Today, my dad and I are headed up the road to Artesian, S.D. to help our neighbors wean their calves for today’s sale in town. I think it’s a great resource to team up with neighbors, whether it be borrowing equipment or sharing labor forces. Anyway, it has started raining again, and I think I’m going to be wishing I was back inside blogging instead of working cattle in the mud and rain; however, this blogging/cattle ranching business is truly a balancing act, and I feel very fortunate to be able to do both. Before I head out to the ranch, I thought I would share a conversation I recently had with South Dakota State University Cooperative Extension Service Veterinarian, Russ Daly. Daly, DVM, met with me last week to discuss this ongoing battle between the animal rights activists and farm and ranch organizations. The SDSU Extension Service is currently working on developing an outlet to share unbiased information about agriculture with consumers, and although they are still in the planning stages, Dr. Daly had plenty of thoughts on this particular subject. Read on to learn what he has to say about the animal care debate.

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It’s a busy day at our operation today. Later this afternoon, we will be loading up our sale cattle to market in town. For the better part of the last two weeks, we have been sifting through the calves to select our replacement heifers and the bulls we will market later this year through private treaty sales. We have a strong group of uniform calves this year, so it was really difficult to make additions to the cull list, but we eventually came to an agreement on which calves to keep and which to sell. You know, when things get busy at the operation, it can be difficult to focus on the larger issues at hand such as the upcoming election in Ohio where Issue 2 will be voted on. Issue 2 will establish the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board, an effort that would show voters how much food producers care about their animals while helping to eliminate a destructive and aggressive assault from the Humane Society of the United States to Ohio communities in the future. So, I want to know why agriculture is all of a sudden divided on Issue 2?

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I’ll admit that, as of late, I haven’t been feeling exactly positive about the state of the beef industry today. What with the cold, wet weather conditions slowing up harvest and making muddy lots, it hasn’t been the best of times this past month. And, I’ll be frank and say that the market conditions don’t exactly encourage a young person like me to jump into this industry with both feet. Yep, it seems like I had lost my enthusiasm for the cattle industry, and I wasn’t sure when or if it was going to come back. However, yesterday I was out helping my dad do chores, and the sun was shining and the rain had finally stopped, and the only way to look was up. I couldn’t help but smile as we watched the calves belly up to the feed bunks to eat, and I was excited to see combines out harvesting as we were moving cows to another available grazing spot. I realized that although the weather and market conditions may not be ideal for us right now, there is hope for the upcoming years, and I’m proud to be a part of this business.

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Women in agriculture are unsung heroes. When a woman vows to marry a farmer, she knows she is also marrying the operation, too, including the cattle, sheep, hogs, crops, hay and all of the work that goes with it. When marrying into farm life, she knows she will have a life full of blessings and a life full of trials. Yet, she takes it in stride, making it look easy as she balances things like off-the-farm work, home, family, food, bills, records, busy schedules, laundry, gardening, community service activities and the list goes on. However, despite how the farmwife manages to conquer the day-to-day tasks with ease, the one thing that is often forgotten is her. Today, I want to remind farm women how greatly appreciated they truly are.

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Rain. Rain. Rain. It seems to be the theme for 2009. Some of you are begging for a drop of rain, and some of us are just wishing it would go away already. In South Dakota, we continue to fight the rain, trying to get the crops in and trying to work cattle in the mud. And, in my travels across the country and my email updates from readers, it’s evident that many of you are experiencing the same weather troubles. From drought to floods, is there a happy medium? If there is, which state is experiencing it right now? Today, I want to shoot the breeze like friends in a coffee shop. So, what’s it like in your neck of the woods? Inquiring minds want to know…

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At times, it feels like the general consumer doesn’t understand what we do on our farms and ranches. In the past few years, it has become evident that the public mistrusts the American farmer and rancher, which is unfortunate, because we have the same worries and concerns as they do. Like our consumers, we worry about animal care, the environment, food safety and sustainability. Yet, so often, the plight of the ranchers themselves is forgotten. Profitability, good health and a well-balanced lifestyle are sometimes hard to achieve in the 24/7 business of producing food, but it hardly seems like the media is ever concerned about that. However, this week in MSN Careers, Career Builder Editor Kate Lorenz identifies America’s Most Dangerous Jobs, and she lists the challenges farmers face in her countdown. Finally, a media source that remembers humanity and recognizes the hard and dangerous work farmers and ranchers do on a daily basis. Read on for an excerpt of her article… And, please remember to be safe and smart this harvest season. God Bless.

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As I was driving to the Twin Cities this weekend to attend the Minnesota Beef Expo, the radio was nonstop news about a show pig that was infected with the H1N1 virus. Cheers to the one radio station that reminded consumers that 1) H1N1 has been incorrectly named the swine flu, even though it’s a virus that originates from people, birds and pigs, and 2) You can not get H1N1 from eating pork. However, every other report I heard on the radio or the news referred to it as both H1N1 and the swine flu. I don’t care if it’s easier to say, continuing to repeat the incorrect name because it’s convenient is absolutely destructive to the animal agriculture industry. My support goes out to America’s pork producers, and I have gathered some important reference materials for all of you to read and pass on in your email lists. For the last time, media, it’s H1N1, not swine flu. Thank you.

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I’m so excited to tell you about a new program that just launched last week! This program is called College Aggies Online, and it is a joint venture of the Animal Agriculture Alliance (AAA) and American National CattleWomen, Inc. (ANCW) that will connect college students from across the country who are interested in promoting agriculture by sharing their story. Participants will receive training and instructions from industry professionals and will enjoy access to a private forum (accessible at http://aggiesonline.ning.com) to post information about current and emerging issues facing farmers and ranchers. The online community will provide resources to students on key issues to help them better use tools such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter to share agriculture’s story with the public. Get involved and join College Aggies Online, today!

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Today is Blog Action Day 2009 where thousands of bloggers in countries around the globe write about the same topic on the same day to make a difference in the world. This year’s topic is climate change, and I’m working hard to make sure agriculture has a voice in today’s big event. It’s sad really…of the suggested topics on climate change given to bloggers that registered for this event, the first idea was agriculture and the global impact food production has on the world. While we all know that farmers and ranchers are unfairly taking the blame for the world’s environmental problems, I’m going to work to share with millions of readers on Blog Action Day the real facts and figures about the foods we eat. Let’s get down to business and share the real story about American animal agriculture. Feel free to pass this link on through every outlet available: Facebook, Twitter, blogs, email, etc. We need to spread the positive message about beef, today!

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Since I started my agriculture advocacy work three years ago, I have made it a point to monitor the activities of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), an extremist animal rights powerhouse determined to eliminate animal agriculture and promote a vegan lifestyle for all Americans. Through my observations, I have noticed that most of the leaders and members within this organization have no real connection with God; in fact, many of them point out that they are atheists. To me, this makes sense. Because they equal the life of a human being to the life of an animal, it’s impossible to envision these folks as God-fearing citizens. In debates with HSUS and PETA advocates over the years, I have always been able to reference Biblical verses as proof that God created the animals for us to care for and for us to use as food. In their latest public relations stunt to manipulate money from consumers, it seems that HSUS is finally catching onto the game and are trying to create a Christian image for themselves.

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