Michigan Dairy Cattle News - Fall Issue 2022

Melissa Hart, Editor

cell: 517-398-1957

email: farm.writer@hotmail.com 4520 Holcomb Rd., North Adams, MI 49262

Erin Robinstine, Ad & Layout Artist cell: 517-398-7722 email: erin.robinstine@gmail.com 3854 S. KY Route 321, Hagerhill, KY 41222

Michigan Dairy Cattle News

Published 4 times per year

Michigan Holstein Association

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Brent Moyer, Caro 989-553-4333

Steve Reed, Owosso 989-277-2078

Tim Baker, Byron Center 616-813-6745

Michigan Holstein Association

Brent Moyer, President 2647 E. Caro Rd., Caro, MI 48723

Steve Reed, Vice President 4795 W. Mason Rd., Owosso, MI 48867

Carrie Delong, Executive Secretary 4241 Jones Rd., North Branch, MI 48461 810-614-4025

Michigan Jersey Cattle Club

Elizabeth Rupprecht, President 989-640-6913

Allison Schafer, Vice President 989-292-9851

Jeff Dawson, 3rd Officer 810-404-0287

Lauren Siver, At-Large 810-844-6159

Holstein Association USA

Phone: 1-800-952-5200

1 Holstein Place, Brattleboro, VT 05302

Michigan and Indiana Representative Max Dunseth

278 S. Sprague, Coldwater, MI 49036

Cell: 269-251-0232

Michigan Upper Peninsula Representative

Mandi Kipp De Pere, WI • 920-530-5023 mramsburg@holstein.com

The Michigan Dairy Cattle News, the Michigan Holstein Association or their staff assume no liability for errors, omissions, content or for the effectiveness of advertising and cannot be held responsible for the timeliness of sale advertising that is scheduled less than thirty days ahead of the press date. Indexes are provided as an additional service. Publisher assumes no liabiltiy for errors or omissions. Subscription rate is $15/year.

on the cover...

Earl Souva of Great Lakes Sire Service in southern Michigan! He

his wife, Melissa have worked hard to build a business that is now

read his story in this issue!

the summer show results and we are excited to be a

the Midwest Holsteins once again! If you want to enter the futurity,

Melissa

table of contents

From the President’s Pen Michigan Holstein Association

Hello All,

I hope that this finds you all well after our Michigan summer is ending and my favorite time of year is upon us, fall! With fall comes the harvest and of course our industry’s fall National shows.

We welcome Carrie Delong as our new Executive Secretary of the Michigan Holstein Association. This will be a learning curve for her so please be patient as she transitions into this new role. I know from taking this task over for the last few months, there is a lot of behind the scenes work that goes into pulling off every event that we do!

This year Michigan Holsten held the Golden Ticket Oppor tunity, I feel this event brought about some much-needed excite ment within our association. We sold all 123 tickets prior to the drawing! We then auctioned off the final two tickets. The winner of the final drawing was Patti O’Dell and she selected the Brown Swiss nomination of Matt, Sarah, and Andi Dillon of Posey Creek. Congratulations to both!

Our summer show utilized the Showman.app for entries this year and from the reports I heard around the barn, people liked this option. From the Show Committee and my end on check-in it simplified things drastically. It will be up to the Show Commit tee, but I hope they continue to use this option for entries in the coming years for the Great Lakes Spring Show and All-Michigan Summer Show.

I would like to say “Thank you” to all those who helped pull

BRENT MOYER

Holstein

off our annual All-Michigan Summer show. Jess Jakubik, Jim Sip iorski, Carrie Delong, & Andrea Mead a special thanks to you for all your help in clerking the show! We had a few hiccups during the show, but your committee members will work diligently to try and correct all mistakes and further continue to try and make our shows run as smoothly as possible. This summer I realized more than ever that it takes everyone to pull off our summer show.

Congratulations to all Michigan breeders of purebred dairy cattle this year! Watching the show reports from surrounding states, I have seen Michigan cattle winning classes at some very competitive shows! That says a lot about Michigan dairy cattle and their breeders!

A few things the Board will be tasked with in the coming months will be our Annual Meeting, we will keep our members informed on this upcoming event.

The board and committees are always looking for new ideas and new faces to help in all areas of the organization, so if you have any interest or ideas, please let us know.

In closing, I wish everyone a bountiful harvest. Safe travels as you travel to any fall shows, whether as a spectator or whether you are showcasing some of Michigan’s best genetics!

Until next time...

Thank you to our

ALL-MICHIGAN HOLSTEIN SHOW CHAMPION SPONSORS:

GRAND CHAMPION

Pinnacle Genetics – Moyer & Robinson

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION

Max & Tina Dunseth

SENIOR CHAMPION

Hart Communications

RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION

BlackView – Brian Hopkins & Amber Black

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION

Esquerita Holsteins

RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION

MOO-Ville Farm & Creamery

JUNIOR CHAMPION

In Memory of Alma Bennett

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION

Kalmbach Feeds

GRAND CHAMPION BRED BY EXHIBITOR

Green-Meadow Farms

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION BRED BY

EXHIBITOR

Parnell

PREMIER EXHIBITOR

Hardy Holsteins

PREMIER BREEDER

Nugentdale/Tumbleweed Farms

JUNIOR SHOW SPONSORS:

GRAND CHAMPION: Byron Green Memorial

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION: OLR Hol steins

SENIOR CHAMPION: Modik Farms

RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION: Tom & Lynn Atherton

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION: Buell Family

RESERVE INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION: Arner

JUNIOR CHAMPION: Classic Homes LTD

RESERVE JUNIOR CHAMPION: Raterink Family Farms

From Your President Michigan Junior Holstein News

Michigan Junior Holstein Association Re port - Fall 2022

The summer of 2022 was full of fun events for Michigan Holstein junior members! Between the Na tional Holstein Convention, our annual meeting and Par ty Barn, All Michigan Dairy Show, Michigan Dairy Youth Show, and all the fun activities during Dairy Days there have been many exciting opportunities.

