Rebekah Ready was bundled in layers of clothing as she followed her parents outside into the freezing temperatures at their small ranch along Kirby Creek in Hot Springs County, Wyoming.
The 7-year-old scrambled into the truck as her mom, Sara, strapped 21-month-old Emma into the car seat. Sara then slid behind the steering wheel as her husband, Merrill, secured the load of hay in the back of their pickup.
Merrill is battling a bad head cold but there are no sick days for a rancher. There also are no days off because it’s too cold, like it was Monday morning with temperatures hovering around minus 20.
The animals need tending, especially as the temperatures dip below freezing.
“The cold just makes everything that much more difficult,” Merril said, referring to the icy temperatures rather than the cold and fever he has been dealing with. “Everything is going to take at least twice as long to get done when it gets this cold.”
Not only do animals have a harder time and are more susceptible to getting sick, but there is a greater chance for equipment to break down.
“No matter what, the animals have to be taken care of,” he explained. “You can't just be like, ‘Oh, today's really horrible and I don't want to go out or I can't get it done.’ No matter what, whether the vehicles are broke down or they won't start, you got to come up with plan B.”
Cold Weather Chores
There are many things to take into consideration for your herds as the cold sets in.
“When it's 20 below, we also need to make sure they're in a good spot as the bad weather is coming in,” Sara said.
Sara is responsible for driving while both Merril and Rebekah work to feed the cattle and sheep in all weather.
Rebekah works beside her parents, and just because it is cold doesn’t mean she isn’t out helping pitch hay out to their animals from the back of the truck.
“When it's this cold, you're feeding to give them additional energy,” Merril explains.
The Ready family waits until evening to feed their stock rather than in the early morning, although there are always other chores that need attending to at all times of day and night. Merrill believes that by feeding at dusk when extreme temperatures set in, the animals will have a warm belly to get through a cold night.
As the temperatures dip below freezing, it is also vital to ensure that the animals all have access to water and many times that means going out to break the ice with an ax, crowbar or whatever else you may have on hand.
“Water is just as crucial when it's cold as it is when it's hot,” Merrill said. “You're either going to have to open water holes, chop through the ice.”
On her family ranch in Lincoln County, Summer Houghton said much of the same. It’s not pleasant when it gets super cold, but it doesn’t matter.
“It’s got to get done,” she said, adding that the cold “makes it a little bit harder.”
The secret to getting through it is lots of clothing, Houghton said.
“Tons and tons of layers, you have to bundle up,” she said. “And for technology, we really like to put on heated vests and heated gloves. We have lots of batteries for them.”
Rebekah Ready, 7, pushes hay out of the back of the family pickup to feed their cattle in Hot Springs County as the cold weather descends on Wyoming. (Courtesy Ready family) 
Rebekah and Emma Ready are being raised on a ranch and spend most of their time outside in all weather. The cold front that moved in this past week just means they need to bundle up in more layers of clothing. (Courtesy Ready family) 
Tom Houghton tends to horses in subzero temperatures. (Courtesy Summer Houghton) 
Summer Houghton smiles doing ranch chores, even when it's minus 17 outside. (Courtesy Summer Houghton) 
Tom Houghton checks on this horse's hoof, which can be cold work when it's minus 17 outside. (Courtesy Summer Houghton)
No Days Off
Sara wasn’t raised on a ranch and didn’t realize the commitment it would take or what it really meant to have a full-time job that wasn’t just 9-to-5.
She learned quickly that life on a ranch is a year-round commitment in all types of weather. Her crash course in being a rancher’s wife came shortly after she married Merrill.
They had gone out and she was wearing a dress for a night out on the town. As they headed home, Merrill got called out to the ranch he was working at. It was an emergency and they had to rush over, with no time to change. Sara slipped on a pair of work overalls and the couple got to work.
“I'm still wearing my dress, and I'm helping him push a uterus back into a cow,” she said.
It wasn’t the life Sara expected, but she has since warmed to it and loves raising her kids outdoors, even in the cold.
“It's kind of exciting,” she said. “You could be just going home and watching TV, but instead we are bundling up and heading outside to take care of the animals.”
Raising Stronger Kids
“I’m of the theory that kids can do most of anything adults can do,” Merrill said. “As long as they're dressed warm. Ours have always gone with us and done everything.”
As Sara adjusted to ranch life, balancing being a new mother and ranch hand, she is grateful for the life they lead. Even when it means going out to take care of the animals in the extreme cold.
It’s difficult enough to get some kids up in the morning, Houghton said, but it can be harder when it’s below zero outside.
“When I had kids at home, it was very, very difficult getting them up and out (in the cold),” she said. “Especially to help with the chores.”
Even so, once the blood gets pumping, it’s good to be outside in any weather, Sara said.
“There is a certain joy of being outside,” she said. “Having that cold air in your face and it just kind of takes your breath away when it's in the negatives. Just having a reason to go out there gives kids experience and kind of empowers them to know that they can handle tough things.”
Even when that tough thing is chasing down a sheep who somehow got a stovepipe stuck on their head and frightened the rest of the sheep. As Sara laughs over the memory of rescuing that young sheep, the Ready family prepares for another day outside as the arctic blast sweeps over Wyoming.
And they would have it no other way.
Jackie Dorothy can be reached at jackie@cowboystatedaily.com.
