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This Week In Louisiana Agriculture is a weekly show created to connect Louisiana farmers, ranchers, and fishermen with consumers across Louisiana and around the world. Each week, we’ll share the show here and take a look behind-the-scenes of This Week In Louisiana Agriculture, one of the longest-running television programs in Louisiana.
Welcome
{KRISTEN}
HI. I'M KRISTEN OAKS-WHITE.
{AVERY}
AND I'M AVERY DAVIDSON.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR THIS WEEK IN LOUISIANA AGRICULTURE. THE ONLY T-V SHOW BRINGING LOUISIANA FARMERS AND CONSUMERS TOGETHER EVERY WEEK.
Zippy Visits LA Crawfish / Labor
{KRISTEN}
WE TALK ABOUT IT OFTEN, BUT THERE IS A DAY FOR EVERYTHING. THIS WEEK WE SAW NATIONAL CRAWFISH DAY COME AND GO, EVEN THOUGH WE IN LOUISIANA THINK EVERY DAY IN SPRING IS CRAWFISH DAY.
{AVERY}
FOR AMERICAN FARM BUREAU, PRESIDENT ZIPPY DUVALL, CRAWFISH DAY WAS LAST WEEK WHEN HE VISITED THE BAYOU STATE FOR AN UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH CRAWFISH. TWILAS KARL WIGGERS SHOWS US HOW PRESIDENT DUVALL WENT TO WORK ON A CRAWFISH FARM AND GAINED A NEW APPRECIATION FOR OUR TREASURED CRUSTACEAN.
Zippy Visits LA Crawfish / Labor
ITS A PRETTY DAY IN HENDERSON, LOUISIANA FOR A BOAT RIDE FOR AMERICAN FARM BUREAU PRESIDENT ZIPPY DUVALL.
("That's alright..")
DUVALL IS IN LOUISIANA TO LEARN MORE ABOUT A COMMODITY THE STATE IS KNOWN FOR -- CRAWFISH.
("That thing's full!")
GETTING HANDS ON EXPERIENCE LIKE THIS IS IMPORTANT FOR HIM TO REPRESENT THE GRASSROOTS MEMBERS OF FARM BUREAU.
("You know, I get the interface of presidents United States and secretaries of agriculture and EPA administrators, and I get to take my experience back to them, be able to talk about all of it all across the board, the hardships of it, the rewards of it, and the challenges of it, and that that's what makes my travel around the country. It makes my representation more valuable because I've experienced it and seen it with my own eyes.")
DUVALL TRIED HIS HAND AT PULLING SOME TRAPS AND SEEING THE BOUNTY OF THESE CRAWFISH PONDS -- A BOUNTY HE ENJOYED FOR THE FIRST TIME THE NIGHT BEFORE.
("And it was a great experience, had wonderful people to teach me how to do that. And then the fellowship, of course, it's like any other Farm Bureau meeting. We eat well, we fellowship well and we work hard. Making sure pictures of our farmers in their families is bright.")
("It's very important to have a leader like Zippy that will take time to come to your state, sit down with your producers and talk to them about their problems and know that he's taking it back to Washington with him.")
AFTER THE VISIT AT THE CRAWFISH FARM, DUVALL MADE A QUICK STOP AT A BONANZA CRAWFISH TO SEE HOW A PEELING PLANT OPERATES. HE THEN MET WITH A ROOM FULL OF LOUISIANA SUGARCANE FARMERS AND MILLERS TO HEAR HOW A RECENT RULING FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WILL CHANGE THINGS DRASTICALLY ON THEIR OPERATIONS THIS YEAR. IN THAT MEETING WAS THE CHAIR OF LOUISIANA FARM BUREAU'S LABOR ADVISORY COMMITTEE, KATIE RAMAGOS.
("Just to hear what he's hearing from DC, bring that back to us, and then to sit down and listen to the concerns that the millers and the growers have here. I mean, it's huge for the industry, It's huge for Louisiana Farm Bureau. It's huge for our growers in this area that are going to be significantly impacted by these changes.")
