Sometimes in life, you have a bad day.
And then sometimes you have days that are so brutal that when you finally return home to your apartment at 10pm- (Greetings from the apartment) and start inhaling the bag of Christmas cookies you *were* saving to bring home to your dad- you have serious considerations about moving back to the middle of nowhere desert and being a bitter, sand-covered, workaholick, spinster for the rest of your life.
My friends, I had that day. So, in an effort to salvage the last 55 minutes of December 13th, I'm going to list some of the things I'm thankful for...
1. My family- I was seriously blessed in the parents department. And my sister is pretty cool. And the family tree contains some others that I'm quite fond of. And they're healthy and mostly doing well.
2. I have a job- it's good to have income. And in time, I may really like this one.
3. I'm young-ish- so there's time to get things sorted out yet.
4. Christmas is coming- which means I get to go home where there is family and there are brown cows.
5. Friends- I have a handful of people who are getting me through. And always have, and always will.
6. God only gives us what he knows we can handle- so clearly he thinks I'm kind of a big deal. haha. but really- I know it wont kill me. Just sort of feels that way.
7. My headache finally went away- After making me miserable all day... its departure is making the list.
8. Tomorrow is Friday- and one way or another, i'm doing something enjoyable this weekend.
9. Utah- if my return to the northeast doesn't pan out, I can run back to the desert and the desert has calves, and calves make me happy. And the people who own the calves are okay too.
10. There is wine.
and sometimes, 10 good things can bring a little perspective...
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Too Much Bull
Greetings on a chilly morning in WyoCo!
I dont know what it is about working from home that moves me to do a little writing, maybe it's the bright blue walls or all-you-can-drink coffee supply... either way, here we are again.
For anyone eagerly awaiting an update on CalfWatch 2012- the wait is over!
Unfortunately it was a bull. Another bull...
Which puts us somewhere around 100% bulls in the last two years (to be fair, we only have a few cows so it's only 4/4, but still, c'mon already!). But he's huge and healthy and the reports from NH say he's eating well. Fair warning folks, we don't get too attached to bulls because they end up in the freezer.
More importantly, Deiter, now officially a cow (can't call her a heifer anymore) came through calving like a champ, despite having a 100+ pound first calf. That's a good Swiss for ya' :) While it's not initially looking like she'll have the show udder I was hoping/praying for, it may improve as the swelling goes down. More than likely, I'll find a herd in WNY for her to hang out in and she'll live like a normal cow instead of a total show pet. But of course I'll visit her, since she's been a pet too long to go cold turkey and I need to see a brown cow every so often.
In other news, I held a meeting with a few dairy industry folks who were kind enough to offer their insight as my advisory group for this new job.
Since this was the last of my initial objectives to check off the original to-do list, I'm going to stop referring to it as a new job.
Bringing together a group of people with such enthusiasm and experience in serving dairy farmers, or being dairy farmers, was a great reminder of why it's important to spend as much time as possible with people who know a lot more than you do. The group included a few progressive dairy farmers, a financial consultant, veterinarian, nutritionist, animal health company rep, cooperative field people, extension specialist and my excellent adviser, and they didn't let me down- I picked up some good ideas, was given a few things to rethink, and was left feeling a huge amount of gratitude to be involved in an industry that supports young people and new initiatives to help dairy farmers as much as this group of people do.
That's about it as far as happenings, but I'm heading to a calf symposium tonight where I will again be nowhere near the smartest person in the room- so I'm sure there will be a lot of good calf-raising information making it's way back to WNY. If you don't already, find me @calfadventures on Twitter- I'll try to remember to tweet any really cool updates from the meeting.
Oh, and Happy 12-12-12!
I dont know what it is about working from home that moves me to do a little writing, maybe it's the bright blue walls or all-you-can-drink coffee supply... either way, here we are again.
For anyone eagerly awaiting an update on CalfWatch 2012- the wait is over!
Unfortunately it was a bull. Another bull...
Which puts us somewhere around 100% bulls in the last two years (to be fair, we only have a few cows so it's only 4/4, but still, c'mon already!). But he's huge and healthy and the reports from NH say he's eating well. Fair warning folks, we don't get too attached to bulls because they end up in the freezer.
More importantly, Deiter, now officially a cow (can't call her a heifer anymore) came through calving like a champ, despite having a 100+ pound first calf. That's a good Swiss for ya' :) While it's not initially looking like she'll have the show udder I was hoping/praying for, it may improve as the swelling goes down. More than likely, I'll find a herd in WNY for her to hang out in and she'll live like a normal cow instead of a total show pet. But of course I'll visit her, since she's been a pet too long to go cold turkey and I need to see a brown cow every so often.
In other news, I held a meeting with a few dairy industry folks who were kind enough to offer their insight as my advisory group for this new job.
Since this was the last of my initial objectives to check off the original to-do list, I'm going to stop referring to it as a new job.
Bringing together a group of people with such enthusiasm and experience in serving dairy farmers, or being dairy farmers, was a great reminder of why it's important to spend as much time as possible with people who know a lot more than you do. The group included a few progressive dairy farmers, a financial consultant, veterinarian, nutritionist, animal health company rep, cooperative field people, extension specialist and my excellent adviser, and they didn't let me down- I picked up some good ideas, was given a few things to rethink, and was left feeling a huge amount of gratitude to be involved in an industry that supports young people and new initiatives to help dairy farmers as much as this group of people do.
That's about it as far as happenings, but I'm heading to a calf symposium tonight where I will again be nowhere near the smartest person in the room- so I'm sure there will be a lot of good calf-raising information making it's way back to WNY. If you don't already, find me @calfadventures on Twitter- I'll try to remember to tweet any really cool updates from the meeting.
Oh, and Happy 12-12-12!
Friday, December 7, 2012
Serious Friday Happiness
Greetings from my apartment, where I've spent the morning doing everything from cleaning to mass e-mail purge and sorting through the collection of handouts I've accumulated at meetings the past couple weeks.
While I don't exactly have time, I'm in a really great mood (thank you sleeping in my own bed for a change and TGIF) and wanted to share a few of my favorite things about this time of year.
