Heart for Dairy

Jim (left) and Bill Ertl
Holdingford, Minnesota
Stearns County
57 cows

How many years have you dairy farmed? We took over in 1986. This is our 39th year. We rented from our parents for the first six years. 

How has your farm evolved since you started? We started with 28 cows in a tie stall barn. Then we added on to the barn and went to 67 stalls. The original farm was 186 acres, and we now own 355 acres and rent 55. Last year, we put in a 60-by-200 stacking slab and a water catchment pit. We milked in buckets until 1991, so if a cow milked more than 50 pounds, we had to dump the milk and put the unit back on. 

Why is dairy farming the career for you? Bill: Dairy paid the bills at the time, and I liked working with the cows. Jim: I like that I get to be my own boss, and I have enjoyed building up the farm. 

What is a highlight of your career? Bill: I like looking back and seeing the farm from when we started to where we are now, with all the improvements we have done. Jim: It was great when we put up a heated shop. If we want to fix something, we can put it in the shop, and we are ready to go. 

What keeps you motivated? We like making sure everything is taken care of, both the animals and the land. 

What advice do you have for younger dairy farmers? When you borrow money, borrow within your means and realize you won’t have a lot of money at one time, so prioritize what you need. 

What is the best decision you have made? Milking more cows and putting up the shop. 

Looking back, what would you do differently? Possibly, going with a freestall setup instead of adding onto the barn. 

Koehler Dairy 
Ronda and Roy Koehler 
New York Mills, Minnesota
East Ottertail County 
415 cows

How many years have you dairy farmed? We have dairy farmed for 46 years.

How has your farm evolved since you started? My brother and I (Roy) started dairy farming in 1978 — three days after I graduated from high school — with 24 cows milking in buckets on our dad’s other farm, which we bought in 1985. We built a new tie stall barn in 1980 to increase to 48 cows. In 1982, I married my wife, Ronda, and we continued to farm. Then, in 1984, we added onto the barn for 81 cows; in 1989, we added again to milk 100 cows. We built a freestall barn and parlor in 1994 to milk 300 cows. In 2002, my brother left the farm, and my wife and I continued on. In 2010, we went to 375 cows, and today, we milk 415.

Why is dairy farming the career for you? Both our parents dairy farmed, so it was in our blood. Roy knew it was what he wanted to do since he was in the 11th grade.

What is a highlight of your career? Going from 100 cows in a tie stall barn to building a freestall barn for 300 cows. 

What keeps you motivated? Knowing we have good employees who care for our animals as we do and that we are providing a good, healthy dairy product for the consumer.

What advice do you have for younger dairy farmers? Work hard with a positive attitude. You will have some tough days, but in the end, it will be worth it. Also, have a good banker who will work with you.

What is the best decision you have made? For my wife and I to continue milking cows after my brother left.

Looking back, what would you do differently? We wish we would have hired the herdsman we have now many years ago to take the workload off us and take on the vet responsibilities. He does an awesome job.

Scott Hoese
Mayer, Minnesota
Carver County
130 cows

How many years have you dairy farmed? My whole life; I am 67 years old now. I have never worked off the farm.

How has your farm evolved since you started? When I was a child, we milked 30 cows. In the 1970s, we milked 43, and in the 1980s, we milked 65. We formed a partnership with our son, Eric, in 2007, when we built a new compost barn and put in a step-up parlor; at that time, we doubled our herd to 130. We also purchased another farm across the road and added a calf barn and a shop. Our corporation now operates about 1,150 acres.

Why is dairy farming the career for you? It’s the only thing I wanted to do. I like milking cows; it’s relaxing for me.

What is a highlight of your career? Having our son and his family join us on the family farm, and seeing our operation expand and grow.

What keeps you motivated? I enjoy working with my son and our grandkids. We usually have three generations milking every night. I look forward to seeing what comes next.

What advice do you have for younger dairy farmers? Be prepared to work hard and to not overspend. Make time for family.

What is the best decision you have made? When we expanded and added new technologies to our dairy.

Looking back, what would you do differently? I can’t think of anything. Our goal was to continue our family farm, and we have been successful in doing that. Our grandkids are the sixth generation working on the farm. That is a pretty good goal.

Larry Shover (pictured with his wife, Nancy)
Delhi, Iowa
Delaware County
90 cows

How many years have you dairy farmed? Farming full-time since 1970.

How has your farm evolved since you started? I started on the farm with my mom and dad; we raised hogs and milked cows. At that point, we had 33 cows and expanded to 65 in 1986. We put in a pipeline system in 1978 and started with one 15-by-40 silo. We had a finished hog farm which was a major part of our operation. At our peak, we put out 2,500 hogs a year, from farrow to finish. My wife and I bought a house up the road and built a heifer barn and a 20-by-70 stave silo for corn silage for the heifers at our place, as well as a total mixed ration mixer. We redid the milking barn in 1987, a year after my dad passed. We added 31 tie stalls and redid the stanchions into tie stalls to bring our total to 87. Our cows are currently housed in a converted hog barn with a bed pack system. A few years ago, we made the transition to a parlor with freestall barn housing. We added a bigger bulk tank a few years ago. We had two barns where we raised calves, but after a fire in 2018, we’ve been working out of one.

Why is dairy farming the career for you? We always had dairy and hogs on the farm when I was growing up. I had other opportunities, but after graduating from Iowa State University, I wanted to go back to the farm. In 1970 and for the next several years, the hogs and dairy combination worked great. We could do hog chores, and I always liked the cows and the genetic process, seeing the cows and heifers develop. Through the years, I was always surprised by which ones might rise to the top. The lifestyle, with raising a family on the farm and in the rural community, always drew me to this.

What is a highlight of your career? The first highlight for me has been interacting with people in the dairy community. Whether it was the youth in 4-H, the 4-H council, extension council or promotion board, it was great interacting with everyone. The second would be seeing the cattle develop as they go from one stage to another. We also take pride in producing a good product that we believe in and still strongly believe it is good for people, the economy and the environment.

What keeps you motivated? We have been keeping things going here, but we realize there will be an end. We want to transition as gracefully as we can, making sure the cattle are well taken care of and we continue to produce a good product.

What advice do you have for younger dairy farmers? Make sure you don’t overreach and extend yourselves too much. Take the time to care for yourselves and your families. Take good care of the cattle. Keep up with new technology and methods, but realize that, at the same time, there needs to be justification on those technologies and methods to ensure you have a return on your investment.

What is the best decision you have made? The best decision we could have made was when we started breeding for components and production. We’ve had registered cattle for many years, but when we first started, we knew of some people who kept cows around because they were pretty. We’ve always insisted they keep up and produce milk. Lately, we’ve changed our emphasis to higher and higher components, productive life and health traits.

Looking back, what would you do differently? We’ve been blessed on our farm and the life we’ve made here. I don’t think I’d change a lot. I might have been more aggressive buying land when I was younger, or we could have done the parlor/freestall barn update earlier than we did, but overall, I think it all played out how it was supposed to.