬‭ it‬‭ mildly.‬‭ These‬‭ aspects‬‭ and‬‭ ideas‬‭ imparted‬‭ by‬‭ the‬‭ people‬‭ I‬ have‬‭ met‬‭ through‬‭ this‬‭ opportunity‬‭ encompass‬‭ a‬‭ seemingly‬‭ never‬‭ ending‬‭ list‬‭ of‬‭ ideas‬‭ and‬ aspects‬‭ of‬‭ ranching‬‭ and‬‭ agriculture.‬‭ This‬‭ ongoing‬‭ list‬‭ includes‬‭ the‬‭ physical‬‭ and‬‭ mental‬‭ aspects‬ of‬‭ livestock‬‭ handling‬‭ whether‬‭ on‬‭ the‬‭ range‬‭ at‬‭ a‬‭ branding‬‭ or‬‭ docking,‬‭ or‬‭ in‬‭ a‬‭ feedlot‬‭ getting‬‭ ready‬ for‬‭ processing‬‭ and‬‭ slaughter.‬‭ The‬‭ selection‬‭ criteria‬‭ of‬‭ livestock‬‭ not‬‭ only‬‭ for‬‭ breeding‬‭ purposes‬ but‬‭ also‬‭ for‬‭ culling‬‭ and‬‭ slaughter‬‭ purposes‬‭ as‬‭ well‬‭ as‬‭ ideas‬‭ covering‬‭ farm‬‭ ground,‬‭ planting,‬ cover‬‭ crops‬‭ and‬‭ grass‬‭ hay‬‭ selection.‬‭ Not‬‭ lost‬‭ on‬‭ the‬‭ majority‬‭ of‬‭ those‬‭ in‬‭ the‬‭ ranching‬‭ and‬ agriculture‬‭ industry‬‭ are‬‭ the‬‭ environmental‬‭ aspects‬‭ and‬‭ the‬‭ impacts‬‭ of‬‭ livestock‬‭ not‬‭ only‬‭ in‬‭ their‬ direct‬‭ region‬‭ but‬‭ nationally‬‭ and‬‭ internationally.‬

All‬‭ that‬‭ being‬‭ said‬‭ if‬‭ there‬‭ is‬‭ one‬‭ thing‬‭ I‬‭ have‬‭ learned‬‭ during‬‭ my‬‭ time‬‭ here‬‭ in‬‭ Northern‬‭ Wyoming,‬ it‬‭ is‬‭ that‬‭ every‬‭ single‬‭ rancher,‬‭ farmer‬‭ and‬‭ anyone‬‭ else‬‭ in‬‭ agriculture‬‭ has‬‭ a‬‭ different‬‭ approach‬‭ or‬ different‬‭ view‬‭ on‬‭ each‬‭ one‬‭ of‬‭ these‬‭ aspects‬‭ and‬‭ ideas‬‭ in‬‭ the‬‭ agricultural‬‭ industry‬‭ and‬‭ the‬‭ most‬ important‬‭ part‬‭ of‬‭ ranching,‬‭ farming‬‭ and‬‭ agriculture‬‭ is‬‭ its‬‭ people‬‭ and‬‭ their‬‭ ability‬‭ to‬‭ interact‬‭ and‬ learn‬‭ from‬‭ one‬‭ another.‬

The‬‭ people‬‭ I‬‭ have‬‭ met‬‭ and‬‭ the‬‭ relationships‬‭ that‬‭ have‬‭ been‬‭ forged‬‭ along‬‭ with‬‭ the‬‭ importance‬‭ of‬ building‬‭ and‬‭ maintaining‬‭ those‬‭ relationships‬‭ in‬‭ the‬‭ national‬‭ and‬‭ international‬‭ agriculture‬‭ industry‬ will‬‭ follow‬‭ me‬‭ for‬‭ the‬‭ rest‬‭ of‬‭ my‬‭ life.‬

Submitted by: Cody Lancaster
Edits by: GrowinG Internship Team

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