First, Christmas is coming!!! in case you weren't aware. (haha)
My family is thankfully, not big on gift-giving which means I can get excited about the holiday without ever feeling like a pack mule walking through the frenzied mass of over-caffeinated, deal-seeking shoppers at every hyper-decorated shopping center. Small blessings...
I also was ecstatic to discover I moved to one of those "small town USA's" that LOVES to rally around holidays. Our neighboring towns decorate similarly, which makes the drive back into Wyoming county really, really cool- compensating somewhat for the late hour at which I've been viewing those nicely decorate town squares lately. There are Christmas lights EVERYWHERE. And, since Christmas lights are one of my all-time favorite things... I'm feeling especially festive. I even made a wreath and wrapped lights around the deck railing outside, almost making up for not having a tree indoors.
Which brings me to another favorite of the season- the sounds and scents of Christmas. Bells ringing and countless renditions of "Last Christmas" and the deliciousness of evergreen, fires burning and cookies baking. None of which originate from my apartment since I'm not here enough to justify a tree, don't have a fireplace, and inexplicably burn everything that touches a cookie sheet. But I do have the radio on and a scentsy burner so the combination of Taylor Swift's catchy holiday tunes and "evergreen and cozy fireside" melting away is making me seriously happy. I may even try to make cookies Sunday.
Aaaand finally and most importantly, it's early December, and like many of my registered cow-loving peers, I'm impatiently waiting for a calf. Since size matters (in the show ring) the ideal time for a potential winter-aged show calf to be born is early December, and I've got a two year old heifer literally ready to pop at my parent's barn in New Hampshire, and I CANT WAIT! A heifer having her first calf is a twofer of anticipation because you have the potential of a heifer calf being born and the uncertainty of whether or not the cow will have a show-quality udder. I really like the heifer, and she's a granddaughter of my first cow (who's still hanging out in the same barn in NH), so ideally she'll develop well and I will be able to enter my first dam and daughter classes next year! Fingers most definitely crossed.
Hopefully you're enjoying some holiday happiness of your own and to all those awaiting next year's crop of show calves: good luck!
(Design, aka Deiter, as a newborn calf about two years ago)
While I don't exactly have time, I'm in a really great mood (thank you sleeping in my own bed for a change and TGIF) and wanted to share a few of my favorite things about this time of year.
First, Christmas is coming!!! in case you weren't aware. (haha)
My family is thankfully, not big on gift-giving which means I can get excited about the holiday without ever feeling like a pack mule walking through the frenzied mass of over-caffeinated, deal-seeking shoppers at every hyper-decorated shopping center. Small blessings...
I also was ecstatic to discover I moved to one of those "small town USA's" that LOVES to rally around holidays. Our neighboring towns decorate similarly, which makes the drive back into Wyoming county really, really cool- compensating somewhat for the late hour at which I've been viewing those nicely decorate town squares lately. There are Christmas lights EVERYWHERE. And, since Christmas lights are one of my all-time favorite things... I'm feeling especially festive. I even made a wreath and wrapped lights around the deck railing outside, almost making up for not having a tree indoors.
Which brings me to another favorite of the season- the sounds and scents of Christmas. Bells ringing and countless renditions of "Last Christmas" and the deliciousness of evergreen, fires burning and cookies baking. None of which originate from my apartment since I'm not here enough to justify a tree, don't have a fireplace, and inexplicably burn everything that touches a cookie sheet. But I do have the radio on and a scentsy burner so the combination of Taylor Swift's catchy holiday tunes and "evergreen and cozy fireside" melting away is making me seriously happy. I may even try to make cookies Sunday.
Aaaand finally and most importantly, it's early December, and like many of my registered cow-loving peers, I'm impatiently waiting for a calf. Since size matters (in the show ring) the ideal time for a potential winter-aged show calf to be born is early December, and I've got a two year old heifer literally ready to pop at my parent's barn in New Hampshire, and I CANT WAIT! A heifer having her first calf is a twofer of anticipation because you have the potential of a heifer calf being born and the uncertainty of whether or not the cow will have a show-quality udder. I really like the heifer, and she's a granddaughter of my first cow (who's still hanging out in the same barn in NH), so ideally she'll develop well and I will be able to enter my first dam and daughter classes next year! Fingers most definitely crossed.
Hopefully you're enjoying some holiday happiness of your own and to all those awaiting next year's crop of show calves: good luck!
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Frustrated about MILC
Greetings from our booth at the NY Farm Bureau annual meeting, where I've been sitting since 11:30am (after a frantic drive in from Wyoming county) typing up a farm report since no one seems to notice us down here at the faaaaaar end of the exhibit hall. Maybe it's because attendees are in session, or maybe because they literally can't see our pretty new display since the hall is getting darker as night falls and we're soon to be lit only by a lamppost 6 feet away and Christmas lights on plants in the lobby. Either way, I found myself between thoughts on the report and checking facebook, (sue me, it happens), where I found a link to an article referencing pending financial hardship for NY dairy farms if we don't see a new Farm Bill passed by congress in fairly short order.
I'm not overly bothered by some of the assumptions used in the article- it's fair to assume that on the off chance no bill is passed and we revert to the method of milk pricing used in the 1930's (which would happen without a new bill), and the government starts buying up milk using the old formulas (which I suspect is unlikely to happen), the cost of dairy products to consumers could increase to the point of diminishing demand.
A bigger contention is that they really harp on the loss of the price support program- Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) which sets a floor on milk price paid to farmers on up to 2 million pounds of milk or so per year. What that means is that if you milk about 100 cows, all of your milk is covered, whereas if you milk 200 cows, (NY's average dairy farm size is a little less than 200 cows) only half of your milk production would be protected. So if you happen to be a larger family farm (97% of all dairy farms are family owned) then you're not getting much help from the program. And whether we want to admit it or not, 75% of our milk comes from the largest 25% of dairies- so for the relatively high dollar amount that goes out in MILC payments, it's not supporting the production of a whole lot of milk, although it does get paid to a large number of farms.
