(Just a head note this was written a few weeks ago and im now just getting it finished) Its been a long few weeks since my last post and Im sorry to you all that are following. But we're still alive! And we finally have something to work for! Freaking cattle!... hate um!... haha anyways id like to do a little recap on whats been happening over the last few weeks. the third week that we we're here two canadian fellows came from a company that sold livestock handling equipment called 2W. What a riot those two are John Blake and Rick Sears. Rick owned the company and John was his right hand man. And for the remainder of that week and the following we installed corral systems at the two ranches. What a step up we thought though, from stretching wire to welding up gates! But it was terrible work all the panels weighed 250 to 300 and there was two full con-exs to put up... we eventually got it done and they turned out really nice. A few days before we got done with the corrals we had heard that The Ocean Drover the ship that was delivering the cattle was at the port and we finally hung the last gate the afternoon the cattle arrived. And then the real work began! It took us 3 days and 4 nights with little to no sleep to finally get the last heifer off of the trucks. The trucks that they have are absolutley nothing like what we have in the states. Imagine a mercedes semi grain hauler with a pup trailer and you got exactly what they were using, talk about a nightmare. They held 24 head on average and were divided into two stalls of six on each container. We constructed loading ramps specifically for these cattle they ended up being eight foot wide and nearly 4 feet tall and sloped gentley to the ground. made of metal and wood at one of the ranches and just wood at the other. did i mention it was a nightmare? Well let me explain. youve got six americans who speak little to no russian and about 100 russains all trying to communicate while operating heavy equipment none of them have ever seen a cow nor a loading ramp designed for live animals. The majority couldnt back a double trailer and the rest that knew wouldnt stop when you told them to. basically if you break it down it was (pardon the french) a shitshow. Russians are a strange breed. They all argue amongst themselves constantly and raise there voices no matter the situation. On the last night of unloading i had a situation with one of the trucks that required the driver and i to "co-operate" i called the driver back and using a translator tried to explain that the side panels on the ramp weren't going to allow his side swinging tailgate to open so we needed to open the tailgate with me inside and back the truck at the same time to get the trailer to be flush with the ramp. He spent nearly 20minutes trying to back up this double to the ramp with me on the inside holding the tailgate and keeping the heifers pushed up. he eventually got close jumps out of the tuck and looks at it and trys to use a few pallets to bridge the gap i explained again. and that was it there was an erruption of russian language flying. guys just watching started arguing and the driver was im sure cussing me to my translator, so i get it settled finally or so i thought and then some guy gets on the truck and unlatches the latch that i kept closed while im in the back just so if the heifers back up on me they and i wont fall out so he unlatches it and so i say "okay back the truck up!" to the driver who is standing there. No respose so i raise my voice no response then i raised it up a little more and used a choice word still nothing and more arguing and just as im about to jump out and back the truck up myself a heifer backs into me and kicks and i get launched into the ulocked tailgate and fall to the ground im instantly on my feet screaming louder than i have ever screamed at any one and cussing each and everyone of them. And they all get quiet???? haha i think i might make a good russian afterall.
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