Ohio Spring Dairy Expo Red & White Show

Dean Dohle of Missouri, served as the official for the outstanding Red and White Holstein show at the Ohio Spring Dairy Expo.

Topping the heifer show for the juniors was the beautiful dairy Winter Yearling of Elaina Lahmers of Marysville, Ohio. Wabash-Way Kalif Halo-Red is an O'Kalif-Red daughter. The Reserve Junior Champion of the Junior show was Hannah Dumbeck's silky Fall Calf, Auburnhills LVRG Ryanne-Red. She is a full age Westcoast Leverage-Red daughter.

Junior Champions of the open show were a beautiful pair of heifers from Wabash-Way Holsteins. The winning Summer Yearling, Ms Wabash-Way Kalif Mia-Red is sired by O'Kalif took home the Junior Champion award while Elaina's winning Winter Yearling, Wabash-Way Kalif Halo-Red took home the Reserve Junior Champion award.

The Intermediate Champions of the Junior Show were the Senior Two-Year-Old and Senior Three-Year-Old. Elaina Lahmers again took the honors with Lah-Dale Malone Shine-Red, a Malone-Red daughter. Emma Matthews of New Vienna, Ohio took the Reserve Intermediate Champion honors of the Junior show with Karebareds Rdbrust Sasha-Red, a Redburst daughter.

The open show Intermediate Champions were the Junior Three-Year-Old owned by Eric Lange of Brooklyn, Iowa, and Lahmer's Senior Two-Year-Old. Lichty-Acres Htry Fire-Red is a Hztry daughter and was strapped by Hope Morrison. Lah-Dale Malone Shine-Red continued her winning ways with Reserve Intermediate honors of the open show.

Senior Champions of the Junior Show were the winning 5-Year-Old and Aged Cow. Balmoral Lars Aurianna, sired by Wills Bro Larson was the first-place 5-Year-Old. Oneeda Rocco Tawny, a Golden-Oaks Rocco daughter was the first Aged Cow. Both animals are owned by Madelyn Topp of Botkins, Ohio.

The Aged Cow and 4-Year-Old took the awards for Senior Champion of the open show. The first-prize Aged Cow, Quality Quest Cinda-Red, a Redman daughter, is owned by Grant and Tom Cope of Salem, Ohio.  Greenlea BW Mar-Red, winning 4-Year-Old sired by Barbwire, is owned by Dallas Rynd and Judy Wolford of SilverMist Holsteins.

Two young ladies had the honors of owning the top winners in the Red and White Junior Show. Madelyn Topp's Senior Champion, Balmorla Lars Aurianna took home the Grand Champion award for her young owner. Elaina Lahmer's beautiful Senior Two-Year-Old, Lah-Dale Malone Shine-Red, took the Reserve Grand Champion honors.

The deep-ribbed, beautifully uddered Aged Cow, Quality Quest Cinda-Red, owned by the Copes, captured the coveted Grand Champion honors. The 4-Year-Old Reserve Senior Champion also took home the Reserve Grand honors for Silvermist Holsteins. 

Stan-Mar-Dale/Express Holsteins were named Premier Breeder & Exhibitor of the show. For a complete gallery of photos visit www. purebred.smugmug.com.

Midwest Revue Sale - Ohio Spring Dairy Expo 2017

The Midwest Revue Sale was held on Thursday afternoon as a kick-off to the Ohio Spring Dairy Expo. Managed by Modern Associates, the 50 head sold for $3,420. Topping the sale were two beautiful heifers from the 'World of Whizzbang.'

Top Acres C Wizzie Go ET, a Carter out of the '2E95' 2016 Res. All-American Aged Cow, Top Acres Supreme Wizard sold for $14,000 to Brooke and Jim Foote of New York.

Second-high selling heifer was Top Acres Thunder Wispit at $10,000 to the Love Family of Pennsylvania. Wispit is a Cutting Edge Thunder daughter of Top Acres Supreme Wisp '3E95.'

For a complete gallery of show and sale photos visit www.purebred.smugmug.com.

Hi-View Farm ~ The Dinderman Family

By Robin Alden for the March 2016 Guernsey Breeders' Journal

    “Breeding good cows in many colors” – that’s the slogan of Hi View Farm of Orangeville, Illinois, and the Dinderman family works hard to uphold that standard. Brian and Kristi Dinderman own and operate the herd of 80 cows and 80 young stock, divided among three breeds – Ayrshire, Guernsey and Holstein. The Dindermans, along with their three children – Alaina, 10, and twins Amery and Aidan, 8, are the sole employees on the farm.

