To others in Wisconsin, Northwestern Wisconsin may seem like it’s home to a scattering of rural communities in farm country. But, for St. Croix County, were we live, that could be farther from the truth. Neighboring the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro, St. Croix County’s population is one of the fastest growing counties in the state. According to the Department of Administration, the county is protected to grow 41 percent to 119,010 by 2040, making it fourth to first place Dane, followed by Brown and Kenosha Counties, which are home to the Madison, Green Bay and Milwaukee metro areas, respectively (New Richmond News, 2014).  

Increase in population in our area translates to sprawling communities of Hudson, New Richmond and River Falls, as well as increase in the number of people moving to the country on their own little piece of acreage. While this growth is good for the local economy, it also contributes to fewer of our residents having connections or understanding of agriculture and rural life. This divide presents both opportunities and challenges when it comes to working with our local decision makers, neighbors and fellow community members who live in our county’s larger communities.  

This trend is part of the reason I attended the Wisconsin Farm Bureau IGNITE Conference, which focused on Policy, Issues, Advocacy, Governance and Organization, Building Farm Bureau and Communicating for Agriculture and Farm Bureau.  This conference offered an opportunity to draw on resources and information, so I can continue to advocate for agriculture as a farmer, community leader and through Farm Bureau in my county. It's up to us in agriculture and rural communities to have conversations, do outreach efforts and tell our own farming story right in our own community.

In addition to hearing from the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Secretary Sheila Hardsorf, I also attended sessions on agricultural education and outreach programs, political trends impacting the fall state and national elections, tips for working with local media and strategies to work with local issues in our communities.

Here’s an article from The Country Today, which highlights the conference, including a few of my own comments: Read the article here.

During snowy, cold weather like this our young stock are tucked away in the barn. Part of our herd stays outside and does quite well. During weather like this or cold snaps we feed extra hay, which helps keep them warm, bed down the pasture shelters and the goats naturally grow a thick winter coat. I often find that our goats that live outside year round are healthier than if they were in the barn. I didn’t stay out long since I came out to check the goats and bottle feed a few babies.

Note: Our goats and guardian dogs always have access to shelter, water and food. If it gets too cold or too much snow they'll be moved into one of our barns.

When someone asks if we have pets, I’ll talk about our high maintenance house cat and even mention our affectionate barn cats.  But it’s usually a few minutes later I’ll remember to mention my two dogs, Moly and Ruby. I often call the dogs my two best employees, because that better describes them than pets.

Moly and Ruby are both Great Pyrenes, a breed that falls into a group of dogs labeled livestock guardian dogs (LGDs), also a type of “working dog,” similar in nature to police canines, service dogs or herding dogs. The dogs work best in pairs and live with our livestock 24/7. It’s fascinating to watch our dogs work together. The other day while I was checking the pasture, Ruby was laying with the goats on a patch of old hay from their winter feeder. Moly nowhere to be seen. I called for her and a few minutes later she barreled full speed over the pasture ridge. She had been patrolling the north pasture but came back at my call. This is typical LGD behavior, where one dog will stay with the herd, while the other patrols the rest of the pasture. If one dog senses a threat or a disruption, it will bark for the other dog to join them or return to the herd. Rather than attacking, the dogs provide protection in the form of keeping predators at bay. On our farm predators include other dogs, coyotes, bear, wolves, eagles, hawks and even unfamiliar people.

When we have visitors on the farm, I’ll give them a heads up about the dogs and mention that they don’t behave like other breeds of dogs. They won’t come running up to be pet, nor want much, or any attention from people. The dogs are most comfortable with livestock, and that’s due to the breed’s characteristics and the fact that they’ve lived with goats since birth. Both Moly and Ruby live with the goats 24/7, 365 days a year. They don’t come in the house, we don’t take them on walks (except when we were doing some basic training) or take them on trips. In fact, I will schedule veterinarian farm calls for annual checkups to minimize stress on the dogs.  The dogs are feed daily while we check the livestock and they always have access to shelter and water.

Aside from dogs, farms may choose to use other forms of livestock guardian animals, including llamas and donkeys. We’ve used a donkey in the past, but the particular one didn’t work out so he returned to my father-in-law’s farm. The dogs are more appealing for us since they do a better job protecting young livestock from areal predators.

