Our Story
Welcome to Belmont Springs Ranch! We are a small family-owned ranch in the heart of Montana.
We have been raising various farm animals for 20+ years. These included dairy goats, meat goats, cattle, pigs, sheep, rabbits and poultry of all kinds. In 2021 my husband Steve and I found our dream opportunity and purchased and moved our family to a 160-acre homestead in Golden Valley County, Montana. This homestead was over a hundred years old and hadn't been lived on for many decades. There was no water, no electricity, no housing, and not a tree for miles. We moved our large family here in April, living in three camper trailers through the summer. By September we had the shell of the house up and dried in. We roughed it for several months while we built our home and lived in it all at the same time.
We had invested in some Dorper and Katahdin sheep the summer we moved here, as well as Great Pyrennes livestock guardian dogs, some dairy goats and meat goats. We already had poultry and black angus cattle. Our hope was to build up our livestock to the point that we could grow our own food and also raise enough to sell as a retirement plan in the future.
In 2022, Steve decided to retire from the corporate world and start his own construction business, subbing to his sons and others as a heavy equipment operator in the summer and a drywaller in the fall. Steve was so busy with construction that he didn't get much done on the ranch that year. In March of 2023 Steve suffered a grand mal seizure and we discovered he had brain tumors from melanoma that we thought we had eradicated 8 years before. After a hard-fought battle, Steve passed away on October 22,2023, just one month and 11 days after our 30th wedding anniversary. I was left with the monumental task of raising and homeschooling our 8 youngest children (we have 19 children, total, all ours), trying to tame this piece of dryland that had gone to weeds over the past five years and figure out how to run a profitable business. In 2024 I was too overwhelmed to accomplish much, but this year I am finding my footing and getting some direction. My cousin told me last year that the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. So here I am!
That is our background. Now for our goals and hopes. We have currently decided to just direct market lamb and the goat meat that we have, currently. We sold off our meat goats and decided to just concentrate on the lamb for now. Hopefully this fall we will add some pastured chickens, turkeys and eggs. In a few years we may expand to beef, pork and possibly add meat goats back in. Eventually maybe even raw dairy. Currently we offer Great Pyrennes puppies when we have some available.
We plan to get our pastures established with good grass, rather than the weeds we have, using intensive rotational grazing. We offer quality grassfed meat to those that are concerned about where and how their meat was raised. We do not use chemicals on our pastures, nor hormones, antibiotics or anything else to stimulate the growth of our animals. We are hoping to build lasting relationships with our customers and offer them food that they feel good about putting on the table.
When we were fighting my husband's cancer, his doctors at Envita Medical Center in Arizona were adamant that his food had to be as clean and natural as possible. While we were there, we decided that we would do our best to offer food products that would not only not harm anyone but could also help folks with special challenges. We hope to fill this niche, and we look forward to serving you!
