PRRS Year 3- The Last Year

I wish I could say that the disease issues our herd has experienced over the last three years have passed.  That we have come out stronger, better, and unscathed.  However, the reality is that we are in the worst position we have been in over our 60 year history.  We have exhausted every option we can think of to regain our pig health, and nothing is working.  Even the strategies that have helped feel like a band-aid, masking another, bigger problem by throwing money at it.  Once one health challenge seems to ease up, another problem emerges.  It is hard to meet with our vets and advisors, them showing a mild indifference to our situation, as we are working tirelessly to save our pigs, bleeding every day for the last 1000. 

I wish we had found the cure, the answer, maybe made better decisions, but I honestly don’t know what we would’ve done differently with the information we had at the time.  Now, I am a lot less trusting of “experts.”  I’m weary of easy fixes, and the traditional way of doing things.  Our farm is different, our life is different, and our pigs our different.  My values don’t always line up with those driving our industry, but I do love being on the farm.   Weighing our options, we decided we need to start over; selling every last pig, and then buying new breeding stock.  Maybe we can do something to salvage what we have, but we are getting to the point where we just can’t keep waiting for things to right.  We need to take action.

Big changes hurt, but I don’t want to be the generation that spoils my family legacy, as so often happens in multi-generational businesses, where things get complacent.  I may go down, but it won’t be without a fight. These changes aren’t easy, and there are many places where we will make mistakes.  Our notions of who we are as a company are going to shift.  The solid foundation we have is going to move.  We will lose some people- people I have known my whole life.  That is probably the hardest part for me, but it is another piece of our upheaval. 

While change is hard, it gives me the possibility of going back to “normal.”  Where every phone call isn’t the next disaster, when my weekend travels are the only thing that keeps me sane. When I can look at my work and again be proud of what I have accomplished, or actually make progress and provide better care to our animals.  I look forward to these moments now, as I am sitting nearly paralyzed with fear.  In these times, I can see my support system- it’s not as big as I thought it was, but I can make do with what I have.

My lack of writing over the last year is due to dealing with the challenges that I have experienced on the farm.  I still journal, and I have taken up a side-gig writing for Silent Sports, which gives me a creative outlet.  However, I want to write here, and share my story- the good, and the bad.  I can’t say what my life will look like in another year, but I am excited to see how things unfold. 

First Farm Memories

My first memory of the farm starts with an early morning.  I would wake up, and go sit on the bathroom scale while my parents got ready for the day.  My Dad would let me brush his shaving soap on to his face.  Then we would all go down to the kitchen for breakfast, usually oatmeal or cream of wheat with butter and brown sugar, and watered down cranberry juice. 

After filling up, mom would bundle me up (it must have been fall or winter in my earliest memories) and I would go out to look at the pigs in the barn in our backyard.  I think we were in the process of expanding at the time, and must’ve run out of room for pigs, because we were using the old dairy barn behind the house as a makeshift pig pen.  The tall doors were wide open, and the biggest bay where hay wagons and such must have been stored had been turned into a makeshift pen, with fencing panels strung together.  Straw bedding covered the floor.

I went to see the pigs every day, sometimes multiple times a day, naming them.  My favorite was “Ketchup”, but I also grew fond of “Stuart”, and “Cupcake”.  None of these pigs were discernable from any of the others, and I usually just dubbed the first to come to the fence and nose my hand “Ketchup” for the day.  Sometimes I would bring scraps from the kitchen to throw over the fence as treats. 

After a while, the pigs got so big that I couldn’t go in the pen anymore at risk of being trampled, and finally they were shipped off to market.  We never had pigs in the dairy barn again, but I found a new outlet in the hot nursery. 

The hot nursery is where the smallest pigs of the litter are weaned where it was extra warm and they receive extra care.  Everything is small, and designed to transition the pigs from mom to on their own with as little disruption as possible.  I was also the right size for the hot nursery pens, and I would go and check on the little pigs each day, making sure they had water and food, milk replacer or electrolytes, and that the floor was nice and dry for them.  I named these too, “Sam” being my favorite that I would check each day, to see if he was making a good recovery after his rough start. 