    Like many multi-breed farms, Hi View Farm began as a merger between Kristi’s family’s Ayrshire and Holstein herd and Brian’s family’s Guernsey herd. In 2002, Brian and Kristi began dating after meeting at a county fair, and they were married in 2004. Brian’s Guernseys joined the Ayrshire herd after their marriage, and the Dindermans became partners with Kristi’s parents in 2005. In 2007, the year Alaina was born, the Dindermans bought the farm from Kristi’s parents. “We couldn’t have asked for the transition to go any better,” says Kristi. Although her parents had moved into town and were no longer financially involved, they still routinely helped out around the farm, especially through the birth of the twins in 2008. Kristi has some good advice for making a family transition as smooth as theirs: “Bring in a financial planner or someone similar that can help come up with a plan that both parties agree to. Then, set a timeline and stick to it.” An outside mediator can prevent the process from becoming too emotional or personal, Brian advises. “It takes respect and open minds from both sides for the plan to go well.”

    Currently, there are approximately 30 Holsteins, 30 Ayrshires and 11 Guernseys in the milking herd. The cows are milked in a tie stall barn, although the Dindermans like to utilize their free stalls as well as pasture as much as possible for housing. In the barn, the cows are fed grain and hay, and outside they are fed corn silage and haylage. The current RHA for the Guernsey herd is 19,485M 4.5% 857F 3.4% 663P and they are milking three Excellent Guernseys. Their SCC for 2016 was 68,000 on the whole herd. Although Brian and Kristi handle most of the daily duties of the farm, they give credit to their children for feeding calves in the evenings and pitching in on weekends, as well as their siblings for helping when in need.

    The Tanbark Trail is an important aspect of Hi View Farm. Brian and Kristi met by showing at multiple county fairs as juniors. In fact, their first date in 2002 was after exhibiting at the same county fair. Brian says he didn’t think it was a date; he was just hungry so he agreed to go! The prefix Hi Guern View is no stranger to Guernsey breeders who’ve attended the World Dairy Expo in the past several years.  In 2016, Hi Guern View Dancing Diva-ET EX-94 was the winner of the Four-Year-Old class at Expo and later claimed Reserve All-American honors for the year. Diva has also accomplished many more titles in previous years, along with full sister Hi Guern View Dancers Delite-ET EX-91. Both are daughters of Adams Creek Regal Dancer EX-92, who also has multiple All-American titles to her name.

    Besides World Dairy Expo, the Dindermans also enjoy exhibiting at their local Stephenson County Fair and the Illinois State Fair. In 2015, they took their first string to the North American in Louisville, and came away with the Grand Champion Ayrshire title with Hi Ayr View Budette Andie! They hope to continue showing there in the future. To prepare for the show season, heifers are separated to be fed a special diet, and cows are taken off silage for national shows.

    Now that the Dindermans’ children are entering 4-H, showing has truly become a family affair. Despite many successes on the national level, Brian and Kristi name the “shining moment” of their show season when son Aidan, who has cerebral palsy, was able to exhibit an Ayrshire calf at the county fair for the first time. With his parents’ guidance and a lot of hard work, Aidan was able to pull off first prize with his short-aged calf, much to the crowd’s excitement. And, much to Aidan’s excitement, the local TV station was there to cover it!

    It’s no wonder that the Dindermans’ breeding program emphasizes type and good cow families, considering their success in the show ring. However, they do have one strict philosophy, which Brian notes: “We have never bred for a great show heifer, we breed for great cows,” she says. “Many of our best show cows were never shown as heifers.” For their Guernsey mating decisions, type and cow families, as well as strength and an increased emphasis on health traits, guide them. Balance is important to the Dindermans as well. “With both breeds we want a cow that can compete in the show ring but also is profitable in production,” says Kristi. Some bulls they are currently using include Boman, Copper, Novak, Titan, Bucky, Aarons Levi and Bo.

    Brian and Kristi also utilize embryo transfer and in vitro fertilization on their top genetics. Diva, as well as her Levi daughter Hi Guern View Diva Designer, were their most recent Guernsey donor dams. Designer is due with her first calf this spring.

