Barn full of memories: Loren Wieting

What year did you start farming, and what year did you retire? My wife, Marsha, and I got married in 1981, and we worked on three different dairy farms. We also worked with some show strings and helped get cattle ready for sales at that time. After a few years, we settled on a farm near Milbank, South Dakota, and retired from milking cows in 2012. Marsha and I just celebrated our 44 year anniversary, her help and support was an integral part to our success.

Tell us about your farm when you started and describe what it looked like when you retired, including how many cows you milked when you retired. In 1986, we rented a 30-stall barn by Clear Lake, South Dakota, and started milking 30 leased cows on our own. In 1987, we moved to Milbank and purchased an old dairy farm with 32 acres. We remodeled the barn and added on additional tie stalls. We had 62 tie stalls but milked over 100 cows for a short time. We milked three times a day from the beginning and eventually settled on around an 85-cow herd.

What did you love about milking cows? I enjoyed the peaceful midnight milking, but the genetics part of the Holstein business is what I liked the most.

What was the highlight of your dairy career? We started with cows that costed around $1,000, and when I retired, we had a herd average over 25,000 pounds of milk and a BAA over 110%.

What is the biggest challenge you faced in your career and how did you overcome it? It was challenging when we had no hired help until the last couple years when a non-farm high school kid wanted to experience a dairy farm.

If there is one thing you wished you could have done differently during your farming career, what would it be? There were tough days and some tough times, but I wouldn’t change anything. It is a great way to raise kids to be responsible and productive adults.

What do you miss most about dairy farming? The only thing I miss is the smell of fresh feed and a clean barn. The dairy industry has changed so much, and I am happy there are people who still want to do it. I still love great cows, still watch shows online and still go to World Dairy Expo to see old friends and good cows.

What advice would you give to a young farmer today? My advice to a young person who would like to get started is to find someone who is retiring and start out renting a facility, if possible. High debt load doesn’t work; ask a lot of questions and trust advice from those who have wisdom from experience.

Was retiring an easy or hard decision/transition? Retiring was a tough decision but the right one. Looking back, I see God’s timing is perfect.

What have you been doing since you retired? Shortly after retiring from milking, I got a job with FritoLay as a sales representative. I never used to go to the grocery store, and now I practically live in them. I have also started a beef herd of registered shorthorns so I can teach my grandkids about livestock and agriculture.