Fencing

The guys spent some time these past few weeks to fence off a pasture with strong, three-strand, high tensile fence.  We're going to put heifers in our pasture on another road, so we wanted to make sure the fences were great.

Heifers are young, they're new to pasture, and they have to figure out the fences.  A single-strand doesn't work quite as well because they can blow right through it without even really noticing it.  They also graze and sort of nose right under them, sometimes, if there's something interesting to eat on the other side.  But with three-strand, it's more of a real boundary.

They're also flexible, so that when deer (or cattle) run through them, they stretch, but don't break.

So the five of us went out to check the fence and make sure it was ready for the heifers, but it was also just an excuse to go for a walk in the woods.

Pulling branches away from the fence:

Making sure it's low enough... look how brown it is!  There were a few spots of green, but not many.

And wrestling, which happens pretty much all the time now.  This wasn't checking the fences at all, but at least all of us are entertained by a 4-year-old body slam.

I told my mom we'd done this, and she said she was so excited to have cattle on her road again.  She said, "I've missed them!  I can't wait until they're out there!"

Some people want an ocean view, some people want cattle.  Luckily, we're living in the right place.

****

Peter Schwarz (Midland Water Superintendent), J.J. Metz (CPS crop consultant), Chad Krumnauer (DNR)

I went to career day at Kris' old high school (Valley Lutheran in Saginaw).  Kris' cousin Jess teaches there and asked me to represent dairy farming.  It was so much fun!  It was such a well-organized event.  They had representatives from every industry you can think of - 70 people in all - and students had the chance to attend various panel sessions.

I asked the students why they chose our session, and of course some of the students were from farms, and plan on having their own farm.  (We're replacing ourselves, it seems.)  Of course I encouraged those who want to start from scratch, too.  The majority of the people who said they wanted to own farms were girls, which pleasantly surprised me.  Probably less wrestling.


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