Behind the scene

No, we didn't win a million dollars from Publishers Clearinghouse – although that's what Glen wanted to tell the neighbors. The film crew in our yard wasn't here to document our newfound richness; actually it was just the opposite – they wanted to hear about our need for credit and how the Farm Service Agency's Farm Loan Program has helped us start our career in dairy farming.

We had no idea how involved the filming would be. Like clowns coming out of a circus car, cameras and lights and sound equipment rolled out of the film crew's van. They even came prepared with a voltage meter to make sure their power source was adequate; we learned that the outlet in our garage needs a checkup the next time our electrician is out.

They shot footage of us as a family out with the cows and moseying around the yard and then filmed individual interviews. The filming took about three hours. Had the film crew been around all day, they could have dubbed the film "Grand Central Station".

Our "movie day", as Dan called it, started with a fresh cow on the far side of the pasture. The neighbor we rent the pasture from was out for his morning walk to check his crops when I went out the get the calf, so I stopped to gab with him a while. The neighbor we borrowed the weed mower from came over to bring it home. Our nutritionist stopped in to discuss a recent ration adjustment, our route guy was here to change inflations, and our field rep stopped in to see how we were doing. Derek, our employee, came early to help with the last minute yard preparations. Our babysitter and Glen's mom were here to help with Dan and Monika. Glen announced the arrival of Mara's heifer calf just as we were finishing the filming. After the film crew packed up and left, our DHIA tester arrived for our monthly test. While Glen milked, Derek and I moved and cleaned hutches for the two new heifer calves.

I think I was asleep that night before my head hit the pillow. It was neat to be part of a film project, but I'm glad events like this aren't everyday affairs.

Buzz cuts

It always amazes me how fast the buzz-cut alfalfa fields can turn from that brownish-yellow color to green almost over night – even without any rain. I guess that's one of the benefits of growing alfalfa. There was very little alfalfa planted in the part of the state where I grew up; I didn't see my first real alfalfa field until I was in high school. The grass hay we grew and harvested was much more susceptible to drought conditions. A first crop was almost always guaranteed, but all bets were off when it came to a second crop. My family and friends from up north ask for clarification when I mention that we're finished with our second crop; most of them are still working on their first crop. Dad said there won't be a second crop this year unless they get some rain.

The other crop that seems to be fueled by sunlight alone around here is our son's head of hair. I swear I just cut it a couple weeks ago. I think his hair is on the same schedule as our alfalfa – every 28 days. I finally decided last weekend it needed to be buzzed after I couldn't get the sand, silage and hay out his hair during his bath. So, the next night the clippers worked their magic and turned his shag into a buzz. I'm getting used to his new look. He still rubs his head and says, "Tickle my hair." (He thinks the clippers tickle.)

Before the buzz

After the buzz

In another 28 days, son.

Switcheroo

My how time flies when the sun shines! It seems like the days just disappear: one minute we're finishing breakfast and then, before we know it, it's time to start evening chores. It always seems to feel this way when there's hay laying.

Last week was a like a game of fruit-basket upset. We switched the cows' schedule in an attempt to keep them cooler. Usually they go out to pasture during the day and stay in at night. After we installed two 48-inch barn fans on Tuesday, we kept the cows in during the day and turned them out at night. That meant we had to rearrange mixing, feeding, and barn cleaning schedules as well. We're back to our regular schedule right now, but it looks like there will be another switcheroo coming next week if the weather man's forecast for 100 degree heat holds true. The cows really struggled with last week's heat wave, hopefully having the fans from the start will help them stay ahead of this coming wave.

We weren't planning for any major investments for this year with milk prices where they are, but some friends of ours offered us their barn fans for a very generous price. Big fans have been on our wish list for the future, so we took them up on their offer. A half-day's work later and standing in the front door of the barn feels like standing in a wind tunnel. I still can't believe how much more comfortable the barn is now. There are only two problems with the fans: first, the cows like to stand in front of the door when they come in rather than going right to their stalls, and second, we move so much air through the milk house that I almost need wind goggles to work in there.

Now, if we could only get that much air to move through our windrows today, we'd be set.

BioPRYN and twins

We've been using BioPRYN to diagnose pregnancies for quite a while now. We like the convenience and the ability to preg check cows as soon as they reach 35 days post-breeding. We love our vet, but it just isn't feasible for us to have herd health visits every two weeks. Before we switched to BioPRYN, we did pregnancy exams by ultrasound once a month. That meant some cows were over 60 days post-breeding before we found out if they'd settled or not. With BioPRYN, we know if a cow is open or pregnant before she hits 42 days post-breeding; if she's open we can then watch for her 42-day heat. We feel this has played a role in helping us reach and exceed our pregnancy rate goal of 20%; we're now running a 24% pregnancy rate.

We still have our vet out to ultrasound cows on occasion, usually if the cow has been a problem breeder in the past and we want double confirmation or if the cow experienced a fever as part of an illness and we think her fetus may have been affected. Now, we're thinking of adding another reason – twins.

Believe it or not, these guys are twins. They were our very first set.

One of our cows, Dinky, has a history of twinning. When she was confirmed pregnant by BioPRYN this lactation, the level of Pregnancy-Specific Protein B came came back quite a bit higher than the other cows in that sample group. One month later she was in heat again so we started to wonder if maybe she had been pregnant with twins – a common reason for pregnancy loss.

Last week Dinky was confirmed pregnant again; the level of PSPB was about double this time as well. We're planning to have Doc check her for twins, but in the meantime we have some questions. Has anyone else found a correlation between high PSPB numbers and twin pregnancies? Does anyone else follow-up after a BioPRYN test with an ultrasound exam? If so, what have you learned?

There's no place like home

If there's one thing that can be said about the dairy industry, it's that our dairy farms come in more flavors than the products made from our milk. Every farm is a reflection of the people who live and work there and there are no two dairies that do things exactly the same.

Monika and I spent Tuesday and Wednesday of this week touring farms in southwestern Minnesota and eastern South Dakota while covering the Minnesota Milk Producers Association Summer Bus Tour. We saw quite a variety of the newest technologies being adopted by dairy farmers – from robotic milkers to cross-ventilated free stall barns.

Visiting other dairy farms is a great way to gather ideas for making changes and improvements on our own farms. It's also a great way to connect with other dairy farmers. Listening to a farmer talk about his or her farm is like listening to an artist describe his masterpiece. Their pride cannot be mistaken.

What I realized when I returned home, though, is that even though our farm may not be state-of-the-art, and we probably won't be welcoming bus loads of curious dairy farmers any time soon, what is important is that it's our farm. An extension of who we are and what we value. Our own magnum opus. There really is no place like home.