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No, I'm strictly in the cattle business. There's just isn't time to add anything else to the mix. Well, my wife makes botanical beauty products to sell at the farmers market, but I'm assuming you count that in with farming since we grow the crops and use the milk from our livestock.

I'm a born and bred Texas cattle rancher. I still get a kick out of doing everything just the exact opposite way that my daddy taught me. I've been a Texan all my life and I'm rightly proud of that.

I'd avoid buying calves from feedlots, no matter how young they are. Feedlots are stressful for cattle and the dam has been consuming antibiotics, corn, and other additives. That's not healthy for the calf. Calves from feedlots are affordable options, but you run the risk of buying a hot calf...

Do you grow any crops, other than hay, that is specifically meant to feed your livestock? All of my livestock are turned out to pasture and I supplement that with hay and feed, but maybe I should grow more crops for them to cut down on some expenses. Does that work for you?

Yep, I write off the internet and phone usage for the business. I also write off advertising, 50% of business meals, and things like that. I think you can write off animal shipments to your farm too, or at least you could with sheep. I'm like almost everyone else here, I hire someone else to...

Yep, I use llamas for my cattle operation. Dogs are great, but I live in Texas and the primary threat to my herd are wolves and coyotes. Dogs will fight them to the death. Llamas scare them away. That's why I chose them.

Are you running a cattle ranch or a dairy farm primarily? Why did you go in that direction after weighing the pros and cons? I'm running a beef operation because there's a shorter turnaround time and it's less intensive. I do milk my cows though when the calf didn't make it.

A lot of it probably depends on your planting zone. You could probably grow a crop of trees through the winter, as long as they aren't evergreens, just about anywhere in the U.S. where the ground doesn't freeze for long.

I'm all about rain barrels myself. If it's raining, you'd better believe I have containers out to collect it, especially on paved areas where a downpour will just result in a bunch of surface runoff. I look at it as free water.

Some I can and some I can't. Some don't make much noise at all. Each person in my crew has one or two favorites that they swear they can understand. It's nice to know that our cow to human translations just might be correct.

I think there's a bit of a debate about whether raising cattle for beef, leather, and other goods, harms the environment terribly. Either way, I'd like some suggestions for making the operation more environmentally friendly.

Horses are like most animals that live in groups, they're going to establish a hierarchy. Unless you notice a horse getting injured or being prevented from eating or drinking, I'd leave them to it. Because what you've described sounds like they're more annoyed with the upstart than anything...

Yeah, I'm happy to give my business to other community members and don't mind paying a little extra to shop local. It helps them earn a living and it keeps some of the taxes local which improves our roads and schools. Part of my enthusiasm is the guilt though. I'm running cattle to feed my...

Are you starting a breeding program? If so, you really outta have his fertility tested, because it's not uncommon to find abnormalities that affect it. Set up a breeding soundness examination first or you could be wasting time and money. I personally think 25 cows would be the uppermost limit...

Nah, they come in different colors and I think it depends on the manufacturer and model of the aircraft. I've seen yellow, blue, and white crop dusters though I've noticed yellow planes more often than the others. We've had a problem in Texas over crop dusters spraying during windy times. That...

Some just won't eat solid food that early. Offer pellets for calves and alfalfa hay. Sometimes you have to help it along by placing the food (carefully) in their mouth.

I'd be okay without the internet. It rarely goes down where I live, but it's not a big deal when it happens. I've started backing up my business records and system files at two different locations, one is cold storage and the other is warm storage.

That's good to know. I hope Santa has a safe journey as he delivers gifts all over the world and I hope the reindeer are feeling extra spry this year.

Won't that also kill any animal who eats the predator that was around the cyanide bomb? That can create more problems down the road. How silly. I worry about predators and have lost a cow or two to coyotes and wolves, but I do quite well by controlling the breeding schedule, using guardian...

Let's face it, most of our livestock are herd animals and they're meant to live in a group. Solitary life can cause all sorts of health and behavioral problems. Yet, so many people insist on raising one dairy cow, one horse, or one pig. Maybe that's due to land restrictions or the costs...