A2O-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 28. 1992
CJ. BOUGHT AUNG
Tioga Co. Correspondent
MANSFIELD (Tioga Co.)
Quality show cows may not have
been the original goal of Harold
Courtney who oversees the breed
ing of. registered Holsteins at
Esbem Dairy. Nevertheless, his
efforts are producing just that
Esbem Mark Corinne Connie
(Connie for short), a 4-year-old
sired by Walkway Chief Mark,
was the first animal from the farm
to enter competitions and has done
well in every one.
Participating this year in
numerous shows, both county and
state-wide, the cow has brought
home several senior and grand
champion awards, as well at being
named best udder.
Although excellent bloodlines
have played a large part in Con
nie’s success, she certainly could
not have been named a champion
without other members of the
Courtney family helping her.
Leading her at die shows has
been Olivia Courtney, 14, the
daughter of Harold and Sherry and
the third generation to take an
active part in farm life at Esbem
Dairy, the home of Harold's
parents Esther and Bernard
Courtney.
Even Olivia’s mom Sherry, an
elementary school teacher in the
Troy School District, has taken
part as being the Holstein’s fitter,
although Olivia does trim Con
nie’s head.
Sherry’s other important role in
Connie’s success is being a “show
mom.” Duties include taking
daughter Olivia and the bovine to
shows, making sure they are pre
pared to enter the ring, and rooting
for them from the sidelines.
First to spot Connie’s qualities
was local fanner and friend of the
Courtneys, Leroy Fiance.
Since the Courtneys were not
experienced with showing cattle.
Fiance offered to take her to the
district Holstein championship
show in 1988. There Connie
placed first in the senior class
category.
Inspired by the cow’s initial
success, Olivia decided to try her
hand at showing. She joined the
Pickadilly 4-H and began showing
Connie in 1991. At the Tioga
County Fair that year, Olivia and
Connie made a great team, with
the bovine being named grand
champion and best udder in the
open show.
This year Olivia stood proudly
beside her cow as Connie earned a
first in her class, senior champion,
grand champion and best udder at
the 4-H show and a second in her
class at the open show at the Tioga
County Fair.
Additionally, her 1992 achieve
ments include a first in her class,
senior champion, grand champion
and best udder at the 4-H District
Show; a first in her class, senior
champion, grand champion, best
udder and best owned and bred at
the districfchampionship Holstein
show; a first in the junior class and
third in the adult class at (he Black
and White State Championship
show; and a third in her class at
the 4-H slate show.
Olivia has plans to enter Connie
in the Junior All-Pennsylvania
Show in the near future and in
many shows next year.
If Connie is just the beginning
of championship cows to come
out of Esbem Dairy, then Qlivia’s
sister Charity and brother Hal are
bound to see some blue ribbons of
their own in the future.
This year. Charity, 11, gained
enough success to reach state-
Bloodlines Priority At Esbern Dairy
level competition. Hal, 8, also par
ticipated in his first show this year
and is looking forward to more.
In addition to showing cattle,
the children help feed calves on
their grandparents’ farm, plus do
other incidental jobs that are part
of any farming operation.
Bernard and Esther established
Esbem Dairy in 1957. Over the
years their business has grown to
500 head on a total of five farms in
the Mansfield area.
Farmer in the Dell, a popular
local restaurant/dairy store which
houses a processing plant for jug
milk, is also part of Courtneys’
business.
The bam on the home farm
measures 60-feet by 240-feet, and
houses 72 stanchions. There they
milk 180 head, rotating the herd in
three groups. At Farmer in the
Dell, they normally milk 60 head
using a four-stall parlor.
The most recent acquisition was
a farm neighboring the home
farm. The Courtneys gutted the
barn and reorganized the stalls to
house 125 heifers in the winter.
Inside the barn, gates are
strategically place to allow the
herd to move about freely in one
section, while another is being
cleaned. An automatic feeder is
another convenience installed.
For his milkers, Harold prefers
to feed “a combination of good
hay, grain and com silage” in a
total mix ration. The Courtneys
plant 50 acres of oats, 250 acres of
corn, and put in approximately
60,000 bales of hay each year.
Soybeans are purchased for the
grain mixture.
Haylage is stored in a 16-foot
by 60-foot silo.
Com silage is stored in four
silos ranging in sizes from 24 feet
by 70 feet, 20 feet by 70 feet, and
24 feet by 60 feet
In rating his soil, Harold said,
“We have river flats that we rent,
and some average Tioga County
fields. Down through this valley
right here (at Esbem Dairy) we
have pretty good soil.
“We dry treat every cow when
she dries off,” said Harold, in
regards to important factors in
keeping a healthy herd. Plus, the
herd is checked weekly by a veter
inarian so health problems do not
have a chance to advance.
Expenses are minimized in
other areas, however, as the
Courtneys do all their own repair
work on equipment or buildings
and overhaul their tractors them
selves. They have even built the
newer buildings on their property.
Although Harold doesn’t fore
see the farm economy improving
much in the next few years, he
remains optimistic about Esbem
Dairy’s position, especially
because of his breeding practices.
Their main goals for the future,
according to Sherry, is to try to
increase the profit, cut losses and
improve the bloodline. She said,
“The one basic thing we’ve tried
very hard to do is keep the blood
line improving. We’ve done all
our own breeding and we have
never bought cows away from the
farm. They are all home-bred.”
“We use the top bulls from a lot
of different studs,” said Harold,
explaining his use of the Type
Proof Index (TPI).
In addition to using bulls from
the Esbern Dairy herd, Sherry
explained that her husband selects
bulls from TPI for their strong
points which he matches to Esbem
dams with similar weak points.
With Connie, at least, the prac
tice has paid off. And the Court-
(Turn to Pago A2l)
Three generations of Courtneys stand next to their farm sign. From the left front are
Hal and Charity with Morris the cat. In the back, from the left, are Esther, Bernard,
Sherry, Olivia and Harold.
I *■
Bernard Courtney is at the wheel of the tractor, while his son Harold has his hand on
a control lever to unload corn silage at one of the Courtneys five farms.
In addition to making milk, the Courtneys bottle and market it also through their
combination dairy store and restaurant, Farmer in the Dell.
Olivia Courtney shows her multiple champion 4-year-old Holstein named Connie.
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