Horsemanship clinic

TX Ranch: Sam Wagler horsemanship clinic:

THIS SEASON EVERYBODY AT THE TX RANCH IS TRULY LOOKING FORWARD TO  HAVING CLINICIAN SAM WAGLER WITH US DURING OUR JULY 14th WEEK! SOME BRIEF INFORMATION IS BEEN PROVIDED ABOUT SAM BELOW. IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN JOINING SAM FOR HIS HORSEMANSHIP CLINIC AT TX RANCH THIS JULY DON'T MISS OUT! YOU'LL FIND OUT WHY WE THINK THE WORLD OF SAM AND I'M SURE YOU WILL TOO!

*July 14-22 week: Additionally clinician Sam Wagler will be with us holding a separate horsemanship clinic at TX Ranch. Sam is an accomplished horseman with experience in areas reaching from traditional Amish uses to reining, as well as roping and ranch work. Sam is Lyons Legacy Certified and Accredited.  www.facebook.com/DiamondSPerformance

 For those interested: We'll meet one day earlier, on Friday July 14th between 5:00 & 5:30 p.m., at the Billings, MT airport or the Best Western Clock Tower Inn. Please feel welcome to contact Loretta Tillett @ TX Ranch, I'll be happy to help you with your questions!
 

Happy New Year!

January 2016 another great year has passed already! Almost like the seasons have wings and there flying by! We hope you have a happy, healthy & prosperous new year with the good lords blessings.

Thanks Dez! The cattle and horses are now here at the home place for the winter season. That means a lot of mouths to feed daily! We've pregnancy tested all the cows and sorted all the livestock calves, heifers, steers and bulls now in separate feed grounds or corrals. This winter we've been very lucky to have such a mild season with mild temps so far. We have just received a fair amount of snow about 8 inches. We need it! Especially on the mountain and in Dryhead. It warms right up with full sun and settles the snow and melts off little by little everyday. With the mild winter it helps the livestock maintain their health and weight much easier. Our pickups, feed trucks, tractor and machinery maintenance is better too with less break downs, etc. This kind of weather is good on everything, everybody including all of us! I haven't heard any complaints working outside all day, only after dark!

This winter we're raising a few pigs. The other animals in close by pens are getting use to them. At first it's funny to see how they react when right away their heard and noticed by horses or cows. It's too funny to watch! :) They're so cute though and growing very quickly. We'll keep a couple/few sows to raise some more piglets down the road. The wild turkey population is growing yearly too. They all spread out and leave during spring and return to the home place corrals during winter where Hip feeds them daily. You should hear him calling them. He truly enjoy them! The big cotton wood tree is loaded with turkeys not to long after sundown every night. What a site to be seen!!

All of our family are doing well. This past November however we lost our beloved Abbie Hope, Hip's mother. Her service gave a very unique interesting story of her life time. The year I arrived spring 1976 Abbie began the TX guest ranch. She cooked over a wood stove, dutch ovens and a campfire. The supper table would be lined with a wonderful home cooked meal, fresh homemade pies, bread and fried dough gods. Abbie didn't hesitated to pitch right in and help with the cattle work or riding either. Proudly the guest ranch now has been in operation for 40 great years! Thank you Abbie! and thank you to all the great folks who have befriended us and visited TX Ranch!

Hip, Loretta, Dez, Sheen, Kevin, Payt & Harley and all our four legged friends :)

Trails End

Oct. 2014

     Well we've come to the end of our guest season and have now taken down the Lonewolf camp. Sadly it looks quite lonely there with out our good friends. :(  

     Dez, Ryan "Poncho", Kurt "Whiskers" brought several saddle horse colts home to Crooked Creek keeping them going and riding them daily as needed here and in Dryhead. They're riding a few for our Dairy steers today up at the Robinson Pl., and driving them home tomorrow. Later we'll be driving all remaining cattle home for the winter as well, most likely by late Nov. or early Dec. No doubt indeed our weather always determines when exactly that will be. It does take several attempts riding Dryhead to locate and eventually find them all including the rest of our saddle horses.

    Within the next few days we'll return and ride the Robinson Pl. for our mares & foals and drive them down to the Deadman corrals and in-turn wean their spring colts. This season we have buckskins, palomino's, a grulla, sorrel's, some bay's and a nice sorrel big baldy face colt too. The colts will be gentled, halter broke and learn how to lead if we have enough time before we begin feeding cattle. It sure makes for a better and more gentle saddle horse in the end. It's also time for their AQHA reg. paper work to be completed too.

