Water & Irrigation
Check the Windmill, Float, and Pipeline Before You Turn Out to the Far Country
Before the herd hits the summer pastures, the stock water setup deserves a hard look. A stuck float or dry well in…
Water & Irrigation
Blue-Green Algae Blooms the Stock Pond in a Hot, Still June, and a Cow Can Drink It and Be Dead by Dark
Cyanobacteria in warm, calm stock ponds can kill cattle within hours of drinking. Here's how to spot the risk, when the danger…
Water & Irrigation
Salty Water and High Sulfates in a Dry Summer Can Poison Cattle Before You Ever See Them Drink It
When ponds shrink and shallow wells go bad in a dry summer, dissolved salts and sulfates concentrate fast — enough to knock…
Land & Grazing
Water Hemlock Grows Right Where Your Cattle Drink, and One Root Will Kill a Cow in an Hour
Water hemlock hides in the wet bottoms and ditch banks where cattle water in early summer, and the roots carry enough toxin…
Water & Irrigation
Check the Pumps and Floats in June, Because a Dead Tank on a 95-Degree Day Costs You by Noon
Stock water systems fail in the heat when cattle need them most. Walk the pipelines, pumps, and float valves now, while a…
Montana Ranching
Blue-Green Algae Blooms Turn a Good Stock Pond Deadly Overnight in July Heat
When the wind lays down and the water warms up, cyanobacteria can scum over a reliable dugout and kill cattle within hours.…
Montana Ranching
High-Sulfate Stock Water Sneaks Up in a Dry Summer, and It Can Put Cattle Down Blind and Staggering
As ponds and reservoirs shrink through July, dissolved sulfates and salts concentrate in the water your cows have to drink. It's an…
Cattle
Foot Rot Sets Up in the Muddy Corners of Summer Range, and a Lame Cow Won’t Travel to Feed
Wet ground around gates, water and salt sets cattle up for foot rot in early summer. Catch the limp early, because a…
Water & Irrigation
Walk Your Summer Water Lines Now, Before a Stuck Float Empties the Tank on a 95-Degree Day
Stock water fails on the worst possible afternoon. A June check of tanks, floats, pipelines and solar pumps is cheaper than hauling…
Land & Grazing
Cattle Pound the Creek Bottom While the Ridge Grass Goes to Waste—Here’s How to Spread Them Out
On big summer country, cattle bunch in the bottoms and leave half the pasture standing. Salt placement, water, and a little riding…
Montana Livestock
Blue-Green Algae Blooms on the Stock Pond Can Kill a Cow the Same Afternoon She Drinks
Late June heat and still water set up cyanobacteria blooms that turn a good stock pond into a death trap. Here's how…
Cattle
The First Real Heat Wave Hits Before the Cattle Are Used to It, and That’s When You Lose One
Early-summer heat stacks up faster than cattle can shed it, especially on black hides and in still air. A few changes to…
Water & Irrigation
High-Sulfate Stock Water Can Blind and Down Cattle by Late Summer
As dugouts and shallow wells drop and concentrate through the summer, sulfate levels climb — and sulfur-induced polio can put good cattle…
Water & Irrigation
Run the Water Line Before the First Heat Wave, Not During It
Stock water fails on the hottest day of the year, not the coolest. Walk your springs, pipelines, and tanks in mid-June while…
Cattle
Handle Cattle in the Cool of the Morning: Beating Summer Heat Stress Before It Costs You
Heat builds in cattle all day and doesn't shed until night. Knowing the signs and timing your work around them keeps weight…
Montana Ranching
The Green Scum on the Stock Pond Can Kill a Cow Before You Find Her
Blue-green algae blooms turn a good summer water source into a killer in a day or two. Here's what to watch for…
Land & Grazing
Split the Big Pasture With One Hot Wire: Temporary Fence for Summer Grazing
A single strand of poly wire and a few step-in posts can turn a season-long pasture into two or three grazing periods.…
Land & Grazing
Cattle Camp the Creek: Getting Them to Graze the Whole Pasture
Cows will hammer the bottoms and coulees while the ridges and back corners go untouched. A little planning with salt, water, and…
Water & Irrigation
Test the Stock Water, Not Just the Grass, When It Turns Dry
In a dry June, the water in your reservoirs and shallow wells concentrates fast. High sulfates and salts can pull cattle off…
Cattle
Heat Stress Sneaks Up in the First Hot Spell: Reading Your Cattle Before They Pile Up
The first 90-degree stretch in June catches cattle that haven't shed off or found the water yet. Here's how to spot heat…
Cattle
Green Scum on the Stock Pond Can Kill a Cow by Morning
Blue-green algae blooms turn warm summer stock ponds toxic fast, and cattle that drink the wrong water can be dead before you…
Land & Grazing
Get Water to the Back Forty: Developing Springs and Solar Wells for Summer Range
A spring box, a buried pipeline, or a solar well can turn dead corners of summer pasture into grazed ground. Here's how…
Land & Grazing
Pull Them Off the Creek: Getting Even Grazing on a Big Summer Pasture
Cattle hammer the bottoms and leave the ridges untouched. Here's how to spread them out with salt, water, and a little riding…
Cattle
Heat Stress in Montana Cattle: Reading the Warning Signs Before You Lose Gain
Montana summers can turn hot fast, and cattle feel it before you do. Here's how to spot heat stress early and ease…
Water & Irrigation
Summer Stock Water: Keep the Tanks Full and the Algae Out Before It Bites You
As Montana heats up, water becomes the limiting factor on most summer pasture. Here's how to keep cattle drinking clean, stay ahead…