Trautman Family Farm

This was my commentary on October 15 2008, prior to this blog. I thought it should be repeated here, today. - Scott

"what about me, what about right now"

My first effort just about got uploaded to this page, but fortunately, I did not give in to my frustration, but let time and reflection bring me back to what I believe is my fundamental nature; that being a person of hope and faith in people. We are frustrated and concerned, and saddened when some customers tell us "they're watching their pennies right now", and that means back to the cheap food. We feel badly that we have not done our job of educating them of the value and importance of pure, quality food, and supporting, especially now, the farms that produce them. The stakes have never been higher. So instead of a rant, I say the following:

Thank you so very much for your business, and for your votes – your dollars, for our farm and our methods, and what we represent. 

In these trying times, it means so very much to us that you choose to spend your money with us, when there are so many choices out there, and the persistent message is one of “what about me, what about right now”, and it is so very difficult to resist.

We appreciate, and feel hope for the future, that even in trying times that you and others like you will value ours, and other local, sustainable, organic farm’s products, enough to continue to choose them, instead of retreating into cheaper, lower quality, less sustainable foods. Quality food from sustainable, local farms is not a luxury, but a necessity to change our own lives and the path of the world. Your choices reflect your true values in life, and we are proud and humbled to be a part of that.

We are confident that your reward will be better health and a better world. It takes courage and wisdom to make good long term decisions, and sacrifice today for a better future, even as those around us may tempt us and call us foolish. It is never foolish to look out for one another and work towards a better world. Our rewards may not be immediate, but they will come and they will be everlasting.

 Our individual and collective character isn’t determined when times are easy, but by the difficult choices and sacrifices we make when it isn’t easy.

 We have never and do not now believe, arrogantly, that you or anyone else should pay us any price, but that we owe it to you to be efficient and provide excellent value, and if we fall short of that, we do not deserve your business or your faith. 

Our gratitude to you will be to continue to work tirelessly, to work with you in providing value, and to be a beacon of hope with our farm, the values it represents, and to give unselfishly to others that would also make the world a better place.

At these frustrating times, rather than get sucked into the unfairness of it all, a pity party, negative thinking, I am reminded of how very grateful we are, especially to the following people who have given of themselves to our farm; with their time, and materials and money. I can't imagine how we would be where we are at without the help of these people, especially.

Bruce&Cindy Andre
Norm Bouchard
Joe Kester
Don Warren
Mike Logan+Family/Dan Utter
Dwayne Trautman
Richard Falkenstein
Art Johnson
Mike&Jeanne Cary
Gary Zimmer
Duane Siegenthaler
Eric Stokstad
Larry Johnson
Jeff Hougan
A Special thank you to Gary Hougan, previous steward of our farm
Muriel Plichta
Dick&Ardy Straub
Martha O'Reilly
MaryJo Fahey
Steven Wilson
Brad Jackson

Sincerely,

Scott, Julie, Ian, Quinn & Lilly Trautman

This also from July 2005. What a crappy couple of months it ended up being. Another note -- I complain about $290/mo insurance being devastating -- with a deductable of $10,000. Try $15,000 deductable and $550/month. That is robbery. I think soon we will join the millions without any healthcare at all. - Scott

Takin' one for the team

The vet was out yesterday; to treat one calf with pinkeye, poor little #85, who's been rather sorry looking since he got here, having been weaned too quickly & transported here on a quite cold day. The vet also lanced an abcess on another calf's cheek, one about the size of a big golf ball.

My wife Julie helps we catch and hold these fellows when we need to do something. These fellows are in the calf shed, a 40x60 foot building.

With that cheek lance, we need to push out the pus out & put some iodine in there, at least twice a day until it heals over.
Six hours after the vet lanced it, it was back to its original oversized golf ball size, we catch good ol' Wolly, but darn it if we can get the puss out of the lance, trying to squeeze it. The vet said we might have to clean it out with hydrogen peroxide & break a scab to get it out. Well, probe as I might in the wound, and thoroughly grossing Julie & myself out, can't get it open. Need the vet out again.

At the same time, we need to vaccinate the other 7 fellows in with him against pinkeye. Which means catch 'em & give them a quick shot in the neck. We caught 5 with relative ease. I suggested to Julie, well, maybe that's enough for tonight. Okay, let's try the next one, if we can't, that'll be it for tonight. Okay! Julie & I make quite a team, I'm the major "grabber", she's right behind to gain control, then back to me to get them down on the ground & do the vaccination, 2cc's in the neck.

Good & big #224, I grab him at the feeder, he makes a lunge, Julie's got his tail, I've got him by the neck, down he goes, I'm on top.
Bam, up goes his head, and his bud of a horn knocks me good just above my left eye, wow, that hurt, but I got him vaccinated. I touch my head, it's slick, and my hand comes back bloody. Julie can't see my face yet.

When she does, her first comment is "you've got to go to the emergency room". The damn thing doesn't really hurt, but it's definitely bleeding good. Nah, no emergency room, it's not that big a deal. Especially since the last time we had an urgent care situation, our 2 year old daughter having fallen down a couple stairs playing with her brothers, result being she was limping. Three x-rays later, $1000. It was nothing, she just sprained her ankle, but there it is, $1000 for being safe. And a nice little note in the file about "blunt trauma" to make sure they could suggest child abuse to keep us shut up.

Our health insurance is still $290/month, almost $10/day, for a $10k per person deductable. On a farmer's pay, that $1000 was devastating, and all I can think is they'll find some way to make this a $1000 cut, won't they? So no, not going to urgent care, clean it up, try and bind it up to minimize a scar. Such is the price of healthcare these days. You've got good employer provided healthcare? Good for you, no scars for you. For us, if it's me anyway, it'll be a broken bone or as bad before I go to those money suckers.

Being the jokester that I am, I now am able to say upon being asked (by everyone of course) "what happened?", well, Julie, she's a mean drunk I tell you, I never saw it coming. There may well be a small scar, no problem, the problem right now is wiping away sweat in the course of other activities from that eye. All part of what it is to be a farmer, with animals.