Zippy Visits LA Crawfish / Labor
{KARL}
{SINGLE SHOT}
DUVALL ENDED HIS DAY WITH A ROOM FULL OF SUGARCANE, FARMERS AND MILLERS DISCUSSING THE ADVERSE WAGE ACT THAT WILL BE EXTREMELY HARMFUL TO THEIR INDUSTRY. UNFORTUNATELY, DUVALL HAD NO ANSWERS FOR FARMERS CONCERNS YET, BUT HE ASSURED THEM THAT THEIR ISSUES WILL MAKE IT BACK TO THE EARS OF SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE, TOM VILSACK, AS WELL AS OTHERS IN THE LABOR DEPARTMENT AND CONGRESS.
Crawfish Prices
{AVERY}
IF WATCHING SOMEONE CATCH CRAWFISH DIDN'T GET YOU HUNGRY, I'M NOT SURE WE CAN REMAIN FRIENDS... SO, TO HELP WITH THAT HUNGER, LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT CRAWFISH PRICES FROM AROUND THE STATE.
WE'LL START OFF IN HAUGHTON AT STATION 80 WITH LIVE CRAWFISH FOR $2.49 LB AND BOILED FOR $4.49 LB.
{KRISTEN}
CLARKS CRAWDAD HOLE IN WINNSBORO HAS LIVE CRAWFISH AT 2.75 A LB AND BOILED FOR 4.47 A LB.
{AVERY}
LASTLY WE GO SOUTH TO SWAMPY'S ON THE BAYOU IN HOUMA WITH LIVE CRAWFISH FOR 2.00 LB AND BOILED FOR 4.99 LB.
{KRISTEN}
MAKE SURE WHEREVER YOU'RE GETTING YOUR CRAWFISH YOU DO TWO THINGS. FIRST, CALL AHEAD AND CHECK PRICES BECAUSE THEY CAN CHANGE OR THEY HAVE SPECIALS YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT.
{AVERY}
SECONDLY, MAKE SURE YOU'RE GETTING LOUISIANA CRAWFISH, WHICH IS WHY THE LOUISIANA CRAWFISH PROMOTION AND RESEARCH BOARD REMINDS YOU TO ALWAYS ASK BEFORE YOU EAT!
Bagasse Cattle Feed
{KRISTEN}
2022 WAS A RECORD YEAR FOR LOUISIANA SUGARCANE FARMERS WHO SENT MORE THAN 17 MILLION TONS OF CANE TO THE STATE'S 11 MILLS. ONE BYPRODUCT OF MAKING SUGAR IS BAGASSE.
{AVERY}
LAST YEAR ALONE MILLS WERE LEFT WITH 4-POINT-6 BILLION POUNDS OF BAGASSE. MILLS BURN SOME OF IT TO POWER THE BOILERS IN THE MILL, BUT ONE COMPANY IS TURNING SUGARCANE WASTE INTO FOOD FOR CATTLE.
Bagasse Cattle Feed
{VO}
THESE CATTLE AT DEER RUN RANCH IN JEFFERSON, TEXAS ARE ALL AT THE TROUGH EATING A WASTE PRODUCT FROM LOUISIANA SUGAR MILLS. WHAT THEY'RE ALL CROWDED AROUND IS BAGASSE.
{SOT}
(Robert Schmidt/Deer Run Ranch "Well, at first I always heard over the years that cows wouldn't eat bagasse and that and they said that they just won't eat it. It's. It's like dirt. They won't eat it. But I after I got it in his process, they will eat it. No doubt they will eat it.")
