Prayer is the most important part of a beef producer's agenda

I have the best bulls I can afford to own and they aren't just the perfect bovines, but they aren't dogs, either. We love to use the AI bulls because the $10 bulls are better than I will ever be able to buy and the EPDs are published on each one of them. A feller can depend on the AI service to a certain degree; but you sure need a backup bull, and I want good ones.

It is almost time to go for the next year's spring crop. We have had all the bulls tested for fertility, and 100 percent passed as excellent. We don't pour the hot feed to the crew of bulls; we feed grain and not all they would like, but they are ready when we open the gate. The slick hair and bright eyes are a pretty sight to an old cattle producer.

My close relative likes to look at the bulls and made her trip to the bull pen yesterday evening. She has managed to train them to come to the fence she walks to for a little taste of corn so she can watch them eat. Wouldn't you know, the four-year old that I turned down a nice offer on, is favoring his right leg. My close relative didn't let her shirt tail hit her back before she was delivering the news to me.

I went with her to see for myself and, sure enough, that old relative knew what she was talking about. He, the bull who limps, is not a small feller. He is not a pet-able feller either. His disposition isn't aggressive but he doesn't invite affection, so I do not relish getting him into the chute for a check of the hoof or even to administer an injection of antibiotic.

I got the offspring notified to be ready to pen the bull the next morning. We were not excited, as it was not long ago the boys were all run through the chute to be fertility checked. That is something they do not like. They remember that trip and it makes it a little dicey to get them back into the area! The sun came up and we filed toward the lot as a group of convicts to line up against the proverbial wall.

A bucket of feed and an open gate called the bunch into the small pen and we cut out the uninjured ones. The last and snorty one was ready to load into the alley and push into the chute. Sure he was, he was limping, not insane! The pens are iron pipes and for that I am forever thankful. They are also real easy to climb.

It is my opinion, and everyone has one, prayer is the most important part of a beef producer's agenda. You gotta ask for forgiveness and then the list gets longer as you go. Rain and good markets, your family's health, and on and on as a man spends his days working. As the bull left the chute with a long thorn removed from the center of his hoof, I prayed again, this time very thankfully. Not a one of us bull pushers was banged or bruised and all was gonna be fine.

Keep smiling, you will make someone wonder why!

Bill is the pen name used by the Gravette-area author of this weekly column. Opinions expressed are those of the author.

Editorial on 04/13/2016