Open Range

Gather App
D

Dave

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 12, 2004
Messages
17,639
City & State/Province
Baker County, Oregon
Yesterday late morning I was headed to town. On the road I met up with the neighbor lady in a sxs pushing half a dozen horses up the road. Nothing unusual. I slowed down and we waved as we passed each other. Then in the late afternoon I was down the road on the quad. They are starting to do work to install that 500 mega watt power line. I stopped to ask a worker what they were doing. In talking to him he told me that the day before there had been some horses on the road there so he pushed them into a field across the road and closed the gate. I explained to him that this is open range and the meaning of this.. Heck it is normal for there to be a dozen or more pairs at this site. They come down there to get water out of the irrigation ditch. I later called the neighbor. He wasn't happy about it. Said the guy didn't push them into the field. He pushed them into the stack yard and closed the gate. Half a dozen horses with300-400 tons of hay. I am sure they had enough to eat. We are making an effort to have the company tell their workers to leave all livestock alone. There was 2 pairs headed that way an hour or so ago. Life will get interesting while they are building this power line.
 
Dave said:
Yesterday late morning I was headed to town. On the road I met up with the neighbor lady in a sxs pushing half a dozen horses up the road. Nothing unusual. I slowed down and we waved as we passed each other. Then in the late afternoon I was down the road on the quad. They are starting to do work to install that 500 mega watt power line. I stopped to ask a worker what they were doing. In talking to him he told me that the day before there had been some horses on the road there so he pushed them into a field across the road and closed the gate. I explained to him that this is open range and the meaning of this.. Heck it is normal for there to be a dozen or more pairs at this site. They come down there to get water out of the irrigation ditch. I later called the neighbor. He wasn't happy about it. Said the guy didn't push them into the field. He pushed them into the stack yard and closed the gate. Half a dozen horses with300-400 tons of hay. I am sure they had enough to eat. We are making an effort to have the company tell their workers to leave all livestock alone. There was 2 pairs headed that way an hour or so ago. Life will get interesting while they are building this power line.
Click to expand...
I know it would be a pain in the behind and no-one would be happy about it, but this would go a long way in solving the issue of "good intentions" totally screwing up livestock operations. Have the producers make up signs and post them on every gate describing open range and/or that the livestock HAVE NOT escaped from the pastures/allotments. This coming from a converted/educated "Yankee-city slicker" that might be a range-cowboy/rancher "wanna-be". Those folks are well intentioned but are totally uneducated and get mad about normal life that they don't understand out there and want to try to help "fix" things. They wind up wrecking things instead.

I'm not so sure that the workers are going to be told by the company or that the workers will even listen to something that is said about anything other than the power line. It's wrong, but they see the livestock as something that shouldn't be there, is in the way, or is an "accident" because the livestock 'got out' and no-one has noticed to fix it, so they are therefore playing the part of the do-gooder citizen and corraling the animals.
 
Last edited:
I get people around here that want to help by telling me that I've got a calf out in the ditch. I tell them "Leave him alone, and he'll come home, wagging his tail behind him". Mostly it's just a newborn that crawled out into the tall grass in the ditch to hide. He knows where Mom is, Mom knows where he is. He'll make his way back when Mom calls him.
 
I am extremely appreciative when people put my cattle in a a pasture and I don the same. Hay, fences, lost cows, all that material stuff can be fixed. We cant bring back people who hit cattle and get killed.

Ive told this story many times but I hauled 4 cows from one place to another and was in a hurry. They had been at both places many years so I just dumped them and headed to town to meet my family. Apparently the old girls decide to head back and made it 4 of the 8 miles. A guy saw them and cattle them in to his pasture. He called and got a hold of me. I went and got them. They were about a mile from a FM road with a lot of traffic that has a lot of turns, ups and downs, and small ditches.

I like the sign idea saying open range, leave livestock be. On the cow side, ear tags with phone #s and the best thing since sliced bread. If they are worried about it they can call and some one on the other end can say leave them be or stop them or what ever. Very simple solutions.
 
Dave said:
You being confused............ What is new?
Click to expand...
You have said multiple times no one has sxs... they dont work there... we have heard it for years... every one uses atvs here.

