AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 13, 1996
OPINION
Matthew, David , Heath
And John, Congratulations
As reported last week, die Pennsylvania senior Holstein dairy
bowl team won the national contest at the Holstein Association
USA, Inc., convention in Fort Worth, Texas. The four-member
team included Matthew and David Day, Heath Ocker, and John
Creek.
We are always gratified when our youth excel. And this is quite
a feat. In competition with the best from 20 other states, this team
won handily, scoring by a fairly wide margin even in the finals
over the team from Wisconsin.
You could say practice makes perfect. Last year at the national
convention, hosted by the Pennsylvania Holstein Association in
Pittsbourgh, this team came in second.
But the real story is maybe not the national honors as great as
they are. Like any contest of knowledge and skill, years of hard
work went into the win.
This team has been working together for six years. With this
hard work came an education. Sometimes they learned to come in
second. At such times they learned to depend on each other. They
learned discipline and self control. They gave us the pleasure of
watching as they grew from boys to men.
In addition, they learned a lot about the dairy industry that will
be valuable in whatever job resumes they may offer in the future.
But to us, the greatest part of the story is their good attitude.
When we did the interview last week, they first wanted to thank
their coach Arm Day who happens to be Matthew and David’s
mother. And in a letter to supporters that all the members signed,
they said that none of these awards would have been possible
without all the wonderful support of friends in the dairy industry.
Matthew, David, Heath, and John, we give you our best
wishes. And by the way, congratulations!
Effective Pastures: Tour and Field
Day, Hickory Hill Farm, Dela
ware State University Research
Farm, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
20.
Show Series, KA Equestrian Cen
ter, Cochranville, 8:30 a.m.
Tulpehocken Adult Young Farmer
picnic, Wilbur and Arlene Her-
Armstrong County Junior Holstein
Show, Crooked Creek Horse
Park, Ford City, thru July 16.
Effective Pastures: A Tour, Dela
ware State University, 10
4-H Leadership Conference, Mil
lersville University, thru July
19.
Armstrong County Junior Holstein
Show, Crooked Creek Horse
Park, Ford City, 9 a.m.
Lakeview Farm Pasture Walk, Jeff
B. Sloltzfus Farm, Oxford, 10
a.m.-noon.
Southeast District Dairy Show,
Lebanon Fairgrounds.
Leola Produce Auction twilight
meeting, Leola, 6:30 p.m.-8
p.m.
Fruit Grower’s Twilight meeting.
Green’s Fruit Farm, Elysburg,
6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.
Solanco Young Farmers meeting,
Dwayne Peifer’s dairy bam,
7:30 p.m.
w f
Farm Calendar*
s *. __
Jefferson County Holstein Show,
Fairgrounds, Brookville, 9 a.m.
Lycoming County Holstein Show,
Fairgrounds, Hughesville, 10
a.m.
Somerset County Holstein Show,
Fairgrounds, Meyersdalc, 6
p.m.
Dairy Facilities and Management
Tour, begins at Lebanon Coun
ty Ag Center. 9:45 a.m.-3:15
p.m.
Maryland Extension Open Forum
Twilight meeting, Larriland
tions for Agriculture tenth
annual tour of ag and forest
facilities and picnic, Edko
Farms, Kosa Family, Ulysses, 1
p.m.
(Turn to Page A3l)
Editor,
For as long as most dairy far
mers can remember, they have
always heard, you can’t raise milk
prices because there is too much
milk.
When a lot of cows lie down and
chew their cuds soon after eating,
they are telling you that a lot of
things are right, according to
Glenn Shirk, extension dairy
agent
They have a comfortable rest
area that entices them to lie down.
The result is they expend less ener
gy and more nutrient-laden blood
passes through the udder and milk
production increases.
Their rumen is functioning well,
which indicates that digestion and
milk production are efficient.
When a lot of cows stand up to
chew their cud or stand partly in
their stall, or lie in alleys or lie
backwards in their stalls, they are
telling you they would like to have
a more comfortable place to rest
It is a clue to you;
• To check bedding depth and
softness of cow beds.
• To check the length and width
of stalls.
• To check the amount of lunge
room cows have for their heads
when they get up.
• To check the positions of neck
rails, cow trainers, tie rails, length
of tie chains, curb heights, etc.
w
Cows cannot talk but they can
communicate to us by various
forms of body language.
Glenn Shirk, extension dairy
agent, reminds us the better we are
at reading their body language and
responding to it, the more effective
we will be as herd managers.
When we walk into a group of
cows, do they walk up to you and
can you walk amongst them with
out them getting excited or getting
up from their stalls and scurrying
to get away from you? If so, these
cattle probably have received good
care and treatment
Cows like these arc relaxed and
generally produce better. Do cows
get up easily without hesitation
and discomfort? Can they easily
get to and operate waterers without
getting shocked? Do cows stand
back and wait their time before eat
ing and drinking?
If so, this may be happening for
a number of reasons. They may be
/ { v
V / y
♦ Farm Forum ❖
Yet, every time some farm orga
nizations develop and promote
milk supply-management prog
rams, these same people cry out
against the proposal, saying, you
To Check
Cows’ Behavior
To- Read
Cows’ Body
Language
'■>
*•’ »
- .
