Day 59 – Middle Creek Station - sunny 32

Paige with the counter.

Nino giving Paige a ride on the Quad

This is Ryan Ninos youngest.

Nino's middle boys Jesse and Nathan.

Up late because of the rain, 12mm fell last night, Nino is hoping the roads are still accessible to the cattle, all is good. Out to the shack for a pancake breakfast and back to drafting the cattle until morning tea, then the hard work is about to begin. Paige had the job of counting the Bulls with her counter, she didn’t have to do too many since there are only 3 Bulls to every hundred Cows. She clicked the counter once and in a hour and a half, and then said “I’m going to help Ryan”.

This is Rooster

Nino saved this little calf hopefully it lives and finds mum.

Nino's eldest Daniel

To start Glenn got the de-ticking and ushering job, Levi wouldn’t go into the back pack, it was too hot to be squashed today, so I stayed with the kids and then went and prepped lunch. Now you would think Paige would want to come with me back to shack for a bit of time out from the heat and dust. No way she loved it out there she stayed and watched the cows being crushed and played on the back of the ute.

Levi undecided between chips and biscuits.

Having your horns cut off sure makes a bit of a mess .

Paige has so fallen for Nino and the boys, she grabbed a hug off them whenever she could, especially after Nino gave her a ride on the back of the trike this morning.

It was my turn now the kids seemed to amuse themselves and Tina kept an eye on them while she was counting. So everyone knows how much I hate to hurt animals, even spiders and bugs at home I put back outside. Tracy calls me Animal Lover of the Year, so to intentionally inflict pain onto a cow while laying in a crush, you would think I would faint at just the thought.

Ready for more action!

No way… the horns were being cut off and blood was constantly squirting out, their poor little testi’s striped from them with a scalpel, their arses burnt in flames to brand them. AND THEN I come along with an extra large ear piercer and tag their ear, noting if they are boy or girl and then to finish them off I tag them again with a punch that is in a shape specified only for Nino’s cattle. No wonder they faint.

A Death Adder

I was having so much fun I had to stop myself from crying so Nino wouldn’t hang shit on me. The whole adrenaline rush of having to be constant and quick so you don’t slow anyone else down and work as a team. This would have been a great boot camp for Quattro in the day.

Paige was entertaining herself by collecting the horn’s and pieces of skin from the tagging, she said she wants to collect them for kinda. Somehow I don’t think Anne-Maree and Marise would appreciate the smell. She also said that when she is six she wants Rooster’s job of cutting off the horns.

On to the testicles, it is said that these are a bushman’s delicacy cut them off and put them straight onto the gas burner that is heating up the branding sticks. We didn’t try any but the kids found them to be a great toy, Paige playing with the dog with them, twirling around in her hand and dumping them to go and eat some chips. Levi comes along and picks them up, using them as a yo-yo, they are true bushman.

To finish off the day the boys found a death adder snake, Paige was hoping they would kill it so she could take it to Kinda. You have never seen a kid so happy sitting in the back of a ute with the other guys, she just glowed. When we stopped she said “That was awesome dad”.