The threat of predators killing livestock is very real, especially in northern Wisconsin. I know farmers who’ve lost calves and sheep to wolves and bear. On our farm we’ve taken measure to protect our goats with Moly and Ruby, our livestock guardian dogs, but also made a substantial investment in high quality woven wire fencing, which includes a strand of electric at the top to keep critters from climbing or jumping in and a strand of barbed wire at the bottom to deter digging under the fence. While we haven’t lost any animals, I know the likelihood of it happening is very possible

If you’re interested in learning more about guardian animals, here are some more resources:

• Livestock Protection Dogs: Selection, Care and Training
• Texas A & M AgriLife Extension Livestock Guardian Dogs
• Livestock guardian dogs protect the flock, On Pasture
• Predator Control for Sustainable & Organic Livestock Production, ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture
• Livestock Guardan Dogs, protecting sheep from predators, USDA

Goat farmer finds new book a welcome resource
By Leslie Svacina

When it comes to goats, there’s not much research, health care products, equipment, reference books, or even veterinarians who have basic knowledge about or are willing to work with goats. Goat producers usually put on their “goat glasses” and adapt sheep or other ruminant information to manage the health needs of their herd.

That’s why Gianaclis Caldwell’s new book, Holistic Goat Care, is such a welcome resource. The book is a comprehensive guide to raising healthy goats, and solving health issues that arise. It’s well suited for both the new and experienced goat keeper, and covers all types of goats. Topics include:

• Starting and managing a herd, and understanding goat behavior
  
• Farm management, nutrition needs, and feed choice
  
• Basic skills for managing herd health
  
• Breeding, pregnancy, delivery, caring for kids, milking
  
• Managing specific goat health problems, including signs and symptoms, as well as treatments and prevention options
  

Caldwell presents the content in an easy-to-read manner that flows well, whether one reads the book in its entirety or uses it as a reference guide. Throughout the book, she blends her practical experience with goats with science-based information. Caldwell also takes a broad holistic approach to health care for goats.

While the goat resources that do exist touch on many of the same topics, most do not have the depth of this book, nor recognize holistic management practices.

Since there are few veterinarians in our area who are knowledgeable on goats, I’ve added a goat veterinary textbook to my stack of resources. While Holistic Goat Care doesn’t dive deep into veterinary medical speak, it is a great resource for goat producers. It is much easier to read than the veterinary textbook, and explains terminology and practices for those who may not have formal training or background in animal science. The book also includes a variety of supply lists, check lists, terminology, signs/symptoms, resource lists, photos, troubleshooting guides, A-Z list of disorders, and a glossary. Additionally, the value of the content is more reasonable—about $40 versus $100 or more for a textbook.

I especially liked the feed choice section, which includes information about pasture, grazing, browse, and forages. Other feeding options were covered, but since I practice rotational grazing, I really appreciated the information in this section.

I also liked the information on the role of minerals, vitamins and supplements, covered both in the feed choice and nutritional needs chapters. The book covers how minerals interact with each other, their impact on a goat’s development, signs of deficiencies, risks of an overabundance of minerals, and approaches to supplement for minerals.

The step-by-step instructions on how to do your own fecal float test to look at parasite loads are good, too. She includes a supply list and instructional photos. There isn’t any information on what certain parasite eggs look like. However, that information is easily accessible online or through a consult with your vet.

I never want to lose one of my goats, but I also recognize the importance of continuing to learn how to care for my livestock. Over the years, I’ve had our veterinarian out to the farm to do necropsies. While observing live animal behavior and symptoms can help us draw conclusions to why a goat may have an ailment, it doesn’t always tell us what is actually happening or why. Necropsies have helped answer these questions and as a result I’ve made some adjustments on feeding and management practices. It’s not always feasible to get a vet out to our farm or bring the animal into the clinic. This guide helps solve this challenge by providing clear instructions on doing a necropsy.

If you’re getting started with goats, the first part of the book includes a variety of information on goat behavior, fencing, feeding, animal handling tips, and so on.

While this book isn’t a substitution for veterinary care, it is a very comprehensive holistic health care reference that all goat farmers should consider having on their bookshelf.

