#CowAppreciationDay 2015

Social media is awesome! Every time I log on I learn something new. This morning, #CowAppreciationDay posts filled my news feed. Who knew cows had their own special day?! 

After reading post after post, I thought of Angel. Angel was the big momma cow and boss of the herd at the farm where my 4-H calves were kept back in high school. She was big and gentle. Always the first to greet me when I came to do chores, and first in line for head scratches. We all knew she was a little spoiled, but you could hardly get mad at her when she learned how to lick open her gate. Angel was almost all white and was a great mom to my show calves Heaven and White Cloud. I looked and looked, but I don't have a picture of her to share.

This is Angel's daughter, Heaven. She was the first calf I showed at the fair. Working with her taught me a lot about responsibility and work ethic. Here's a picture from high school. I'm blow drying her after a bath. It didn't matter if I was hot or tired, she needed fed, walked, and washed everyday.

I'm so disappointed that's one of the few pictures I have of the cows I worked with. But it turns out there are lots of awesome Women in Agriculture in one of my Facebook groups who are willing to share their pictures. I hope you enjoy their stories as much as I did!

This is Crystal Wiese's momma cow, Star. She's a Jersey (a dairy breed) and about five years old. Last fall, Star had a calf that Crystal's son showed at the fair this summer. 

These adorable pictures come from Katee Pevler. Their family love of cattle has been passed through more than four generations and looks good for the future with these handsome little cowboys!

Meet Squirt! This dairy cow is Jennifer Donald Neumann's oldest cow. She's 18 and still going strong. The next picture, with the calf, is Squirt's grandson who was born this year.

These pretty ladies are Gretchen Allen's newest Dexter heifers. Heifers are young females that have never given birth.

Say hello to Annabelle who lives on A Dairyman's Wife's farm. Here's a little story about her:

"Tonight was a bittersweet night on the farm for me. My favorite heifer on the farm, which is really my favorite animal on the farm, she was 'kicked' out with the cows tonight. This means  when heifers get to breeding age, and a good size they are taken out of the big heifer pen and put out in the barnyard with the cows and our two bulls to be bred. Annabelle is a little over a year and a half old, and my first love on the farm! Sorry Farmer! ;)"

For more from A Dairyman's Wife, check out her blog.

I'm so thankful I stumbled across #CowAppreciationDay! These little stories really brightened my busy day. I'd love to hear what things you're learning on social media! Thanks for reading!

Wordless Wednesday: Fall on the Farm

Last week I discovered my friend, Kaci Keitzer's beautiful fall photography and just had to share it for this week's Wordless Wednesday. She shot these gorgeous scenes back home a couple weekends ago. Kaci grew up on a family farm in Mediapolis, Iowa just about a half hour from my hometown of Columbus Junction. We are both studying Agricultural Business at Iowa State University and serve as Peer Mentors together. I'm sure you will enjoy her perspective on soybeans, John Deere equipment, and sheep.

I'm so thankful Kaci let me share her talent with all of you. Take some time to enjoy the beautiful autumn weather and amazing scenery this harvest season! Thanks for reading!

Northwest Iowa Livestock Tour: Bar-K Cattle

Bar-K Cattle was the second stop on the Iowa Corn Northwest Iowa Livestock Tour. If you missed the details of our visit to Center Fresh, be sure to check that out here. 

The Iowa Corn AAE Committee enjoyed learning from Chad and Brent of Bar-K Cattle.

When our group first arrived, Chad and Brent gave us an overview of the operation. The location we visited holds 10,000 plus head of cattle. We discussed where their cattle come from, the careful care each animal gets, and their rations of corn and other agricultural products. I learned the heifers and steers are bed on corn stalks. What a great way to recycle!

After we looked at the loading facility and sheltered area where the cattle live, the guys showed us their manure handling practices. Many farmers use manure rather than chemical fertilizer for various reasons. In this particular part of Iowa, with all of the livestock, manure is easily sourced. This isn't necessarily great news for Bar-K because it means the market is saturated, and they have a lot of waste to get rid of. They must find some way to differentiate their product. 

Bar-K uses an innovative system to compost their manure. It's piled and turned regularly to ensure the highest quality. Their agronomist samples and analyzes it often to help his farmer customers know exactly what they are getting in their fertilizer.

It was thought provoking to see so many people who raise our food in one place learning about each other's production practices. Not that I ever doubted their intentions, but it definitely makes me feel good to know these farmers care enough about the people who consume what they harvest to take a day away from their operation to learn how to do their job better.

Northwest Iowa Livestock Tour: Center Fresh Group

As one of my last adventures with Iowa Corn this summer, I traveled with the Animal Ag and Environment Committee to Northwest Iowa to tour the livestock industry. In that part of the state, livestock is a huge customer for our corn farmers. Monday night, we enjoyed dinner and conversation with influential members of the beef and pork industry. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to their experiences and insight while making the connection with economics and business classes I've been taking at Iowa State.

Our group was made up of livestock and corn farmers from across the state, but none had experience raising chickens commercially, so it was a learning experience for everyone.

Tuesday morning we got up early and started the day off at Center Fresh Group in Sioux Center, Iowa. Center Fresh is a shell egg and egg-product producer with over 30 million layers in total. Jim Dean severs as the CEO and president of the United Egg Producers. The business began with eight family founders that pooled their resources to begin their entrepreneurial journey.  

Upon arrival, we heard a detailed explanation of the egg industry and their operation from Complex Manager Mark VanOort. Later, he gave an excellent tour of the cracking facilities. I took an entire page of notes and was embarrassed I had no idea how huge the egg industry was in Iowa prior to our visit. Somewhere I'd heard that Iowa is #1 in egg production in the United States, but I had no clue that a hen could lay 264 eggs per year or that 1 bird will eat 1 bushel of corn per year.

During his presentation, Mark did a wonderful job of describing the housing facilities for their hens. We weren't able to go inside because they want to keep their chickens safe from any diseases we could track in on our shoes, but their system was explained so well. To me, the outside of the barn look similar to hog confinements, long buildings that stretch the length of two football fields. Giant fans at the end keep fresh air flowing for the animals inside. The birds live in groups in cages and are happy to live in each other's close company. The manager explained, the breed of birds that lay for them are living the life they want. Just like some people prefer the country, while others would rather live downtown New York City, chickens aren't any different. These hens love to be with each other, and actually don't perform as well when they are in more spacious conditions. 

Our tour was so interesting and filled with surprising facts about the egg industry.

Another thing that amazed me about the company was their ability to turn bi-products into useful things, turning cost centers to profit centers while being more environmentally responsible. Substances like manure and shells that would normally be thrown away are now purchased by local farmers to spread on corn and soybean fields. The manure eliminates the need for some chemical fertilizers and is a great way to recycle. Shells from the cracking facility can be applied to control the pH of the soil instead of limestone.

Kurt Hora and Wayne Humphreys examine a product made with egg shells.

Accompanying the AAE Committee to Northwest Iowa was one of the highlights of my summer so far for sure! I'm so thankful for the businesses that took time to share their story with us. Stay tuned to learn more about Bar-K Cattle and Multi-Rose Dairy. Thanks for reading!