Subscribe & Save 5% Storewide + Free Item with Every Order of $175+!

When It Rains, It Pours, or Floods! 🌧️

written by

Liz Cunningham

posted on

February 22, 2025

Spring is our favorite season.

There's nothing better than coming through a cold winter and seeing the signs of spring all around. The green grass emerges, and the red-winged blackbirds return with their song, and then there's flooding.

We receive most of our moisture for the entire year between December and March. Flooding is expected at this time of year. With the fluctuating temperatures, it can snow one day and rain the next. When you get snow and then rain on top of the snow, you experience the most significant flooding.

Image


Although flooding is typical this time of year, predicting when and how it will impact our animals is always challenging. As we approach the first of March (when we begin calving), we become pretty anxious to move our cows off the meadow ground that is susceptible to flooding and onto the rangeland.

There's nothing worse for calving than not having a good, consistent, dry place for cows to calve. 

After the last rainstorm, the weather appeared decent enough to gather the cows and take them to the rangeland or upper country. The range is the ideal spot for cows to calve. They have plenty of space to spread out and can find nice dry spots to lie down. The warm canyon walls promote rapid grass growth below, which is crucial for cows who are having babies!

Image


On that beautiful day, we gathered all the cows, leaving the ones with baby calves behind, and headed out. Many of our cows are close to calving, so a nice, long, brisk walk is the perfect way to prepare them for calving.

We had to cross our swollen creek, but our good-ole cows led the way, for they knew green grass awaited them down in the canyons where they call home. 

Image


Our cows spend most of the year on the rangeland. When the range gets too snowy, they return to our meadows for two months. We process them through the chute to check each cow and ensure all the cattle are accounted for before they enjoy hay stored for winter for a few weeks before returning to the range. The cows know the range well and can navigate its vast expanse. We check on them frequently throughout the year and provide them with Redmond salt to meet their mineral needs.

More from the blog

Halter Collars

Imagine the American West before fences. Endless grasslands stretched to the horizon, wide open and free. Livestock moved with the rhythm of the land, guided by skilled herders who understood how to work with nature—not against it. There were no steel posts, no wires, no grids—just animals, people, and a shared understanding of movement and timing. This was the original way of livestock management: intentional, responsive, and deeply in tune with the land. Fences, as we know them, are a relatively modern invention—useful, yes, but they’ve also made us more stationary and more separated from that old rhythm. At Cunningham Pastured Meats, we’ve found a way to return to those roots—while stepping into the future. We're excited to announce that we’re implementing virtual fencing through a company called Halter. Using GPS-enabled collars and gentle cues, Halter allows us to move animals exactly where we want them—no wire, no posts, no daily labor of setting up temporary fencing. Instead, we can offer fresh pasture every single day, ensuring the herd always has access to the cleanest, most nutrient-rich feed available. This also means animals no longer backtrack over soiled ground, which improves animal health, grazing efficiency, and soil vitality. What once took hours of manual fencing can now be done with a tap of a screen—giving us more time to focus on care, stewardship, and improving the land. ​See video of us putting collars on our cattle here<<<< Here’s what this means for you: Fresher feed = healthier animals and better quality meat.Daily movement mimics natural grazing, regenerating the land.Less stress, better welfare for the animals.Greater flexibility to adapt to weather, pasture conditions, and herd needs. This is a new chapter for us, and we’re excited to see where it leads. We’ll be learning as we go—and we’ll keep you updated as this journey with virtual fencing unfolds.

Boise's #1 source for 100% Grassfed beef & lamb, pastured pork & chicken and wild-caught seafood