Even though I wasn’t yet four years old, these early visits on the farm narrowed down my career choices considerably.  I figured I could either work on the farm with the pigs, become a fireman, or a ballerina.  I thought the farm was my most likely option for success, although looking at the world now it actually may have been the most unusual choice of the three.  Regardless, there may have been some stumbling blocks on the way, and a healthy dose of self-doubt, but here I am 25 years later, doing the same work as when I was four years old. 

Silent Sports November!

For the past year I have been writing for Silent Sports- an Midwestern outdoor enthusiasts magazine.  I pick a topic about the world of paddling each month- and November is all about women in paddling.  I am so happy to be able to feature some really talented athletes, as well as some young women who are just getting started in the sport.  Follow the link below for the full article!

Women Make a Splash

(Thanks Katherin Broderson for the Pics!)

Farm Update: Transition

(Green Valley Farm)

Since I last wrote specifically about the farm, a lot has changed.  We re-broke with PRRS in the spring of 2017, and battled it for most of last summer and early fall.  It seems like now we are starting to get back on our feet again, but it is with weary skepticism.  After being knocked down so much it's hard to trust that getting back up is possible.

The pigs are what everyone likes to hear about most, and right now at the farrowing farms (where little pigs are born), things are looking pretty good.  Our most recent testing has shown our piglets are negative again for PRRS, and we have enough sows coming in to give birth that our barns are starting to be comfortably full. We aren't sure if the spring weather is causing everything to do better, if our strategy for dealing with the disease is working, or if the pigs are just getting healthier because time has passed.  We probably won't know for at least a year, and even then a bad break can happen again.  Right now, it's just keeping our fingers crossed, doing our best, and hoping it is enough.

We are becoming more creative in our management in order to recover from PRRS.  One of our farms, River Ridge, was hit harder than the others. Many of their sows got sick and either had lasting reproductive/respiratory problems, or just died altogether.  In order to get the herd back up to it's normal size, we are breeding some gilts in the finisher at a different farm.  We have never done this before, but are very interested to see how things go.  If this works well we may consider breeding all gilts in finishers with a dedicated breeding team.  It will take us six months to a year of observation to make that determination, but so far things seem to be going well. 

As far as we can tell, PRRS is pretty mild in our herd right now.  The biggest health challenge we have been facing recently is a flare-up of pig-pneumonia, which can be treated easily as long as we keep an eye on it.  The keeping an eye on it part is a little tricky, because a pig can go to exposure to death in 24-48 hours, so it really is something that has to be caught right away.  The other health issue we are up against is one of the vaccines we are using doesn't have the coverage it guarentees.  This means that pigs need a booster shot at some point, at least until the vaccine is updated.  We still haven't figured out exactly how we will handle this, but this is why keeping a close eye on our animal health is so important.

In other news, we are seeing the younger generation of farm employees stepping into management roles for the first time.  Two of our long time managers, one in genetics, the other in herd health, retired a few weeks ago.  This is a huge adjustment for the farm.  I am assuming quite a few more duties in the health area, and that both exciting and challenging.  Weston, a paddler and farm worker will be taking on more responsibilty in the genetics side of the business.  Both of us will be learning a lot in the next few months, and we have to in order to keep things running well.

On top of this, our nutritionist, Dave, has decided to try his hand as a feed company representative, and will be leaving us in the early summer.  We are excited for him and his opportunities, and are happy with the knowledge he has given us over the past three years.  His will be big shoes to fill, but we are confident that the future on the farm will be bright.

Simple Strawberry Crisp

I have a sweet tooth.  Each night after dinner I have to finish the day with a yogurt, fruit, chocolate, or other goodie.  This strawberry crisp inspired by this Clean and Healthy Strawberry Crisp is something I make at least once a month year round to satisfy my craving.  I have made it with whatever frozen fruit I have in the freezer, anything that is about to go bad, or stuck to the recipe and used fresh strawberries.  My other favorites so far are peach, and mixed berry.  I am hoping to try it as an apple crisp soon with cinnamon instead of almond as the "secret ingredient." Let me know what you think, or share some of your favorite sweet treats in the comments below!