     We're enjoying some family home time and looking forward to each other, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years, birthdays "well hm'mm not so sure about the B-Days" ?? Some years winter can be three plus cold months, br'rrr of feeding cattle everyday and all that goes with it, sorting, cattle work, etc. Equipment can be awful difficult to start on the 0 minus mornings for sure. That's when the break downs seem to happen as well. When spring rolls around everyone will surly be looking forward to warm weather and driving cattle back into the grass country in Dryhead and of course our 2015 guest season which begins next April 25th! Oh yes most of all we look forward to seeing and meeting such wonderful and great people and friends once again too. :)

Ha guys Hip's New to YOU hat! In fact new last June! Hip just had it cleaned at Billings Nile Rodeo, ya'aaa!! :) :)

Arriving at the Lonewolf camp & range country,

It's been a good, busy season this year. Late June we moved camp from Deadman to Lonewolf. It just so happened to decide to rain as we were driving down the L.W. pass road. What a trip that was! We made it though and yes it was very exciting at times. We definitely needed 4x4 and chains to pull Hip and I with our long loads with trailers. The horses were driven over too. It sounded like an exciting and awesome ride! It did quit raining for quite a while and we set up most all our camp before it started up again. Afterwards with a great home cooked meal and tunes around the campfire the evening ended well and with a big sense of accomplishment amongst all.

Ken McNabb is here with us this week. It's wonderful to have him and his horsemanship knowledge. It sure helps us learn an easier and correct method with starting young horses. It's amazing how accomplished a person can feel when their colt responds so well for them.

Hip, Dez, Ryan & Sam are driving cattle from Deadman to Lonewolf again this week with our group. Most of our branding is caught up. We're still ear-tagging with administering blackleg/pinkeye vaccine to our calves as well as starting castration now that we're in the month of July. We'll be driving cattle from Crooked Creek up to our mountain permit area in the next day or two as well.

It's been a great 2014 season! We thank each and everyone of you who have been with us and have visited us through out the past years and our present season! The TX guest ranch has been operating now since 1976, wow hard to believe 38 fantastic years!! We feel very fortunate to have met the best folks and friends out there. We couldn't have done it with out you. Our very special THANKS to you all!

Abbie, Hip, Loretta & Desiree Tillett

Whats going on the winter?

Everybody has been busy this winter feeding cattle, pregnancy testing cows, sorting everything and bringing livestock to winter pastures, feed grounds and corral feeding. We have a few new comers this year. Sheena raised about 48 head of Holsteins. They're very black and white and doing pretty good. Some are growing like crazy and getting very big. A few are still small but working there way up the ladder to full strength, health, weight and maintaining themselves. Once that happens they'll take off and catch up with the others.

Hip and Dez, are riding in Dryhead today for the rest of the horses that are still on Lonewolf. Thank goodness there aren't to many horses left there, just a few. We need to drive them home to feed and care for them for the rest of the winter. The week before we gathered the better share of the horses that had been driven down to the lower spring country earlier this fall. Most of our horses we're found up at the Robinson PL and down on the Big Horn Canyon area. They we're all driven home last weekend. This past week we sorted the geldings, stallions and mares. When sorting them we also took the time to weaned all the foals off their mothers. Once the foals are weaned we'll later begin to ground work them to help gentle them and prepare them for their later roll as a saddle horse or possibly sell a few as gentle AQHA sale prospects.

This season the ranch will be offering a few horses or colts for sale! The ranch AQHA colts have been raised in wide open country. For safety concerns you just can't beat that these days! Their breeding is good. They know how to travel in all season terrain and it's elements. Rain, ice, snow or shine including any water gap that comes their way. All combined are merely second nature for them. We're looking forward to working with them, gentling them and becoming there partners............If your interested look them up this upcoming season on TX blog spot, TX Ranch Wyoming/Montana face book or TX Ranch face book sites.

We hope you enjoy your new year. Everybody at TX wishes you and yours Happy 2013 Trails!

WRANGLING HORSES, TX RANCH

      FROM ALL AT THE TX RANCH, WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO OUR 2013 SEASON! 

HERE'S WISHING YOU A GREAT FALL AND WINTER SEASON TILL WE MEET AGAIN IN 2013!

                
                 Our fall cattle drives are upon us already. Gosh how time fly's when your having fun! Thanks to each and everyone of you for your support. It has been a real good year for us. All of our TX Ranch family appreciates your help and sharing some great times together both in the saddle, working cattle, around the supper table, in camp and around the fire. You have helped us keep this ranch going and we have you to thank for that........... THANK YOU VERY MUCH! 

 ..... TX RANCH 2013 WEEK DATES:.....

 .....SPRING CATTLE DRIVES:.... 
 #1) APRIL 20-27 ***.....   
#2) APRIL 27-MAY 4 ***.... 