A group of Michigan juniors traveled to Sioux Falls, South Da kota for the 2022 National Holstein Convention. This year’s theme was “Progress on the Plains” and nine juniors attended enjoying farm tours, convention, participating in contests, and making lots of memories! Max Hughes competed in the Dairy Jeopardy contest and Cash McCauley gave a speech about embryo transfer. We had two dairy bowl teams with the junior team consisting of Abigail Lehman, Rebecca Lehman, and Cash McCauley and a senior team consisting of Adalee Thelen, Anna Moser, Olivia Black, and Abby Redman. We also had two members participate in the scrapbook contest, Abby Redman placed third with her year in review scrap book and Anna Moser placed second in the digital scrapbook con test. Congratulations to everyone!

Finally, this summer we held our annual meeting and Party Barn on July 19th during the week of the Michigan State Show at

In Memoriam

Henry (Hank) Ziel, Jr. age 79, died at home in Port Austin on July 17, 2022. He was born to Henry Ziel Sr. and Beatrice (Al brecht) Ziel on Stoddard Road, Dwight Township on October 16, 1942. He started his farming career at birth. As a young man, Hank was instrumental in the farm evolving into a registered Holstein dairy farm.  He studied agriculture at MSU.

He married Jeanette Finkel on August 3, 1963, who was his life partner as well as his business partner. She preceded him in death on August 14, 2021. Together, they raised four children, Mark, Michelle, Chad and Crystal. All the children participated in farm operations. Zielland Farms remains a family enterprise now into the third generation. A remarkable achievement of their efforts was the breeding and raising of two recognized TPI bulls, Zielland Fast Future and Zielland Zebo whose semen has been marketed around the world.

Hank has been active in his church community as well as the farming community. He held several leadership positions at St. Pe

Dairy Days. We were able to connect with junior members and elect new board members and advisors. The new board is as fol lows: President - Adalee Thelen, Vice President - Anna Moser, Sec retary - Olivia Black, Treasurer - Drew Neyer, At-Large Directors - Ian Black, Brianna Hill, Max Hughes, Ross Kelsey, Abby Redman, and Landon Thelen. Our advisors are Renee McCauley, Lauren Siv er, and Kelly Raterink.

Now that summer is coming to an end, our next event is the annual MJHA Holiday Cheese Sale Fundraiser that raises money for our members to attend the National Holstein Convention and other youth events throughout the year. The sale opens October 1st and ends November 25th. Be sure to follow us on our Facebook page for updates and information regarding the sale.

Congratulations again to the many Michigan juniors that were very suc cessful this summer, and best of luck to all those participating in shows this fall. The Michigan Junior Holstein As sociation looks forward to an exciting year!

Thank you for your time,

Cash McCauley talked about embryo transfer in the public speaking contest at the National Holstein Convention.

Adalee Thelen

President MJHA

ter’s Lutheran Church in Kinde.  He held several positions of lead ership in both the Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA) and the Michigan Animal Breeders Cooperative (MABC). In ad dition, he was the president of the Kinde Farmers CoOp Board of Directors for 24 years.

Hank had other interests outside of farming: his family, friends and all children, board and card games, the Detroit Tigers, Dr. Poll’s television show, bocce ball and golf.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and son, Chad (De cember 3, 2021). He will be mourned by his children, Mark Ziel of Port Austin, Michelle (Steve) Gayari of Pigeon, Crystal Ziel of Al bany, New York, and Suna Ziel (daughter-in-law) of Caro, and his three grandchildren, Hanna Ziel, Shawn Gayari, and Kyle Gayari.  He will also be remembered by his siblings, Dennis Ziel (Sarasota, FL), Dale Ziel (Tenakee Springs, AL), Susan Hardisty (Flint). Any donations in his memory are requested to be given to St. Peter’s Lutheran Church.

Notes From the Field Max & Mandi’s Memo

MAX DUNSETH

Regional Sales Representative - HAUSA 269-251-0232 • mdunseth@holstein.com

The busy fall season is upon us, as children get back into the routine of school, farmers work to harvest their crops, and cooler temperatures are in the air. For many people, fall means football games, visits to the pumpkin patch or apple orchard, and enjoying the beautiful weather. For Registered Holstein breeders, fall also brings plenty of opportunity to celebrate the Registered Holstein cow.

As World Dairy Expo approaches, and NAILE a month later, the 2022 show season will come to an end. We hope many of you have the chance to attend these shows, either as a contestant or a spectator. These events are a great opportunity not only to enjoy watching our beautiful black and white cows parade around the ring, but also to connect with others in the dairy industry.

If you attend World Dairy Expo, be sure to visit the Holstein Association USA booth located in the main concourse in the Coliseum. Holstein Association USA staff looks forward to answering your questions and sharing what’s new at the Association. You’ll also be able to meet the new Holstein Marketplace Sires manager, Tim Ziemba, and chat about the new bulls in the Holstein Marketplace Sires lineup.

Located right next to the Holstein Association USA booth is the AgriTech Analytics (ATA) booth. ATA is the dairy records processing center owned by Holstein Association USA. Part of the U.S. DHIA System, AgriTech Analytics provides data to the dairy producers for management, genetic improvement, and pedigree purposes. ATA’s new General Manager, Tony Allen, is excited for the opportunity to meet more Holstein Association USA members during World Dairy

Expo.

MANDI KIPP

Regional Sales Representative - HAUSA Upper Peninsula of Michigan 920-530-5023 • mkipp@holstein.com

For the past several years, September has also marked the release of a new Holstein America episode. Holstein America is the nation’s leading dairy focused program on National TV, produced by Holstein Association USA. The documentary-style program celebrates the Registered Holstein cow and highlights the work of those who care for her.

This fall’s episode features Registered Holstein breeders from California to Pennsylvania, and throughout the Midwest. The farms and families featured all have unique businesses and enjoy different aspects of working with U.S. Registered Holsteins. This episode also gives you a glimpse into the behind-the-scenes work done at the Holstein Association USA office in Brattleboro, Vermont.

If you missed the Monday, September 26 broadcast of Holstein America on RFD-TV, you can find the show at www.holsteinusa. com or Holstein Association USA’s YouTube channel. We hope you’ll share your favorite segments with family and friends outside the dairy industry as well!

As always, don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you need any assistance. This fall, we hope you all have a safe and plentiful harvest, and the chance to join other Holstein Association USA members in celebrating the Registered Holstein cow and all she provides!

