Lora Ayers, R(S), ABR
In a previous post, we took a look at the history of ranching in Hawaii and shared photos of our tour of Anna Ranch Heritage Center. Today, we are “talking” with Lora Ayers, one of our Hilo agents, who lives on a working ranch in East Hawaii. Here are some excerpts from our conversation with Lora:
Will you describe your Mountain View ranch for us?
We’ve owned Kahealani Ranch in Mountain View since 2000. The ranch is family-owned and operated–my daughter, who is a nurse, and my son-in-law, a general contractor, live here and help with the day-to-day operations. We have about 48 acres of land, two homes, one horse barn, one covered riding arena, stock pens, and one shop. Before we purchased the ranch, we had horses, but boarded them.
Right now, we have 6 horses. We breed two of the mares and raise and train reining horses and cutting cow horses. We also run cattle. We have 16 head of Angus/Hereford cows, 14 wean-offs (all ready for sale) and 2 steers for our own consumption when they get old enough. We also have 3 working dogs (two are Australian Shepherds and one is a Border Collie) used to work the cattle.
Our cows graze in 8 different paddocks, which we alternate as needed. Our horses graze in 4 different paddocks and are stalled at night.
Tell us about a “typical” day on the Ranch.
A typical day on the ranch begins with letting our horses out to pasture for the day. Then, I clean their stalls and get the feed ready for the evening. I check the water for the cattle and make sure everyone is good to go for the day. After that, I head into Hilo to begin my other job in real estate.
During the show season, we ride from January to November. In January, we start training any new colts and also ride the other horses. Training takes place daily, 5 times per week. Usually, we spend about 30 to 40 minutes per horse, depending on what needs to be done.
There are days when we take the dogs and go out and move our cattle to a new paddock. Or, just check the cows (near calving time) to see who might need assistance. The first year they calved, we had to pull 4 calves. Last year, they were all good without help. But I still take my horse and one of the dogs to go out and find the calves to make sure they’re ok. (One of my Aussie dogs is great about “finding the babies.”)
There are times when we bring the cows in to the stock pens to fly spray, worm, and inoculate. Or, to castrate any bull calves. We don’t brand – we have ear tags (because we’re a small operation). At the end of a typical day, we clean the horses we’ve ridden and bring all the horses back into the barn for the night to be fed. Of course, we also then feed the dogs. After that, I go into the house (usually no earlier than 7:00 in the summer) and cook dinner.
What do you feed the horses and cows?
I feed the horses alfalfa cubes (because it’s much more affordable then alfalfa hay) and supplement with a complete grain which has all their necessary vitamins. They also have unlimited access to a mineral/salt block. I give them a daily wormer and a tube wormer every 60 days. This is necessary because, in our climate, the temperature never drops to freezing like on the mainland, so the larvae don’t go dormant as they would in colder climates during the winter months.
The feed costs are considerably lower on the mainland than here because Hawaii has to ship all of the feed in. The grass that grows on this side of the island is not nutritious enough to support a horse, but is sufficient for cattle. (The grass is nutritious enough in Waiamea, so one would have to feed much less in Waimea than from Hilo-side up to Honokaa.) The cattle graze and are supplemented with salt/mineral blocks and molasses. We worm the cows every 3 months.
Can you tell us about shipping larger animals to and from the Big Island?
We purchased 3 of our horses from the mainland and shipped them over. Shipping can be difficult on the animals. Between California and Oahu, they travel on an actual cargo ship with stock tenders feeding and watering them daily. Shipping inter-island is by barge. The animals go in a box stall, which is very limited in space. There is just enough room for the animals to stand and for whatever food and water you can hang in the stall (usually one bucket of water and a few flakes of alfalfa). That leg of the trip is difficult – 24 hours on the barge.
Before shipping, one has to contact the state regarding certain requirements to bring animals in. For horses, a Coggins test has to be done by their local vet as well as certain inoculations. Once they get to Oahu, they go to the state quarantine station for inspection from the state veterinarian. Then, they are approved to be shipped on the barge inter-island. They’re also required to be quarantined once they get to the destination and the state vet will visit and take another Coggins test after so many days.
If one had the money to spend, you could fly a horse from California to Oahu (approx. $2500 one way) and then barge inter-island. When my daughter represented the Hawaii Quarter Horse Association for the reining/cow horse competition at the American Quarter Horse World Show (this was about 12 years ago), we flew her horse to California and then trucked her to Texas from there. Flying is much better than the ship, but very expensive.
What are special challenges ranchers face in Hawaii?
I would say that one of the biggest challenges for the ranch is maintaining the horses in such wet weather, especially on the Hamakua coast. It’s hard on their hooves and they can get rain rot on their coats. One solution is to keep them in the barn 24/7 when it’s very wet and rainy (which is what we have to do from time to time).
The other important thing to remember is that our climate is warmer, necessitating a strict worming regime for horses and cattle. A lot of people from the mainland think that the grass is great because it’s long and green, but it is very different from pasture lands on the mainland, so we need to supplement our horses and cattle to keep them in performance condition. Hawaii does not grow the feed necessary for horses and thus all feed and supplies are shipped, bringing the cost of feed/supplies much higher than the mainland. I order a lot of my supplies and wormers directly from the mainland. It saves a little…
One last question…How did you get into ranching?
I grew up loving horses, but with limited access to them. My husband grew up on the Bear Ranch in Northern California where his father was the foreman and his mother was the cook for the ranch. So, he is the one with the most ranch experience. I have always loved animals and had a dream of raising horses. I got a horse when I first got married and have had them ever since.
If you are looking for ranch properties on the Big Island, Lora Ayers is one of our agents who really knows that territory. You can contact her directly by phone at 808-987-7945 or by email at loraayers (at) hibr (dot) net.
Mahalo, Lora, for taking the time to share this information with us!
