The Horses Are Out, Again!

#bfrdpwy #aginternship #RightRisk

Throughout the duration of this last week I have continued to apply my previous experiences and knowledge to further my understanding in the ranching industry. This last week we spent a lot of time putting up different kinds of fence and I was able to get a better understanding of why the structures are put together in the way we did, how it allows them to be stronger and last longer. Another project that I have been consistently learning from is monitoring the health of the steers and how important it is to stay on top of illnesses such as pinkeye and pneumonia because of herd loss and how easily it can be spread.

One idea from this last week that I might challenge would be time management. I am very confident in the time management skills of the people I work with here on the ranch, but one thing that has been prevalent is that everything takes longer than you think it’s going to. This makes it difficult to plan out what order tasks will be completed in. Also, this is one of the reasons that we start multiple projects at a time instead starting one and finishing it, which I talked about in my reflection from last week. Another week of rolling with the punches.

This last week we had a handful of instances of livestock getting out of their pens, which is usually unpredictable and uncontrollable, but it was weird that it happened so many times in a short period of time. So I am wondering if there’s a way to know after a certain amount of time, when a fence just might need replaced to prevent things like that from happening. Of course, we don’t want to miss out on the excitement of chasing horses down the levee of the snake river in the middle of the night, but I was wondering about efficient preventative maintenance.

With the knowledge and experience I have acquired this past week at the ranch, I am continuing to build my confidence in the daily tasks and chipping away at the projects. I feel like I’m in a good work groove and am getting along well with everybody. To continue to grow in the next week I plan to keep asking questions when they arise and applying myself fully to every situation that I get put into. I will probably have more opportunities to work on some things on my own, which I really enjoy. I can see myself continuing to become a more reliable member of the crew.

Submitted by: Mack Mlnarik
Edits by: GrowinG Internship Team