Since it's my personal blog, I get to state my personal opinion- and to me, MILC unfairly supports small farms and size is not the sole indicator of profitability of a dairy farm. Please don't take this as saying there is anything wrong with small farms- I believe there is room for everyone in the milk production arena who can operate profitably; but in my experience, MILC payments support some unprofitable farms when economics say that farm shouldn't be in business anymore (for the time being, I'll leave untouched the topic of overall milk production economics and milk pricing being a big, ugly, inadequate system). MILC also fails to address that milk price alone doesn't determine if a farm is profitable. With the high cost of corn and other crops that are typically used to feed cows, the cost of making milk is up significantly, so it's harder to make a profit even though milk prices are high compared to the average price over time. So technically, even if dairy farms are losing money right now, MILC wouldn't kick in and help them until the price of milk drops another couple dollars. Not actually all that helpful.
So basically, we need a new Farm Bill, one that is renamed the "Social Welfare Bill" to reflect that 90% of the money that goes to funding it is paid out in WIC and Food Stamps, and we need a better type of price support that is equally beneficial to small and large farms. In this time of high feed cost, everyone buying grain and forages to feed their cows is in the same boat, and size doesn't help- whether you're losing $1 a day on each of your 100 cows or $1 a day on each of your 1,000 cows- you're having a hard time.
And finally, can we PLEASE stop acting like there's something wrong with having a large dairy farm. There are savvy families running great dairy farms of all sizes in this state, and they all need access to support from disasterous prices.
I'm sure in the final hour, congress will pass a bill and we will avoid 1930's milk pricing. Even so, MILC can and should go away, and a better program will take it's place. And eventually we will have appropriate milk pricing. And eventually HSUS will go away. And eventually everyone will milk Brown Swiss.
It's good to be optimistic.
I'm not overly bothered by some of the assumptions used in the article- it's fair to assume that on the off chance no bill is passed and we revert to the method of milk pricing used in the 1930's (which would happen without a new bill), and the government starts buying up milk using the old formulas (which I suspect is unlikely to happen), the cost of dairy products to consumers could increase to the point of diminishing demand.
A bigger contention is that they really harp on the loss of the price support program- Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) which sets a floor on milk price paid to farmers on up to 2 million pounds of milk or so per year. What that means is that if you milk about 100 cows, all of your milk is covered, whereas if you milk 200 cows, (NY's average dairy farm size is a little less than 200 cows) only half of your milk production would be protected. So if you happen to be a larger family farm (97% of all dairy farms are family owned) then you're not getting much help from the program. And whether we want to admit it or not, 75% of our milk comes from the largest 25% of dairies- so for the relatively high dollar amount that goes out in MILC payments, it's not supporting the production of a whole lot of milk, although it does get paid to a large number of farms.
Since it's my personal blog, I get to state my personal opinion- and to me, MILC unfairly supports small farms and size is not the sole indicator of profitability of a dairy farm. Please don't take this as saying there is anything wrong with small farms- I believe there is room for everyone in the milk production arena who can operate profitably; but in my experience, MILC payments support some unprofitable farms when economics say that farm shouldn't be in business anymore (for the time being, I'll leave untouched the topic of overall milk production economics and milk pricing being a big, ugly, inadequate system). MILC also fails to address that milk price alone doesn't determine if a farm is profitable. With the high cost of corn and other crops that are typically used to feed cows, the cost of making milk is up significantly, so it's harder to make a profit even though milk prices are high compared to the average price over time. So technically, even if dairy farms are losing money right now, MILC wouldn't kick in and help them until the price of milk drops another couple dollars. Not actually all that helpful.
So basically, we need a new Farm Bill, one that is renamed the "Social Welfare Bill" to reflect that 90% of the money that goes to funding it is paid out in WIC and Food Stamps, and we need a better type of price support that is equally beneficial to small and large farms. In this time of high feed cost, everyone buying grain and forages to feed their cows is in the same boat, and size doesn't help- whether you're losing $1 a day on each of your 100 cows or $1 a day on each of your 1,000 cows- you're having a hard time.
And finally, can we PLEASE stop acting like there's something wrong with having a large dairy farm. There are savvy families running great dairy farms of all sizes in this state, and they all need access to support from disasterous prices.
I'm sure in the final hour, congress will pass a bill and we will avoid 1930's milk pricing. Even so, MILC can and should go away, and a better program will take it's place. And eventually we will have appropriate milk pricing. And eventually HSUS will go away. And eventually everyone will milk Brown Swiss.
It's good to be optimistic.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Home Again
Greetings!
The last time I blogged, which was admittedly, many months ago; I was writing from the home office on a 3500 cow dairy farm in Central Utah where I was managing the recently re-acquired calf ranch for some wonderful fellow New England transplants . Flash forward 3000 miles, 4 months, several cow shows, and a new job later, and you'll find me writing from my new apartment in Western New York where I now reside in a county with 160 dairy farms- that's more than the entire state of New Hampshire!
The transition back to NY and a shiny new job in the dairy industry has me wondering at times if I wont end up back in Utah sooner or later- those calves, western mountains and some amazing people sure stole my heart- but for now, I'm enjoying the closer proximity of my friends, family and my pretty brown cows.
The new position that I have taken is a direct result of the excitement in NY over growing yogurt and cheese demand, and trying to ensure that dairy farms in WNY are given every resource to help them improve profitability and long-term viability. Since it's a newly created job, I've spent the past two months sorting out a plan of attack and developing relationships with some of the key players already serving dairy farmers in the region. A big part of my job is going to be finding the farms that want help developing long-term plans and goals for their dairy business, and connecting them with the vet/nutritionist/cow comfort specialist/nutrient management planner/lender/extension educator who will help bring their plans to reality. I've enjoyed meeting so many people and getting a handle on the needs of NY dairy farmers, but I'm beyond ready to get out on to farms again and actually feel like I'm doing something helpful! The pace of a new state job where I'm trying to build momentum is very different than the pace of working on that dairy out west!