{VO}
ROBERT SCHMIDT OWNS DEER RUN RANCH. THE PRODUCT TO WHICH HE'S REFERRING IS SUPREME GOLD PLUS, AN ANIMAL FEED MADE FROM LOUISIANA BAGASSE COMBINED WITH OTHER MINERALS AND NUTRIENTS. MARC WALTHER, C-E-O OF IMPACT FUSION INTERNATIONAL, CAME UP WITH THE IDEA. HE AND HIS WORKERS NEAR NAPOLEONVILLE TAKE BAGASSE, MIX IT WITH HIS PROPRIETARY BLEND OF OILS AND MINERALS THEN COMPRESSES IT INTO THIS HUGE BALE. THAT BALE IS THEN PUT INTO ANOTHER MIXER THAT CHOPS IT UP AND REMOVES ALL THE LUMPS. HE SAYS THE CATTLE THAT EAT IT ABSORB MORE PROTEIN AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT SUPERIOR TO HAY OR RYEGRASS.
{SOT}
(Marc Walther/CEO, Impact Fusion International "Well, number one, the weight gain they find they find that the calves are healthier when they're born. The colostrum that they they received from the mama cow is healthier. The bags are bigger.")
{SOT}
(Robert "I've seen tremendous weight gain. The calves come out. They're healthy. They're bounced around like a bunch of little rubber balls. They just really, really look so much better. The cows do. The ribs don't show at all. I mean, they just get real fat and plump and happy and sassy. ")
{VO}
SOMETHING SCHMIDT AND WALTHER SAY THEY NOTICED WHEN FEEDING SUPREME GOLD PLUS TO CATTLE IS THE COW PATTIES WERE FIRMER AND HAD NO SMELL. ASCENSION PARISH RANCHER KENNY ACOSTA NOTICED THAT, TOO.
{SOT}
(Kenny Acosta/Ascension Parish Rancher "The manure doesn't have a smell. I thought that was, you know, some witchcraft that Marc told me at first. But but I noticed it first hand.")
{VO}
ACOSTA SAYS HE FED HIS CATTLE THE SUPREME GOLD PLUS MADE FROM BAGASSE MIXED WITH FEED PELETS THIS PAST WINTER.
{SOT}
(Acosta "I found it came through this winter as good as I've ever had cattle come through the winter with this minimum amount of feed. Now it is labor intensive, but I'm a retired person and that's I enjoy doing it.")
{SOT}
(Warren Harang/Ascension Parish Rancher "I think it's super from an agricultural standpoint, from a Louisiana standpoint, to utilize the byproduct of sugar cane for livestock.")
{VO}
WARREN HARANG RAISES CATTLE AND HORSES, AND IS INVOLVED IN THE SUGARCANE INDUSTRY.
{SOT}
(Harang "I grew up in the sugar industry, in the livestock business, and I understand the parallels, how important one product can be for the next. And we have a tremendous excess of raw crude bagasse.")
{SOT}
(Schmidt "They have so much bagasse down here in south Louisiana and all over the world.
And there's no there's no way to get rid of it. And we're the only solution. We have a way to get rid of it. And it's a natural way to feed our cows and horses and goats. And it's just a great natural cycle that when they're processing sugarcane, the bagasse, we have a way to get rid of it or cows eat it, and it's very healthy to them and everybody.
It's a win win win situation.")
{VO}
THE QUESTION IS, WILL IT WIN SUPREME GOLD WITH OTHER RANCHERS. IN ASSUMPTION PARISH, I'M AVERY DAVIDSON FOR THIS WEEK IN LOUISIANA AGRICULTURE.
Bagasse Cattle Feed
{AVERY}
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SUPREME GOLD PLUS, VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT TWILA-TV DOT ORG.
Cattle Prices
{AVERY}
BEEF IS ONE OF THE FEW FOOD ITEMS CHEAPER THIS YEAR THAN LAST. THAT'S ACCORDING TO THE LATEST CONSUMER PRICE INDEX.
