Page 4 • Country Acres | Friday, June 18, 2021 PHOTOS BY ANNA HAYNES
June is dairy Month!
Jay and Marcy Kedrowski work with a newborn lamb June 8 on their hobby farm near Bowlus. The Kedrowskis currently have eight newborn lambs and are halfway through their lambing season.
We believe in dairy farming because of its rich tradition, importance to agriculture and love of the animals.
SAUK CENTRE • 320-352-5211 LONG PRAIRIE • 320-732-2133 PELICAN RAPIDS • 218-863-6688
Thank a farmer this month and every month!
WWW.MN-BANK.BANK CAJUNE18-1B-MT
Established in 1975
Drainage LLC. Howard Marthaler 320-250-2984
Jason Marthaler 320-249-6062 Karl Larson 320-808-8012
Ditching • Tiling Excavating Ag Waste Systems have a combined n o s a J d rd an of OVER 90 YEARS! a w , Ho xperience l r K a w o rk e
“FARM DRAINAG E SPECIALISTS” “We are in the land improvement business. We do farm drainage, ag waste systems, site work for farm buildings and silage pads, plus miscellaneous work. We also do county, township, and watershed work, as well as soil conservation work.” - MBC Drainage, Sauk Centre
1800 2nd St. S. • Sauk Centre, MN CA-June18-1B-WS
Lambing season
Kedrowskis raise sheep, share with others on hobby farm
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BY ANNA HAYNES | STAFF WRITER
OWLUS – The fences aren’t tall on the Kedrowskis’ farm, but they don’t worry about their animals getting out because Maddie, their pet llama, watches over everything. Jay and Marcy Kedrowski have a slightly unusual farm. They raise lambs outside of Bowlus and open their home to anyone curious enough to stop by. “I love our farm because it’s so interesting,” Noelle Kedrowski, their daughter, said. “Everyone grew up on a dairy farm; I grew up raising lambs.” In the past, Noelle has taken care of the farm on her own over her college spring break so her parents could take a vacation. Jay and Marcy both grew up in Central Minnesota on farms. Marcy’s parents owned a dairy farm and Jay’s parents had beef
cattle south of Bowlus. The couple started their own grass-fed lamb operation together in 2003. “We were just gluttons for punishment,” Jay joked. “We started this from scratch when we were young. We wanted to work hard.” They sold their electronics repair business in St Joseph to buy a piece of land from Jay’s parents and start a small farm. “We bought a chicken barn and some of their original land, but we didn’t want to run cattle, so we thought let’s try some sheep,” Marcy said. “We decided to start a farm because we could always be there with the kids and be at home more.” Jay works as a building maintenance technician for a local assisted living facility, and Marcy is a Certified Natural Health Profession-
al and works from their home. The lamb operation is a business and a hobby, but Marcy also calls it her addiction. Their youngest daughter, Noelle, agreed. “We’re sheep people. Sheep are a big part of our life,” Noelle said. “I remember being little and the ram would come and knock me over. There’s a learning curve to raising sheep.” Noelle recently graduated from the University of Duluth with a Bachelor of Arts in biology and a minor in dance studies. Noelle raised Maddie as a 4-H project. Maddie takes care of all the predators and watches over the sheep. “She’ll stomp her foot and stare down stray dogs, or even a strange person,” Marcy said. The Kedrowskis also raise two goats on their
Kedrowski page 5
Marcy Kedrowski feeds Maddie the llama inside their sheep barn. Maddie lives with the ewes and scares away any potential predators. The llama is about 11 years old and was raised from a crias by their youngest daughter, Noelle Kedrowski.