    The Dindermans are proud to market animals of all breeds privately and through auctions. They frequently consign Guernseys to the convention sales and Upper Midwest sale, as well as the Junior Champion of the Kentucky National Spring Sale & Show last year. In addition, they have sold many Ayrshires who have gone on to do well for new owners, including a Reserve Junior All-American. The RHA for the Ayrshires is 20,153M 3.9%F and the Holsteins’ is 26,071M 3.7%F. They are milking 12 Excellent Ayrshires and 9 Excellent Holsteins, with a Holstein BAA of 108.1.

    As if operating an 80-cow dairy and raising three children isn’t enough, both Brian and Kristi are very active off the farm in various roles. Both teach a class at the local Highland Community College – Brian teaches the AI class and Kristi teaches Dairy Evaluation and coaches the judging team, who took home first place in Ayrshires at Louisville under her expertise. “Working with dairy youth is something we both enjoy,” said Kristi and Brian. “We have had some great mentors and coaches and just try to give back.” Brian is also a board member for the American Guernsey Association, an Illinois Guernsey director and sits on the county Holstein Board and Farm Bureau board. Kristi is an Orangeville FFA alumnus and is on their church’s board of directors.

    When asked about balancing their busy lives, Kristi says, “It is difficult! We try to make weekends family time.” She also recommends having a good support group of family and friends. This was especially crucial in December 2008, when the twins were born, and the Dindermans spent six months travelling back and forth to the NICU an hour away. Kristi’s mom began milking full time and siblings and friends stepped in to ensure chores were done and Brian and Kristi could spend ample time with their newborns.

   Between Guernseys and Ayrshires, kids and the farm, teaching careers and community leadership, the Dindermans are certainly used to being pulled in many directions. However, with family teamwork and a commitment to their breeding program, they have enjoyed many successes. Under their direction, the Hi View prefix is sure to be a familiar one for years to come.

From the Road to the Barn – Creating that Impact is the Goal

By Cheri Oechsle for the April 2016 HolsteinWorld Exclusive

     Hitting the road right out of high school, Aaron Eaton spent 10 years traveling the country and world working with, learning about and developing a passion for cows that create lasting memories and impact. That background is what ignited the fire in Aaron and continues to be the driving force behind his passion for the industry and good cows today.

     “I had some great mentors throughout those years; Mark Campbell, the late Bob Morrell, Raymond Anthony and Ernie Kueffner to name a few,” said Aaron. “Taking me to shows and getting to be part of their team is where I learned to take care of good cows.” In 2007 Eaton moved to New York to work for the CoVale herd for the next few years. In 2009 he met his future wife, Caitlin Rohe, and over the next several years they traveled the shows together until she graduated from Cornell and they married. In 2013 they began renovating Caitlin’s parent’s farm in Marietta, New York, and moved the cattle they had accumulated over the years, including some valuable bred heifers due that year, home. “We decided it was time,” said Aaron. “We also knew that to accomplish our goals and grow our business, we would need to supplement our income aside from just a milk check, so we decided to board some cows for others for extra cash flow.” Some of the key people involved with Eaton Holsteins over the years are Dave Dyment, Pat Conroy, Jamie Black, Chris and Jennifer Hill, Barclay Phoenix, the Borbas, Brad Murphy, Michael Heath, Allyndale and Dusty Schirm. All lifelong friends, they entrusted animals to Aaron’s care and he hasn’t disappointed them. “I think the most important thing is trust and knowing we are taking care of their investment like she is our own seven days a week. Knowing they can walk in the barn at any time and see their cow looking her best and always coming ahead is key,” he said.

     The current herd consists of 80 head, 20 of which are boarded animals. The current milking herd of 30 has a 305-day RHA of 26,676M 3.9%F and 3.2%P with a SCC of 77,000 and BAA of 114.3. Aaron stated that they don’t milk a large amount and they can care for the animals to the best of their ability. “I don’t know that there is any secret. For us it’s doing the best job we can do each day and being consistent. We can work with each individual animal, due to our size, one-on-one and do our best to serve each one’s needs. The best part of working with really good cows is that they mostly do it themselves. As long as you have good feed and great hay, a good dairy cow will take care of herself.”