Max & Mandi

Michigan StateFair Recap

Holstein Highlights

Buells Mystic Crush Cambryn, first place winter calf, junior champion; Buells Duke Quarentina, first place fall yearling, reserve junior champion; Buells Crisp Champagne-ET, first place spring yearling; Redcarpet Doorman Ms SDiplo, first place winter yearling; Buells Gold Chip Camilla, first place 4-year-old cow; Premier Exhibitor

Jersey Highlights

Buells Fizz Candy Apple, first place spring yearling, junior champion; Buells Chrome Carmelized, first place fall yearling, reserve junior champion; TA Chrome Butter, first place winter yearling; Buells Carmel, first place aged cow Stoney was also named the supreme dairy showman.

Cambryn

Congratulations, Stoney!

Earlier this summer, Stoney won the large animal showmanship sweepstakes at the Monroe County Fair.

FROM MOBILE BUSINESS IN A 1979 MOBILE HOME TO STATE-OF-THE-ART STUD COLLECTION

By Bev Berens

From a mobile business operating out of a 1979 motorhome to a state-of-the-art stud collection service, Earl and Melissa Souva have moved Great Lakes Sire Service (GLSS) from a one-person traveling opera tion to a multimillion-dollar business in the span of 20 years.

Located in Bronson, Michigan, it is the only custom semen collection service in the United States credentialed to ship semen to China, a distinction that lures bull owners to the facility from across North America. During the first five months of 2022, the company produced 1,055,000 straws of se men for the custom market.

Scraping together their savings and borrowing some money, then a little more money, Earl and Melissa bought the mobile business and nurtured its growth, finding a gold mine in the trophy whitetail industry, collecting and processing semen for hunt clubs as far away as Texas. The lucrative na ture of the whitetail business financed rapid expansion and permanent facilities in Me lissa’s hometown, along with the means to purchase state-of-the-art lab equipment to process and store harvested semen.

Including the latest expansion when complete, GLSS can house 120 bulls be tween two sites and, with the new facility, be certified to ship semen to a lucrative and

growing European market. European na tions impose more stringent standards for animal care, and the new facility a half-mile from the original will meet those. Natural ly, this expansion has been built to easily accommodate more growth should the op portunity arise.

Bulls may stay as briefly as for one col lection; others have a permanent home at the facility. It all depends upon the owner’s objectives. One bull has lived at the farm for 10 years and has produced more than a million straws of semen that have been shipped worldwide.

During the business’s first 13 years,

Melissa worked as the ag instructor at Bronson High School while Earl did the boots-on-the-ground work of collecting, processing and shipping semen and some times even building his own bull-handling equipment. Melissa balanced school, the business accounting and the mothering re sponsibilities in a growing family.

“As a business owner, it’s important to keep a pulse on industry and be active,” Earl said. He serves on the board of directors for National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB), is president-elect for Michigan Cattlemen Association and is on the board for Certified Semen Servicers (CSS).

Earl and his wife, Melissa Souva have moved Great Lakes Sire Service from a one-person traveling operation to a multimillion-dollar business in the span of 20 years.

CSS, a subsidiary of the NAAB, pro vides auditing to ensure the health and identity of semen processed by its member organizations.

GLSS has been CSS-certified for more than 20 years and is the only cus tom collection service in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio that can provide semen collection under the most stringent health standards.

A custom collection service like GLSS doesn’t own studs or provide marketing. It provides collection services and product processing, handling, storage and shipment that allows people on the outside of a tight ly controlled commercial sire service net work to offer their own genetics to buyers who want what the producer has to offer.

GLSS’ largest customers are other AI companies that are global but don’t have production centers in the United States. “U.S. dairy genetics is the epicenter of the world and everyone wants U.S. genetics,” Earl said. “The way to do it is to send the bulls to us, and we collect and ship the se men for them.

“For instance, China cut out semen shipments from Canada three years ago over some trade deal, so Semex out of Can ada had to find sources who could ship ge netics through the U.S.”

The first 23 years of business dealt pri marily in the beef sector, but the last three have seen a significant shift into dairy. Earl said sexed semen and genomics technolo gies are drivers behind the trend.

Sexed semen created the ability for dairy producers to rapidly increase female numbers available in the herd. Genomics testing at an immature age identifies the genetic potential of an animal and produc ers can narrow down the herd’s top third, breeding them with sexed semen to ge nomic superior sires and obtain a contin uous supply of elite females to supply the next generation of seedstock in a herd. The bottom two-thirds of the herd can be bred to create a pregnancy and milk in the tank. The logical terminal mating for that herd segment is to a beef bull with desired cut ability traits.

“This is really changing the beef mar ket, too,” he said. “The NAAB statistics show that domestic dairy semen sales are dropping, and beef semen sales are going up drastically. This is how technology has changed the industry very quickly.”

Another trend is that more semen has

Five employees manage lab and processing while three others work the barns, including semen collection.

Great Lakes Sire Service’s largest customers are other AI companies that are global but don’t have production centers in the United States.

been exported from the United States than sold domestically industrywide, and he be lieves this trend will also continue.

Since Covid, logistics and semen ship ping have been the company’s greatest chal lenges. “Product is transported to China via flights, and we have to find flights available,” Earl explained. “There just aren’t as many flights as before Covid. China has shut down some ports and semen must fly under hazardous materials designation. China has an embargo on hazardous goods, so we just don’t know when the next flights are.”

Health protocols on international se men shipments are understandably com plex, and a full-time person is dedicated to tracking, scheduling and verifying vaccina tions, blood draws and other procedures, which can vary between sires.

Beyond the barns and lab, he noted the operation is more of a manufacturing pro cess focusing on inventory control, packing and shipping. Five employees manage lab and processing while three others work the barns, including semen collection. Collec tions are done four days a week and each bull housed at the farm is collected twice weekly, and twice on each day it is sched uled.

It takes a solid workforce to manage a fast-paced detailed environment such as GLSS. The office staff is led by Melissa, who manages payroll, domestic shipments and accounts payable/receivable. The organiza tion employs 22 individuals, plus five sum mer interns this year. Each intern is rotated through duties in the barn, lab and office to give them a complete experience.

A few employees were hired through recruiting agencies, including the U.S. skilled guest worker program. Animal sci ence was once Earl’s degree of choice when it came to new hires; however, he and Me lissa both realized that office and lab em ployees who were the most effective pos sessed soft skills such as attention to detail and spreadsheet knowledge.

“We’ve learned to hire personalities in that area, and we can teach the basics of ag they need to know for the job,” he said.

