FAQ: How to do the cattle stay warm outside in the winter?

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posted on

February 9, 2022

Last week we mentioned a price freeze and despite our "udderly" balmy weather today I thought it was a good time to answer an FAQ:

---->>> How do the cattle stay warm when we don't have a barn for them to go into every day??

Beef cows are a warm-blooded mammal like us and have an internal temp of 101°F they are trying to maintain.

In the cold they maintain that body temp with a layer of fat, thicker skin, thicker hair and through eating.

How through eating??

Unlike us a cow's stomach has 4 compartments specially designed to squeeze out every drop of nutrition from plants that would otherwise go straight through and eventually starve a single-compartment stomached animal like us.

Note that fermentation is the cow's super power which we take advantage of through our regenerative agriculture systems - leave the grain for the others!

The food fermenting in the rumen (the first compartment of a cow's stomach) releases gas, aka microbe farts, which keeps the cow warm. 🔥 So if she wants to warm up, she just needs to eat more!

The ideal temperature range for a cow is 25 - 65°F. Between these two temps she's basically living her best life and eating as she sees fit.

🥶 However, if the temp goes below about 20°F, then she just needs to eat more hay (dried grass) to crank up her internal furnace, aka create more microbe farts. So she doesn't even notice she's getting cold until it's below 20°F outside!

Andy wishes I worked this way - now that we have the wood stove in the house, anything below 68°F for me and I'm shivering....despite my caloric intake & farts. 😂

But if we have a cold winter that means more hay is going through her to warm her from the inside out. Have you ever bought hay? It's expensive. So when it gets cold just imagine us starting little individual campfires for all the cattle by burning money. Goodbye money. 💸💸💸

🥵 On the opposite end, if it gets above 68°F they can start to feel heat stress and then they will eat less to turn the temp down which is bad news for putting on fat - it's hard to gain weight on grass if you can't eat because it's making you hot.

Bottom line: cattle are usually pretty comfortable in Wisconsin (suck it California!) and when they aren't we spend a lot of money on heating and cooling to keep them in their happy place....we're like amazing sacrificial landlords for a 100 tiny houses.

Eating our food won't necessarily warm you up physically (although figuratively your heart will be filled with warmth for all the good you are doing 💚) but with our home delivery you can at least stay cozy inside and let us bring the good stuff to you!

Yes! Deliver Good Food to my warm house!

Wishing you health, happiness and warmth!

Steph

How TF Ended Up Nominated in 13 Best Of Categories (Hint: It Was Not My Marketing Skills)

If you ever needed proof that word of mouth is still the most powerful marketing tool on earth, here it is! Together Farms was nominated in thirteen different Best of the Chippewa Valley categories! That is not a typo. Lucky number 13. Our biggest year yet! Best Organic FarmBest Family Entertainment BusinessBest Place to Buy MeatBest Food Event (Burger Nights at Together Farms)Best Restaurant for Gluten-Free DiningBest Restaurant for Outdoor DiningBest Special Event Venue Small (Under 100)Best French Fries (Non-Franchise)Best Fried Cheese/CurdsBest Restaurant AtmosphereBest BurgerBest Shop for Gifts (Together Farms farm store)Best Restaurant Worth the DriveBest Place to Impress Out-of-town Guests You might be asking yourself the same question that I asked myself when I saw the list. How in the world does a business that does not post consistently on social media, does not send the Sunday recipe emails like it promises (sorry!), and does not even text regularly keep growing? And how does it end up popping up in all these categories?? The answer is simple: You. Together Farms is on the map because you talk to people about us. You tell coworkers to come out for Burger Night. You drag friends here to see the farm. You tag us in your posts and stories. You create reels that make our place look as magical as it feels in person. You share our meat with your families (and really good friends).You tell people where to find 100% grassfed beef, pastured pork and a really good time. You continue to overlook all our faults. And when polls come around that help guide locals on where to go and what to do, you take a minute and click our name. So yeah, our marketing basically depends on you gossiping, but it is the wholesome kind. 😊 The Midwest kind. The kind that builds community instead of tearing anyone down. This is small town communication at its finest. As is being demonstrated in the photo. Being recognized in all these categories is humbling and exciting and maybe a touch confusing for me, but mostly it is a reminder that this place means something to you. It means enough that you talk about it when we are too busy or too tired or too overwhelmed to talk about it ourselves. That is not something we take lightly. But we haven't won yet! So if you have a moment and want to toss a vote our way in the categories you think we actually earned, here is the link (or when you are on the Best Of site do a search for Together Farms): https://bit.ly/TFBestOf26 Every vote helps more people find us all year long since the Best Of magazine and website are probably the most used and trusted resources for finding things to do, places to be and people to support around here. We could not be more grateful for the community that keeps this little farm growing. Love you lots! Steph & the TF Family

FAQ: How to do the cattle stay warm outside in the winter?

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