Nevin Rice, left, praises the new milking family, Ann, George and Mary, and Ann's
larlor just recently built at Blain View Farms. parents in the center back,
rom right are other members of the Rice
Where'S The Water?
In Our 200-Gallon Stock Tank!
Our Farm Products Include:
The SMITH CATTLEGUARD®
• No. 1 In The Country
• One-Piece Construction
The Freeze-Proof Waterer
• NO ENERGY NEEDED
• Easy Installation and
Maintenance
Feed Bunks
• Centerline and Fenceline
• Smooth Sides Less Waste
Csb Licensed by EASI-SET* Industries
Featuring:
• Steel-Reinforced
Precast Concrete
• Simple Installation
• Easy Maintenance
• Approved by Soil
Conservation Service
I
Please send me information on
□ cattleguards □ waterers □ feed bunks
name
hone
CONCRETE
SAFETY SYSTEMS „
j Route 1095
state
zip
Bethel, Pa. 19507
(717) 933-4107
IwitwtiffiwiHirSitirily, April It, 1911—C41
A special attraction at Blain View Holsteins is a set of
triplets by Elevation. Mary Rice, who delivered the trio from
their Kingpin dam, gives an affectionate pat to triplet Doe.
Holstein tour
(Continued from Page C3B)
80 registered Holstems and has
topped the 700-pounds-fat herd
average for many years. In 1980,
the herd DHIA records averaged
18,861 mik and 735 fat.
Mary’s family originally owned
the neatly-kept farm with its
handsome stone house, located on
a flat plain just outside the little
village of Blam. When her husband
died in 1957, Mary took over
operation of the farm and the dairy
herd. Son Nevm was still m school;
and immediately following his
graduation, he began taking over
the farm responsibilities.
Early in March of this year, the
Rice’s opened the doors of the
familiar stall bam to chase the
herd into their new milking
facility, a double-six herringbone
Surge parlor, complete with
automatic takeoff units.
“We really like it,” says Nevin’s
wife, Ann, who helps their son
George with most of the milking
chores.
An interesting feature of the
spanking new parlor is the non-slip
floor for surer footing for the cows.
Aluminum oxide chips were added
to the concrete, to finish out to a
non-shppery surface.
Unlike many parlor set-ups, no
feed goes to the Rice herd during
the milking. Instead, the herd is
then run back into the stall barn
and fed, with gram weights
rationed according to computer
readouts on milk production.
Visitors to the Rice herd are
especially interested in a set of
triplet cows by Elevation born in
1975. Named “Doe, “Rae”, and
Mea”, the tno is from Blamview
Kingpin Jody, another example of
that successful Kingpin-Elevation
crossing.
While carrying the trio, Judy
milked a record of over 35,000
pounds of milk and then bounced
back after the multiple-delivery to
produce a hundred pounds daily
for the following four months. And
in a previous freshening, Jody
dehvered a healthy set of twin
heifers.
Doe, Rae and Mea have lived up
to the Rice’s expectations. Each
has completed records with over
1,000 pounds fat, and one has
milked over 30,000 milk.
About 80 heifers are raised for
replacements, housed in an airy
free-stall heifer facility The Rices
have also raised steers as a
sideline, but now plan to switch
from beef feeding to adding about
20 more cows to the milking string.
Most of the crops raised go into
the silos and bins for the dairy
herd. Croppmg mcludes 125 acres
of com, 100 of alfalfa and mixed
hays, and 60 acres of oats and
wheat. The Rices are no-tillage
enthusiasts, and plant about half
the crops, including part of the hay
seeding and some 15 acres of of
soybeans, by the no-till method.
(Turn to Page C 42)