CALF_News_Oct_Nov_2018

11 CALF News • October | November 2018 • www.calfnews.net Looking Ahead ‘Yellowstone’ Brings TV Drama to a Place We Can Relate  CALF VOICES By Rachel Lewis Contributing Editor Barnes. Within a minute she was asked whether sustainable beef included a ban on the use of antibiotics and steroids in beef production (it does not). It was clear that the urban media and probably most city consumers equate the word “sustainable” as meaning beef without those health and production supple- ments. There is no way of getting around that consumer perception, and I expect the marketing brain trust at McDonald’s Canada clearly knows this reality. I expect sooner or later the big players will put pressure on the CRSB to amend its sustainable principles to include a ban on antibiotics and steroids. It’s already hap- pening with chicken, eggs and pork that many fast-food chains are buying. I suspect for beef we are just waiting for the other shoe to drop. For the Ameri- can cattle and beef industry, this new Canadian beef marketing initiative may be a forerunner of things to come in the United States, particularly if one of the main proponents is McDonald’s.  E-mail comments to willverboven@hotmail.com A s someone who’s always looking for ways to reach the masses – to educate and share the message that cattleman are stewards of the land, and that no one cares for our cattle better or more than we do – I was looking forward to the Western TV show premiere of Yellowstone . Aside from wanting it to be a realistic repre- sentation of the cowboy lifestyle, I am a diehard Kevin Costner fan. Did anybody watch it? I know it’s a summer premiere and the longer days mean more time outside and less time in front of the TV, but with TiVo you can record it and watch when it’s convenient – which is what I did. Please tell me what you thought if you watched! Since the season finale has premiered, I don’t feel like there needs to be any worry about spoiling it. I’m not going to lie; I loved it. I mean I was rabid fromWednesday to Wednes- day to watch it, but that had nothing to do with the ranching and everything to do with the drama. The portrayal of ranching was too TV for me. After deciding the drama was great, but the ranching was not as great, I tried to come up with a way to spin it – to still use it to discuss ranching and a lifestyle I love in a positive light. I converse with a number of people through social media and daily life who could easily think that what they see on Yellowstone is a true representation. I always start with the first episode because it has two things in the two-hour premiere that give me real talking points. The first is in the opening scene when John Dutton euthanizes the horse in the trailer at the scene of the accident. When I first saw it, I thought “Whoa, what am I watching?” That’s how the show opens, but as I got into the program and oriented with the situation, I thought more about the representation. It was the hard choice, the choice that no one wants to make or even think about, but that animal was injured badly enough that it wouldn’t recover and was struggling in pain. Kevin Costner’s character soothes the animal, tells him he deserves better and then euthanizes him. Most people in the animal husbandry industry felt a pang at that suffering but approved of how the situation was handled. I know there was a tug at my heart strings along with a nod of approval. Part of the much-loved and recited “So God Made a Farmer” pays tribute to that exact moment. I have discussed those types of sad situations with people at length; it’s not an enjoy- able moment, but sadly, sometimes it is an inevitable moment. The kind reassur- ance and moment of emotion are more than appropriate. The second scenario that I always go back to is closer to the end of that pre- miere, when John and another character are checking calves. He asks about a cow whose records show hasn’t been very productive. He makes sure she makes the cull list. Nod of approval; then slightly down the road, they see another cow calving. The truck slams into park and they race into the pasture – she needs help! Two seconds later, without a peep from the cow, the calf is out and both cow and calf jump up and run in opposite directions. Oh NO!! I know it’s TV and we can’t have the painstaking calf-pulling experience – it’s only a two-hour premiere – but I would have just liked it to look difficult; to look real. I like to tell people the concern that they had for that one single cow and calf was real. No matter if your ranch is the size of Rhode Island like The Yellow- stone is, or just your backyard, EVERY SINGLE animal matters, and typically the struggle is real. All in all, I give the show a thumbs up for drama, acting and beautiful scenery; as for the ranching, well, we can still use it to advocate for an industry we love. It opens the dialogue; it just doesn’t do all the explaining for us.  E-mail comments to rachel@animalhealthexpresscom GREAT WHITE NORTH Continued from page 10