Calving Season on a Small Foothills Ranch: How It Works

Calving season is the most demanding stretch of the ranch year. It runs from late February through mid-March most years, and for those three weeks the barn is the centre of everything. Here is what the process involves on a small foothills operation.

Why calving is timed the way it is ¶

The timing of calving is set by when the bulls go in with the cows the previous summer. At Cashew Canyon Cross Ranch, bulls go in around June 1, which produces calves in late February and early March after a 283-day gestation. This timing is a compromise: early enough that calves have time to grow before the summer drive, late enough that the worst of the winter cold has passed.

A calf born in a February cold snap is at risk. The barn provides shelter, but temperatures in the foothills can drop to minus 25 Celsius in late February, and a wet calf in that temperature needs to be dried and warmed quickly. Thomas checks the calving barn every two to three hours through the night during the peak weeks.

What the 2026 season looked like ¶

The first calf arrived on February 23rd and the last on March 19th, a 24-day window that is tighter than average. The final count was 94 calves from 98 cows, with three sets of twins and two calves lost in the first week. A cold snap on March 4th was the main difficulty; temperatures dropped to minus 22 overnight and two calves needed to be brought into the barn for warming.

By the end of March all surviving calves were out on the lower pasture with their mothers and doing well. The herd moved to the summer range on May 28.

What guests see in spring and summer ¶

Guests arriving from May onward will see the calves out in the pasture, by then two to three months old and moving well. They are curious animals and tend to approach the fence when people are nearby. By August the calves are large enough that it takes a moment to pick them out from the cows, but they are still identifiable by their lighter colour and slightly uncertain gait.

Calving season is not something guests see directly, as the ranch is closed to visitors through February and March. But the calves that result from it are part of what makes a spring or summer visit feel like a working ranch rather than a set.