(Turn to Page A 29)
first calf heifers who are at the bot
tom of the peck order. It may be
beneficial to manage them as a
separate group even if they are
receiving the same ration.
Other reasons include insuffi
cient bunk space and watering
areas or inadequate water flow.
Leant to read cows’ body lan
guage. Cater to them and they will
reward you well.
To Know Reasons
For Cow Behavior
Glenn Shirk, extension dairy
agent offers the following ideas
based on your cows’ behavior.
If cows are reluctant to walk to
feeding and watering areas
because of poor footing, it may be
necessary to groove concrete
alleys. Also remove small, sharp
objects from their walkways.
Do cows consume more feed
DON'T FORGET TO
REMEMBER
July 14, 1996
DON’T FORGET TO
REMEMBER
July 14, 1996
Background Scripture:
Psalms 105
Devotional Reading:
Psalms 106:1-12
In Psalms 104, the Psalmist
looked at the wonders of God’s
world and, when he contemplated
all of these, he felt led to praise
God.
The Psalmist in Psalms 105 also
is led to praise God because of his
contemplation. But his time, that
to which he gives his deepest
thoughts \s not in nature, but in
history.
In my life span I have witnessed
the anxiety of the Great Depres
sion, the struggle of World War n.
the fearful fight against Commun
ism, and now that Communism is
no longer our great enemy, it
would seem we have turned
against ourselves. I’ve often
thought about all those changes
I've seen in my 66 years and won
dered just how it was that a whole
world moved from crisis to resolu
tion, from another crisis and an
other resolution, and so forth.
The popular interpretation is
that various individuals have been
responsible for moving the rest of
us from one struggle to another.
Roosevelt, Churchill, Hitler, Tru
man, Stalin, Ghandi, Gorbachev
and so many others. Certainly
each of these people played key
roles in the history of our times.
But, behind these people and their
movements, is there not some
thing else that shapes our history?
A SINGLE THREAD
In Psalms 105 the Psalmist does
a quick survey of the major outline
of the history of Israel. From the
time of the Patriarch Abraham,
through the conquest of the Prom
ised Land he looks for a single
thread that connects all these var
ied events and people. In each of
these acts of powerful people, the
Psalmist sees the hand of God
working in human history and
moving both creatures and crea
tion in the direction of his will. It
is God who is in charge of history,
not his children. So when he con
templates the history of his peo
ple, the Psalmist is moved to
praise and thank the Lord for his
mighty acts.
from one end of the bunk than
another? If so, it may be beneficial
to create another access lane to the
bunk or to the other side of the
bunk to reduce the distance cows
have to walk. This also helps cows
to feel less trapped in dead-end
alleys.
Do cows congregate in favorite
spots? If so, try to determine what
it is that attracts them to these
areas. Then try to duplicate those
conditions in the areas you want
the cows to use. It might mean pro
viding better ventilation, more air
circulation, mote light in the feed
ing and rest areas, or moving the
feeding and watering areas closer
to the rest area.
Feather Prof.'s Footnote: “Like
ripples from a single drop of
water, a positive attitude spreads
to everyone."
Actually, the Old Testament
never devotes much space or time
to ideas about God. What the Old
Testament recounts in detail are
the events in which God has been
seen to be acting. God is revealed
to the people of Israel, not in
creeds or doctrines, but in his sav
ing and redeeming acts. So the
people of Israel were concerned,
not so much with what God is as
they were with what God does.
And the key to this perspective
is remembering. The Psalmist re
members and he challenges the
people to remember with him
what God has done; “Remember
the wonderful works that he has
done, his miracles and the judg
ments he uttered. . .”(105:5). Fur
thermore they are to help others to
remember . .make known his
deeds among the peoples!... tell
of his wonderful works!”
LORD OF HISTORY
Isn’t that what being a disciple
of Jesus Christ is all about be
ing aware of what he has done for
you and witnessing to it? Why do
we not search the annals of history
and our own lives to find that
same single thread? God acting
through the acts of his children,
moving history both personal
and corporate to that purpose
he has ordained. People may bring
on the crises but God moves us
through them. He is the Lord of
history. In a sense, history is His
Story.
God also remembers: “He is
mindful of his covenant forever,
of the word that he commanded
for a thousand generations” (v.B).
And: “For he remembered his
holy promise, and Abraham his
servant” (v. 42). So there is not on
ly purpose in history, but also
faithfulness. While they were still
landless nomads in the desert, he
made his promise to make them a
great nation. It took a long time
for that promise to be fulfilled, but
it was the people not God, who de
layed.
Someone has said that the
Christian with an experience will
always be closer to God than the
one with a doctrine. What we all
need to do is to contemplate our
own experiences in order to find
that same thin strand of Provi
dence. Let us never forget to re
member the mighty, saving acts of
God.
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
' Published Every Ssturdsy
Ephrete Review Building
1 B. Main St.
Ephrete. PA 17522
-by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Steinman Enterprise
Robert G. Campbell General Manager
Everett R. Newawanger Managing Editor
Copyright 1996 by Lancaster Farming