We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sondra West-moore a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sondra, appreciate you sitting with us today. Maybe we can start with a topic that we care deeply about because it’s something we’ve found really sets folks apart and can make all the difference in whether someone reaches their goals. Self discipline seems to have an outsized impact on how someone’s life plays out and so we’d love to hear about how you developed yours?
I started raising and showing goats in 4-H when I was eight years old. I had to get up hours before school and had a lot of extra chores but this taught me about life, death, birth, feeding, milking and the non-sexy part of ranching…keeping the profit and loss information for my 4-H books each year. My mother was very helpful with that part. She also loved the at-risk little kid goats, so I learned from her that you just do everything you can for the animal, no matter how much work it is. One time, we incubated a preemie in a cassarole pan in the oven with the door open for weeks! We ate a lot of electric skillet dinners that month, but the kid survived and grew up to be a champion!
By ten years old, I had a profitable business selling goat milk to people for lactose intolerant babies and kennels that were raising puppies.
My father taught me about winning and losing as part of the process. I won a lot of horseshows, but one time, I didn’t lose gracefully and was crying and generally being a very bad sport. Daddy made me go up and thank the judge. I look back and feel so sorry for the judge, having to face this sobbing little girl, struggling to thank him for placing her third in the class! But it was a good lesson and I learned you can’t win every single time, and losing has lessons too.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Westhaven Ranch in Ione, California was established by my father Col. Fraser E. West (USMC retired) along with my mother Teddy West in 1973 when they moved here from the Bay Area. My father was known as the Cowboy Colonel as he rodeoed all of his life and he became fascinated with Texas Longhorn cattle from his favorite sport, team roping. They began a registered Texas Longhorn cattle breeding program here at Westhaven and quickly grew famous for their Grandchampion herd. In 2011, my husband John and I decided to keep the legacy going as we nursed my father at home in his last years. When Daddy died, we decided to upp the ante so that we could compete at the International level. Westhaven has won many California and West Coast awards and two International awards in the Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of American Horn Showcase competition for the biggest horned 17-month-old bull Westhaven Gold Run and 2 year old heifer, Westhaven Lucky Lucy, in the world!
A big transition that I didn’t see coming was when my husband John died in an accident here at the ranch in 2019. Terrible shock and grief, but he would want me to carry on, with joy, in this beautiful place, so that is what I try to do. Most days, because of the cattle, the wildlife and nature, the dogs and the work, I achieve joy or at a minimum, relief from grief and then some serenity. I cared for my mother at home here at the ranch as well until she transitioned to her next lifetime last year at age 100. I also take care of my 75 year old handicapped brother here, and that caregiving is hard but rewarding. Lots of lessons that I might miss otherwise.
What inspires me is the beauty, grace and intelligence of the Longhorns. The maternal instincts are amazing, and the gorgeous calves get me out of bed each day to see them. I can truly say that I would not have survived facing the deaths of both my parents and my husband had it not been for the Longhorns. When you stand in front of a big cow who is nursing her calf, and she looks at you, and you look at her, in all her glory, all worries and stresses fall away, and you are truly present, because she is. What I want people just starting out in ranching to know is Longhorns are a thrifty, easy, profitable grassfed breed to raise, even on just a few acres. I help my first time breeder customers every step of the way to ensure this important cattle breed carries on to the next century with lots of new breeders.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Take risks. Making mistakes is how we learn. If you don’t risk, you won’t learn
The key to success is simple – show up. Return phone calls, texts and emails the same day.
Be polite to everyone, no matter what. No one will remember the issue that was so knarly, just how you handled it.
For ranching, 95% of success is just observing and going with your instincts. When in doubt, do it.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
Being a rancher, a widow and caregiver can be lonely, so my friends and family are very important. Staying in touch can be hard but I am trying to get off the ranch more often. I need to do that more. Recently, I wrote an illustrated book for adults who are dealing with loss. It’s about going on when you don’t feel like it, and what happens when you do. It’s called “Eve Plants a Garden” on Amazon.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.westhavenlonghorns.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/westhavenlonghorns
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/WesthavenLonghorns/
- Other: Eve Plants a Garden – ebook and paperback on Amazon – picture book for adults dealing with losshttps://a.co/d/aQCpwvz
Image Credits
Photographers: Sondra West-Moore and John Moore at Westhaven Ranch
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
