The Circle of Life

There is something about the cycle of life that gives a literal heart beat to a farm, no matter the size. And although there are heartaches when babies suffer complications and die, there is nothing like the joy when all goes well.

It’s more than just the thrill of watching a newly delivered baby struggle to its wobbly legs in search of the first meal and nuzzling by its mother. It is the knowledge of a process that has gone well. It is the study of pedigrees and animal confirmation and data and genetics. It is making the most informed decisions possible and then hoping for the best. Then waiting begins. And the waiting, and waiting a little more.

For sheep the wait is 145 days, a few days shorter for goats and only 113 days for hogs. Those in the cattle business wait nine months to see the result of their decisions.

And making those mating decisions are important. Done right, and when all the genetic stars align, an awesome animal can be the result. One with thickness, muscle, eye appeal that grows fast and in the case of the dairy industry, results in a lot of milk.

We focus a segment of our farm on raising animals for our kids to show as their 4-H projects. We have a small group of sows, meat goats and as of last year, sheep. We have cattle as well, but the kids have decided that they prefer to show the smaller animals.

Raising a top show animal is difficult. There is a lot that goes into making a champion – and most of it starts at the very beginning when the baby is born. We have been lucky to have raised some good show animals, including a reserve grand champion meat goat at the Kansas State Fair.

While many of the animals that the kids show are market animals, those destined to be harvested for their meat, there are a few occasions that they take breeding animals or the females. It is special when an animal has finished its career in the showring and comes home to the farm to be a part of the cycle of life.

Such is the case with Dee Dee. This would be one of my son Kyle’s first ewes. She was purchased in an auction in the spring of 2009. He picked her out from all the lambs that were for sale that particular day. He nodded at the auctioneer to register his bid, and even went $25 past the limit I had established with him when discussing the possible purchase of the ewe. In every sense of the word, this ewe was his.

And even though she didn’t win any grand awards, nor was she his favorite to use in the showmanship competition – where the youth are evaluated on their skills presenting the animal to the judge – this ewe was special.

After the State Fair, the couple who had raised Dee Dee offered to take her back and get her bred to one of their bucks – thus starting the whole cycle of life. Kyle jumped at the opportunity. So after a period of a couple of months, the call came that the ewe was pregnant and was ready to come back home. Then the waiting began. And the watching. The calendar date had been marked, so we might be prepared for the new arrival.

About a week before the anticipated due date the ewes were moved up into the barn, as bad weather had been forecast and no changes were to be taken for the chance for the baby lamb to be born in the middle of the night or during a bit of cold weather that could have been fatal.

We watched as her belly grew poochy and round and her little utter filled up, providing sure signs that a baby was soon to be arriving. Or babies if we were lucky.

And today was the day. Middle of the afternoon Dee Dee went into labor and delivered a bouncing baby, cute and cuddly little ram lamb. And Kyle couldn’t be more excited. It will only take time to determine if he’ll be the choice of one of the kids to show during the year as their 4-H project.

My Pride and Joy

My Pride and Joy

For whatever reason, it would seem that I’ve experienced a rather hectic, event-filled, deadline laden, issue driven week. And all that equates to quite a lot of stress! When I FINALLY finished my page layouts I decided that I wanted a treat. As luck would have it, it was HAPPY HOUR! Not at my local Sonic which I am no longer patronizing because of their alignment with the H$U$ but rather the little Caribou Coffee stand at the new grocery store. So off I went in search of my cheap dark Mocha. The perfect ending to a well, let’s just say crazy day.

So, coffee in hand, radio station tuned to the channel which has a great drive-time play list and I was off for my commute back to the farm.

Cruising along, rather literally, I happened to study the “java jacket” that was on my cup. The script printed on that little brown cardboard hot-pad read “you are holding in your hand our pride and joy.”

And that got me to thinking that it’s really too bad that we don’t have a way to communicate so succinctly with our consuming public.

That little sentence told the coffee buyer exactly how the company feels about their product. It’s their everything.

Now, let’s think about that fact for a minute. As producers of food and fiber, aren’t our animals and our crops the item we take a great deal of pride in? Sure, they may also be our means to an end and the way that we generate revenue on our operations, but at the end of the day, they are a great deal of pride and family heritage.

I think that Caribou might be onto something and it is something that those in the business of raising beef, pork, lamb, chevon or even poultry ought to sit up and take notice of.

