For those of you who read my first blog, you know the excitement I had to become a full-time dairy farmer. If you didn’t read it, long story short, I left an excellent job to come back to a physical job with longer hours and less pay, and I couldn’t wait to get started!
Many of you reading this know the current market situation, and being a young dairy farmer, it makes those challenging days that much harder. I’ve asked myself, “Is a family farm a blessing or a curse?” Don’t get me wrong; I love my job. I truly enjoy working with the animals and being outdoors, but it has been an extremely challenging year for everyone.
One thing is for sure, there is never a dull moment on the farm, and never again will I complain about being bored! I’ve learned valuable lessons in year one and wanted to share some of them with you:
Be flexible
In my first year on the farm, I’ve learned you must be flexible. You never know when a cow is going to calve or be sick. The weather changes by the minute, and just like that, the plans do too. This is something I’ve really struggled with because I like having a plan, and when things change, I tend to get upset.
Expect change
I feel like this goes well with my first point, be flexible and expect change. We are constantly striving to get better on our dairy and must to be willing to change. I have learned to expect change, so when it comes, I can take it in stride. When I returned to the farm, I made some drastic changes to our calf program. In the last year, we built a new transition barn, and six weeks ago I changed roles on the farm. I went from calf and heifer manager to overall herd manager, taking care of daily treatment of fresh and sick cows. It’s been a learning curve to say the least and a few more hours!
Work hard, plan for the worst, expect the best
My last one is two-fold: Farming is difficult, physically and mentally. Try to get rest when you can, and be ready to work hard when it’s time to work. Secondly, I’ve learned to prepare for the worst, but expect the best. One of my biggest challenges is managing employees. If I’m questioning if someone is going to show up for work, I make sure to have a backup plan. I think this strategy fits well with the current market situation as well. We budgeted for poor milk prices but hope for the best with prices rebounding and higher performance on our end.
I can’t wait to see what year two has in store for me. 
Christine Bender dairy farms with her parents and grandparents in Watertown, Wisconsin.
The Dairy Strong Bloggers series is brought to you on behalf of the Dairy Strong conference, Jan. 23-24, 2019, in Madison, Wisconsin. This event focuses on cutting-edge technology, cultural trends and the future of the dairy community. Learn more and register at the Dairy Strong website.
PHOTO 1: Christine Bender returned home to her family dairy as the calf and heifer manager. She recently assumed the duties of overall herd manager.
PHOTO 2: Christine Bender and her family attended the 2018 Professional Dairy Producers Business Conference. From left to right are Peter and Cindy McFarland, Christine Bender and her husband, Robb Bender. Photos provided by Christine Bender.
