In 1974 Dale began his lifework
only a few miles from where he grew up. As the ranch manager of the 2,000-acre Johnson/Seiger Ranch, the task of seeing after cattle and the serenity of being outdoors soothed his soul and welcomed him like an old friend. “I love the free- dom, being outside and fooling with cattle. You’ll have wild ones, but cattle are easy to fool with. When I get angry I can go out with my horses and cattle, and it helps,” Dale explains. Dale’s been a full-time cowboy
ever since. He’s worked at ranches in Texas and New Mexico. Since 1987 he’s worked for Schwertner Farms in Schwertner — one of the largest cattle brokers in the United States.
A day in the life Today, Dale takes care of 3,500
head of cattle spread out on the ranch and supervises 7 additional cowboys. He rides his own horses, but the ranch furnishes a truck and trailer. Dale lives on a 2,200-acre area of the ranch. After he feeds his horses in the
early morning hours, Dale meets up with the rest of the cowboys out in a pasture. The sun governs the workday of
a cowboy, and enduring rain, snow, wind and extreme temperatures is just part of the job. “I love being outside. I sweat
when it’s cold and love it when it’s snowing. I don’t mind working in the heat either. You just have to get adjusted to it,” Dale says. He takes 2 horses with him in
the summertime. When Dale and his horse get hot and tired, he rides up under a shade tree, unsaddles the horse and cools off. When he’s ready to go again, he lets the fi rst horse graze and rides the other one.
tscra.org Harrimon and his co-workers in their “offi ce” surroundings. The main goals of a cowboy are
to make sure the cattle are healthy, have clean water and feed troughs, and make sure they stay inside the fences. On most ranches, cattle are divided into several different pas- tures of a ranch. Six days a week Dale and the
rest of the cowboys ride from pas- ture to pasture, checking, feeding, watering and doctoring the cattle. “If there are any sick ones I ride out to them, rope and doctor them,” he says. Schwertner Farms is a precon-
ditioning ranch, meaning they buy cattle for various customers, have the cattle hauled to the ranch and keep them for 45 to 60 days. A separate cowboy crew brands
the cattle with the customer’s brand, administers necessary vaccinations, and delivers them to pasture. “We get them over any sickness and get them to where they’re gaining weight and then the owners take them,” Dale says. Sometimes cattle get sick after
they’ve been moved. One round of antibiotics usually does the trick, but it might take more. Once a calf has been doctored, Dale marks the
shoulder with oil-based red chalk and notches an ear. This permanent mark becomes a sign for the feed- lot. “Once the cattle are shipped to a feedlot the cowboys see the ear notch and they don’t have to ask any questions — they know it’s been doctored,” Dale explains.
The future of cowboying Dale believes the cowboy way
of life is diminishing. “Oh yeah, because of the economy, land de- velopment, and it’s too much work for younger guys. I’m one of the old cowboys. All I’ve done my whole life is work,” Dale says. Even af- ter riding and roping all day Dale ropes in competitions. “My wife tells me I don’t know how to have leisure time. I can’t sit still,” Dale says with a grin. Broken bones, smashed fi ngers,
wrecks on horses, and even being knocked unconscious can’t keep Dale away from the job he loves. It’s kept him busy, fed his family, and shaped his character. “I’ll keep cowboyin’ as long as I can — as long as my health stays good. It’s what I was born and raised to do,” he says.
December 2013 The Cattleman 67
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