Ranch Manager John on the John Deere

Rescued Alpacas

Fall Reflections

GREETINGS TO MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES IN HEALTH

Welcomed rain returned to the prairies of Baker Ranch. All varieties of grasses have responded and flourished, and our cows are happily grazing on nature’s bounty. In spite of our recent droughts, our grasses and legumes have continued to improve mostly due to consistently improving the biology of the soil. Our goals continue: sustainable pastures for healthy cows for healthy human consumption, no herbicides, insecticides, GMO products or hot fertilizers, no corn feeding, hormones, prophylactic antibiotics or stockyards for our cows, 100% grassfed beef. Our pastures are as nature meant them to be—animals and plants living together.

Our daily news bombards us with the growing dangers of wars, terrorism, ISIS/ISIL, Ebola, resistant pathologic bacteria, and global warning. Regardless of our political leanings we know we must depend on our government to protect our freedoms and our safety. There is much out of our control. However we are still in charge of our own decisions that affect our own health, our family’s health and our environment. We must all remain vigilant to continue to monitor and support efforts to accurately label food products, stop the increasing use of prophylactic antibiotics to animals in confinement, avoid chemically-laced processed foods by purchasing fresh organic products, decrease the use of petroleum products and support our local farmers and markets.

This fall season heralds in the holidays, a very welcome time. I am pleased to report that our grasses have allowed growth of our Black Angus herd. We can now harvest a 1200-1300 finished steer every three weeks. This should meet the current demand of our loyal customers. I do suggest that if grassfed beef is included as part of your holiday planning, that you reserve cow portions (1/8, 1/4, 1/2) early, or purchase your favorite cuts (briskets, roasts, ribs, steaks) early for your freezers. Our butchering and processing will be tailored to our customer’s demand.

Let’s all enjoy the cooler season and blessings of our free country and concentrate on what we can control. We found great satisfaction in rescuing five alpacas to enjoy our bounty at Baker Ranch.

Dudley Baker, MD

Baker Ranch