When I'm on the job, which feels like a lot more time than I had while working with calves, I'm settling into this cool little town I've moved to- which at the moment is intensely decorated with Christmas lights- and visiting friends as much as possible. There are also the cows in NH, including the March calf out of one of my favorite cow families (the BoJoy Gretchen daughters!!!!) and my homebred heifer (the pretty girl pictured below) that is due in a week or two with her first calf! Get excited, there will be pictures!
So the downside is I won't have any fun calf stories anymore, but I will share the trials and (hopefully) successes as this new job gets rolling, and I'm sure some recap on the joys of being a single 20-something in a small town in rural upstate NY.
Oh, and fair warning to anyone with a dairy in western NY- you'll probably be hearing from me. Or I may just show up to pet your calves. Gotta get my fix.
The last time I blogged, which was admittedly, many months ago; I was writing from the home office on a 3500 cow dairy farm in Central Utah where I was managing the recently re-acquired calf ranch for some wonderful fellow New England transplants . Flash forward 3000 miles, 4 months, several cow shows, and a new job later, and you'll find me writing from my new apartment in Western New York where I now reside in a county with 160 dairy farms- that's more than the entire state of New Hampshire!
The transition back to NY and a shiny new job in the dairy industry has me wondering at times if I wont end up back in Utah sooner or later- those calves, western mountains and some amazing people sure stole my heart- but for now, I'm enjoying the closer proximity of my friends, family and my pretty brown cows.
The new position that I have taken is a direct result of the excitement in NY over growing yogurt and cheese demand, and trying to ensure that dairy farms in WNY are given every resource to help them improve profitability and long-term viability. Since it's a newly created job, I've spent the past two months sorting out a plan of attack and developing relationships with some of the key players already serving dairy farmers in the region. A big part of my job is going to be finding the farms that want help developing long-term plans and goals for their dairy business, and connecting them with the vet/nutritionist/cow comfort specialist/nutrient management planner/lender/extension educator who will help bring their plans to reality. I've enjoyed meeting so many people and getting a handle on the needs of NY dairy farmers, but I'm beyond ready to get out on to farms again and actually feel like I'm doing something helpful! The pace of a new state job where I'm trying to build momentum is very different than the pace of working on that dairy out west!
When I'm on the job, which feels like a lot more time than I had while working with calves, I'm settling into this cool little town I've moved to- which at the moment is intensely decorated with Christmas lights- and visiting friends as much as possible. There are also the cows in NH, including the March calf out of one of my favorite cow families (the BoJoy Gretchen daughters!!!!) and my homebred heifer (the pretty girl pictured below) that is due in a week or two with her first calf! Get excited, there will be pictures!
So the downside is I won't have any fun calf stories anymore, but I will share the trials and (hopefully) successes as this new job gets rolling, and I'm sure some recap on the joys of being a single 20-something in a small town in rural upstate NY.
Oh, and fair warning to anyone with a dairy in western NY- you'll probably be hearing from me. Or I may just show up to pet your calves. Gotta get my fix.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Cows Make Bad Pets
Greetings on a lovely day in Utah!
Tuesday is my day off when I choose to take it, but with a rapidly approaching trip to NY in T-minus 7 days, I decided to help at the ranch and treat calves anyway. Can't claim martyr here, because I then spent midday following the vet and owner as they did pregnancy checks- then an hour or two visiting with our Pfizer Animal Health rep working out a game plan for preventing pink eye and salmonella in the youngstock population. Then the nutritionist stopped by for his weekly visit and we kicked around a few ideas to improve the feed mix for my 200-300 pound heifer calves.
Not a bad afternoon! Honestly, how many people thoroughly enjoy "working" on their day off? It's a perk of dairy farming.
There were two things that came up and got me thinking about a subject that we explored in my Young Dairy Leaders class- namely, that there is a significant difference between livestock and pets.
Point No. 1 came via a story my Pfizer rep shared about her kids, all under 10 years old, and the menagerie of livestock at home, including three orphaned piglets, a pygmy goat, chickens, cats, a dairy goat that lost her kid, a few dogs and a bunch of beef cattle. The rep shared with me how the dairy goat- acquired from a friend to supply milk for the orphaned pigs, (also acquired from a friend)- had "adopted" her husband, reaching the point that she came home last weekend to find her husband being followed around the yard by 4 kids, the dog, a couple cats and a goat.
She talked about how her kids love to play outside in the dirt and feed, are proud of their dad's job "doing AI (artificial insemination)" and are budding entrepreneurs- attempting to sell eggs to every visitor to the homestead, and negotiating terms to borrow a neighbor's male goat to get their pygmy goat pregnant.
Her children have a true appreciation for livestock, hard work, and the rewards associated with both.
They help care for the dogs and cats as well as the pigs- recognizing that the pigs will be bacon in the freezer someday, and raising goat kids can help them save up money for a dirt bike- none the less caring and for them to the best of their ability.
Ultimately, these children recognize that there is a purpose for pets, and a purpose for livestock.
I'll be the first to admit that the lines can become blurred- my 12 year old cow Dee, is a pet. I've made management decisions regarding her care that would not be practical for a cow that wasn't one. She won't be sent for beef as most dairy cows are at the end of their productive life; not because I take issue with dairy cows being slaughtered for beef, but rather because she was never intended as anything besides a pet and cherished 4-H project.
Dee is my favorite, but I truly enjoy cows. I could lose an hour watching a row of Holsteins dig into fresh feed- so clearly content and enjoying the veritable feast provided for them twice daily. I find the same enjoyment watching my calves polish off a bottle of milk or hop around the hutch on a sunny, windy day.
I care for them obsessively- regarding their health and growth as the most honest indicator of my success as their manager. I take time to check on any calves that don't finish their bottles in the hutches, or appear to be withdrawn out in the pens after weaning. But they are not pets.
Which is point No. 2; demonstrated as we received word that a pen of milk cows had gotten out and were milling around the commodity shed and compost rows. No big deal, a number of employees, the owners, the nutritionist and I took off to herd the cows back into their corral. No yelling, no running, simply guiding the cows back to the correct area by blocking their access to the wrong paths.
