If you are upstream of their ponds, then your pond should fill first!
Two possible problems:
1.) The closer you get to the uppermost slopes of a watershed there is LESS water available. Most waterways in nature exhibit a dendritic (branching) pattern. The farther you are downslope in a watershed, the more branches come together and the more water is available to fill ponds. (Assuming the water was not intercepted upslope.)
2.) Observation bias. Are the ponds around you truly full? If your pond goes down 2', then it substantially shrinks in size in the satellite view due to all of your area of 1' deep water at full pool. If your neighbor had a pond with perfectly vertical sides, it could go down 2' during a drought, yet it would look to be exactly the same size on the satellite view.
I do NOT like that your pond went almost completely dry last year. I think you were in a long term drought, but probably not a record drought. I suspect the watershed to your pond may be undersized. Are there any waterways on your property that transmit water bypass your pond? Diverting that water to your pond would probably be the best way to sustain your pond during subsequent drought conditions.
Additional thoughts:
Even if your pond shrinks down from a 1/2 acre to a 1/4 acre during a drought, you could still support a decent fish population. However, if your depth in the deepest parts is only 8' when you go down 2', then you are really starting to push the limits for fish survival during a hot Texas summer. Do you have AC electricity available near your pond? If so, you might read some of the aeration threads. If your fish are in warm 8' deep water that is well aerated, then they should still survive a Texas summer during a drought.
However, if your pond is going to go almost dry every seven years due to low rainfall periods, then any fish population development would have to be based on relatively short term goals to make sure you don't waste a lot of money and effort.
Also, your idea to build a cattle tank upstream might give you double value. It would water your cattle during normal rainfall periods, and you could fence off your larger pond and exclude the cattle and develop that pond for fishing and/or recreation. During a really bad drought, you could then siphon or pump water from your cattle tank to your main pond to save your main pond. You could then give your cattle access to a small corner of that pond to get THEM through the drought.
I agree with you that patience may be your greatest virtue at this point. However, I was just throwing out some more information above for you to consider as you start getting more rain and you get a better feel for the "rhythms" of your property.
Good luck on improving your property and practicing your rain dance moves!
