Day 2: R.A. Brown Ranch

Written by:  Abigail

Going to visit the R.A. Brown Ranch was a such a fun way to learn so many new things about horses, the way they run their ranch, their bulls, the land around them and in Texas. I got the chance to speak to Mr. Donnel Brown and he was a very nice person with a lot of insight on the bulls and horses. He took us over to meet the vet that was at the ranch and showed us how they go about examining their bulls to make sure their reproductive organs and systems are functioning properly without any abnormalities and how they go about looking at the quality and function of the sperm that the bulls produce. We got to watch them perform the exam and also learned that the bulls have 3 attempts to pass the examination or they’ll be sold for beef production. The bulls that passed the exam would be used for breeding purposes and sold to other producers to help improve genetics. 

Dr. Powe showed us how the sperm cells are evaluated.

After learning about the bulls we got the opportunity to see the show rings for the horses and meet the show horses and broodmares that they had on the ranch. We met the very popular horse, Casino, who is a successful show horse. One of their sons, Mr. Lanham, shows horses and we got the opportunity to speak to him and his mother, Mrs. Kelli, about their horses. We learned that after retirement the show horses are used to be breed and allowed to become broodmares. They also will have horse auctions in order to sell more high quality horses and put on shows for those who show up to the event. 

We noticed a lot of wind turbines on the property and Mrs. Kelli  explained how their power and energy system works through the wind turbines. She also talked about how throughout the pasture they had to create pond like structures for water sources since water in Texas could be scarce at times. This experience was so much fun and I was so grateful to have the opportunity to meet their lovely family and learn about their ranch.

R.A. Brown Ranch