It reminded me of the joy of trying to catch my Dee cow when she freed herself from a field in her younger days. There was running- she ran away from me, clear around the pond and into the woods! There was yelling- she got herself wedged between two small trees and had the audacity to look back at me implying I was responsible. There was no simple solution to Dee getting loose. I would compare it to the game my puppy plays when it's time to toss her into the back of the pickup and head to the ranch. She's going to end up in the truck but not before I chase her around the truck (and house, and trees).
Cows are happiest when they have a routine. When I show my dairy cattle, I need them to be used to being handled and easy to lead on a halter to ensure the safety of those working with them, and so they look their best. (Dee never subscribed to this theory) This requires a lot of time spent making that type of handling routine. For the calves I work with at the ranch- this type of handling will never be a part of their life. They will be allowed to spend their days eating, drinking and laying down at will; herded to the milking parlor three times a day and left to their herd mates otherwise. For these cows, it is sufficient that they are handled without undue roughness or noise- learning to view humans as nonthreatening- allowing them to be milked and otherwise handled without injury to dairy employees or to the cow herself.
There are certainly similarities- the needs of the cow are met and they live without fear, able to thrive and produce milk, but I wouldn't put one of my show cows into a corral at this dairy because they would follow the employees around trying to be petted, and I wouldn't put a halter on a cow at this dairy and expect her to lead like a dream around a show ring.
Pets are an extension of our family if you will, cared for to the best of our ability. Livestock like dairy cows also have all their needs provided for, but they were never intended to play fetch (Thanks A.Birch!) which makes them bad pets, but great animals to work with.
Tuesday is my day off when I choose to take it, but with a rapidly approaching trip to NY in T-minus 7 days, I decided to help at the ranch and treat calves anyway. Can't claim martyr here, because I then spent midday following the vet and owner as they did pregnancy checks- then an hour or two visiting with our Pfizer Animal Health rep working out a game plan for preventing pink eye and salmonella in the youngstock population. Then the nutritionist stopped by for his weekly visit and we kicked around a few ideas to improve the feed mix for my 200-300 pound heifer calves.
Not a bad afternoon! Honestly, how many people thoroughly enjoy "working" on their day off? It's a perk of dairy farming.
There were two things that came up and got me thinking about a subject that we explored in my Young Dairy Leaders class- namely, that there is a significant difference between livestock and pets.
Point No. 1 came via a story my Pfizer rep shared about her kids, all under 10 years old, and the menagerie of livestock at home, including three orphaned piglets, a pygmy goat, chickens, cats, a dairy goat that lost her kid, a few dogs and a bunch of beef cattle. The rep shared with me how the dairy goat- acquired from a friend to supply milk for the orphaned pigs, (also acquired from a friend)- had "adopted" her husband, reaching the point that she came home last weekend to find her husband being followed around the yard by 4 kids, the dog, a couple cats and a goat.
She talked about how her kids love to play outside in the dirt and feed, are proud of their dad's job "doing AI (artificial insemination)" and are budding entrepreneurs- attempting to sell eggs to every visitor to the homestead, and negotiating terms to borrow a neighbor's male goat to get their pygmy goat pregnant.
Her children have a true appreciation for livestock, hard work, and the rewards associated with both.
They help care for the dogs and cats as well as the pigs- recognizing that the pigs will be bacon in the freezer someday, and raising goat kids can help them save up money for a dirt bike- none the less caring and for them to the best of their ability.
Ultimately, these children recognize that there is a purpose for pets, and a purpose for livestock.
I'll be the first to admit that the lines can become blurred- my 12 year old cow Dee, is a pet. I've made management decisions regarding her care that would not be practical for a cow that wasn't one. She won't be sent for beef as most dairy cows are at the end of their productive life; not because I take issue with dairy cows being slaughtered for beef, but rather because she was never intended as anything besides a pet and cherished 4-H project.
Dee is my favorite, but I truly enjoy cows. I could lose an hour watching a row of Holsteins dig into fresh feed- so clearly content and enjoying the veritable feast provided for them twice daily. I find the same enjoyment watching my calves polish off a bottle of milk or hop around the hutch on a sunny, windy day.
I care for them obsessively- regarding their health and growth as the most honest indicator of my success as their manager. I take time to check on any calves that don't finish their bottles in the hutches, or appear to be withdrawn out in the pens after weaning. But they are not pets.
Which is point No. 2; demonstrated as we received word that a pen of milk cows had gotten out and were milling around the commodity shed and compost rows. No big deal, a number of employees, the owners, the nutritionist and I took off to herd the cows back into their corral. No yelling, no running, simply guiding the cows back to the correct area by blocking their access to the wrong paths.
It reminded me of the joy of trying to catch my Dee cow when she freed herself from a field in her younger days. There was running- she ran away from me, clear around the pond and into the woods! There was yelling- she got herself wedged between two small trees and had the audacity to look back at me implying I was responsible. There was no simple solution to Dee getting loose. I would compare it to the game my puppy plays when it's time to toss her into the back of the pickup and head to the ranch. She's going to end up in the truck but not before I chase her around the truck (and house, and trees).
Cows are happiest when they have a routine. When I show my dairy cattle, I need them to be used to being handled and easy to lead on a halter to ensure the safety of those working with them, and so they look their best. (Dee never subscribed to this theory) This requires a lot of time spent making that type of handling routine. For the calves I work with at the ranch- this type of handling will never be a part of their life. They will be allowed to spend their days eating, drinking and laying down at will; herded to the milking parlor three times a day and left to their herd mates otherwise. For these cows, it is sufficient that they are handled without undue roughness or noise- learning to view humans as nonthreatening- allowing them to be milked and otherwise handled without injury to dairy employees or to the cow herself.
There are certainly similarities- the needs of the cow are met and they live without fear, able to thrive and produce milk, but I wouldn't put one of my show cows into a corral at this dairy because they would follow the employees around trying to be petted, and I wouldn't put a halter on a cow at this dairy and expect her to lead like a dream around a show ring.
