Hello and Happy Fall!
Here is our ranch update.
Halter Broke Foals Available
Halter breaking weekend was busy! It is so wonderful to meet each new horse and see their personalities. It also makes us proud of the good minds we have developed in our entire horse herd. Our website is current with the amazing young horses we have for sale this year. The foals were weaned on Oct. 1st and they handled it seamlessly. We have a recommended hauler making a quick trip this coming week to the east coast again if you want to add an MRI horse to the load for a very reasonable rate!
We also are tentatively planning to take our own trailer to Kansas in November and are offering discounted and free hauling on MRI horses. Message me for details.
Spain & Germany
Within days of halter breaking, Alexis and I were jetting to Europe as part of a Horse Genetics trade team from Montana to Spain and Germany. We met some special people. There is no doubt about the appeal of the western lifestyle. People wanted to hear about our horses and our ranch! I think we’ll be seeing them visiting us in 2024.
Mahlstedt Ranch in the News
People in Montana may have seen the television segment about us on Q2 news. A reporter came to our ranch to see our horses and talk about our planned European trip. It was fun.
When we landed stateside, I had a message asking me to interview with the Wall Street Journal about our Agritourism aspect. What a surprise! If you missed it, here is a link: Montana Ranchers’ New Side Hustle: Giving Tourists the ‘Yellowstone’ Experience – WSJ
Sad news
Not all news is good news. On September 9th, we lost Sugar Irish Oak. The pain is still very real. We are always on the look out for stallion prospects for our operation. Now that search has stepped up for one to use in 2024. If you have suggestions, we are open and appreciative of them. We have extremely tight parameters so we know it will be a unicorn. God has always provided the right stallions for us and we eagerly await what He provides this time!
Fall Work and Projects
Fall work here has included a water development project that will improve water supply in our pastures and bring water to areas where there has been none before; hauling in hay; planting winter rye; and this week is rounding up & preg checking the cows.
I always try to focus on the bright aspects of life on the ranch. Admittedly, this has been a very difficult late summer and fall for us. Our God is faithful in carrying us and we trust Him. We also try to keep humor…. My husband and I were singing the old HeeHaw song Gloom, Despair, and Agony. Here’s a link if you want to travel back down memory lane for a chuckle.
I’m a firm believer in the words from verse 5 in Psalm 30 weeping may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning! Things never stay all bad. We are also supposed to look for the good in each day and praise God no matter our circumstances. As this week ended, we especially praised and thanked God that after several attempts at drilling a water well for our big water project, the drillers finally found a good one on shale and coal at 315′. This is a huge relief since the other hits were so sandy, they collapsed before being cased.
We also enjoyed a ride on the Divide yesterday of over 18 miles rounding up stray cattle. Dad rode with us and that made it extra nice.
Wishing you a fall of beautiful colors and golden moments and praying that as you face struggles, you too will put your faith in our Redeemer God.
