[Tim Harrigan]

It seems like there might be two related but somewhat independent issues here. One is the steers play-fighting for social position. This is natural behavior and not at all a problem as long as they do it on their own time. The other and most important issue is that they are doing it when they are in the yoke. The yoke should mean business, not playtime. As the leader you can’t just throw up your hands and say ‘oh, well, I guess they will have to sort this out some day’. The teamster needs to make it clear that even if it is OK in the pasture it is not OK when they are in the yoke. It is not OK because you have informed them that it is not acceptable. If it is not play-fighting it might be something else like ‘let’s go for a run’ or ‘let’s grab a bite to eat’. Do you only care if they follow your leadership and direction when they decide they have nothing better to do or are not distracted? When they are this age the effort needed to establish leadership is pretty minimal. It only gets more difficult.

[Tim Harrigan]

@clayfoot-sandyman 24551 wrote:

…what’s particularly frustrating is when they go for each other in the yoke because they’ll be walking along nicely when one (it’s always the same one) turns his head and attempts to knock the other with his head –

…feel like I need to go right back to basics.

Yes, keep working on the basics. Ixy is correct, they are not respecting your leadership if they are willing to ignore you and start fighting in the yoke. It is about business when they are yoked and you need to work on making sure they respect your leadership.

If it is always the same one starting it then it should be easy to see it unfold. Keep your eye on the instigator. If he so much as turns his head to his partner, correct him and thump him on the head to bring his attention back to you as soon as you sense them starting to drift away. If the other steer begins to react, thump him as well. Don’t wait until they are fighting until you put a stop to it, get after them right away.

Use a short goad without a lash that you can control and respond with quickly. Use one with some give to it that will sting if you want it to. Back when my steers were coming on one year old and they needed to understand that grazing in the yoke was not an option, I had a goad with a rubber handle. I turned it around and when they started to put their heads down I thumped them on the poll with the rubber handle. It is surprising how fast they figure it out. You do not need to knock them cold, give them a chance to understand the new rules. The goal is not to hurt them, it is to bring their attention back to you and keep it focused on your direction and leadership. React quickly, and if they keep doing it you will have to explore where the minimum force is to get them to understand you mean business.

Don’t get angry, just be quick, consistent and fair, but determined.

I do not like a lash on a goad in the situation you describe. If they get to jumping around and you start trying to whack them on the nose or poll you don’t know where the lash will go. You don’t want to put an eye out. And don’t use a heavy stick that can break a horn off.

One more thing, don’t be too quick to assign all the blame to one steer. It may look like one is all to blame, but they can communicate in subtle ways. The innocent one may be doing more to get it going than you may realize.

[Tim Harrigan]

OldKat, our place was leveled by a tornado in fall of ’07 so I am a believer in tornado warnings and insurance. I can’t even imagine what it would be like to have a fire.

[Tim Harrigan]

There is nothing obvious that I can see with the yoke that would cause her to carry her head low. Sometimes these tendencies are presented as a cause-and-effect relationship, bow is too high or too low, etc and the ox will respond with head up or down. But it is not always that simple. Some animals just seem to prefer to pull that way. One of my steers likes to carry his head low and he does it in a single or double yoke. I have made all kinds of adjustments over the years to see if poor yoke fit was causing a problem but nothing changed his habit. He pulls nice and is a good partner for his team mate so I just quit worrying about it. You can keep experimenting but I don’t think it necessarily indicates a problem, rather a preference.

[Tim Harrigan]

Sorry to hear that, Rod. Good thing you were not in there, probably would have run over the mule on the way out. Glad all the stock is OK. Hope you have a warranty or insurance on those buildings.

[Tim Harrigan]

George, I don’t have a good suggestion, I am getting ready to go out today and I am sure just moving around will be a good piece of work. I think an arch on skies like Mark and Donn have would be nice in these conditions, and a scoot would get the logs up a foot or so. I am sure it is harder for the animals to work in as well. I suspect I will just cut and buck and let them lay. It looks cold through the next week but this is February, a good thaw can’t be too far away.

[Tim Harrigan]

How big was the tree? What kind of tree was it? When you say be careful, is that because I may break the jack, or is there danger that the jack will collapse and I will be in danger?

[Tim Harrigan]

John, do you still have Ayrshire cattle up there?

[Tim Harrigan]

Can you include a few pictures of the yoke when it is not on?

[Tim Harrigan]

I noticed that TSC has 12 ton bottle jacks for sale this month for $25, regular price is $40. I think I will get one and jack over a couple of dying ash just for grins.

[Tim Harrigan]

Mark, that forecart on skis looks nice. We have about 2 feet of snow on the ground now, getting pretty hard to move around in the woods. Does it work well in deep snow?

[Tim Harrigan]

@Donn Hewes 24370 wrote:

Teaching someone to be alert amounts to carefully and very specifically identifying all the things I am noticing and paying attention to, what each of those things can tell me, and why it is important

Donn, I think it is a clear indication of the depth of understanding that you have developed of your craft that you have been able to take a process that has so many facets that it seems to defy description or explanation and capture it in three words…calm, relaxed, alert… Simple enough to print on the front of a T-shirt yet opens the window to a depth of experience that can challenge a serious teamster for a lifetime. Something to aspire to.

[Tim Harrigan]

Thanks, Scott, this is good stuff. I am sure there are considerable regional and site-to-site differences, but these formal studies provide a good starting point for discussion and comparison.

[Tim Harrigan]

It would help if we could see pictures of her pulling a load.

[Tim Harrigan]

It does not look like the hitch point is too low to me. If anything, the bow looks like it could be a little too low. What size bow is that?

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