Pets are an extension of our family if you will, cared for to the best of our ability. Livestock like dairy cows also have all their needs provided for, but they were never intended to play fetch (Thanks A.Birch!) which makes them bad pets, but great animals to work with.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Desert Spring and Calf Pneumonia
Greetings on a sunny, moderately windy day in Utah!
It’s rapidly becoming evident that winter is over, and although my New England-wizened self says there will likely be one more kick before winter calls it good, I think the worst is behind us.
As far as the calves are concerned, Spring in the west offers a few “exciting” changes, most notably, the wind. Going to school in Ithaca, I thought I knew a thing or two about “strong” winds- the kind that will blow you off a sidewalk and turn your umbrella (in Ithaca, you always carry an umbrella) inside out. Turns out, I knew nothing. 30 mph “breezes” are the norm in this town, and spring is typically the gustiest season- offering more than a couple 50+ mph windy days. The plus side is we presently have no mud to speak of at the calf ranch, and the flies (how there are flies already I do not know) can’t stick to anything long enough to be a real problem. The wind does however, have the nasty habit of tossing empty calf hutches around and kicking up serious dust.
The other springtime challenge is nothing new to anyone who’s ever raised calves- pneumonia. After all, it’s no big surprise that 30-40 degree temperature variance every 24 hours can wreak havoc on the immune system of a month-old calf.
I was fortunate to land on a dairy that has a great Pfizer Animal Health drug rep who was able to hook us up with a vaccine that we spray up the calves’ nose before they come over to the calf ranch, followed by a booster dose at 5 weeks old. This stuff is awesome! No needles = happier calves; reduced incidence of pneumonia = happier calf manager!
In a perfect world the vaccine would work 100% of the time on 100% of my calves, but… perfection is in short supply, so I feed a supplemental grain pellet containing a low dose of antibiotic that is mixed into the regular calf grain. The antibiotics bolster the calves, providing extra protection during the cold-wet-wild temperature times of the year. Again, in the imperfect world, some calves are slow to start eating grain and therefore don’t get the preventative dose, so we inevitably have a few calves each week that will show signs of pneumonia.
As part of my typical day, I walk through each row of calf hutches, quickly monitoring the behavior of each calf, their bedding and their grain and water consumption. The benefit of the daily check means I catch sick calves before disease or injury is able to get out of hand. In the case of pneumonia, I look for a depressed calf with rapid breathing and/or a temperature of 102.5 degrees or higher. (100.5-101.5 is normal for those of you who might not have been on a dairy quiz bowl team in your youth J) As I identify these calves, I treat them with a one dose antibiotic of which I have become a huge fan. This stuff really works; it’s specifically designed to aggressively treat pneumonia in calves, so one dose given early into pneumonia onset has an extremely high efficacy rate- which means my calves feel better faster and continue eating and growing as usual. Even more importantly, it means I seldom have a calf that doesn’t recover fully and must be culled from the herd.
The cow lover in me very much appreciates that particular aspect, as selling or euthanizing calves that can’t get better, or just never fully recover, is by far the worst part of my job. Like most dairy farmers I know, I watch over all 600 of my current charges (in hutches) with attention that borders on obsession. I’ll do anything within reason to keep my calves healthy- and not just because calves that have to leave the herd represent an economic loss to the dairy farm. It’s actually because I hate to see a calf that starts out perfect at birth, suffer and be wasted due to something we didn’t do well enough. As such, most of my time is spent focusing on preventative measures, such as the vaccine and antibiotic feed additive, as well as optimizing calf nutrition and ensuring the cleanliness of everything the calf comes into contact with. It’s not the easiest way to raise calves, but doing things the right way doesn’t always mean doing them the easy way. If they could, I’m sure my calves would agree. I take their good health and rapid growth to be a resounding “we approve”.
So the desert spring can bring on the wind- I picked up a new windbreaker and I’m learning how to place calf hutches so they won’t blow away. The threat of pneumonia I could do without, but at least I’ve prepared the calves and ready to respond when prevention isn’t quite enough!
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Factory Farm? (part 2)
Good Morning all!
It's taken me a little longer than expected to get my thoughts together on the second part of the factory farm topic I started last week... but here it is.
It's taken me a little longer than expected to get my thoughts together on the second part of the factory farm topic I started last week... but here it is.
First, I have a disclaimer: I don't condone animal abuse in any form, least of all to dairy cows. It is not my intent to sugar coat how we manage cows, and please do not take my arguments as defense of mistreatment of animals. If you need reason to support that claim, review my first couple posts to learn how my involvement in the dairy industry began. (SparkNotes version: 7 year old kid visits a farm and gets irrevocably hooked on big brown cows. 11 years of 4-H, a degree in dairy science, a small farm and several states later, I still own and show cows and now generate my livelihood from the dairy industry.) And I still <3 cows.
So... to the topic of the “ag-gag” bill passed in Iowa and up for referendum in several other states: I have very mixed emotions.
On one hand, as manager of the calf raising part of the large dairy here, I recognize that I can’t see what my employees are doing at all times. I train them to care for and work with the calves, I monitor how they perform, communicate when I see room for improvement, and retrain as needed- I have faith that my employees are handling calves as I (cow lover) would. However, I’m not watching them 24/7, and it would be beyond upsetting to find out my trusted employees were mistreating calves (I have faith this isn’t the case) via a youtube video.
Further, it’s no secret that undercover animal rights vegan activists will bate employees into poor behavior and gather months of footage to have enough for a few minutes of incriminating video. It doesn’t excuse mistreatment, but recognize that what you’re watching has been carefully crafted to elicit an emotional response that will lead you to send them money and cut meat and milk from your diet.
With that in mind, I think it’s fair for animal farmers to seek protection from malicious activists with a vegan agenda and the intent of destroying our ability to earn a living feeding a hungry world population.