Simple Strawberry Crisp
Printable Version

Fruit Filling

6 cups (about 2 quarts) sliced fresh strawberries (or other fruits)

3 tablespoons cornstarch

3 teaspoons almond extract

Crumble

1 cup oats

2 tablespoons finely chopped almonds

2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut

2 tablespoons flax meal 

2 tablespoons chia seeds

2 tablespoons melted butter

1 tablespoon (or less to taste) maple syrup

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees 

2. Combine all Fruit Filling ingredients in a bowl until the cornstarch is completely dissolved.  Put into a greased 8x8 baking pan (or similar).

3. In a small bowl combine all Crumble ingredients until well incorporated, then sprinkle in an even layer over the fruit.

4. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the crisp is golden. 

I usually enjoy piping hot with some unsweetened yogurt, or ricotta cheese, but it is just a good with a glass of milk.  

Chattajack 2017

Every few years I get excited about a race, and I just have to put it on my calendar.  The first was the General Clinton, then the DW, and last year it was the Chattajack.  To be honest, Chattajack was on the list for three years.  I liked the idea of a "gorge" race (even though I still am not sure what that means).  As a bonus, the race was after my normal racing season, AND in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which means warm weather paddling, at least compared to Michigan.  Plus, going to a race that has a different field takes all of the pressure off.  At 31 miles, I figured I wouldn't really have to train too much, and could still pull of a good race.

(Race Starting Line on Friday)

The first two years of the Chattajack quest I asked around in the family for partners, and nobody was available, or wanted to do another race at the end of the season.  This spring, I finally got Dad (Bruce) to bite with the caviet of racing OC2.  I had always wanted to race it C2 to get some exposure for marathon canoeing, but Dad wanted a break from the normal grind, and had a friend whom he thought he could borrow a boat from.  For those out of the loop, OC2 is a two-person outrigger canoe with a rudder and an "ama" or second hull that is used for stability.  These are paddled mainly on the oceans (my other outrigger canoe experience is racing the Catalina Crossing).

I decided I could take my chances in the OC2 and planned to sign up.  Signing up for the Chattajack MUST be planned.  The race has 500 spots, and fills up withing 8 hours of opening entries.  It is so cool to have a canoe (kayak/SUP/etc.) race that has that much demand.  I set my alarm for 11:50 PM to be in line at midnight to enter and got us in- succes!  I went to work the next morning at 5:30 AM, and before I could tell Dad that we made it in, he comes up to me and says "I think we are in trouble.  Your mom (Roxanne) has never been this mad at me before."  Shocked, I asked what the problem was.  Apparently, we never let Mom know that we were entering the race, and she wanted to go, too.  She didn't have a partner, or a plan, but leaving her home wasn't an option.  I rushed to the computer and quickly signed her up- spot #456- whew!

Only one person from each team has to hold the spot, and the other teammates have a month or so to fill out their registration, so we had a little bit of time for Mom to get her boat figured out.  I lobbied for C4, but Dad was well into General Clinton C4 training, and vetoed that idea.  Mom asked around trying to get a women's partner with no luck... so we all turned to Mike.  Mike had stated from the beginning he would only go to feed.  He didn't want to race that late in the season, and he hadn't followed a race in a long time, so he would be our driver and cheering captain.  However, Mom is the queen bee, so Mike relented and decided to race C2.

We finished the marathon racing season, and started to plan for the Chattajack about the beginning of October.  Dad picked up our borrowed OC2 and we had a lot of fun taking it out the first time, with all four of us rotating around in different positions.  With Dad and I racing together, we decided he would run the rudder, since I have basically no experience in ruddered boats.  I went stern and called the switches.

The thing about switching in a ruddered boat is that you don't have to steer to go straight- the rudder holds the line.  This means I was counting strokes.  Fourteen per side the first hour, then down to eleven by hour four.  I couldn't look at where we were going because then I would want to steer, and the rudder turns the boat from the end instead of around a center point, so I wasn't anticipating the swing properly.  Basically, I had to stare at Dad's shoulders the whole time, and count- which makes for boring paddling.  The training was excruiating, with almost no glide and we basically had one speed- probabably due to the older hull design.  By the time we arrived in Chattanooga, I ready to never set foot in an outrigger again.

