No one tells you about the ‘ugly’ when you start a farm
By Michelle Miller, AgDaily
I remember the first time I watched an animal die on the farm.
It was in February of 2016, shortly after I bought my first flock of sheep. At the time, my boyfriend’s uncle was wanting to retire and gave me an opportunity to buy 70 ewes, my first chance at farming on my own terms. Although my boyfriend had been farming his whole life, he had experience with pigs and cattle, so this would be the first time we raised lambs together.
They were my sheep though — my first chance at farm debt. I financed the herd and was eager to get started. This was gonna be great, I thought. I get to work with newborn lambs! It’ll be so fun and cute and such a good opportunity!
It was and still is. But you don’t always think of the “ugly” when you’re getting into agriculture. When something happens at birth, when animals get sick and die — complications are all part of it. The old saying goes, “If you have livestock, you’re gonna have deadstock.” It can be challenging. We all want what’s best for the animals. Ask any farmer … the animal’s needs come before our own.
I quickly learned that lambing was a wonderful yet difficult 24/7 job full of sleepless nights and challenges.
But no one told me about the ugly. The struggles.
The average person tends to have a very romantic image of farming. It’s pretty, it’s fun, it’s agritourism — farm themes make for a cute decoration in the house. Right?