Earl and Melissa have four children ages 13 to 26. Their youngest, a daughter, currently works in the laboratory while the others are pursuing careers away from the business.

Collections are done four days a week and each bull housed at the farm is collected twice weekly, and twice on each day it is scheduled.

Golden Opportunity Ticket Winner Picks the Brown Swiss

The first annual Golden Opportunity Ticket winner was Patty O’Dell. Her name was chosen during the All-Michigan Holstein Summer show on July 22, 2022, from 125 tickets sold. She had her pick of calves and she wasted no time on choosing the Brown Swiss, Posey-Creek Twizzler ETV owned by Andi Dillon of Posey Creek Farms in North Adams, Michigan. Twizzler was named Reserve Junior Champion of the All-Michigan Brown Swiss Junior Show the previous day. Pictured from left: HAUSA Rep Max Dunseth, Andi Dillon, Joe Higgins, Patty O’Dell and MHA Board member Lauren Siver.

Deadline Extended!

HOLSTEIN COW OF THE DECADE CRITERIA JERSEY COW OF THE CENTURY CRITERIA

• Must be registered

• Must have been active in the last 10 years (2011 - 2021)

• Nomination should include, but not limited to: - Production records  - Show accolades- (if any) animal does not have to have been shown to be eligible - Progeny - bull mother, DOM, GMD, number of daughters - Classification - Pedigree - Professional photo

Winners of previous Holstein Cow of the Century contest are not Eligible for the Holstein Cow of the Decade Contest.

• Must be Registered

• Must have been born before 2011.

• Nomination should include but not limited to: - Production records  - Show accolades- (if any) animal does not have to have been shown to be eligible - Progeny - bull mother, DOM, GMD, number of daughters - Classification - Pedigree - Professional photo

Entry deadline is extended to November 1st. All eligible entries will be presented in the Winter issue of the MDCN and a vote will take place ONLINE in in January. The winners will be announced at our annual meeting and in the Spring issue. Questions should be directed to Melissa Hart at 517-398-1957 or Brent Moyer at 989-553-4333.

Scholarship.

Dairy

The

Michigan Dairy Memorial and Scholarship Foundation

WHAT IS IT?

WHO CAN APPLY?

Name

Name

Animal

Name

Animal

Name

Animal

OPEN SHOW

Premier Breeder & Exhibitor: Green Meadow Farms

JUNIOR SHOW

Premier Breeder & Exhibitor: Anna Moser

Outstanding Junior Exhibitor: Cassandra Gebert Spring Heifer Calf

1. Class A Back-In-Black, (Moovin) Anna Moser

2. Tonic Chief Sugar Baby (Chief) Nicole Vanderploeg

3. Class-A Altitude Layla-Red (Altitude), Anna Moser

4. CK Pinnacle AFL Truffle-Red, Jakob Robinson-Moyer

5. Toxic Dirty D Saucy-Rae (Diamondback) Raterink, Reed and Meade

Winter Heifer Calf

1. Moo-ville Sidekick Chelsee (Sidekick) MOO-Ville Farm and Creamery

2. Redcarpet War 4. the West-ET, (Warrior) BS Partners

3. Amply Warrior Jill (Warrior) Cassie Gebert & Jordan Kuhn

4. MOO-Ville Dreambig Imelda (Dreambig) MOO-Ville Farm and Creamery

5. Ms Warrior Last Chance RC (Warrior) Esquerita & Reauxdale Fall Heifer Calf

1. Minsu Artist 1815. (Artist) T&H Dairy

2. Sunqest Latenite Date (Latenite) Tim & Tammy VanHaitsma

3. Tonic Master Felicity (Master) Nicole Vanderploeg

4. SJ-Reed Warrior Rosetta-Red (Warrior) Malissa Reed

5. Starward Master Raylee-ET (Master) Starward Farm Summer Yearling

1. Kingstreet War Rebel-Red (Warrior) B&C Rupprecht & Cas sandra Gebert

2. Winterfield War Stiletto (Warrior) Ian & Olivia Black

3. Class-A Moovin Payday (Moovin) Anna Moser

4. Minsu Journey 1749-Red (Journey) Sophia Nielsen

Rod-Er-Dic Macho Alexis-Red (Macho) Rod-er-Dic Farm Spring Yearling

1. MS King-Street RockNRoll-Red (Warrior) B&C Rupprecht & Cassandra Gebert

2. MOO-Ville Han Spivey Nice (Hancock) MOO-Ville Farm and Creamery

3. Star-Summit Art Mallory-Red (Aristocrat) Joey Domecq

Buells Crisp Champagne-ET (Apple Crisp) Slylar Buell

Buells Crips Chardonnay-ET (Apple Crisp) Skylar Buell

Winter Yearling

1. Class-L Storm Whisper (Thunder Storm) Anna Moser

2. Class-A Winchaser (Unstopabull) Anna Moser

3. Redcarpet Doorman MS SDiplo (Doorman) Stoney Buell

Fall Yearling

1. Miss Warriors Heart RC (Warrior) Irene Nielsen

SHOW RESULTS

2. Zielland Artisan Zest-Red (Artisan) Abigal Lehman

3. Crystal-Link Axel Dorthy (Axel) Vandale Farms, INC

JUNIOR CHAMPION-JUNIOR & OPEN

Junior Champion: Class-L Storm Whisper (Thunder Storm) Anna Moser

Reserve Junior Champion: King-Street War Rebel-Red (War rior) B&C Rupprecht & Cassandra Gebert Summer Junior 2-Year-Old

