CALF_News_Feb_March_2019

5 CALF News • February | March 2019 • www.calfnews.net Editor & Publisher Betty Jo Gigot | (620) 272-6862 National Account Manager Jessica Ebert | (785) 477-1941 Art Direction & Administration Kathie Bedolli, Lisa Bard Leslie McKibben | BluePrint Media Copy Editor Larisa Willrett | BluePrint Media Contributing Editor Lisa Bard Contributing Editor David F. Crosby Contributing Editor Blaine Davis Contributing Editor Rachel Lewis Contributing Editor Terri Licking Contributing Editor MacKenzie Moldenhauer Contributing Editor Chris McClure Contributing Editor Kelsey Pagel Contributing Editor Larry Stalcup Contributing Editor Will Verboven Contributing Editor Jim Whitt Contributing Editor Heidi Wiechert Contributing Editor Patti Wilson CALF News (ISSN 00077798) is published bimonthly for $40 per year by B.J. Publishing, 4303 East Cactus Road, #309 Phoenix, AZ 85032; (620) 272-6862 e-mail: bjgigot@calfnews.net Postmaster: Send address changes to BluePrint Media P.O. Box 292 Lodi, WI 53555 (970) 556-9296 Change of Address: Please notify us of your change of address at least six weeks before the change. Include the address label from your latest issue. Give both your old and new full addresses. See box at left. Please print legibly. Copyright 2019. B.J. Publishing CALF NEWS The Face of the Cattle Industry February | March 2019 Vol. 58 Issue 1 Published bimonthly by B.J. Publishing Gypsy Wagon From the Publisher ON THE COVER: Solid ADGs and overall performance keep F-Troop Feeders competitive. See story on page 36. Photo by Larry Stalcup. M any, many years ago I heard a speech by the president of an airline that was, for me, a benchmark in my edu- cation about how the world works. The speaker told about his company training pilots coming from Ethiopia and from the Arctic area of North America to fly jet planes. At that time, those new pilots had a 100-percent safety record. What he marveled about was that some of the Ethiopians’ parents were still head-hunt- ers, and the Eskimo students were coming out of igloos, both straight from“the bush.” However, they had no problem mastering the most com- plex modern aviation skills. His analysis was that, when you came right down to it, all children are born savages.“If you don’t believe that, look at your neighbor’s kids,” and we then share the entirety of civilization with each generation. Thus the ability of the new pilots. The same premise should hold true today, although there are instances where I don’t think civilization has quite taken hold. In writing Recollections for this issue I was struck, again, by the upward development of the feeding industry. From“maybe we should mix the ration well,” to the specificity of today’s feed ration formulation, is a perfect example of teaching each generation. And, like flying airplanes, is a high-risk profession. This issue’s cover asks the question,“Where from Here?” The answer is just as complicated as it was when Louie Dinklage put a few cattle in a pen in Nebraska, or Earl Brookover painted “Eat Beef Stay Slim” on his grain silos in Kansas, or when the government got involved in the early 1970s and devastated the entire industry. I have often described those early pioneers as the next generation after gunfighters walking down the street (see my picture in Tombstone). In our business, many times your success is gauged on what the market was doing on the day you die. One part of the industry that can’t be emphasized enough is all of the partners who helped break the trail. Ladd Hitch talked about the implementation of technol- ogy in the development of feed trucks and mixers. Dozens of companies developed better and better working chutes. Major pharmaceutical companies came up with better and safer antibiotics and vaccines, and the equipment to administer them. Software companies developed not only financial programs but analysis tools to go with the complete record-keeping needed in today’s scientific world. And then there were the technicians. The professors who taught the entirety of civilization in one generation, and the veterinarians and the nutritionists and envi- ronmentalists and, yes, the bankers who were there to advise. Groundbreakers like Temple Grandin helped us be credible, and organizations like the National Cattle- men’s Beef Association and the state associations enabled us to prosper. Feedyards were the companion of the ranching community, providing an outlet for their product. Breed associations figure into that part of the advancements of the business. Many of those ranchers were a part of the development of cattle feeding, investing in its development across the High Plains. Continued on page 9 