Jekyll's Day

I had a request for a day following Jekyll.  It's difficult to describe what a typical day looks like in Jekyll's life.  I have a hard time describing that for myself, but Jekyll has even less of an idea of what is going to happen each day.  He is always excited to go no matter what.  The photos below were taken June 4th when we took about 125 head of cattle to a breeding pasture.

We started with an early breakfast.

After a short gather, we paired the amount of cows and calves that we wanted from the larger herd.  While we were pairing, Jekyll had to hide so he didn't get in the way.  He would love to "help," but a dog just gets in the way for this.

On the trail!  Jekyll keeps the cows moving forward in this shot.

In this series, I sent Jekyll down the hill to get some cows that had wandered from the herd.

Jekyll heeled a cow to remind her to walk.

Once there, we paired them again so the cows know their calves are there and vice versa.  Jekyll again had to "get" and stay out of the way.

He found some shade while we ate lunch before heading home.

Jekyll did have a few hours resting at home while we helped a neighbor brand about 60 head of calves.  Then it's supper and bedtime for us.  Just a note, I used to feed him in a dog dish, but somehow it always got spilled.  Eventually, I stayed to watch him eat and found that he would purposefully spill his food so he could eat it off the deck.  

by Brandon Greet