A26-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 15, 1990
Despite Ups And Downs In Milk Price, Farming Offers Joy
ANDY ANDREWS
Lancaster Fanning Staff
LITITZ (Lancaster Co.) The
harsh realities: Milk tumbling by
$4-$5 a hundredweight. Land
prices soaring to $lO,OOO an acre.
The cost of pesticides, herbicides,
and equipment fuel rising by as
much as 20 to 25 percent The cost
of living increasing 5 percent and
more.
The joys: Being your own boss.
Raising a family in the wholesome
environment of the farm. Keeping
the tradition of the family farm
alive.
Edward and Shenda Sensenich
prefer to think of the joys of farm
ing. As a young couple, with only a
year of farming behind them,
they’ve encountered plenty of the
challenges involved in dairy farm
ing along with raising their
IS-month-old daughter, Ashley.
The Sensenichs, like many dairy
farmers, have had to weather
everything from watching the milk
price rise and fall dramatically to
mastitis problems to raising their
own family on the farm.
But improvements in feed, and
culling cows that were old and not
producing much anymore, gained
them number one status as the
most improved herd in the mixed
breed category in milk production
and protein totals, according to
Pennsylvania DHIA records.
The increases were the result of
overall management decisions,
such as “getting belter cows, get
ting rid of some that weren’t pay
ing the way, and better feed qual
ity,” said Ed.
The Sensenichs rise at 4:45
every morning to milk the cows at
S a.m. Ed and Shenda both work in
the dairy bam most of the morning.
While Ed milks, Shenda feeds hay
and grain to the milking cows and
tends to the heifers.
Shenda takes time out from farm chores to show daught
er Ashley what it’s like to help feed the cows.
Shenda Sensenich feeds Elite, a two-month-old Holstein heifer, as part of the morn-
Inn
milkings, and up to the final milk
ing at 4:30 p.m., is spent working
with each cow, until the day ends
sometimes at 7 p.m.
“On this farm, things aren’t
awfully modem,” said Ed. “When
we started, we didn’t have a dump
ing station. We carried all the milk
over to the tank, and we were try
ing to improve one thing at a
time.”
Ed said that ‘ ‘you have to spend
time with the cows. I think that
being around the cows a lot helps
to identify cows that have foot
problems and that kind of thing.”
Working with the cows twice a day
seven times a week allows a fanner
to get to know what each cow is
really like and this contributes
greatly to managing them better.
The Sensenichs farm about 69
tillable acres and rent an additional
seven-acre field. Their herd, con
sisting of Guernseys and Hols
teins, includes about 30 milking
cows and six dry cows, in addition
to about 10 heifers and calves. The
Sensenichs milk their cows out of a
tie stall using the old-fashioned
dumping station and buckets.
(Moving to a milking pipeline is
something they’re considering for
the future.)
The Sensenichs regularly have
their forages checked for protein
and other nutritional factors. They
work with Rick Hartman, a dairy
consultant from Leola, who also
helps them with overall herd
management.
Last summer, Ed used a hand
mixed total mixed rations (TMR)
program. The program included a
soy distiller (50 percent soy meal
and SO percent com distiller). In
addition, Ed is feeding the cows
more, “about as much as they can
eat, ’ ’ he said. Keeping the dry mat
ter intake up “helped about as
much as anything,’’ he said.
Di ’ he s-- Ed k(
The Sensenlch’s herd of Guernseys and Holstelns increased milk production by
4,624 pounds, making It the number one highest increase for mixed breed, according
to Pennsylvania DHIA records. Shown here are, left to right, Shenda with 16-month
old daughter Ashley and husband Edward. Photo by Andy Andrews
the cows in the barnyard, and puts
them in the pasture to get their feed
and some exercise. But the better
feeding program, in addition to
keeping track of the protein and
other nutrition in the forages,
helped get improved DHIA
records this year.
“It’s a lot in the feeding,” he
said, “because we jumped in per
cent protein within the first couple
of months, and nonfat solids.”
Ed said that genetics also played
a big part. Nearly 100 percent of
his herd is sired by Atlantic Breed
ers Cooperative.
But the drop in milk prices in
recent months has cast some
gloom on prospects of increasing
the herd and updating the farm
equipment,
“Production is not overly great
even now,” he said. “We were
making progress, and hopefully
we can keep doing that. When milk
prices were good, we were buying
cows and doing everything to try
and improve the herd.”
But now, the Sensenichs hope
that through improved manage
ment, they can continue to enhance
their farm profitability.
Edward S. Sensenlch feeds rations to the dairy herd. A
combination of management and feed improvements
boosted protein averages 158 pounds, making his herd
number one in the state for protein Increase In the mixed
breed category.
Lately, the Sensenichs have
encountered a mastitis problem
and once faced a somatic cell count
(SCC) of about 400,000. But post
dip and pre-dip procedures, and
culling the cows, brought the SCC
down to about 150,000 results
they attribute greatly to help from
the DHIA.
“I think that’s another (area)
where DHIA records helped,”
said Ed. “The records show you
the cows that are making a profit
Because one cow can be milking
SO pounds and have a 3.5 percent
test and the next cow can be milk
ing SO pounds with a 4 percent test
and the profits can change from
one to the other.”
The Scnsenich family has been
with the DHIA since 1963. But
since January of this year, DHIA
has helped to control the mastitis
problem. A combination of culling
older cows (many in the 7-8 year
range) is helping Ed reach his goal
of milking 40-S0 cows.
And given a better price for
milk. Ed would like to exoand the
herd and update the technology in
the bam.
Ed and Shenda met at Manheim
Central High School. Before and
after their marriage, Ed worked
four years as a tractor mechanic. In
1989, he purchased his father’s
(Robert Sensenich) herd, and
began renting the farm (a farm,
said Ed, that has been in the family
back to the years of his
grandfather).
Shenda was raised on a “far
mette,” she said a 4-acre steer
farm managed by her father.
“It’s a nice place to raise a fami
ly,’ ’ said Ed. “And I like being my
own boss.”
Ed said his father and mother do
the milking on the farm when Ed
and his wife need some time away
from the farm. The freedom from a
rigid 9-5 schedule and raising a
family appealed to both of them,
and so far, living on the farm has
been beneficial.
"And I love animals, so I took
to fanning right away.” said