     “The most rewarding part,” according to Aaron, “is when you see them turn a good profit or win a big show. That’s always our goal; making each individual the best they can be.” And that’s pretty evident with the number of All-American winners they have exhibited and worked with over the years. One that Aaron refers to as a “lifer” is TC Sanchez Kristina EX-96, owned with Roll’N View. “She is the one closest to my heart, and we are hoping 2017 will be her best year yet!” said Aaron. A perennial nomination cow, this year’s first-place Aged Cow at the Northeast Fall National and second at World Dairy Expo, has embryos and offspring being marketed around the world. Another herd favorite is Jacobs Sid Beauty-ET EX-92, last year’s All-American Jr. Three-Year-Old Cow owned with Brad Murphy. “She put us on the map, so to speak,” Aaron said. “She is fresh and looks incredible.” She is from a sought-after cow family, backed by the 2E-96 CAN Goldwyn Britany with over 40,000M. Beauty has had great success in her own right getting it done in the show ring as Intermediate Champion at both the Northeast Fall National and World Dairy Expo in 2016.

    This year’s All-American Senior Three -Year-Old, Winterbay Dude Guiness EX-92, is owned in partnership with David Crack Jr. and is creating excitement, as is OCD Bradnick Candy EX-92/95MS, an outstanding four-year-old that was an All-American Senior Two-Year-Old nominee owned with Cates, Lundy, Janssen and Weseman. Both of these cows are in their prime, according to Aaron, creating international appeal, and both have lots of exceptional offspring that will do some “serious damage” in the show ring in the coming years.

     These three animals, along with their daughters, will be headliners in the upcoming sale that Aaron and his partners are hosting. Along with boarding animals to help with monthly cash flow, Aaron and partner Pat Conroy (Cowboy) have hosted annual tag sales over the past several years. This year’s sale, though, is raising the bar. Entitled “The Equinox Sale – an Astronomical Event,” Aaron states that this has been the goal over the past several years. “Cowboy and I have been building up to this. We have done the tag sales, the marketing, building show records and merchandising to build up to having a sale of this caliber. We want to have a sale that will impact the breed and impact the show ring. Our goal is to sell all of our best and the best we can offer and then turn around and rebuild again. We want to always be a great source for great cattle. We want people to be able to invest in their own future with them. We will have something for everyone. We want people to come and buy the best animal that fits their price range at this sale.”

     Eaton has utilized a vast array of social media and traditional marketing to market both his cattle, his partner’s cattle and the sales. His most recent venture is videos that one of his younger team members taught him to use. Always open to new ideas, he is swift to make it work to his benefit. “Social media is powerful and does allow me to do some things differently.” He also uses traditional marketing tools as well.

     Aaron is supported by his wife Caitlin in his ventures. “She knows what’s going on day to day, but also teaches school and focuses on the girls.” Aaron and Caitlin have two little girls; Avery, who is two, and Evelyn, a few months old.  Along with his wife, his in-laws help out as well. “It has been the support and opportunity from Steve and Trisha allowing us to rent and use the farm that has gained us so much success. It’s nice having my father-in-law here to watch over things when we are away.” Also important to his operation and success are Pat Lundy and Anthony Liddle, both on the road and at the farm Aaron stated. “These two guys are a huge part of what we’ve done in the past two years. They are good friends as well,” said Aaron.

     Aaron also has a soft spot for the young people that are starting out as he did. “It’s good when they want to be a part of this industry and want to learn. It’s great to work with them, teach them and take them with us.” Those that follow the passion tend to work themselves into the team like Matt Oechsle, who has filled in as needed with Pat and Anthony. “He’s a member of the group now,” said Aaron.

     Aaron also attributes his success to Cowboy and the others he partners with and boards animals for. “Cowboy is out there on the road finding great cows that we can partner and work with,” said Aaron. “So are Jamie Black and Dusty Schirm, who have helped locate animals that we have added to the herd and some that have sold and gone on to do well for others.” Another that he credits is Dave Dyment, who brought Aaron Walnutlawn Mccutchen Summer EX-92 (max score). She is nominated both All-American and All-Canadian and has drawn lots of international appeal. “Working with these guys and great cows is a huge honor and opportunity that I don’t take lightly,” said Aaron.

     From fitting as a youngster on the show circuit, great mentors, great cows and an exciting industry, Aaron has come full circle to owning, working with and now presenting a great group of cows, along with being a mentor himself. The team at Eaton Holsteins, their partners and friends are sure to continue creating excitement, anticipation and impact within this industry. They are ones to watch!