Since we weren't sure what to expect from the Tennessee River, Mom and Mike packed two boats for the race- the V1 and Jensen 18.  They planned to paddle around the start on Friday, get a feel for the river, and then make a decision.  When we pulled into town it was sunny and 70 degrees, with fairly calm looking water.  Dad and I assembled our boat, and off we went.  Mom and Mike didn't put the bow and stern covers on in our eagerness to get to the river, and swamped within 10 minutes from the chop.  While we waited for them to dump I played with the ama adjustment to suit the conditions.  When we returned to the car, the Jensen 18 was chosen, and Mike decided to try his first race in the stern for a change of pace.  While they made adjustments to their boat, Dad and I were able to test drive a demo boat that our competition was racing.  In the small loop we did around the start, we were averaging 1 MPH faster than we did in the boat we had borrowed for the race.  This confirmed that we had a dog, but we were grateful to use it, and we hoped our talent and training shine through.

(The "marathon" racing set up- people were amazed by our handiness with Gorilla Tape)

The morning of the race went as most of the 2017 season had.  Cold. Rain. Mud.  The temperature was dropping from the 50s into the low 40s, and the rain and wind grew with each passing minute.  We put on our rain gear, did all the last minute adjustments and warmed up.  Mom and Mike took off in the first wave, and kind of missed the start, but recovered quickly.  Dad and I prepared for our turn to go.  I started to get nervous when other OC2s were caught sideways by the bridge supports.  A start with 20 marathon canoes can be chaotic, and our start had over 150 kayaks and canoes!  I didn't trust that a rudder could compensate for all of the steering problems people were having getting to the line.

The gun went off and we got out clean.  We immediately fell into a pack, with the faster design OC2s out in front.  We were probably sixth or seventh in the OC2 mixed, but hanging out in a solid pack.  After the first few miles the river had some standing waves, and Dad and I showed off our skills.  We were able to read the river and negogiate the waves and current- moving up to third place by cutting one corner!  We found a nice cruising pace that was hard, but manageable, and we cut one more corner to catch the second place.  Once on their wave, I realized it took less energy if I called the switches like in a marathon canoe, so we used the rudder less for steering, and more just to keep our tracking straight.  This made me so happy, because I finally got to go off of feel, and quit counting.

(2nd place orange canoe, us in the yellow. Picture by Shawna Herring Photography)

The second place team had more speed than we did, so we fought the whole way just to stay on their wake.  After three hours we had to take different lines at times just to get a break from riding, hoping that we would have the energy to catch the wave again, or maybe even come out ahead on a line.  The final six miles were advertised as shallow water, and realizing that our hull speed couldn't compare to the second place team, we hoped to hang on as long as we could.  We had caught two men's OC2's from working together, but we couldn't ride them because we were "different classes."  With four boats side-by-side it was playing out to be a dramatic finish.  With three miles to go, the 2nd place mixed OC2 hit a rock and knocked off their rudder.  We narrowly avoided it.  We stayed together for a little while longer, but every so often they would make a ninety degree turn and we started to pull away.  It may not be pretty, but sometimes this type of luck is what determines the race.  The two men's teams had pulled ahead when we were in the boulder field.  Dad and I felt strong, so we gave it everything we had, passing them with half a mile to go.  We sprinted down the pier and into the finish.  We had made it!

(Sprinting to the finish. Photo be Deb S Action Photo)

I didn't realize how cold I was until I went to get out of the boat.  Everything was numb, and my feet didn't work in my neoprene booties.  Volunteers helped us with the boat, and we waddled to the car where Mike and Mom were loading the Jensen 18.  They had finished first C2, and were in the top 10 across the line.  Our time ended up being faster, but not by much.  Over a hundred boats had pulled out either just prior to the race, or during the event because of the cold wet conditions.  As we had paddled, we were amazed by the number of SUP and prone paddlers in shorts and t-shirts getting soaked from the wind and rain. We were so happy to be done, knowing that many would be out there for a few more hours.  We loaded up, and headed back to the hotel to thaw.

At the awards party, we were able to see how our friends did, and congratulate our class winners.  The first place mixed OC2 had a fellow (sometimes) marathon paddler, as did the third place team, whom also passed the rudderless boat, so we were well represented.  After such a soggy, hard day, we can't wait to go back again- although this time with our own fleet of outriggers.  Chattajack 2018: the Barton/Davis crew will be back!