1. (BU) Sunquest Beemer Dilly (Beemer) Tim & Tammy Van Haitsma

2. Class-A Mistress (Thunder Storm) Anna Moser

3. Redcarpet Undenied Feelings-ET (Undenied) Landon Siver & Addison Lortie

Junior Two-Year-Old

1. Winterfield DB Sunee Rac (Diamondback) Winterfield Farms

2. Tumbleweed Tatoo Keona-ET (Tatoo) Cash McCauley

3. Class-A Anastasia (Awesome) Anna Moser

4. Pinnacle Jacoby 32574-ET (Jacoby) Brent Moyer and Brent Robinson

5. GS-Black Gold Chip Bikini (Gold Chip) Ian & Olivia Black Senior Two-Year-Old

1. Green Meadow Doc 10042. (Doc) Green Meadow Farms

2. MOO-Ville Hanco Cay-Lynn-ET (Hancock) MOO-Ville Farm and Creamery

3. Strautz-AAA GC Rosepetal-ET (Gold Chip) Rod-er-Dic Farm

4. Rod-Er-Dic HT Atwood Amy (Atwood) Rod-er-Dic Farm Junior Three-Year-Old

1. Minsu Doc Nora (Doc) T&H Dairy

2. Tonic Doc Sugar Rae (Doc) Nicole Vanderploeg

Senior Three-Year-Old

1. Minsu Doc 827 (Doc) T&H Dairy

2. Class-L Wildfire-ET (Crush) Anna Moser

3. Winterfield Jacot Stevie (Jacot) Winterfield Farm

4. Ourwee Doc 4944. Verne (Doc) Susan Green

5. Green Meadow Hang-Time Jazz (Hang Time) Green Meadow Farms

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION – JUNIOR SHOW

Intermediate Champion: Class-L Wildfire-ET (Crush) Anna Moser

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Class-A Mistress (Thun der Storm) Anna Moser

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION-OPEN SHOW

Intermediate Champion: Minsu Doc 827 (Doc) T&H Dairy

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Class-L Wildfire-ET (Crush) Anna Moser

Four-Year-Old

1. ReauxBlack Doorman Shelley (Doorman) Lamoreaux and

Black

2. Esquerita Absolut Dethpunch (Absolute) Sierra & Quinn Watts

3. Green Meadow DRK Ceres (D-Rock) Green Meadow Farms

4. Green Meadow Kimba-ET (Pety) Green Meadow Farms

5. Gloryland Coral Rae-ET (Crush) McKenzie Bennett Five-Year-Old

1. Irish-Gem DB Indigo (Diamondback) Caleb Whittemore

2. Green Meadow Rhyme-ET (Accelrapper) Green Meadow Farms

Aged Cow

1. Class-L Doorman Bailey (Doorman) Anna Moser

150,000 Pound Cow

1. Green-Meadow Benhart Kieley (Benhart) Green Meadow Farms

SENIOR & GRAND CHAMPION JUNIOR SHOW

Senior & Grand Champion: Class-L Doorman Bailey (Door man) Anna Moser

Reserve Senior & Reserve Grand: Esquerita Absolut Deth punch (Absolute) Sierra & Quinn Watts

SENIOR & GRAND CHAMPION – OPEN SHOW

Senior & Grand Champion: Class-L Doorman Bailey (Door man) Anna Moser

Reserve Senior & Reserve Grand: ReauxBlack Doorman

Shelley (Doorman) Lamoreaux and Black

Junior Champions – Open from left: Cassie Gebert with Reserve Junior Champion King-Street War Rebel-Red, Anna Moser with Ju nior Champion Class-L Storm Whisper and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

All-Michigan Holstein Show

July

East Lansing, MI

Judge: Tyler Reynolds, New York

Grand Champions-Open from left: Aaron Lamoreaux with Reserve Grand ReauxBlack Doorman Shelly, Anna Moser with Grand Champion Class-L Doorman Bailey and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Intermediate Champions-Open from left: Anna Moser with Reserve Intermediate Champion Class-L Wildfire-ET, Quinn Watts with Intermediate Champion Minsu Doc 827 and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

OPEN SHOW

Premier Breeder: Vitality Dairy Crew

Premier Exhibitor: Haws Jerseys JUNIOR SHOW

Premier Breeder and Exhibitor: Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws Spring Heifer Calf

1. TonicFizz Rumble (Fizz) Kaden, Dirk and Axel Vanderploeg

2. Miss MDL Lady Luck (McGregor) Landon Siver & Madelyn & Delaney Bennett

3. Haws FF Action Prima (Action) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws Winter Heifer Calf

1. Thistle Dew Engineer Rosette (Engineer) Braxton & Charlotte Rupprecht, Cassie Gebert

2. Vitality Frilly Frock (Ferdinand) Vitality Dairy Crew

3. Cloverfield Moonshine Myla (Moonshine) Adelaide Martin

4. Vitality Jitter Bug (Casino) Paige Remenar

5. RDF-Brenhaven Reckless Tallulah (Reckless) Reed and Moyer Fall Heifer Calf

1. Blackview Andreas Poppy (Andreas) Quinn Watts

2. Krullcrest Views Vodka of BSP-ET (Venom) Landon Siver & Addi son Lortie

3. Haws FF Jeronimo Diva (Jeronimo) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws Summer Yearling

1. Blackview Andreas Pearl (Andreas) Maxwell Biermacher

2. Morchar Dominic Main (Dominic) Paige Remenar

3. Welch-Kin-Acres Chrome Patience (Chrome) Logan Welch

4. Pro-Hart Hidalgo Alicia (Hidlago) Abigail and Rebecca Lehman

SHOW RESULTS

Grand Champi ons Open from left: Aaron Lamoreaux with Reserve Grand Champion Black view Engineer Frisky, Renee McCauley with Grand Champion Tumbleweed Jasmines Jelly Bean and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

5. Rod-Er-Dic Desperado Colton (Colton) Rod-Er-Dic Farm Spring Yearling

1. Woodruffs Colton Lace (Colton) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws

2. Vitality Effie Mae (Jeronimo) Paige Remenar

3. Morchar Colton Predicament (Colton) Morgan Betti

4. JX Woodruffs Casino Glitz (Casino) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws

5. JX Pro-Hart Winston Fiesta (Winston) Rebecca Lehman Winter Yearling

1. Blackview VIP Dandy (VIP) Quin Watts

2. Haws FF VIP Beverly (VIP) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws

3. Tumbleweed Victorious Honey (Victorious) Abigail Lehman Fall Yearling

1. JX Buells Chrome Carmelized (Chrome) Skylar and Stoney Buell

2. Vitality Jelly Bean (Oliver) Paige Remenar

3. Pro-Hart Craze VIP (Craze) Abigail Lehman

JUNIOR CHAMPION JUNIOR AND OPEN

Junior Champion: Blackview Andreas Poppy (Andreas) Quinn Watts

Reserve Junior Champion: Blackview Andreas Pearl (Andreas) Maxwell Biermacher Milking Yearling

