Brothers in arms on the farm

CADOTT, Wis. — Delton and Timothy Kenealy are growing up, side-by-side, on their family’s Chippewa County dairy farm. The brothers agree it is a life they hope to continue by taking their family’s dairy farm into the future.

The boys and their parents, Jeff and Trista Kenealy, milk 550 cows near Cadott.

“I can’t really think about what it would be like to not be on the farm,” Timothy said. “I don’t think I would want to ever be anywhere else.”

Growing up on the farm, with ample land to hunt, combined with parents who enjoy the pursuit, hunting has naturally become a favorite pastime of the duo.

Each boy bagged their first deer in Wisconsin’s Youth Deer Hunt, held Oct. 11-12 across the state.

Luck struck first for Timothy, who got his deer — a nice 8-point buck — in the morning hours Oct. 12, using a .243 rifle given to him by his father.

“Dad and I went out to the tree stand and waited for a bit,” Timothy said. “There was nothing that came out for a long time. Then he came out, by himself. He was up by our camera, so we checked the camera and saw he was a buck. I waited ‘til I had a good shot, then took the shot.”

Timothy said waiting to go look for that deer felt longer than sitting in his least favorite class in school.

“We let him lie for a half hour and then we started looking for him,” Timothy said. “We looked and looked by couldn’t find him. I was heading back to the tree stand, to try and visualize everything again, when all of the sudden, I saw the white belly out of the corner of my eye.”

As Timothy and his father walked up, they had a pleasant surprise.

“We had thought it was a smaller buck,” Timothy said. “But he was a nice 8-pointer, and pretty good sized.”

Later in the day, it was Delton’s turn to hit the woods with his dad, armed with a .270 rifle.

“We went out around 4 or so and stayed for a while,” Delton said. “Finally, around 6 or 6:15, two older fawns came in and 10 minutes later, a bigger doe came in. I waited until I had a nice shot. She ran a good way, but she was easy to find with a good blood trail. She went down just about 12 yards from jumping the fence.”

A family of avid hunters, the Kenealys process their own deer, something the boys have grown up enjoying. After his morning hunt, Timothy said they took the backstrap from his buck and grilled it for that evening’s dinner.

“It felt pretty good to know that I had gotten the deer we were eating,” Timothy said. “Knowing that you provided dinner, that is a good feeling.”

Besides enjoying the backstraps, the Kenealys made jerky, a favorite for the boys, from the two deer harvested that day, along with sausage and bacon.

Enjoying the fruits of their hunt is not the only thing the Kenealy brothers enjoy about the sport.

“I like the rush of when you shot a deer and you’re all nervous because you don’t know if you hit it or missed it,” Delton said.
“You have to wait and give them time. The anticipation, it’s hard to sit and wait.”

Spending time with their parents is another benefit.

“It’s something different to do,” Timothy said. “Sitting there with Mom or Dad is nice. You talk some, but just being there together, even if it’s quiet, it’s just nice.”

Both boys plan to join their parents in the woods again this year. For Delton, it will be his second regular, firearms deer season, while Timothy will be taking part in his first. For as long as either can remember, they said they have enjoyed going out with their parents while hunting.

The privilege of hunting their family’s land is something the boys say they have been able to earn, taking active roles in helping with the work on their family farm — which makes hunting even more special.

Both Delton and Timothy plan to build their careers on the family’s dairy.

“Farming is just what I want to do,” Delton said. “I like having the farm, all the space. I like the work; it is important work.”

The two future farmers, both members of the Cadott FFA Chapter, made their first business partnership purchase earlier this year, pooling money earned and saved through their livestock projects to purchase an International 1086.

“Dad wouldn’t let us get four-wheelers or anything,” Delton said. “He told us to get a tractor.”

They began searching in earnest in May, perusing websites like TractorHouse and Facebook Marketplace. In July they found the tractor they were looking for at a price they could afford.

“It was a nice tractor, and in good shape for only $3,900,” Delton said. “It was out in the hills and had only really pulled a hay baler, so it wasn’t a lot of hard use.”

Using their tractor, the pair have joined in with various jobs on the farm including hauling bales and spreading manure; and their dad has used it on the batwing mower.

While they both enjoy all aspects of the farm, Delton said fieldwork is typically his preferred chore, while Timothy enjoys time spent with the cows.

“Living on the farm, all the things we get to do, the way we’ve gotten to grow up, it’s good,” Delton said. “I’m glad I was born here, that my parents farm and my grandpa farmed. I want to farm and have kids who farm someday, too.”