Oakfield Corners’ Jonathan and Alicia Lamb

How they approach genetics and marketing
By Gayle Benedict for the April 2016 HolsteinWorld Exclusive

     “Alicia and I enjoy merchandising and working with the cattle,” says Jonathan Lamb of Lamb Farms (Oakfield Corners Dairy) in Oakfield, New York.   Winners of the National Distinguished Young Breeder Award  in 2012, Jonathan and Alicia Lamb manage Oakfield Corners Dairy, the cows, genetics and marketing program of Lamb Farms. The dairy consists of 8,250 cows (all identified) located on four dairies, three near Oakfield, New York, and one in Ohio.  Jonathan and Alicia lead the team that transfers more than 5,000 embryos annually, sends 30 bulls to AI each year, and puts on the Oakfield Spring Sensation Sale every other year (for the last six years)!
     Lamb Farms is managed by the Lamb family and consists of:  Jonathan & Alicia (a nutritionist), Jonathan’s parents Gordon and Peggy; his brother Matthew and his wife Kendra; their brother Craig, a DVM who does heath work at the farm one day each week and Crops Manager Jim Veazy.  
      How do they get this all done so successfully?  “It’s a team effort.  The high-type animals and the genomic animals are handled separately and managed differently,” Jonathan said.  “Adam Dresser, who started as our herdsman, now does all our embryo work.  He does both IVF and conventional flushing.    Jenna Smith Lenhart assists with the embryo program, while her husband Andrew Lenhart manages the Genetics Barn at Oakfield Corners.”  The genetics barn was built in 2015 and features 14 boxstalls where the high-type individuals are kept.
      “For matings we have a pool of donors and a pool of sires. We meet weekly to discuss the matings.   We rely on Rick Verbeek, from Select Sires, as an extra consultant in our breeding program,” he added.

How Do You Determine Sires for Show Type?
     When Jonathan and Alicia attend shows they like to talk with different breeders about what is working for them. “We will use some high-type young sires, but not too much. We like to wait and see how the calves look,” he explained.
     “We used Doorman early on all our higher-index cattle and those Doormans are starting to calve for the second time” Alicia added. Five have been classified so far…four are VG (one at VG-88) and one is GP.  “We liked his daughters well enough that we switched and started using him on our show cattle.  The Doormans from our high- type individuals are 12 -15 months of age.”
         Show bulls they are currently using are Beemer, Atwood, Doorman and OCD 1^stClass Callen-ET.   Callen is +3.50T +3.14UDC +2.72 FLC with a maternal side that is VG-88 Mayfield X VG-88 Atwood X VG-86 Shottle X Pine Shelter Cheyenne (3E-95), Grand Champion International Holstein Show and All-American Three-Year-Old 2003.
      For the Red and White Holsteins, the Lambs are using Cycle McGucci Jordy-Red, a +3.68T McGucci (McCutchen X KHW Regiment Apple-Red 3E-96) son from a VG Gold Chip. And, because they like the calves, they are using more Addiction-P.

 Strategy for Buying and Developing Show Winners
    “Full pedigrees are very important. We like animals that get better over time.  We don’t spend big dollars to buy potential show animals,” they admitted. “We like to buy and develop our show cattle and we want them to be marketable.  How an animal develops is kind of a crapshoot. Of course when you are at the top end of the shows, you need to be picky. You need exceptional udders in order to show well, especially high rear udders and good feet and legs.”
     Leading the list of most rewarding recent purchases is Craigcrest Rubies Rachelle (EX-92@3y), who was second Junior Three-Year-Old at World Dairy Expo last fall, Honorable All-American Junior Three-Year-Old 2016, and Unanimous All-New York Junior Three-Year-Old 2016.  Her full sister is Craigcrest Rubies Gold Rejoice (EX-94), All-American and All-Canadian Senior Two-Year-Old 2011. Rachelle has another full sister, Gold Reba (EX-90) at Oakfield Corners. Rachelle has pregnancies by Doorman, Beemer, Crush and Sid.
       “We bought Rachelle two years ago as a bred heifer in the Craigcrest Dispersal. She was stylish, long and from a good cow family,” says Jonathan. “She is a Goldwyn X Dundee cross. She was one of the best heifers in the sale. As a junior two-year-old she was Reserve All-New York. She just continued to develop. We do not usually buy bred heifers, instead we buy them calved in. But in this case, if she had calved in, she would have been too high priced for us to buy. We give Kelly Lee Reynolds (Oakfield Corners’ former show herd manager, now Executive Director for New York Holstein Association) a lot of credit for developing Rachelle to her potential.”