1. Krullcrest Views Victoria of BSP-ET (Premier) BS Partners

2. Stadview Showdown Stella (Showdown) Adelaide and Alister Martin

Summer Junior Two-Year-Old

1. Blackview Engineer Frisky (Engineer) Blackview Junior Two-Year-Old

1. Blackhaven MM Flashy (Mastermind) Blackview & Brenhaven

2. Class-E Viral Flair (Viral) Thistle Dew Jerseys

3. Discos Patsys Peaches of HFF (Discos) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws

Senior Two-Year-Old

1. Classys Rebel (Colton) Kaden, Dirk and Axel Vanderploeg

2. Thistle Dew BA Octane (Black Apple) Thistle Dew Jerseys

Junior Three-Year-Old

1. S-Mitten Chrome Fetish at TDBS (Chrome) Max Hughes

Senior Three-Year-Old

1. Vitality Energizer Bunny (colton) George Bush and Logan Wells

2. Vitality Jump Jivin (Savvy) Paige Remenar

3. Rod-Er-Dic Chrome Saphire (chrome) Rod-Er-Dic Farms

4. Merlin Zoe Of HFF (Merlin) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION -JUNIOR SHOW

Intermediate Champion: Classys Rebel (Colton) Kaden, Dirk and Axel Vanderploeg

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Vitality Jump Jivin (Savvy) Paige Remenar

INTERMEDIATE CHAMPION – OPEN SHOW

Intermediate Champion: Blackview Engineer Frisky (Engineer) Blackview

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Blackhaven MM Flashy (Mastermind) Blackview & Brenhaven

Five-Year-Old Cow

1. Tumbleweed Jasmines Jelly Bean (Colton) Cash McCauley

2. Top Notch Barnabas Ryn (Barnabas) Thistle Dew Jerseys

3. TJ Classic Success Bree (Success) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws Aged Cow

1. JX Buells Carmel (Fozdik) Skylar and Stoney Buell

2. Mead-Manor Premier Penny (Premier) Logan Welch

JUNIOR SHOW

Senior Champion: TJ Classic Success Bree (Success) Alex, Isaac & Ian Haws

Reserve Senior Champion: Mead-Manor Premier Penny (Pre mier) Logan Welch

Grand Champion: Classys Rebel (Colton) Kaden, Dirk and Axel Vanderploeg

Reserve Grand Champion: Vitality Jump Jivin (Savvy) Paige Remenar

OPEN SHOW

Senior & Grand Champion: Tumbleweed Jasmines Jelly Bean (Colton) Cash McCauley

Reserve Grand Champion: Blackview Engineer Frisky (Engi neer) Amber Black

Reserve Senior Champion: Top Notch Barnabas Ryn (Barnabas) Thistle Dew Jerseys

Intermediate Champions -Open from left: Amber Black, Matt Biermacher with Reserve Intermediate Champion Blackhaven MM Flashy, Aaron Lamoreaux with Intermediate Champion Blackview Engi neer Frisky and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Junior Champions-Open from left: Maxwell Biermacher with Reserve Junior Champion Blackview An dreas Pearl, Quinn Watts with Junior Champion Blackview Andreas Poppy and judge Tyler Reynolds.

All-Michigan Summer Brown Swiss Show

Junior Champions from left: Megan Jones with Reserve Junior Champion BSP Fancy Flirt, Moss McCauley with Junior Champion Aldens R Polka-ETV, Alan McCauley and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Winter Heifer Calf

1. BSP Fancy Flirt (Bosephus) Landon Siver & Addison Lorti

2. New-Direction Rampage Star Shine (Rampage) Melia San tillanez

3. Posey-Creek Betty Crocker (Bosephus) Andi Dillon & Lila Howell

4. Deforest Cadence Peach (Cadence) Caleb Whittemore Fall Heifer Calf

1. Posey-Creek Twizzler ETV, (Rampage) Andi Dillon & Lila Howell

2. VB Anibal Zendaya ET (Anabal) Jakob Robinson-Moyer Summer Yearling

1. Gebert Famous Priscilla (Famous) Cassandra Gebert Spring Yearling

1. Aldens R Polka-ETV (Rasta) Melia Santillanez

2. Jo B Wizdom Pick Me (Wizdom) Caleb Whittemore Fall Yearling

1. Posey-Creek Tallahassee (Famous) Andi Dillon & Lila Howell

JUNIOR SHOW

Junior Champion: Gebert Famous Priscilla (Famous) Cassan dra Gebert

Reserve Junior Champion: Posey-Creek Twizzler ETV, (Ram page) Andi Dillon & Lila Howell

OPEN SHOW

Junior Champion: Aldens R Polka-ETV (Rasta) Melia Santil lanez

Reserve Junior Champion: BSP Fancy Flirt (Bosephus) Landon Siver & Addison Lorti

SUMMER JUNIOR-TWO-YEAR-OLD

1. Brook Hollow Hula Hottie ET (Total) Logan Wells & George Bush

Senior Two-Year-Old

1. Fosters Wyatt Tara (Wyatt) BS Partners

2. Miami Hills GC Domino (Gamechanger) Graham Gilbert Junior Three-Year-Old

1. Kronk Carter Peyton (Carter) Caleb Whittemore Senior Three-Year-Old

1. Double W Mick Honda (Mick) Jakob Robinson-Moyer

2. Meadow Hill Famous BJ (Famous) Logan Welch

JUNIOR SHOW

Intermediate Champion: Kronk Carter Peyton (Carter) Caleb Whittemore

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Meadow Hill Famous BJ (Famous) Logan Welch

OPEN SHOW

Intermediate Champion: Double W Mick Honda (Mick) Ja

kob Robinson-Moyer

Lansing, MI

Tyler Reynolds, New York

Grand Champions from left: Joe Black with Reserve Grand Champion Jasm Joe’s Petals, Brent Moyer with Grand Champion Double W Mick Honda and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Kronk Carter Peyton (Carter) Caleb Whittemore

Four-Year-Old

1. Jasm Joe’s Petals (Tequila) Joe Black

Senior Champion: Jasm Joe’s Petals (Tequila) Joe Black

JUNIOR SHOW

Grand Champion: Jasm Joe’s Petals (Tequila) Joe Black

Reserve Grand Champion: Kronk Carter Peyton (Carter) Ca leb Whittemore

OPEN SHOW

SHOW RESULTS SHOW RESULTS

Grand Champion: Double W Mick Honda (Mick) Jakob Rob inson-Moyer

Reserve Grand Champion: Jasm Joe’s Petals (Tequila) Joe Black

All-Michigan Summer Milking Shorthorn Show

Lansing, MI

July 21, 2022

Judge: Tyler Reynolds, New York

The All-Michigan Milking Shorthorn Show was held on July 21, 2022 with Tyler Reynolds serving as the judge. For his Grand Cham pion he chose DF Pink Clancy exhibited by Adam Shafer and for his Reserve Grand Champion he chose Van Rijn Comanche Kettle Corn exhibited by Thijs Rijn. From left: Thijs Van Rijn with Reserve, Ben Crevier with Grand and judge Tyler Reynolds.

