Women in Dairy: Kiley Heim

Kiley Heim 
Algoma, Wisconsin
Kewaunee County 
825 cows 

Tell us about your farm and family. Our family farm started back in 1963 with my great-grandparents, Ray and Florence Heim, milking 30 cows. My grandparents, Lloyd and Joyce, took over in 1976 and grew the milking herd to 50 cows. A devastating fire in 1995 destroyed the original farm, causing Lloyd and Joyce to make a big decision of whether or not to keep farming. Farming was their passion, and they rebuilt in 1996, milking 200 cows, which set the foundation for our family. In 2000, two of their sons, Jeremy and Scott, joined the partnership. Over the years, many additions were made, and our cow numbers increased. Cow health and comfort were super important to us and will continue to be, so we installed collars to track cow health. Results from the collars continued to help us adjust to ensure healthy animals. In 2021, we built a maternity barn to focus thoroughly on our mothers during one of their most stressful periods in life along with calves’ first couple hours/days of life. We are now at 825 milking cows and raise our own calves and heifers. Our calves are on automatic feeders to receive milk any time of day. They start on the feeders on Day 5 of their lives until they are about 65 days. Seeing a need in Kewaunee and surrounding counties for improved manure applications, Jeremy and Scott embarked on a new journey, and Heim Brothers Custom was born in 2015. They use some of the highest technology to take great care in continuing to provide neighboring farms with a way to handle their manure in a safe, clean and environmentally friendly manner, ensuring all nutrients are recorded and accounted for. Over the years, family members continued to join our farm journey. Rod, Lloyd’s oldest son, came back to the farm in 2020 to work in the shop. Carrie, Scott’s wife, started her role as milker when she was only 14 years old and is now the head herdsperson. I worked on the farm while growing up and took on the role of calf manager in 2013. Ben, Jeremy’s son, and Sam, Rod’s son, worked on the farm while growing up as well and joined full time after high school in 2021 and 2022. We have been blessed to have numerous employees who are also related to us and continue to be a part of what we built.

What is a typical day like for you on the dairy? A typical day for me starts with feeding our calves every morning and walking and checking for anyone that might be a little off. From there, every day is a bit different; however, many are similar but just not always done in the same order. I usually go around the yard, feed the cats, fill the refrigerators with soda and water, grab any of the shop paperwork to go into the computer, put ordered items away, look at our cow and youngstock tracking systems, make lunch for the crew daily, do paperwork for billing and paperwork for the shop maintenance monitoring system, order supplies, work on projects that pop up and much more.

What decision have you made in the last year that has benefited your farm? The decision to bring in more technology for our young calves will be super beneficial, I believe; however, it is too early to know for sure. We will have data and be able to understand when calves need assistance before they show signs of struggle.

Tell us about your most memorable experience working on the farm. When I was growing up helping my aunt sort cows, the mostly white cows would always be the hardest to move to where they needed to be. One day, I fell right on my butt and was covered in cow poop because of a white cow. Since that day, I have always said, “I dislike all white cows.”

What have you enjoyed most about dairy farming or your time to the dairy industry? I enjoy the calves the most. Their cuteness catches my eye, but their spunky and big personalities win over my heart. Raising calves can have hard times within it; however, being able to see the calves grow up and be happy is really rewarding.

What is your biggest accomplishment in your dairy career? Becoming the calf manager. I was young when I had the opportunity to step up and be the leader in this area. I came to realize that calf raising wasn’t the easiest, but to continue what our family loves to do each day, I needed to understand and give all the care and love I had to the calves so they stayed healthy. Realizing this was a big turning point for me.

What are things you do to promote your farm or the dairy industry? We as a family like to promote dairy by always having dairy products on hand to be able to offer milk or cheese to whoever tours or has a meeting scheduled. This past summer, we hosted Breakfast on the Farm. It was fun watching everyone come to the farm and discover all the technologies that farming has to offer. We try to explain our story through videos and post them on social media for more people to see. Our website allows us to offer tours if anyone is looking up farms in Kewaunee County to check out. We’re trying to continue to promote dairy in more ways each year.

What advice would you give another woman in the dairy industry? Always have an open mind to learn new things. Know that just because someone else uses a product or does something they find works for them doesn’t mean it is always going to do the same for you. Also, keep your voice heard when it comes to decision-making in your area. You are the “expert” for your dairy/job.

When you get a spare moment what do you do? In my spare time, I coach high school basketball and like to spend time with friends and family. Going to country music concerts with friends is something I try to do a few times each year.