‘The Midwest is facing a stretch of bitterly cold temperatures, which means farmers have to work extra hard to keep their animals safe. One Dodgeville family said everything is a little more challenging in the winter.
Every day, Krista Dolan and her husband take care of around 600 dairy cows and calves at Dolan Farms, LLC. When temperatures dip, it can make their job much more difficult.
“It’s just a matter of a couple of hours before that frostbite could nip at their ears,” Dolan explained.
Most of the cows stay indoors year round, which helps, but in really cold weather, everyone on the farm has to pitch in a little extra.
“The cows at our farm are always under this roof, so they are always protected from the elements of the weather,” Dolan said.
The Dolans said when temperatures fall below 10 degrees, that is when things start to get more challenging. At their farm on Saturday evening, the temperature dropped to one degree.
At that point, milking machines, equipment and even the cows’ water can freeze.
“Your have to go a couple times a day […and] break any ice that’s in there,” Dolan described.
Cold temperatures paired with other winter weather can cause even more problems.
“The fog, the rain, stuff like that, it’s a lot harder to keep the pens and the areas where they are dry every single day,” Dolan explained.
Dolan said her primary responsibility on the farm is taking care of the calves, and winter is a tough season for new babies. Calves cannot regulate their body temperature well, so it is important Dolan works fast.
“Let Mom clean her off and then get the baby into a warm little heat house that we have to keep them warm, get them dry,” she said.
Because of these challenges, low temperatures don’t mean a day off for farmers like Dolan. It just means putting on a few extra layers and working a little bit harder.
“A little bit more thinking ahead, that’s a lot of it in the winter time, you have to think ahead,” Dolan said.
