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You are here: Home / #Agchat / Branding Season is Full Speed Ahead!

Branding Season is Full Speed Ahead!

May 30, 2012 by ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ 9 Comments

I’m sure my absence here hasn’t gone un-noticed.

I’ve been busy.

Our ranch intern is here; I’ve been riding my 4yo mare, Dolce, (and handling the other colts), going to barrel races and there’s been several brandings in the past couple weeks.

Yesterday I gave the camera to my niece and she and Ty, The Cowboy’s son, shared the photo taking duties. I have to say, they did a really great job! And because it’s raining this morning, I have time to share with you, so you have the chance to give these budding artists a word or two of encouragement, should the spirit move you to do so!

Part of the day I ran the branding iron.

And the other part found me on my good buddy, Gump, attempting to double hock a calf a or two. I did manage to get some caught, but I certainly need more practice. Good thing there’s some bovine critters headed this way, just for that purpose!

Without further ado:

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There were a lot of shots of my backside for some reason. But the pockets on these jeans are cute, so I decided to share!

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I really love this photo. It’s a great composition. I love the blurry ropes and how they sort of frame the shot.

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Here is our ranch intern, positioning herself to remove the rope and hold the calf for the ground crew to work on.

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I found a cute little field mouse in the branding pen. He had no idea what was going on in his home territory! He was literally stunned! I’m sure this photo will find some of you squealing. I don’t mind field mice. I do however dislike big barn rats. Which is why I’m perfectly fine having bull snakes hang out in our barn!

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This is a good photo of how the brand goes on for this particular herd of cattle:

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I love the expression on Ty’s face! Priceless!

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Even though Gumpy and I are blurry, I still love this photo!

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Here we are waiting on the ground crew to free up so I could bring out the calf:

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And she took this one of me and everyone seems to like it, so here you go:

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This is one that Ty took, and I LOVE IT! It’s probably my favorite from the day, but then they’re all so good, it’s hard to choose!

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I also really like this one:

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And that my friends, was our branding day in a nutshell!

Happy Trails!

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Filed Under: #Agchat, art, photography, pictures, ranching Tagged With: ranching, Spring, Western Lifestyle

About ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~

Jenn Zeller is the creative mind and boss lady behind The South Dakota Cowgirl. She is an aspiring horsewoman, photographer, brilliant social media strategist and lover of all things western.

After a brief career in the investment world to support her horse habit (and satisfy her mother, who told her she had to have a “real” job after graduating college), she finally took the leap and stepped away from a regular income; trading the business suit once and for all for cowgirl boots, a hat, and jeans. She has not looked back.

When Jenn first moved to The DX Ranch on the South Dakota plains, she never imagined she’d find herself behind a camera lens capturing an authentic perspective of ranching, and sharing it with others. Jenn has always been called to artistry, and uses music, writing, images, home improvement, and her first true love of horses to express her ranching passion.

Horses are the constant thread and much of her work centers around using her unique style of writing to share her horsemanship journey with others in publications such as CavvySavvy, the AQHA Ranching Blog, the West River Eagle, the family ranch website, and her own website.

Using photography to illustrate her stories has created other opportunities -- Jenn’s brand “The South Dakota Cowgirl” has grown to the level of social media “Influencer”. This notoriety has led to work with Duluth Trading Company, Budweiser, Wyoming Tourism, Vice, Circle Z Ranch and Art of the Cowgirl, to name a few. She also serves as a brand ambassador for Woodchuck USA, Arenus Equine Health, Triple Crown Feed and Just Strong fitness apparel. Her photography has been featured by Instagram, Apple, TIME Magazine, The Huffington Post, and Oprah Magazine. Jenn’s work has been published internationally, has been seen in several books and has graced the covers of several magazines.

Jenn became a social media influencer by accident when she started to explore Instagram as a way to share her life on the ranch with folks that don’t get to experience it. It’s grown into an incredible platform that she uses to empower women, create an environment for self improvement and share life on the ranch.

When she’s not working, she loves to drink coffee, play with her naughty border collie named Copper, start ranch colts, and run about the country chasing cans. Her mother still thinks she doesn’t have a “real” job.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Hillbilly Goddess says

    May 30, 2012 at 11:05 am

    These are great! Love your jeans too ;o)

    -J

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    • ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ says

      May 30, 2012 at 11:31 am

      Thank you! Those are one of my favorite pairs of jeans!

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  2. Melissa says

    May 30, 2012 at 11:11 am

    They did a great job with the pictures!

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    • ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ says

      May 30, 2012 at 11:31 am

      I think so too!

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  3. Angela says

    May 30, 2012 at 12:52 pm

    Great pics! Looks like you guys had a good day. I really like your chaps btw!

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    • ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ says

      May 30, 2012 at 10:00 pm

      Thanks, girl!

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  4. Elizabeth Martin says

    May 30, 2012 at 3:38 pm

    Loved these photos!!
    Drove through South Dakota this last weekend – first time in that part of the country! It was beautiful!!! Loved it!!
    We saw lots of cattle and some cowboys at work from the road. Can’t wait to go back!

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  5. Ramona says

    May 30, 2012 at 3:47 pm

    Ranch intern??!!
    How did I not know about such things….
    Can you tell me more about that???

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    • ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ says

      May 30, 2012 at 9:59 pm

      Here’s the information about our internship program: http://thedxranch.com/in-the-barn/internships-camps/

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