Here’s a look at the Progressive Cattleman stories that gathered the most online traffic over the past year.

Bale processing basics 1. Bale processors maximize hay supplies by reducing hay losses.

As cattlemen, we are now replacing the cow herd to bring it back to our normal “comfort zone of production” after herd reduction resulting from years of forage loss due to wildfire and drought.

When asked to describe a mentor, attendees at the Central Plains Women’s Dairy Conference in November 2015 shared these words: role model, confidant, coach, guide, cheerleader and supporter.

Christmas is the celebration of the most important event in history – the birth of Christ. At Christmastime, we pause in thankful remembrance, realizing all the things this event means in our lives today.

Every year, my in-laws make it a point to invite someone to Christmas dinner who is poor, downtrodden and an outcast from society. Usually it’s me, so it’s no surprise when I receive a polite request every year to drive five hours one way to attend their annual Christmas feast.

Although the recent slip in calf prices may require cow-calf producers to sell more heifer calves than planned and forgo herd expansion, many producers will still keep a significant percentage of replacement females in order to maintain herd inventory.

I sit here in front of my computer contemplating Christmas. It is a few weeks away, but preparations need to be made. After all, it is the biggest and most anticipated event of the year. Children have “sugarplums” dancing in their heads.

I like to complain about the weather. So, with the changing of the seasons comes ample opportunity for dialogue – or at least monologue – on my part. The transition from fall to winter always offers up plenty of conversation fodder.

Dean was in his 80s and still drove his pickup. This concerned his best friend, Jack, who questioned the wisdom of riding with him. Dean based his self-confidence on the fact that he lived in western Kansas, where you could drive from Hugoton to Bird City and never see a person wearing a suit and a tie.