All-Michigan Summer Ayrshire Show

Junior

Spring Heifer Calf

1. Dandy’s AoS Chai P (Spades P), Dan & Sandra Carpenter Winter Heifer Calf

1. Pinnacle Reagan Sprite (Regan) Jeremiah Robinson-Moyer

Fall Heifer Calf

1. Dandy’s Blue Ribbon Reina P (Blue Ribbon), Dan & Sandra Carpenter

July 21, 2022

East Lansing, MI

Judge: Tyler Reynolds, New York

Spring Heifer Calf

1. Peep Creek Atlantic Ada (Atlantic) Ryan Berens

2. Peep Creek Marvel Willow (Marvel) Ryan Berens

Fall Heifer Calf

1. Bok Jaguar Sonny Sunshine (Jaguar) Sara Bok

2. Sweet Meadow Lady’s Man Jenny (Lady’s Man) Max Hughes

3. Sniders BW Doc Buttercup Prize (Doc) Hope Higgins

4. Riverwood Legend Candy (Legend) Caleb Whittemore Summer Yearling

1. Kronk Farms Natural Carleigh (Natural) Cassandra Gebert & Jordan Kuhn

Summer Yearling

1. Dandy’s Fresh-Coast Drew Bonni (Modem Drew) Dan & San

dra Carpenter

Winter Yearling

1. Plum-Bottom Benedict Opal (Benedict) Adam Shafer

2. Dandy’s Mason Azawakh P (Mason)

Junior Champion: Pinnacle Reagan Sprite (Regan) Jeremiah Robinson-Moyer

SHOW RESULTS SHOW RESULTS

Reserve Junior Champion: Plum-Bottom Benedict Opal (Benedict) Adam Shafer

Five-Year-Old

1. Mueller’s Predator Chiller, (Predator) Logan Welch

Senior and Grand Champion: Mueller’s Predator Chiller, (Predator) Logan Welch

Reserve Grand Champion: Pinnacle Reagan Sprite (Regan) Jeremiah Robinson-Moyer

All-Michigan Summer Guernsey Show • July 21, 2022 • East Lansing, MI • Judge: Tyler Reynolds, New York

2. Peep Creek Atlantic Lyric (Atlantic) Ryan Berens

JUNIOR & OPEN

Junior Champion: Bok Jaguar Sonny Sunshine (Jaguar) Sara Bok

Reserve Junior Champion: Sweet

Five-Year-Old

Creek Atlantic Stella (Atlantic) Ryan Berens Aged Cow

Acres

Alisha (Legend) Ryan Berens

Senior and Grand Champion: Peep Creek Atlantic Stella (At lantic) Ryan Berens

Reserve Senior and Reserve Grand Champion: Eber Acres

Alisha (Legend) Ryan Berens

from

Carpenter with Reserve Junior Champion Plum-Bottom Bene dict Opal, Jeremiah Robinson-Moyer with Pinnacle Reagan Sprite and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Junior Champions from

Max Hughes with Reserve Junior Champion Sweet Meadow La dy’s Man Jenny, Sara Bok with Junior Champion Bok Jaguar Sonny Sunshine and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Grand Champions from left: Jeremiah Robinson-Moyer with Reserve Grand Champion Pinnacle Rea gan Sprite, Logan Welch with Grand Champion Meuller’s Predator Chiller and Judge Tyler Reynolds.

Grand Champions from

Berens, Ryan Berens with Reserve Grand Champion Eber Acres

Alisha,

Kraft with Grand Champion Peep Creek Atlantic Stella and judge Tyler Reynolds.

SHOW RESULTS

Spring Heifer Calf

1. Class-A Altitude Layla-Red, Anna Moser

2. CK-Pinnacle APL Truffle-Red, Jakob Robinsin-Moyer

3. Tumbleweed Analyst Waffles, Cash McCauley

4. Fairmont Anlyst Abby-Red-ET, Green Meadow Farms

Winter Heifer Calf

1. Reaux-Nic Altd Rumncoke-Red, Alexis and Jack Lamoreaux

2. Green Meadow DBK 14803, Green Meadow Farms

3. Ja-Bob Redeye MollyP-Red Ryan Berens

Fall Heifer Calf

1. MS Diamond Solitare-Red, Irene Nielson, Paige Reminar & Sierra & Quinn Watts

2. Michigan Warr Spartan-Red, MSU Dairy

3. SJ-Reed Warrior Rosetta-Red, Malissa Reed

4. Rod-er-Dic Rainbow-Red, Morgan Venema

Summer Yearling

1. King-Street War Rebel-Red, B&C Rupprecht & Cassie Gebert

2. Minsu Journey 1749-Red, Sophia Nielsen

3. Rod-er-Dic Macho Alexis-Red, Rod-er-Dic Farm

4. Bluff-Ridge Lilypad-Red, Ryan Berens

Spring Yearling

1. MS King-Street RockNRoll-Red, B&C Rupprecht & Cassie Gebert

2. Jennings-Gap Apricot-Red-ET, Cash McCauley

Winter Yearling

1. Knee-High Warrior Lyric-Red, Max Hughes

Fall Yearling

1. Zielland Artisan Zest-Red, Abigail Lehman

2. Wa-K-K Apple Sage-Red, Jayna VanderKolk

Junior Champion: King-Street War Rebel-Red, B&C Rupprecht & Cassie Gebert

Reserve Junior Champion: MS King-Street RockNRoll-Red, B&C Rupprecht & Cassie Gebert

