CALF_News_June_July_2021

25 CALF News • June | July 2021 • www.calfnews.net WHY IS BEAVER THE BEST? Felt hats are made from four different kinds of fur or hair – wool, American rabbit, European hare and beaver. And the hair from those animals are God’s Velcro, says Trent Johnson, hatmaker and owner of Greeley Hat Works in Greeley, Colo. “Each piece of hair has little barbs that grab the other one,” he says. Wool comes from sheep that live above ground. It’s thicker and bigger and farther apart with coarser fibers. Thus, wool makes the lowest qual- ity felt. “Then go down to a rabbit. A rabbit is a burrowing animal, so underground and above ground. But lower to the ground. So the barbs are smaller and closer together,” he explains, to keep the animal warm. Euro- pean hare is closely related to the rabbits that invade your vegetable garden, but the fur is finer and denser. “Now, where does the beaver live? In the water where it’s cold. So how does it stay warm? That’s why we use the beaver.” But not just any beaver fur. Along the beaver’s back and sides are guard hairs, which are coarser and thicker. It’s the fine fur from the belly that makes the best hats.  This is what your custom-made hat looks like when it arrives at Greeley Hat Works. Trent Johnson, the outfit’s owner, says it will go through many stages before that hat adorns your head. JOHNSON CONCRETE LIVESTOCK WATERERS THE BEST NAME IN CATTLE WATERERS www.JohnsonConcreteProducts.com Trusted by Livestock Owners Everywhere! JOHNSON CONCRETE LIVESTOCK WATERERS 109 East B Street Hastings, Neb. 68901 phone: (402) 463-1359 toll free: (800) 752-1670 Built with features to last, Johnson Waterers withstand punishing weather and prove to be dependable year after year. TOUGH, DEPENDABLE CONSTRUCTION  See us for all your water trough needs.  We are #1 in water trough parts and services. Designed for the most punishing environments, our livestock waterers stand the test of time and deliver performance unequaled in the ndustry. Betty Jo Gigot bjgigot@calfnews.net analysis on the United Kingdom’s beef industry by David MacKenzie, beef and sheep director for Harbro, Ltd. New on calfnews.net are the stories by our college students and our weekly market broadcast by Wes Ishmael every Tuesday morn- ing. Please check in there. The staff of CALF News cannot wait to see all of you at the Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show in Nash- ville in August, and hope you will join us at the Cattle Feeder’s Hall of Fame Reception. Be sure to look us up at our booth.  GYPSYWAGON Continued from page 5