On the other hand, we are living in a society that demands transparency. I feel confident inviting strangers to my farm at home, and my employers regularly host farm tours for neighbors, politicians and local school groups. Its remarkable how many people have left after visiting this “factory farm” (please read part 1) feeling really good about how the animals are handled and where their milk comes from! So slamming the door shut on undercover footage sends out the message we might have something to hide. The dairy industry has a responsibility to regulate itself, and we do- look up the FARM program sometime (Farmers Assuring Responsible Management).
So, should we allow vegan activists access to our farms, knowing they are there solely to target us as cruel and unnecessary regardless of how well run the farm? C'mon people, we’re not dealing with a rogue vegan here- HSUS, Farm Sanctuary and the like are smart, organized businesses with deep pockets and a lot of research on what images and words will best get under your skin.
I can guess what you’re thinking… cruelty is cruelty and the videos find it.
This point is my final piece to this issue and the one I find most troubling.Since less than 1% of the population works on a farm, most people have no basis for understanding what goes on at one (same could be said for my knowledge of a restaurant or bank). Note, owning pets doesn’t count- cats and dogs are friends, not food. Back when more Americans had a personal connection to farms raising animals, farms were much smaller and more numerous. In the past 50 years or so, milk markets have been volitile, rural people have moved to cities and dairy farmers have learned a lot about how to better care for our cows- its simplifying things, but essentially a few big, enclosed barns went up, a lot of little red barns came down. A lot has changed that makes dairy farming look different than it used to be. This opens the door to interpretation of our new dairy farming methods- by hidden camera wearing activists who don’t think we have the right to raise animals to feed people.
For example, artificial insemination (AI), is the primary practice used to get cows pregnant in the US and Europe. It keeps our employees and cows safer than having several full grown bulls running around (think roughly the weight of a Prius and as unpredictable as having a 16 year old driving said Prius). It also allows us to pass only the best genetic traits along to each generation, and reduce genetic disorders. AI technology has been around since the 1970’s and technicians (yes, it’s actually a full time job for a lot of people) undergo specialized training and refresher courses to learn how to carefully get cows pregnant using AI. I (cow lover) see this as a good thing, and yet, what is targeted on the latest animal rights vegan activist undercover video… AI (of course?!?). And I’ll bet a lot of people watching the vegan agenda video thought, wow, poor cows. Would they would still think so after hearing why we use AI? I guess I don’t know. But I do know it’s a practice that I use on my own cows (yes, I took a class to learn how, and yes we wear long gloves) and they don’t seem to have held it against me over the last 10 years, nor are they any less healthy than if I turned them out to rendezvous with a bull.
Does this mean every aspect of good cattle management could be made to look cruel? It sure is easier for an animal rights vegan activist to tell you it’s bad and wrong when you don’t know about why I might use it for my cows…. which means dairy farmers have a lot of work to do and you really should find a farm to go visit.
here is a link to more than you ever wanted to know about artificial insemination for cattle
and here is a link to information on other things we do to take care of our cows
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Factory Farm? (pt. 1)
Greetings on a beautiful day from Utah!
I hope the weather wherever you are is as nice as our early spring has been here- the calves and I are certainly enjoying the 60 degrees and sunshine dominating our weather pattern as of late! I even find as the nasty winter weather recedes, so too does the list of things to complain about; it's just harder to be in a bad mood when the sun is out! In spite of the sunshine-induced happiness, my good mood was dulled reading over the results to an impromptu "factory farm" search on Twitter this afternoon.
The negative banter from vegans and vegetarians condemning farms raising animals who are bound for the food supply was no big surprise, but the numerous "Gag order, why states are banning factory farm wistleblowers" did catch my attention. Several of the tweets linked to the articles below. I'll discuss them more in my next post, but take a look if you like.
http://www.good.is/post/gag-order-why-states-are-banning-factory-farm-whistleblowers/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/iowa-becomes-first-state-where-its-a-crime-to-lie-to-get-on-farm-to-record-animal-abuse/2012/03/02/gIQAv6wbnR_story.html
Same story, two different perspectives; both discussing the bill recently passed in Iowa that makes taking video and sound bites from a farm without the owner's permission, a punishable offence. Similar bills are up for consideration in other states including New York, Utah, Illinois, Minnesota and Indiana, and stem from the undercover videos released over the past couple years depicting animal abuse and neglect on "factory farms". I have numerous issues with these videos, which again, will come up next post. But clearly, I don't support animal abuse. I do want to make a point about the assault on large farms.
Just the term "factory farm" has been molded and twisted to imply negativity. I'm as much of an agriculture advocate as you'll find, and it sure isn't a warm and fuzzy term to me- funny because it wouldn't be a stretch for someone to say I work for one.
That's right, the dairy farm where I work would be the type targeted by those attacking "factory farms", predominantly because this dairy is large- milking over 2,500 cows, and housing more than 5,000 if you count the dry cows and calves.
But here's the thing... I'm EXTREMELY proud to be associated with this farm.
The dairy is family owned, just like 98% of all dairy farms in the US; and like many, it has undergone multiple transitions, changing it's shape and size to accommodate generational changes, advances in technology and evolving market trends. This dairy farm produces approximately 200,000 pounds (that's 23,250 gallons!) of super quality, nutritionally robust milk each day. This dairy farm supports more than 30 families from it's payroll, and pumps serious cash into businesses in the towns nearby. No doubt about it, it's a big dairy farm.
Our cows are kept in large open corrals- a novelty to this Northeasterner, where red barns and freestalls dominate the dairy scene- so you don't have to look hard to find cows being, well, cows. They walk to the milking parlor, they come back and eat, they interact with their herd mates, they drink, they lay down, they get up and eat again... all very normal and cow-like. They're also healthy, and not by accident; any dairymen worth their salt will tell you prevention is the name of the game, and these guys (like thousands from coast to coast) have serious focus on animal well being, and are constantly finding new ways to master the game.
So yeah, I guess size dictates that we will be called a factory farm... we care for a lot of cows which make a lot of milk that goes on to nourish a lot of people. But I hope the few notes above help you realize that being big isn't bad, nor does it make us better than my friends back East milking 60 cows in a totally different style. It's what has worked for this family and others like it to ensure this lifestyle can be passed to the next generation, and milk continues to be available to all us dairy-lovers out there. If that's factory farming... so be it. I love cows, and I'm proud to be raising calves, working for this large dairy.