Sure the coffee shop had it easy – package the message of their pride on every cup it hands across the counter to the final consumer. For those marketing meat directly from the farm can also give a personal touch by labeling their packages and connecting with that consumer. But what about the bulk of ranchers, pork, goat and lamb producers? How do we communicate that sense of pride and joy that our livestock represent?

It’s all about the image, really. If you think about it, the way our farms and ranchers look to those that pass by is one way to convey that message. If you have signs on your farm, proclaiming your name and the year established gives those driving by a sense of what happens there. It’s more than about advertising the sale of bulls or females that might be offered, but a chance to convey the importance of the work done there – providing a safe, tasty and nutritious products to our neighbors whether they live next door or in our communities, across the country or around the globe.

Raise them up in the way they should go...

“We make a good team, Mom.”

That is a quote from my nearly seven-year-old daughter last week.

While you might think that she might have made that statement during a heated Wii bowling tournament against her brothers, or just successfully completed some other similarly competitive event — that couldn’t be further from it. In fact, she made the pronouncement when we were both muddy and a little wet as we worked together to do the chores last week while the three other family members were having a pretty good time attending the National Western Stock Show.

It’s one of those moments that makes a parent’s heart swell with pride, knowing that the example we try to set daily for our children and the lessons that we try to instill in them really are taking root.

No one said that chores are always fun, and usually far from it, but in agriculture, no matter the “fun factor” they must be done. Our animals — thus our livelihood — depend upon it.

So our routine went something like this. Each evening while my farmer hubby was away, Kara and I donned the appropriate gear (read hip-waders to deal with the abundance of mud) and set out to care for the menagerie of livestock that get to call our place home.

Now, I’ve mentioned in this space before the importance of women, in particular, knowing how things work on the farm — and how sometimes we of the female persuasion would do things differently if we were to do them every day. And I hold firm to that belief, but because I was only going to do “his” share of the work for three days, I could deal with the setup.

So each afternoon as we made the rounds, checking on the livestock, Kara’s job was to make sure all the water troughs were filled and that there weren’t any animals caught in the fence. For those of you who don’t have goats, the latter is probably foreign to you. For those who raise goats, you’re probably smirking just a little knowing full well that these critters do like to stick their heads through fences and find themselves entrapped — the old “grass is always greener” syndrome — if you will.

While she’s doing that, I’m putting out grain and taking care of the sows in the crates that have yet to pig. Before heading out west, James had made sure that there were enough hay bales in place that I wouldn’t have to deal with the cattle and tractor, and for that I was thankful . . . but mind you, I could have, if needed be. Just glad I didn’t because I might have buried the tractor up to the axles in the mud.

On the second night, most of the water tanks were still over half-full and I told my little helper that they could wait until the next night and we’d refill them again then.

It was at that moment that she replied that the goats needed us to take care of them so that they could grow big and that she was going to do her job. I could have burst open with pride at that moment. She understood perfectly at seven what some 40-year-olds who have never stepped foot on a farm fail to grasp.

If only it was that easy a message to convey.

Just something to think about. I know that there will be a generation who will return to the farm at some point just as there will be those kids that will make their way in the world with other pursuits. But, regardless of the path taken, these individuals with farm roots are and will be some of the best advocates for agriculture that we have to offer. We just need to give them the opportunity.

P.S.: Kara, you’re right. We DO make a pretty good team.

Can you hear me now?

Can you hear me now? Do you know about ear notches? What about giving farm animals shots? In the last couple of weeks at the house there has been lots of thought given to these two subjects in preparation for County Club Day in Hillsboro that was held on Sat. Feb. 16.

Karl talked about the ear notching system and how to read those little show pigs' identification numbers, which by the way, is no easy feat! He got a blue from the judge.

Kyle explained the different types of shots and how they are given! He read his talk, as opposed to delivering it, and the judge gave him a red for the effort.

It was a good experience for both - and the judge told them many of the items that had been discussed at home....proving that mom does know a few things after all!!!

Time to get smart

Whether you are an experienced goat raiser or a youth just starting out learning about raising meat goats, there is no such thing as too much knowledge! In Kansas there are a number of workshops coming up in the next two months. A junior sheep/meat goat event is being planned on the Kansas State campus on Sat. March 15. There will be lots of good information geared to 4-H youth projects. For registration form go here.

Kidding Season Has Begun

It's February, it's cold, and the weather is less than nice so t must be kidding season! That's the case at the Riffel Farm and the kids are coming fast and furious! We've had several does drop babies in the past week and they look like that they have lots of potential for the fall shows!