Writing for the Brand

At home on the range. We all talk so much about "riding for the brand" in our industry. Chris LeDoux sings a song about it, we all vie for hats with cattle brands we know, and recently Colin and I acquired a brand of our very own. Now we aren't just riding for a brand, but we are riding for our brand. 

Branding cattle is important to ranch life because it is a legal form of identification for our animals. For ranch identification purposes, we put ear tags into all cows and calves. But if a legal problem should arise, a freeze or hot brand is the only form of identification recognized by the state to identify who's cows are who's. 

Although branding is important, not everyone does it. We decided that we'd like to brand our cattle  for the legal benefits and for the identification purposes. Basically, if Colin's dad's cattle and our cattle would be out on pasture together, we'd be able to tell quickly which ones were ours. 

All in all, a cattle brand is a pretty neat thing. They say a lot about where the cows come from and tell the history of the ranch. 

Colin and I are excited to begin the journey of riding for our brand, but since today we are a bit too far away to saddle up and ride, we will be writing for our brand instead. 

-Alissa