After a nice breakfast of frosted flakes, topped off with Mama J’s granola and brown sugar, I made my way out back to where I had Bryce’s pickup parked.

I fired it up, and immediately regretted taking the pains I had when I charged his A/C this summer.  It blasted such cold air I was tempted to start the heater. 

I backed up to the gooseneck cattle trailer, hooked up, and pulled around to the back drive.

I went inside and mixed up a half bottle of milk and hollered at Chuck.

He came on the run and I opened his gate while he got started drinking.  Next, I eased him out and to the back of the trailer where I had the gate open. 

He was so interested in his bottle he hardly noticed the first step up; but his back legs didn’t like the jump, and that is where he stayed parked, front legs in, back on the ground. 

I called Mama J over to close the gate behind him and put pressure on him.  It didn’t work.  So, I grabbed his ears and hauled back for all I was worth. 

After he was loaded, I went to the north pasture, where I saw the rest of the group about a half mile out.

I eased in there to them, and Bozar met me at the back of the trailer, hollering and tossing his huge head around and generally blowing at anything and everyone. 

I tried a quick pat on his forehead, but saw it was no way this morning. 

Chuck unloaded, and suddenly swelled to half again his size when he saw the rest of the group.  He was important.  It showed all over as he went strutting up to each one and sniffed an acquaintance.

The group ran along behind me as I made my way back out, and for now, everyone seems to be getting along.

One hundred seventy five pounds of milk replacer, seventy five pounds of grain, and over one hundred and fifty trips later out to feed him, he now stands as a strapping 3 weight bull, minus his tail.  

Time will tell if he makes it, on his own out there, but for now, we know we did what we could for him.