Kind of goes with the story of the guy trying to be helpful but not knowing how things are done there. No one is as smart, tough, rich or poor (depending on the day), most cows (despite actual numbers) and I forgot what all else as yall right. 🙄
 
This power line is probably 300 miles long. The vast majority of it goes through rangeland which is open range. The man who is the land owner rep for the company has already been told to tell them that leaving a gate open or closing a gate that is suppose to be open will cost that employee access to the property. No exceptions. They also have no business doing anything with any livestock. Period end of story.

I know a rancher that has some wind mills on his property. He had an issue with some of the employees. He went and got in a boss's face. Story came back through the grape vine that the boss explained to the employees that it is easier to find new staff than it is to make land owners happy after the fact.
 
Brute 23 said:
You have said multiple times no one has sxs... they dont work there... we have heard it for years... every one uses atvs here.

Kind of goes with the story of the guy trying to be helpful but not knowing how things are done there. No one is as smart, tough, rich or poor (depending on the day), most cows (despite actual numbers) and I forgot what all else as yall right. 🙄
Click to expand...
I never said that no one has sxs.. Some do, some don't. Everyone has quads. I don't have one. Not enough use for one to make up for the expense. In this case it was a mother with 2 young kids who ride on the back seat of a 4 person SxS. Husband is busy doing something else on the ranch. She has to take care of the kids (ages 3 & 5). She is definitely handy enough to do any job on the ranch but for now she has to take the kids along or find someone to watch the kids.
 
Dave said:
This power line is probably 300 miles long. The vast majority of it goes through rangeland which is open range. The man who is the land owner rep for the company has already been told to tell them that leaving a gate open or closing a gate that is suppose to be open will cost that employee access to the property. No exceptions. They also have no business doing anything with any livestock. Period end of story.

I know a rancher that has some wind mills on his property. He had an issue with some of the employees. He went and got in a boss's face. Story came back through the grape vine that the boss explained to the employees that it is easier to find new staff than it is to make land owners happy after the fact.
Click to expand...
That is not how it works at all. As a landowner if you go getting in people's face like that you a likely to get arrested and removed from your own property.

.. and a word to the wise. You go messing with crews.. who have nothing to lose.. bad things happen to you and your possessions. Those horses getting in that hay won't hold a candle to what can mysteriously start happening.

Its a lot easier for all parties to get along and show each other respect. When there are issues the proper channels need to be followed. There will always be issues when you lease your land out for any thing. It comes with the territory. That is what the big check is for.
 
Last edited:
Brute 23 said:
That is not how it works at all. As a landowner if you go getting in people's face like that you a likely to get arrested and removed from your own property.

.. and a word to the wise. You go messing with crews.. who have nothing to lose.. bad things happen to you and your possessions. Those horses getting in that hay won't hold a candle to what can mysteriously start happening.

Its a lot easier for all parties to get along and show each other respect. When there are issues the proper channels need to be followed. There will always be issues when you lease your land put for any thing. It comes with the territory. That is what the big check is for.
Click to expand...
Maybe that is how things are where you live. Not that way here. They call the sheriff and they will get removed.

Proper channels were followed. The landowner rep was called.
 
Some people seem to have a lot of ''facts'' from a long distance. If you show up with all of your facts you may be very surprised. If those crews work there they will be far ahead getting along with the land owners.
 
mwj said:
Some people seem to have a lot of ''facts'' from a long distance. If you show up with all of your facts you may be very surprised. If those crews work there they will be far ahead getting along with the land owners.
Click to expand...
This is a huge job. There is lots of stuff happening over a big area. Someone causes heart ache for a boss they will probably have the same job 50 miles away. The closest place for them to stay is in Baker which is 25 miles to the west. Be easy enough for them to be working 25 miles the other side of Baker.
This power line has been kicked around for 20 years. It is not at all popular in this county. I know several landowner who never got a decent offer. Instead Idaho Power took them to court and went eminent domain. Did this to some well connected people. That certainly didn't help them in the public eye.
The big fact is this is the west. Things are done a lot different out here.
 
That is the oldest trick in the book. Tell the land owner... oh ya... we will run his butt off. He's gone. Then they send him to a barber for a haircut and a shave and hes back out tomorrow. 🤣 Or just move him down the line. They aren't getting fired over that stuff. They will send some one in to do damage control as they keep moving. Its built in to the plan. Do some free dozing or what ever and on they go.
 
You know how good a contract is after it goes thru the courts and has the last appeal. The law works to there schedule and speed not as fast as we think they should.
 
Contractors really love to work under close scrutiny to make sure they are following there contract to the exact spec. We all work better with someone looking over our shoulder and taking notes.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top