How Farms are Reducing Antibiotic Use

For the final post in my Midwest Pork Conference Series (the first was about pork industry risks, the second 3 ways to get piglets off to a good start) I will come back to Antibiotics.  This is a topic I have covered quite a bit over the past few years, as it is one of the changing areas of animal agriculture.    We use them to treat sick animals, or in some cases to prevent a flair-up of an existing herd health challenge.  Antibiotic use is monitored by our individual caretakers, on farm health experts, vets, and state regulation, as well as by federal regulatory agencies. While over site has become part of using antibiotics, what can we do to reduce or even discontinue the use?

As a disclaimer, I believe in treating animals that are sick.  Pigs, like people, can suffer from pneumonia, respiratory infections, or skin/tissue infections.  Even those in clean, warm, dry, houses with little stress, can still develop these conditions and do need to be treated.  It is silly to let an animal suffer when we have the tools, and expertise to help it get well.

At the Midwest Pork Conference, I listened to a lecture by a farm manager who has transitioned many farms to an antibiotic free system, and greatly reduced use in others.  These strategies are not rocket science, just getting back to basics and managing the stress and risk that we can control.  In any of these systems, pigs that do get sick are treated, they just can't be marketed as being raised with out antibiotics, although they are still antibiotic free, as are all livestock sold in the United States.  I'm getting to ramble a bit, so why don't we get to the point... 3 strategies for reducing or discontinuing antibiotic use.

Treat the Root Cause

Antibiotics in pork production are usually used to treat secondary infections.  For example, that respiratory disease our pigs have contracted, PRRS, is a virus.  Because the pigs have a virus that weakens their immune system, they are more susceptible to bacterial infections, like staph, strep, and pneumonia.  To reduce our antibiotic use, we would need to work on eliminating the PRRS virus, not just treating the secondary infections.  Of course, this is easier said than done, as you can read about in my prior posts about our PRRS outbreak, and how we were progressing through one month, three months, six months, and one year living with the disease.

As in the example I outlined above, infections are often a result, and not the cause of a problem.  Getting chilled puts enough stress on a piglet that it can weaken it's immune system, making it more likely to get sick.  Weaning piglets off of the sow too soon can leave the immune system not quite ready for the stress of weaning and cause problems.  By keeping the pigs warm enough, and managing for optimum wean age, both of the "root" problems, we avoid the unnecessary stress and immune response that causes the need for treatments.

Manage Gut Health

Getting the gut off to a good start is huge in raising pigs, and should not be overlooked.  Transitioning from a milk based diet to a grain based diet, having consistency in the feed provided, and even water pH can have an impact on the gut microbiota (all of the good bacteria, organisms, and other things in the gut that make it work). It might seem counter-intuitive, but leaving a pig on milk too long can cause it's gut to stall out and not develop properly, just as transitioning to dry feed too early doesn't allow the gut to develop fully.  This is a change we have to carefully monitor and work through gradually. 

Pigs that have healthy guts grow better, have more energy, and are overall more robust.  A robust pig has a better immune system, and is less likely to need medical attention as it grows.  I will go into more detail on gut health and development in a future post, but much like in humans, a happy gut is part of good overall health.

Reduce Stress

Reducing pig stress is a way we already cut down on our antibiotic use.  We aim to move our pigs "all-in all-out.  That means a barn, room, and pen of pigs aren't mixed with pigs of different ages or health statuses.  By keeping pigs with their peers, they usually have the same things going on health wise at the same time, instead of swapping them back and forth with older and younger pigs, causing any bugs to circulate.  We can move pigs less often, and keep them in the same groups, so that they don't have to fight to establish a new pecking order.  Fewer pig handling events will make the pigs more comfortable.

When a pig is stressed, it usually goes off of feed and water.  Not eating or drinking not only stops growth, but it can mess with the pig's gut which is not good!  Sometimes when this happens for a short period of time, say after the small pigs are weaned, the piglets will make "compensatory gains" where they grow faster than normal for a short period of time after the stress is over.  For a long time, the pork industry thought this was a tool to leverage, but actually, the pigs never catch up to where they would be if there was no stress.  Seeing a compensatory gain means that we caused a stress that can lead to gut and immunity problems, and is not a good thing.  Not all stressors can be removed, but realizing what causes pressure in the pig's life is the first step in learning to manage it to the best of our ability. 

Up next, we will turn away from the farm, and get the race recap that all of my canoe friends having been asking about- the Chattajack!