Seventy kids are in Freistatt, Missouri, learning about dairy cows.
They’ve arrived from across the state, from Arkansas, even flown in from Oregon for this annual cow camp.
“Dirt is stubborn. If you wanna get the dirt out you gotta be more stubborn than the dirt,” says a 4-H counselor.
Kids are scrubbing the undersides of Holstein heifers with curry combs, buzz cutting black and white hides with electric razors, figuring out the right way to tie quick-release knots, combing toplines sprayed in got2b glued aerosol gel.
Meanwhile, a small team of 4-H leaders are chasing down loose calves, listening to kids rehearse oral reasons, telling the story of pulling an all-nighter last night and delivering a calf.
“If you run, she runs.”
“Through the loop, around the tree — it’s the other tree.”
University of Missouri Extension has been hosting this dairy cow camp for 20 years. It used to be held at a family farm near Springfield but has since transferred to the Lawrence County Fairgrounds.
The Holsteins are provided by Wrightvale Farms, a nearby family-run dairy operation owned by Jodi and Larry Wright in Verona. Most of the milk from the Wrights’ 60 head of milking cows goes to the Dairy Farmers of America Co-Op in Springfield, turned into dairy products for Hiland or sour cream for Chipotle Mexican Grill.
The Wrights’ kids grew up involved with the dairy camp and the Wrights have sponsored the camp for the last 15 years. This year they provided 20 dairy calves for the kids to work with — and according to Jodi Wright, the partnership is mutual.
“About a week before camp we tie up the calves and get them kind of broke to lead so they don’t hurt the children,” says Wright. “We kind of cuss it while we’re doing it, but afterwards we’ve got 20 calves that are pretty darn tame and broke to lead.”
Normally capped at 40 participants, the camp hosted 70 this year after including a bus of kids from a junior ag program in Highlandville. The camp provides an opportunity for kids — those involved in 4-H and not — to experience agriculture in a fun environment.
“This is the largest camp we’ve ever had. And it’s growing. We have more kids than we can handle,” says Wright. “And the kids, they really seem to enjoy it. They waller on all the cows. ”
Source: FarmTalkNews.com