Selection Criteria for High Genomics
     “We select bulls first for TPI, then protein pounds, and third calving ease. It seems that if the calving ease gets over 8.5 to 9, it’s hard to market. It detracts from their value. We also want the parent average to be as high as we can get it,” he added.
      Type is not in their top three criteria because, “If we use a good solid genomic bull, the heifers will be adequate for type. I find conformation from genomic bulls to be sufficient. Somatic cell is not a deal breaker for us when buying semen, unless it’s over 3.0. I really hate to not use a bull that is high in TPI, but has one poor trait…because they can add so much from their good traits.”
     On the rest of the commercial herd, Jonathan shared that they use a lot for recipients. And, because they send several bulls to AI each year, Lambs get some of the semen back from these and use it in the herd. On the February 2017 index run, Oakfield Corners had 26 young sires with GTPI +2648 or higher!
      “Our goal is a profitable cow with functional type. She doesn’t need to be extra fancy. The rate of progress is different today. Genomics kicks it up a gear with the commercial cattle,” says Lamb .        “Animals sired by high milk bulls make more milk. Cows from high DPR bulls breed back more consistently.  High Productive Life bulls transmit daughters that last longer. We almost always get more of a response than what we expect. Good genetics pays in commercial herds,” states Lamb. “Our internal herd growth is high. We sell a lot of fresh two-year-olds.”
     “As for type, we like a moderate-size cow with adequate strength in our commercial herd. We appreciate those two-year-olds that are GP-82 and 84-85 in the mammary.  If they are Good Plus across the board with no holes, that’s a profitable cow. We see feet and legs as the hardest to predict how the classifier will see them. Feet are affected by management more than any other trait.” 

Buying Model for High GTPI Individuals
     “When we are buying index, an animal being near flush age is important, especially with genomics and the fast pace of genetics. Criteria we use for buying:  high GTPI, high production and calving ease.   Because we have a lot of recipients, we pay moderate prices, flush a lot and end up with some high indexing individuals. We also make sure we are working with a variety of cow families .”

Cow Family Highlights
      A herd favorite, Edg Ruby Uno Rae 2054-ET (EX-90 EX-MS 3y7m) with 2-01 3X 365D 25,510M 5.1% 1299F 3.4% 878P and GTPI +2559 combines the right ingredients for profitability. She is a Numero Uno X Robust X Planet X Bolton X Forbidden from the Dellia (EX-95) family. Uno Rae has six offspring over +2700 GTPI from five different sires! Her son OCD Kingboy Rambo-ET is +2709 GTPI +3.05T.
     Sired by McCutchen and from the All-American Eastside Gold Missy (EX-95) cow family, Butz-Hill Magical Missy-ET (EX-91 EX-92-MS) has a Delta daughter that topped their Oakfield Corners Sensation Sale two years ago. This family has proven they can transmit show type and high genomic numbers.
     Type transmitter Cowtown Durham Luella (EX-94-2E) is a Durham out of Eleeta Skybuck Lucy (EX-95), the Grand Champion at World Dairy Expo 2007. Luella’s Goldwyn daughter claimed Reserve All-Canadian and High Honorable Mention All-American Fall Yearling honors in 2014. Plus, her December Solomon daughter won Reserve All-New York Winter Calf. Luella has one Excellent and seven Very Good daughters to date.
     It’s amazing to go through Oakfield Corners website and see the depth of pedigree, quality of the animals and the variety of genetics they have to offer.    

Key To Successful Sales Series
      The Lambs stressed that putting together a top sale starts with a good team – from the people at the farm, fitters, sale manager and ring men.  Next they pay attention to the market.  Jonathan says the question they ask themselves is, “What animals would I like to add to my program?” They also consult with Rick Verbeek on marketing decisions. 
     Third, the Lambs believe that it’s important to have good communication between everyone.    Fourth, they expect challenges, but when mistakes occur they just pick themselves up and learn from them.
     “There is a lot involved -- you have to pick the right animals, mate them, flush, get pregnancies, get a live and healthy calf on the ground and then develop it. We pay attention to details and get advice from people we respect,” Jonathan shared.
     Many success stories have come through the Spring Sensation Sale.  Pine Tree Dairy in Ohio acquired high-indexing OCD Supersire 9882-ET (VG-85 @2-07) as a heifer in the 2015 Sensation Sale. A year and a half later, she topped the World Classic Sale, Madison, Wisconsin, for significantly more than they had paid for her. Three of her sons, all bred by Oakfield Corners, are in the top 15 GPTI bulls (with semen available) December 2016.
     Show type success stories from the Spring Sensation Sale include: Oakfield Goldwyn Lyric, Reserve All-Canadian Fall Yearling 2014; Oakfield Amedo Vanity (VG-87 @2y), Reserve All Canadian Jersey Junior Two-Year-Old 2012; OCD Contender Lonnie (VG-89 @2y) , First Fall Yearling at the  Royal; Ms Atwood Madison (VG-89 CAN), Reserve All-Canadian and Honorable Mention All-American Four-Year-Old; Oakfield Pronto Angelina (EX-94), Nominated Junior All-American Aged Cow 2014; Oakfield RB Shantay Red-ET , Honorable Mention All-American Red & White Fall Yearling; plus many more state and local winners.
      The Lambs offered a Tag Sale in 2016 in conjunction with a “Growing Through Showing” workshop for more than 200 dairy youth at their farm. This is just one of many areas where they serve the dairy community. And, of course, on their schedule for May 20, 2017 is Lamb’s seventh edition of the Spring Sensation Sale. 