Leslie Svacina owns Cylon Rolling Acres in Deer Park, Wis. She raises meat goats on pasture.

Since the beginning of time, farmers have been innovators, meaning technology and farming have always gone hand in hand.
 
High-speed internet, or broadband, has become a vital utility in our lives. One that could arguably be grouped with electricity, water and sewer; however, if you live in a rural area, this near necessity isn’t available.
 
Broadband is a topic I am very passionate about. I raise goats for meat for cultural and local foods markets. Most of my sales, direct and wholesale, are made through the internet. In today’s world, almost all products and software are internet-based. Poor internet makes it hard to do business even at a basic level.
 
It’s a challenge to send emails, use my accounting program or manage my farm website. It takes an excessive amount of time and sometimes doesn’t happen due to service issues. My husband, who works from home, can’t always access his company server or use web conference calling because of low speed and inconsistent internet.
 
We are rural, but nothing extreme. We are 13 miles from the closest town and an hour from a major metro area. We’ve tried different options for providers, even multiple services at one time, including satellite internet and cell phones. Nothing worked well. Now, we use DSL through our telephone provider, because I refuse to pay for services that don’t work. Others who don’t live far from us pay half the price for speeds that are at least 50 times the speed of what we use, which is 2 megabytes of bits per second, but only after pleading that 1 mbps wasn’t sufficient.
 
In August, I discussed rural broadband challenges with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue while he was in Wisconsin. I explained our situation in western Wisconsin but also shared other frustrations that I’ve heard of such as paying a $100-plus a month and speeds of 0.2 mbps.
 
For example, a friend who has a robotic milk system can’t update her software. The system service tech downloads the update at his shop and creates the updates via hard drive on the farm. Pretty impressive technology, right? Talk about a disadvantage.
 
A fellow Farm Bureau member discussed another point during a round table with Secretary Perdue. Some school districts provide students with iPads so they can do homework, but some rural students can’t use them at home because of broadband availability.
 
In the 2017-19 state budget, $9,187,500 was allocated for schools to apply for specifically designated broadband for personal electronic computing devices. This will be useless without adequate broadband.
 
Rural areas are suffering to keep up. We’re talking about basic access to useable internet for our businesses and students to learn, not for entertainment.
 
The keyword in that last sentence was ’useable.’ Simply having internet doesn’t cut it. It’s about having access to useable, reliable service at a reasonable price.
 
Have you tested your internet speed? Use these steps:

• Visit https://goo.gl/zUYaYJ.
• Click the blue box ‘Run Speed Test’ to find your download speed.

 
For reference the Federal Communications Commission calls 10 mbps basic speed, but has set 25 mbps as its benchmark. I highly recommend you test what your internet speed.
 
While there’s still a long way to go, broadband expansion is at least growing.  The Broadband Expansion Grant Program provides funds for equipment and construction expenses to expand or improve broadband service in underserved areas of Wisconsin.
 
Created by Governor Scott Walker in the 2013-15 budget, the Legislature initially invested $500,000 per year for the program, but it was increased to $1.5 million annually in the next budget.
 
Understanding the critical and timely need for a broadband infrastructure investment in the 2017-19 budget, Governor Walker proposed a significant expansion of the program: approximately $14 million. At the same time, the Legislature approved bills to dramatically increase funding, in response to the recommendations that came in 2016 from the Joint Legislative Council’s Study Committee on Rural Broadband.
 
Wisconsin will see $570 million invested in broadband infrastructure through 2020 via the Federal Communication Commission’s Connect American Fund Phase II project. Three major telecommunications providers in the state are participating in this program with many projects under construction.
 
This may seem like a significant amount of money to invest in a broadband infrastructure, and don’t get me wrong, it is, but the need in rural Wisconsin for faster and more reliable useable service so farmers, and students, can do what they need to do is significant.
 
It’s a wise investment in the people and businesses in rural Wisconsin and one that I believe is long overdue.

