Our Ranch
Our Ranch
Where our roots run deep and our story keeps growing.
CY Ranch has never been just about the animals we raise. It's about family, the things we learn along the way, and holding on to a way of life that means something to us.
Our story has changed quite a bit over the years. There have been different animals, different dreams, and more than a few unexpected turns. But through it all, our love for the land, the animals, and each other has remained.
Family roots
Where It All Began
At the heart of CY Ranch has always been Grandma and her love for horses. What began as her dream eventually became a family legacy, with a brand that honors both her Claridge roots and Don Young, who helped make her dreams of raising horses a reality.
Our family's ranching roots include years of raising cattle and breeding and training cutting-bred Quarter Horses. Horses have always held a special place here, and those cutting bloodlines are still part of our breeding program today.
That love of horses reached beyond our own pastures, too. Both generations of our family have spent time coaching high school equestrian teams, sharing what we've learned and encouraging young people to find their own love for horses.
For Grandma, having animals has never been just something she does. It's part of who she is.
As the years passed and caring for the horses on her own became more difficult, we knew how much it would mean for her to continue living the life she loved. So we brought our households together, found a place where we could share the work, and began a new chapter of CY Ranch as a family.
Life together
A Ranch That Keeps Growing
Today, our pastures are home to Highland cattle, Texas Longhorns, a few Belted Galloways, Valais Blacknose sheep, and the Boer goats our children raise for 4-H. We also have a handful of miniature donkeys who have settled comfortably into retirement. And, of course, there are still Quarter Horses.
Our family is especially excited about the newest addition to CY Ranch's breeding program, Valais Blacknose sheep. After admiring this unique breed for years, we're finally getting the chance to be part of its future through the breed-up program, and we can't wait to see where it takes us.
With the arrival of our fourth child in 2026, our family has grown right alongside the ranch. Our children are the heart of everything we do, and so much of this life we're building is for them. They're growing up surrounded by animals, raising goats, participating in 4-H, and learning that caring for another living creature takes patience, compassion, and hard work. More than anything, we hope to give them a childhood full of memories, a respect for the life around them, and values they'll carry long after they've grown.
Some days are exciting. Some are exhausting. Some don't go remotely according to plan. But they're all part of the life we're building together.
Hands in the soil
More Than Livestock
Over the last few years, we've also been working on growing a heritage vegetable garden. We love finding unusual varieties, trying something new, and seeing what we can grow ourselves.
It's been rewarding, frustrating, and occasionally a complete disaster. But every year we learn a little more, plant something different, and give it another try.
For us, gardening is another part of building a more sustainable, hands-on life. We want our children to understand where their food comes from, how much work goes into producing it, and the satisfaction of growing something with their own hands.
With the addition of Valais Blacknose sheep, Candice has no shortage of ideas for turning their beautiful wool into something useful and unique. We're excited to see where those possibilities take us. Creativity and making things by hand have always been part of our family, and we hope CY Ranch Mercantile will become a place where we can share some of those creations. Whether it's something made from our sheep's wool or another project inspired by life on the ranch, we want each piece to carry a little of our family's story with it.
We're certainly not doing everything perfectly, but we're learning as we go.
Compassion in practice
A Life Worth Caring For
Something our family is deeply passionate about is the belief that every animal deserves love, compassion, and a life filled with dignity and respect.
Whether an animal is here for breeding, companionship, sale or to provide food, its life matters. We believe that the responsibility of raising livestock means doing everything we reasonably can to give those animals a good life.
That doesn't change just because an animal may eventually leave our ranch or become part of someone's dinner.
There's something beautiful about knowing an animal was loved by a child, cared for by a family, and treated with kindness throughout its life. Even when that life has a different ending than we might wish, the love and care it received still matter.
It's something we want our children to understand, too. Caring for another living creature means showing up on the cold mornings, the long evenings, and the days when you'd really rather be doing something else.
It means learning, getting things wrong sometimes, making hard decisions, and doing right by the animals that depend on you.
And we believe those lessons will stay with our children long after they've grown.
Faith through every season
Still Growing, Still Learning
Faith has always been part of our family's story. Not because life has always gone the way we hoped, but because we've learned that difficult seasons don't have to be the end of something good.
There is always something to learn, something worth being thankful for, and something to look forward to.
CY Ranch may look different today than it did years ago, and we're sure it will keep changing. But the things that brought us here are the same things we hope to pass along: a love for family, compassion for animals, a willingness to work hard, and faith in the days ahead.
There's still plenty of work to do, more than a few things to figure out, and a whole lot of memories yet to be made.
A legacy of love, faith, and stewardship, passed from one generation to the next.