 |
|
 Print
this page now |
|
Branding and Corriente Cattle The First Cattle Breed In The New World... GRAND CANYON WEST RANCH only raises Corriente cattle which are free to roam over 106,000 acres of mountainous terrain. We raise these cattle not for beef but to be used for roping in the professional rodeo circuit. The hardy Corriente can be traced back to the first cattle brought to the new world by the Spanish as early as 1493. These cattle were chosen because they were and are a hardy breed able to withstand the rigors of ocean crossing and adapting to different climates. In the early 1800’s Europeans brought over other breeds of beef cattle and nearly pure descendants of the original Spanish cattle nearly disappeared. With the increase in popularity of professional rodeo the Corriente became the cattle of choice for steer roping. The animal is ideal with big horns, a lean fast body and is challenge to any cowboy. The Ranch is dedicated to preserving these cattle as a specific breed.  Grand Canyon West Ranch Corriente Cattle Drive, circa 2002. Brief History on Cattle Branding Cattle Brands have been used as marks of identification at some time in all countries and civilizations. Cattle branding scenes can be seen on Egyptian Tomb walls dating back as far as 2000 B.C. Until modern times, to prevent theft, livestock being driven across country were required to be “road branded.” The brands were painted on with pine tar or paint in early history. Later on, when the vast trail herds of cattle were driven north to market, hot iron brands were used. There were two types of branding iron, the “stamp iron” which included the full brand and the so-called “running iron” which had a hooked tip that could be used to change or make any brand. This running iron was a favorite tool of the cattle rustler. Latter being caught by a vigilante group with a running iron in one’s possession… could mean certain death by hanging if the law wasn’t around! Brands in the Old American West are more than means of identifying cattle and brands have been called “the heraldry of the range.” Burned into a cow’s hide, a brand identifies the animal’s owner – a necessary task in open range where several different “outfits” may run their cattle together. But the brand does more – it has come to stand for the outfit itself – the ranch, its owners, its workers, and its traditions. Brands are used in many places – on vehicles, table china, pressed into the damp cement of the ranch house porch, and as sculptural embellishments to gates, and the like. Brands also provide mental exercise for ranch people, for they have been turned into a kind of rebus game, and can be “read” by the adept. Some inventive American cowboys have made of brands a kind of Victorian parlor game, in which the brand is “read.” Thus a “bar,” and “J” is the “J Bar” brand. “BQ” becomes the “barbecue” sign, and so forth. A favorite sport of many cowboys is to argue over the correct reading of a particular brand. Disagreements sometime arise, and that’s where the six shooter comes in handy… but that’s a whole other story, “buckaroo!”  Along with Cattle Drives you can see Cattle Branding at the Ranch.
Ranch Location: COPYRIGHT © 2005 GRAND CANYON WEST RANCH. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. |