It seems like there's a smart technology for everything today. In the last few months I just started using a new smart tech tool on my own farm, an automatic milk feeder for my dairy buck kids so they are able to eat on demand, similar to if they were nursing. For me as the caretaker of my goats, it has allowed me to spend more time working with my animals and observing their health, than when I was mixing milk replacer, feeding with lamb bars and cleaning equipment. It's truly a time saver, which I greatly appreciate since I'm the sole manager of my farm.

You may know what I’m talking about.  There’s a major divide within agriculture, whether it’s large vs. small, organic vs. traditional, grass-fed vs. grain fed, and so on.  I admit there are a lot of layers to this issue. Some of it has been fueled by food marketing and by consumers who want to know how their food is produced.  And, I think the later fact is a good thing. That’s what we’ve been working to accomplish with programs like Ag in the Classroom and outreach through local FFA chapters.  But, we need to do more to come together in agriculture.

So, what can be done to unite our agricultural community internally? This is a big issue that will take time and work from many of us in our day-to-day lives and work in agriculture. For me it has been about:

• Walking the talk:  As I tell my own story as a farmer, I do it with respect to how others farm. We raise different crops, livestock, live in different regions with different soils, different markets and so on. There’s obviously not just one way to farm.  I’ve been taking this approach as I’ve hosted farm tours for Pre-K and elementary age student groups, farm groups and other visitors; work with Ag in the Classroom educational programs, online with social media and my blog, and with conversations with friends, family and fellow community members.
  
• Building my own communication and relationship skill sets through Farm Bureau Leadership Institute. This has helped me share this message with Capitol Hill visits, interviewing state assembly candidates, and working with agricultural issues in my own community
• Bringing this conversation to our high school and technical college agricultural teachers through my past work with the Wisconsin Association of Agricultural Educators. This included bringing in presenters to the annual Professional Development Conference to speak on ag advocacy to build skills for both their role as a teacher and coaching their students advocating for agriculture
• Vision for a county ag showcase event:  St. Croix County is one of the fastest growing counties in the state. We’re practically a suburb of the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. I’d like to use my background communication and event planning to host a small event for decision makers, agencies and media in our county to learn more about agriculture in St. Croix County. It would feature a tour of both a larger dairy farm, smaller or different type of farm and a processor. The goal would be to raise awareness of the diversity of agriculture, advancements, economic impact in our communities and all in an open environment to learn.

While the agricultural industry has come a long way in becoming an open environment for women, there’s still an underlying, often unintentional perception of the role a women plays in production agriculture, and even the jobs that support this field.  More and more women are becoming sole farm owners, or are sharing the decision making with their husbands or families, and also working in careers that directly work with farmers. More young women are planning to work in agriculture. Are we really doing our best to make this an open, welcoming environment?

You might be thinking: Why should I care? Isn’t this a women’s issue?  We should work to shift mindsets for a few reasons. On a personal level we all have connections to women:  daughters, grandchildren, wives, girlfriends, sisters and friends.  From an industry perspective there will be a huge shift in the workforce in the near future. Baby boomers will be retiring in business and farming. There will be a greater number of women stepping into roles. We need to help build a welcoming environment for this next generation, especially if we want to keep women in agriculture, especially as farmers and in careers that directly serve farmers.  Finally, whether it’s a niece, neighbor, co-worker or colleague I encourage others to keep an open mind about the roles and abilities of women in agriculture

More action: Stepping up
The perceptions of women can continue to change by our own actions we take in the agricultural community and related organizations. Here’s what I’ve been doing as a farmer, who happens to be female:

• Lead by example of what I’m doing as a farmer, not as a female farmer.  I’ve hosted farm tours for other women in ag, use social media, including Facebook, Instagram, as well as written and video blogs  featuring my face and I’m doing on the farm. Fluff not included.
• Serve in ag leadership positions that aren’t just for women.  A few years ago I had the opportunity to join county Farm Bureau board and now am serving as Vice President.
• Community ag involvement: I continue to represent myself and the work I do as a volunteer with organizations such as the FFA Alumni, as well as past service with the UW-River Falls Alumni Advisory Board Executive Committee and the UW-River Falls College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Alumni President.
• Cognizant of how I interact with other women in agriculture by supporting everyone in this business and recognize I’m a role model whether I like it or not.
• Talk to everyone I know about what I farm and what I do.  I admit, growing up in a rural area where we are encouraged to be humble and not talk about ourselves, this has been work in progress for me.
  