Type, Longevity & Deep Pedigrees

By: Katie Henson for the Spring 2017 Milking Shorthorn Journal

     Nestled in Roaring Spring, Pennsylvania, lies Hard Core Farm, the home of 80 Milking Shorthorns, Jerseys and Guernseys. Hard Core is owned and operated by Keith and Donnette Fisher. Together, they have been breeding high-caliber Milking Shorthorns for 20 years.

     Keith was raised in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, while Donnette hails from the state of Washington. The two met at World Dairy Expo in 1999 and were married in 2001. When Donnette made the move across the country, she brought along her Guernseys, some Jerseys as well as her “Sunshine” prefixed “F” family that has produced Fireball and Firemaid and the “D” family with offspring Dottie and Dorothy. Keith’s brother, Mark, and niece, Chriselle, are always on hand to help with the show string and operations at the farm if needed.

     The tie stall barn holds 46 cows; 42 tie stalls and four boxstalls that house older cows. Cows and bred heifers are fed hay, grain and silage and have access to pasture each day. Calves are raised on whole milk and in hutches until three months old and then transferred to a super hutch and fed dry hay and grain.

     “Being in a tie-stall barn, we can work with the cows individually. Our operation is labor intensive, but our cows live longer,” says Keith. Currently, the average age of the cows is 8 years and 4 months!

     The Hard Core breeding philosophy is simple and easy: “breed for type, manage for production.” Keith does all the mating decisions and is looking for solid pedigreed bulls with type. All of the breeding is done by AI with bulls such as Lad, Premium, Ironman and Perfection.

     Breeding or implanting embryos is done every three months, ­­since their primary focus is making show-aged calves. The conception rate on first service is 82%! Hard Core IVFs at least 15 cows per year with great success. Last summer, they exported embryos to Japan.

     No outside genetics have been purchased recently, although some of the purchases from many years ago have proven to be great investments. Viking Valley Megg ‘4E94’ is the dam of well-known Horizon-Tudor Margarita ‘4E95.’ Margarita was Nominated All-American five times and still has many offspring in the herd today. Hard Core MRB (Margarita’s Rebel Bull) has been a popular sire for many Milking Shorthorns.

     Innisfail BDF Stella 905 ‘4E96,’ the two-time World Dairy Expo Grand Champion, has over 238,000M in her lifetime. When Stella was Grand Champion in 2006, Keith and Donnette earned both the Premier Breeder & Exhibitor banners.  

     The Milking Shorthorn breed has had four 96-point cows. Two of those four are currently in the Fisher’s barn: Stella and Tudor Hall Rubens Roxy ‘2E96.’ Roxy is the dam of Hard Core Ace Roxy ‘4E95,’ a 10-time All-American nominee.

     Sunshine Dittos Dottie ‘4E93,’ with over 200,000M lifetime, is a prolific cow for Donnette and Keith.  Dottie topped the Production Class at the Eastern National and then came in second two years later. Her daughter, Sunshine Frolic Dorothy ‘3E95 97MS,’ is a two-time Reserve All-American and Total Performance Winner at the Eastern National and International Show.

     Another farm favorite, Hard Core O’ Royce ‘4E95,’ is an All-American, two-time Reserve All-American and Honorable Mention. Her full sister, Hard Core O’Raely ‘EX-92’ was named HM All-American Four-Year-Old this past year after placing first at Harrisburg and Louisville.