Senior Three-Year-Old Cow

1. Green Meadow Robbi-Red, Green Meadow Farms

2. Gilbert Cltpr Thrtybelo-Red-P, Graham Gilbert

Intermediate Champion: Green Meadow Robbi-Red, Green Meadow Farms

Reserve Intermediate Champion: Gilbert Cltpr Thrtybelo-Red-P, Graham Gilbert Aged Cow

1. O-L-R Hangover Rebel Star-Red, Rebecca Lehman

JUNIOR SHOW

Senior & Grand Champion: O-L-R Hangover Rebel Star-Red, Rebecca Lehman OPEN SHOW

Grand Champion: Green Meadow Robbi-Red, Green Meadow Farms

Senior & Reserve Grand Champion: O-L-R Hangover Rebel Star-Red, Rebecca Lehman

Michigan Holstein Association Welcomes New Executive Secretary

Carrie Delong of North Branch, Michigan will has taken over the Executive Secretary duties for Michigan Holstein Association. Her family owns and operates a farm in North Branch where they have raised and shown Jerseys, Brown Swiss and Milking Short horns. They sold most of the milking herd in 2019 and have been transitioning to raising Berkshire hogs. Carrie is on their county Farm Bureau board and has served in several leadership positions. She and her husband Terry have two daughters, Mackenzie and Carolyn.

You can reach Carrie at the new office number, 810-614-4025, or email michiganholstein@gmail.com.

Reynolds,

Junior Champions – Open from left: Jordan Kuhn with Reserve Junior Champion MS King-Street RockNRoll-Red, Cassie Gebert with Junior Champion King-Street War Rebel-Red and judge Tyler Reynolds.

Grand Champions from left: Rebecca Lehman with Reserve Grand O-L-R Hangover Rebel Star-Red, Moss McCauley with Grand Champion Green Meadow Robbi-Red and judge Tyler Reynolds.

Walnutdale Slated for World Dairy Expo Virtual Tour

and the farm’s milk truck fleet. Kevin han dles the farm business side and his brother, Ken, and brother-in-law, Darryl, manage field and crop work. VanLaan's husband, Josh, works with his family’s concrete busi ness and is not part of the farm. The cou ple have five children, including two sets of twins aged nine and seven, and a six-yearold.

By Bev Berens

Aubrey VanLaan, herd manager at Walnutdale Farm in Wayland, Michigan, had no expectations when submitting the application to be a virtual farm tour host during World Dairy Expo this fall. They’re not going to pick us, she thought.

Allflex Livestock Intelligence represen tative Don Gilbert urged her to apply after implementing Allflex’s activity tracking ear tag system last winter. Learning that their farm was indeed selected brought on an emotional mix of shock and excitement, tempered with just a little anxiety.

VanLaan is accustomed to a heavy schedule of farm tours, but this isn’t just any farm tour where people know little or nothing of the dairy industry. “These are farmers who are scrutinizing your farm and trying to learn something,” she pointed out. “I mean, I love learning about other peo ple’s farms, but I didn’t really expect to be the one answering questions onstage.”

Other farms sharing the spotlight that week will include Homestead Dairy, LLC of Plymouth, Indiana, Bateman’s Mosida Farms of Elberta, Utah and Skråmered of Våxtorp, Sweden.

VanLaan’s family, including her father, Ralph Lettinga, is excited to showcase the farm, but they prefer to be in the audience rather than onstage during the tour and question-and-answer sessions. Filming at the farm took place this summer.

Twelve years ago, a fire destroyed the farm’s main facility, including the par lor. VanLaan doesn’t wish the tragedy, un

certainty and lack of income that event pro duced on anyone, but that fateful morning did yield opportunity. Once the decision to rebuild was made, the door opened to ex pansion, modernization and maximizing cow comfort in a new facility.

The herd has grown from 900 in the late 1990s to two locations with 1,400 cows at the Wayland farm and 700 Jerseys at a new Burnips facility that recently came on line. “The Jerseys at the Burnips farm really got an upgrade in their living quarters,” she said. “We expanded the parlor to a dou ble-15 and extended the free-stall barn on the newer facility we just purchased.”

Prior to the fire, most of the Holsteins were registered. Other than a few cattle ear marked for kids’ show projects, most of the registration has fallen by the wayside. How ever, VanLaan is enjoying a special pen of pedigreed cattle and dishing out the extra attention worthy of a first 4-H project.

Both farm locations are frequent hosts of guests and farm tours. “I think it's good to put a face with the farm, and it's also painting that picture of how we do take such diligent care of our cows, because other people can shed light negatively on farms,” she said. “Hopefully, they remem ber and listen to us and not the people who think we don't take care of our cows or the environment.”

VanLaan and her brother, Austin Let tinga, are the farm’s fourth generation of operators and the children of Kevin and Deb. VanLaan oversees cows and leads the workforce and Austin, who recently returned to the farm, manages accounting

VanLaan explained juggling family, farm and kids’ school activities can get a lit tle overwhelming, but she charges forward to get the job done. “I’m not saying that it's not stressful and sometimes overwhelm ing,” she added. “I also remember that at the end of the day, even though the farm is super important, my family and my kids are more important than this.

“When we had the fire, and in a sin gle moment all our cows were gone and the parlor is gone, and everything is gone, then you realize your family is still there. It puts in perspective what's important.”

Walnutdale has implemented Allflex’s activity tracking ear tag system

The Allflex activity tags gather information that is communicated to the farm’s management program, enabling them to act more quickly to indicators of heat stress, unusual feed consumption, estrus detection, hy per-early illness stages and more. Lag time between symptom detection and treatment is reduced by as much as four days, thereby decreasing lost days of milk.

“It just removes another layer of guesswork in cow care,” VanLaan said. “The tags allow us to gather and act on information that a person isn’t giving us, so that as technology moves for ward, it will replace some of the need for people with intricate cow skills,” predicting the number of people with those specific skills will shrink quickly and dramatically.

“What is really cool is the tags have a blinking light. On preg-check days, we can just go out and round up cows with the blinking lights in their ear. No more sending someone out for four hours on Sunday afternoon to mark cows for Monday’s preg-check.”

Aubrey VanLaan is the herd manager at Walnutdale Farm.

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Dairy Greatness from Great Lakes Farmers

Founded in 1916, the Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA) is a farmer-owned milk marketing cooperative and dairy processor. MMPA’s member farms, located throughout the Great Lakes Region, lead the way in quality milk production. Nationally