On the Farm: June is Dairy Month
Milk, cheese, yogurt, butter and ice cream are five staples in most people’s diets. A cool splash of milk in a steaming cup of coffee, helps to start your day off right. A hot, cheesy pizza can make any lunch or dinner the simplest and tastiest. Fresh, cool yogurt with different fruits and granola can easily make a healthy and delicious meal any time of day. A buttery, flakey biscuit at breakfast or a hot dinner roll is always better when smothered in melted butter. Of course, the sweet, cold taste of ice cream on a hot summer day makes everything seem so much better. These delicious staples would be impossible without the hardworking farmers that work sunup to sundown three hundred and sixty-five days a year. This month, we celebrate the hardworking dairy farmers that provide us with many delicious and necessary products every day.
Farming, of any type, takes a lot of patience, care, hard work, and time. Livestock are a 24 hours/7days a week/ 365 days job. They take time, care, patience and strength. Farmers must have the patience to take care of a newborn and teach it to eat when their mothers are unable to care for them. They must be able to figure out how to properly feed the animals to make sure they are getting the right nutrients in order to be sustainable in the long run. They must have a gentle hand. Animals do not know any better. They are natural “prey animals”, so they are skittish and scared when something new or different happens.
On dairy farms, farmers must be incredibly gentle and calm around their cattle. Cows do not produce milk if they are being abused, ignored, or treated unfairly. Their bodies will not grow or allow for milk to be let down. If you are nervous or being loud, this frightens the animal. They can sense your discomfort, so they tense up and go into a “flight mode”, which is where they hold their milk and try to get away as fast as they can. Dairy farmers take extra steps by training employees and making sure they keep a calm and quiet environment. They work hard to keep the barns cleaned, maintained, and safe for the animals every day. They take samples and do tons of research to make sure the animals are fed properly to promote growth and maintenance. They work endlessly preparing pastures, barns, and stalls for cattle to lay in or graze, so the animals are always comfortable. They make sure the milking equipment is up to par and in pristine condition to ensure the product they produce is pure, sterile, and safe. They constantly check their cows for sicknesses and treat them accordingly. Most importantly, they make sure the animals are taken care of with love, passion, and care. The work is hard. The days are long. Dairy farmers make a living taking care of everyone.
Happy National Dairy Month, everyone. Next time you enjoy a delicious dairy product, thank a farmer, they work hard so you don’t have to.
Story by Courtney Henderson, Special to the Botetourt Bee