While I’m getting closer to my projected size for my farm, I know it also wouldn’t be possible without programs and resources that support beginning farmers. Farming takes a lot of capitol (meaning money) and assets (meaning equipment, facilities, land and so on).  It is a huge investment to get started, especially when you don’t have access to family land and/or assets. I’m not suggesting my farming friends who are farming with their families have it easy, nor am I wanting this to come across as "poor me." The reality is this is a huge hurtle for our next generation of farmers who don’t come from farming families or don’t have option of using family land/assets.

While this is my story, I know there are many others who want to get into farming that have similar stories or who are still trying to figure out how to break their way in through all the barriers. In agriculture we spend a lot of time talking about farm transition plans within families, but we also need to be thinking about how transition plans could work for those who want to retire without family and with those who want to begin farming without access to family land and assets and succeed in doing so.

This issue of accessibility to farm is a major issue for agriculture, when we start to think about the average age of today’s farmers, which is an average age of 57 and 30% are over the age of 75 (USDA). And, many of these farmers are starting or want to retire. I started to recognize this challenge when I was working for CHS and met young farmers while writing profile articles for the cooperative’s farmer magazine and working with its young farmer leadership program.

Through farm organizations, we need to be supporting and promoting programs for beginning farmers through

• Supporting state and federal programs, such as those through USDA Farm Service Agency with low interest loans and the Natural Resources Conservation Services conservation programs, but also even looking at other incentives to support beginning farmers, such as the Iowa Beginning Farmer Tax Credit
• Supporting tools and programs to connect retiring farmers with beginners, such as the model with the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship or the Land Stewardship Project.  
• Facilitating beginning farmer networking, learning and leadership opportunities, such as those through organizations like Farm Bureau, the Farm Credit System or Extension.
• Including succession planning approaches beyond family as an option for consideration.

A few of the ways I’ve been helping raise awareness and address this issue is through sharing my voice as a beginning farmer with lawmakers and at our Farm Bureau district policy development meetings and with Congressional visits.

Additionally, while I’m by no means a seasoned farmer, I’ve been sharing my own advice with beginning farmers. This last summer I hosted a farm visit with a women’s conservation program, Wisconsin Farmers Union’s Women Caring for the Land program, and even helping share resources and facilitating networking with an informal farmer group I started and coordinate: the Wisconsin Meat Goat Producers Network because there is no formal state goat farmer organization.

References
Beginning Farmer Tax Credit (2017).  Iowa Finance Authority. http://www.iowafinanceauthority.gov/Public/Pages/PC204LN48
Farm demographics (2015). USDA. http://www.start2farm.gov/usda/knowledge
Young farmers still concerned about adequate land. (2015). American Farm Bureau Federation. The Voice of Agriculture.

While our Wisconsin weather lets us practice rotational grazing (feeding on pasture) during the spring, summer and fall months, the winter is a different story for feeding our goats.  In the fall when the pasture quality starts to drop, we’ll let the goats have access to the barn and start to feed them hay, usually in a feeder in the pasture closest to the barn.  Just like during grazing season, our goats always have access to fresh water and loose minerals (think goat multi-vitamin).  

We feed hay outside for a few reasons. First, the goats get regular exercise. And, second, is to keep the barn cleaner, moving the hay debris and extra manure waste outside. As a bonus, the manure also helps fertilize our pasture.  The goats are fed in the barn when the temperature drops below zero. They do great in the cold weather and grow and impressive, thick winter coat, much like you’d see on a dog.

We’ve been lucky this last week, as it’s been seasonably warm for Wisconsin in January with day temps in the mid-30s. Now, I’m closely watching the snow melt, mud and puddles to make sure the pasture doesn’t get too damaged by all the hoof traffic, and more importantly, the goats’ hooves aren’t exposed to too much moisture, which can cause infections.  If it gets too muddy and wet, we will have to start feeding in the barn again until the ground surface freezes again.

In another month we’ll be getting ready for kidding (baby goats!).  Depending on the mobility of the pregnant goats, I may start to do more feeding in the barn to give their legs a little more rest.