A Pillar of Montezuma County Agriculture

0:00It means a lot to carry the tradition forward. This is a pillar of Monizuma County agriculture and we're losing family farms, we're losing family ranches and it's important to keep the western heritage alive. You're watching The Local News Network brought to you by Skyute Casino and Freddie Sprozen Custard and Stake Burgers. Cortez Livestock has been here since 1959 so it's 65 years old. Back when it was started they didn't have internet, they didn't have a lot of trucking and so it was important for the local ranchers to be able to come in, bring their livestock and get them traded and you know bought and particularly for the Native Americans, this was the only cell barn in the region for decades and so they would bring their livestock in

1:02and they would sell and then they would frequent the stores here in Monizuma County. We do have good buyers and good sellers and we do a lot of trade with the Native Americans. A lot of them have been trading here for generations. We get a lot of the old ranchers and farmers that they come just to have a cup of coffee and catch up on their family and the families around here. There's a lot of corporate buyers that will come in and just buy a bunch of animals off of the hoof so this allows the producer to have a spot to come and sell their livestock. I've grown up around auctions, going to auctions, buying whatever auctions and just finally one day it just kind of clicked, that would be cool to do and so I just kind of started looking and found a school that was affordable and into do and so I just did it. A lot of it comes from rhythm and they teach you a basic chant and then you just kind of take

2:14it and run with it. I grew up in Texas and around livestock and moving here and seeing the history of this place, my grandparents were from around here and so just preserving the old West feel. It's a big thing for the Native population to come sell their animals and buy and trade and it's definitely a big part of the history of this barn. We're losing farmers and ranchers and we want to be here to keep the tradition alive and they have a place to sell their livestock. This is what this county is all about is preserving the things that we love and keep keeping our businesses going. For more information visit the Fortes livestock auction Facebook page and for more stories like this visit DeringoLocal.News