In the next couple days I'll put together some thoughts on the actual bill that spurred all this talk of factory farms, but it's getting late and as always, the calves like their bottles of milk promptly by 6am.
I hope the weather wherever you are is as nice as our early spring has been here- the calves and I are certainly enjoying the 60 degrees and sunshine dominating our weather pattern as of late! I even find as the nasty winter weather recedes, so too does the list of things to complain about; it's just harder to be in a bad mood when the sun is out! In spite of the sunshine-induced happiness, my good mood was dulled reading over the results to an impromptu "factory farm" search on Twitter this afternoon.
The negative banter from vegans and vegetarians condemning farms raising animals who are bound for the food supply was no big surprise, but the numerous "Gag order, why states are banning factory farm wistleblowers" did catch my attention. Several of the tweets linked to the articles below. I'll discuss them more in my next post, but take a look if you like.
http://www.good.is/post/gag-order-why-states-are-banning-factory-farm-whistleblowers/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/iowa-becomes-first-state-where-its-a-crime-to-lie-to-get-on-farm-to-record-animal-abuse/2012/03/02/gIQAv6wbnR_story.html
Same story, two different perspectives; both discussing the bill recently passed in Iowa that makes taking video and sound bites from a farm without the owner's permission, a punishable offence. Similar bills are up for consideration in other states including New York, Utah, Illinois, Minnesota and Indiana, and stem from the undercover videos released over the past couple years depicting animal abuse and neglect on "factory farms". I have numerous issues with these videos, which again, will come up next post. But clearly, I don't support animal abuse. I do want to make a point about the assault on large farms.
Just the term "factory farm" has been molded and twisted to imply negativity. I'm as much of an agriculture advocate as you'll find, and it sure isn't a warm and fuzzy term to me- funny because it wouldn't be a stretch for someone to say I work for one.
That's right, the dairy farm where I work would be the type targeted by those attacking "factory farms", predominantly because this dairy is large- milking over 2,500 cows, and housing more than 5,000 if you count the dry cows and calves.
But here's the thing... I'm EXTREMELY proud to be associated with this farm.
The dairy is family owned, just like 98% of all dairy farms in the US; and like many, it has undergone multiple transitions, changing it's shape and size to accommodate generational changes, advances in technology and evolving market trends. This dairy farm produces approximately 200,000 pounds (that's 23,250 gallons!) of super quality, nutritionally robust milk each day. This dairy farm supports more than 30 families from it's payroll, and pumps serious cash into businesses in the towns nearby. No doubt about it, it's a big dairy farm.
Our cows are kept in large open corrals- a novelty to this Northeasterner, where red barns and freestalls dominate the dairy scene- so you don't have to look hard to find cows being, well, cows. They walk to the milking parlor, they come back and eat, they interact with their herd mates, they drink, they lay down, they get up and eat again... all very normal and cow-like. They're also healthy, and not by accident; any dairymen worth their salt will tell you prevention is the name of the game, and these guys (like thousands from coast to coast) have serious focus on animal well being, and are constantly finding new ways to master the game.
So yeah, I guess size dictates that we will be called a factory farm... we care for a lot of cows which make a lot of milk that goes on to nourish a lot of people. But I hope the few notes above help you realize that being big isn't bad, nor does it make us better than my friends back East milking 60 cows in a totally different style. It's what has worked for this family and others like it to ensure this lifestyle can be passed to the next generation, and milk continues to be available to all us dairy-lovers out there. If that's factory farming... so be it. I love cows, and I'm proud to be raising calves, working for this large dairy.
In the next couple days I'll put together some thoughts on the actual bill that spurred all this talk of factory farms, but it's getting late and as always, the calves like their bottles of milk promptly by 6am.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Motivated Back Into Action
Greetings from Utah! I just returned from the Young Dairy Leaders Institue- a dairy industry initiate designed to teach young dairy farmers and industry participants how to share our story about raising the cows that produce the dairy products we all love!
After a LONG hiatus, I'm so excited to share the crazy changes in my life since mid 2011. First you'll notice I'm writing from UTAH! and more interestingly perhaps, that I'm writing from a DAIRY FARM in Utah where I am temporarily managing a calf ranch for some fellow former New Englanders! It's a big change from my risk management position in NY and I'm loving it!
For my Northeast friends not familiar with western-style dairy farming, it's still all about raising and caring for cows to make milk, but think less little red barns and more open corrals- with the Rocky Mountains as a backdrop. Very cool.
My responsibilities here are focused on caring for the future of the dairy farm; the calves!
Here are a few fun facts:
We have, on average, about 600 calves in calf hutches any given day
We bring over 8-12 newborn calves from the dairy each day
We are raising both the heifers and bulls born at the dairy
About 2/3 of our calves are Holsteins, the rest are a cross of Jersey, Holstein and Swedish Red
Look for more info to follow as I show you how we raise and care for the calves, and a little more about my life here in Utah.
After a LONG hiatus, I'm so excited to share the crazy changes in my life since mid 2011. First you'll notice I'm writing from UTAH! and more interestingly perhaps, that I'm writing from a DAIRY FARM in Utah where I am temporarily managing a calf ranch for some fellow former New Englanders! It's a big change from my risk management position in NY and I'm loving it!
For my Northeast friends not familiar with western-style dairy farming, it's still all about raising and caring for cows to make milk, but think less little red barns and more open corrals- with the Rocky Mountains as a backdrop. Very cool.
My responsibilities here are focused on caring for the future of the dairy farm; the calves!
Here are a few fun facts:
We have, on average, about 600 calves in calf hutches any given day
We bring over 8-12 newborn calves from the dairy each day
We are raising both the heifers and bulls born at the dairy
About 2/3 of our calves are Holsteins, the rest are a cross of Jersey, Holstein and Swedish Red
Look for more info to follow as I show you how we raise and care for the calves, and a little more about my life here in Utah.
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