 .....MID WEEKS ALL ACTIVITIES INCLUDED:..... 
 #3) MAY 18-25....   
 #4) MAY 25-JUNE 1....   

 #5) JUNE 8-15....    
#6) JUNE 15-22....                   
 #7) JUNE 22-29....    

#8) JULY 6-13....    
 #9) JULY 13-20....    

 #10) JULY 27-AUG. 3....                
#11) AUG. 3-10....    

#12) AUG. 17-24....    
#13) AUG. 24-31.... 

 .....FALL CATTLE DRIVES:..... 
#14) SEPT. 14-21 ***     
#15) SEPT. 21-28 ***  


***** WE MAY ADD AN ADDITIONAL DATE IF NECESSARY*****

Life and Fond Memories

We're well into the new year and keeping busy as can be! Everyone on the ranch looks back on our 2011 season with very fond and great memories. We have been so fortunate to meet the best folks out there. Ranching is inside everyone of us we all share similar interests. We all enjoy the scenic range riding and sharing quality time in the saddle together. We enjoyed the team work together working with the cattle and good times at cow camp, around the super table and around the camp fire. Together at the end of the day it makes for some classic and ear to ear stories stories about our day as well as stories from around the world. Yes ranching is in a part of all of us no matter where we're at today or what walk of life we choose.

This winter the cattle are on pasture mostly. Our calves are being fed for gain as well. Hip has been feeding the cattle here at the home place with Ryan and Dez. Hip is also hauling hay to Crooked Creek with Ryan to prepare us when the cattle return home to the creek for calving. We have all have been working cattle as it's necessary for the winter season. Livestock seem to bring out the best moments in a person. We get to hear some colorful expressive with even maybe a tinge of profanity in our language at times. No matter how hard we try it just happens!

This year Dez and Ryan are working with our started colt. They're working with them and riding them most days now. We've had only a couple colorful expressive occasions but thank goodness all's well. As the old saying goes "sticks and stones may break my bones but words don't bother me"! No matter what it's unbelievable how well all the little guys are coming along and how well they seem to be enjoying the working and riding too. Loretta has been working with the weanling colts & filly's. They're becoming more and more gentle by the day and like wise enjoying the work with only just a smidgin of colored words. That only happened in the first early days when my arms were stretched a bit. The learning is so good and working with horses it makes up for everything else. I've also kept up with our guest ranch business, advert's and bookings. Combined it all keeps us busy and as we say "it keeps life interesting" can't ask for better than that!

We're eager and looking very much forward to spring calving and our up coming guest season, can't wait! Thank you so much for sharing a piece of our lives together and for the fond memories we hold very dear.

So Long, happy 2012 trails!

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS. AND OH WHO'S THAT GETTING ALL SLICKED UP? IS THAT HIP SHOT? I BELIEVE IT IS! HE'S MUST BE GETTING ALL DUDED UP FOR THE OCCASION! WHAT A JOLLY OL CHAP HE IS INDEED.

HO, HO, HO MERRY CHRISTMAS AND DO HAVE A HIP, HIP, HIPPY NEW YEAR!

Tizz the season to be jolly

December is upon us once again. We woke to 4" of fresh snow this morning which looks a lot like Christmas!

All is well here at the TX Ranch. Hip, Sheena, Payton & Harley helped drive some cattle home today. About 60 head were already at Davis Creek. They had their fill digging through the snow for feed. They were happy to find their way home for the winter. Dez & Ryan hauled heifers to a farm near Lovell with beet tops, and beat tailings for feed. They will do real well gaining on that type of feed. As soon as the weather clears up Dez and Ryan will be driving around to the Will James Ranch and Shivley Ranch where Star lives. They'll be driving out the horses and also the rest of the cows which are still at Lone Wolf and in-between else where.

We all pregnancy tested cows last week and also in November. Sheena and I have been going with Hip or Dez and Ryan when possible. I'm helping Abbie and Sheena too when possible. This fall Abbie had a pretty bad spell of gout and wasn't able to walk. Thank goodness today she was doing much better. She tried some cherries and she took some anti inflammatory type pills. It did help her and she looks much better now. SO GLAD!!! :) :)

The Tillett family wishes to thank you so very much for such a great and fun 2011 season. It was a pleasure for our family to meet new friends and to see our dear friends who visit the ranch when it's possible or yearly. Hip, Loretta, Desiree, Ryan and Christine all enjoyed some great times in camp and in the saddle and working cattle together with everybody!

Our fond wishes for a Blessed, Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy, Prosperous New Year!

From all at TX Ranch