In 2010, Hard Core held the “Hard Core Select Sale.” One of the high sellers that day was Hard Core Rebel Rockette ‘2E94.’ Rockette sold to the Cor Bloo Syndicate of Indiana. She went on be tapped Grand Champion at World Dairy Expo in 2014.

     The show ring is almost like a second home for Hard Core. Since 1993, the farm has bred and owned 85 All-American Nominations. Sixteen have been voted All-American, 14 Reserve and 22 Honorable Mention. Keith and Donnette recognize the importance of picturing cows so that they can be used for advertising to other Milking Shorthorn breeders and promoting to others outside of the breed.

     An impressive classification breakdown on the 29 scored Milking Shorthorns currently on the farm include 21 above 90 points and eight cows scored 86-88 points.

     April 21 and 22, 2017 will mark their fourth annual Tag Sale. Hard Core offers every heifer on the farm and have offered a select few cows. Last year, a handful of consignments were taken, but each animal had to be a daughter of Hard Core breeding. This year, only females under two years of age will have a tag sale price. Five of the animals that sold in 2016 were Nominated All-American! The tag sale has been a great chance to expand the breed into non-Milking Shorthorn herds.

Keith and Donnette hold nothing back for the tag sale. Alumnus of the 2014 sale, Hard Core Premium Fire Maid ‘VG88,’ has put the spotlight on the Milking Shorthorn breed after being named Supreme Champion Heifer at the All-American Dairy Show for her owners, Vail, Hillpoint and Borba. She’s continued to dominate each year in the show ring, including Junior and Intermediate Champion at World Dairy Expo.

     It’s not all just breeding and milking cows for Keith and Donnette. Keith is involved with the Milking Shorthorn Sale Committee while Donnette is active on the Credential Committee and her off-the-farm job. Keith has two daughters and three grandchildren and says his most memorable moments have been getting to walk his daughters down the aisle at their weddings.

     Type, longevity and deep-pedigrees are the kind of cattle that have put Hard Core in the fore front of the Milking Shorthorn breed. The Fishers’ passion and hard work are shown in each calf, heifer and cow that steps foot off the farm, whether it is to a new owner, a sale consignment or gracing the colored shavings. 

Sale of Excellence Rosedale Genetics LTD.

Mark Rueth, Dan Hovden and Adam Fraley with the high seller

The Sale of Excellence at Rosedale certainly lived up to it's name with 123 lots averaging $5,850. It was standing room only as the crowd gathered to join in this special day. Mark and Nicky Rueth rolled out the red carpet and offered the best of their years of breeding and development of outstanding families and cows along with several of their partners.

Arolene Goldwyn Divine

Topping the sale was Arolene Goldwyn Divine owned by Rosedale Genetics and Dan Hovden. The EX-92 Goldwyn sold due in June with a Solomon ultrasounded female. The 2016 All-American Sr. 3 nominee milked 118 pounds on her last test.  Budjon/Vail won the right to take the silky cow home with a final bid of $92,000. Her March 5 2016 Solomon daugther sold for $15,000.

Rosedlae Lucky-Rose-Red

Rosedale Lucky-Rose-Red EX-94 was second-high seller at $35,000 to Lambs of New York. The Rainyridge Perseus daughter sold due in June carrying an ultrasound Avalance female. Lucky-Rose is out of the 2E-91 Sanchez, Rosedale Crown of Thorns-ET, an own daughter of Redrose 4E-96. 

Lot 1 A-Rosedale Constella Prize-ET / B-Rosedale Catch A Glimpse-ET

Top selling heifer was a choice of two Rosedale Lexington daughters sired by Doorman. Aaron Eaton of New York was the winning bidder and chose the fancy Rosedale Catch A Glimpse ET for $18,000.  

Rosedale Worth Repeating-ET sold for $20,500. The EX-91 Goldwyn daughter of Redrose sold due the end of May to Crush. 

Rosedale Devastating-Red-ET sold for $15,200. She is a Hetrzy June 1, 2010 daughter of Rosedale Lucky-Rose-Red.

Rosedale Rumor Hasit-Red-ET EX-92 sold due in July to Absolute. The Honorable Mention All-American 3-Year-Old is sired by Lookout P Redburst-Red-ET out of Redrose 4E-96.

Adam Fraley of Fraley Auction, Muncy, Pennsylvania, cried the sale with Norm Nabhoz on pedigrees in the box. A photo gallery from the sale day is available for viewing at purebred.smugmug.com. For a complete sale write up see the upcoming May Red and White issue of the HolsteinWorld Exclusive.