Nathan Kuehnert
Dairy
Farmer
Fort
Wayne, Indiana
How did you become a
farmer?:
Dairy farming is what I grew up doing
with family, so I guess you could say “it’s in my blood”. My brother and I started showing cows through
4-H at a very young age and really learned how to “care” for the cows. I worked on the farm through all my years in
school, and while being away at college I realized how much I missed being at
home doing what I loved.
How does your family
ensure your cows stay comfortable?:
Nearly every activity that we do on the dairy is centered around one
common goal: To make the cows' lives a
little more comfortable. We have always
believed that “a happy, healthy, comfortable cow is a profitable cow”. We help to achieve this level of comfort in many
ways by providing: a fresh balanced
diet of hay, corn, vitamins and minerals every single day, fresh clean water to
drink, a meticulously groomed bed of sand to sleep on, big fans to keep air
fresh and cool, and a water sprinkler shower on hot days.
If you weren’t a
dairy farmer, what would you do?:
That’s a very interesting question that I honestly think about at times,
especially after a full seven day, 100 hour work week. I believe that I would have become a
doctor. I feel that a doctor would have
been a great career fit for me because I love to work under pressure and I
really enjoy taking care of our cows that don’t feel well and getting them back
to good health.
How many generations
work on your farm?: My brother and I are the 5th
generation to dairy farm at this location.
We are really proud that there are currently four generations at the
farm on a daily basis. My grandfather, Melvin, is here every day and is our “do anything man”. He performs daily tasks like driving tractors
and repairing equipment, however his favorite job is giving his great-grandchildren
a ride on his ATV. My father, Alan, and my
Uncle Stan manage all of the daily functions on the dairy from feeding the cows
to harvesting the crops. My mother, Cindy, wife, Sarah, and sister-in-law, Brittany, feed all of the baby calves every day, which is probably the most
important job. My brother, Andrew, is in
charge of the nutrition and ensures that the cows get a balanced diet every
single day. My main duty is helping to
keep the cows healthy and happy by providing the proper care and administering
the right medications. I also manage our
cattle reproductive program and make the genetic decisions. We are also very lucky to have a couple of
young men who work with us that are like family: Kyle Walters, Luke Hesterman, and Colton
Brown.
What is the best thing about being a farmer?: It’s pretty cool knowing at the end of each and every day that we have worked to provide the world with “Nature’s most perfect food”: MILK. There is a lot of pride knowing that everything we do is surrounded around one goal: to make the cleanest, purest, most high quality milk that we can. And this is all possible by maintaining a healthy, happy cow.
What is your personal
philosophy on farming?: We strive to feed
the world by being good stewards of the land, excellent caretakers of our cows,
and great neighbors in our community.
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