{KRISTEN}
HOWEVER, THOSE PRICES MAY BE GOING BACK UP AGAIN. FED CATTLE MARKET PRICES BROKE A RECORD THIS MONTH, TRADING ABOVE 175 DOLLARS A HUNDREDWEIGHT. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 172-FIFTY, SET IN NOVEMBER OF 2014. ALL INDICATIONS ARE THAT PRICES WILL CONTINUE TO BE STEADY OR MOVE HIGHER FOR TWO REASONS: SUPPLY AND DEMAND, AND BIOLOGY. RIGHT NOW, THERE ARE FEWER CATTLE AVAILABLE FOR SALE, WHILE DEMAND REMAINS HIGH. WHILE CATTLE RANCHERS WOULD LIKE TO INCREASE THEIR HERDS, ESPECIALLY WITH PRICES THIS HIGH, IT'S GOING TO TAKE TIME FOR BREEDING STOCK TO CATCH UP. WHILE WE HAVE A GOOD SUPPLY OF BEEF RIGHT NOW, THAT IS LIKELY TO TIGHTEN AS THE YEAR GOES ON, WHICH MEANS YOU'LL LIKLEY PAY MORE AT THE GROCERY AND AT RESTAURANTS.
{AVERY}
SOUNDS LIKE IT'S A GOOD TIME TO GET TO KNOW A FARMER WHO SELLS BEEF DIRECTLY!
Food Challenge PKG
{AVERY}
WE HAVE ALL SEEN THE T-V SHOWS BASED ON THE CHALLENGE OF COOKING. AND LOUISIANA IS KNOWN FOR ITS FOOD.
{KRISTEN}
THIS WEEK TWILAS BREANN HENDRICKSON TAKES US TO ALEXANDRIA WHERE THE L-S-U AG CENTER HOSTED THE ANNUAL LOUISIANA 4-H FOOD CHALLENGE.
Food Challenge PKG
THE VEGSTABLES ARE COOKING, BUT SO IS THE COMPATITION. BRINGING ALL THESE CHEFS TOGETHER IS LOUISIANA 4-H HEALTHY LIVING CORDNATOR CLAIRE ZAK.
{CLAIRE ZAK}
This is an opportunity for teams of 3 to 4 youth in grades four through 12 to come and compete in a food cooking competition. So they are given a secret ingredient. They shop at a pantry and they have 40 minutes to create a dish, do a cost analysis of what they've shopped for, and then create a five minute presentation that they'll give to a panel of judges.
THE SECRET LOUSIANA COMMODITY INGREDIENT WAS, RICE.
{CLAIRE ZAK}
Each of these teams is given a 5 lb bag of jasmine rice donated by Supreme Rice, and they will cook their dish with that that commodity. And so this is another opportunity for us to showcase the great commodities that we have in Louisiana, the great agriculture that we have in Louisiana. These kids are using jasmine rice, was actually developed in the LSU AG Center, Rice Research Station in Crowley. And so this is kind of a full circle moment for our scientists in the LSU AG Center developed to this and now our 4-H youth are using it at our cooking competition.
WITH OVER 45 TEAMS AND 150 CHEFS COMPETING, BOSSIER PARISH CHEF HEATHER EDMONDS AND HER TEAM MEMBERS ACCEPTED THE CHALLENGE
{HEATHER}
We knew once we saw all the vegetables in the pantry that we wanted to make some kind of dirty rice or, as we called it, a vivid rice because we thought it'd be a good way to just like plate the food and incorporate all the nutrients that we needed and the kabobs we love kabobs.
AFTER SPENDING ALL DAY COOKING, IT COMES DOWN TO AWARDS
{CLAIRE ZAK}
Our sponsor is Supreme Rice and they donated funding for us to purchase supplies. So we purchased cooking supplies for our winners, division winners at first, second and third, and then the Division three, the high school age group. And the first place winner of that division will go on to our national competition, and they will compete in Dallas for the national title.
[BREANNCONGRADULATIONS TO ALL PRATICIPANTS, AND GOOD LUCK TO CADDO PARISH IN DALLAS. FOR THIS WEEK IN LOUISIANA AGRICULTURE IM BREANN HENDRICKSON
Food Challenge PKG
{KRISTEN}
IF YOU ARE A 4-H-ER OR KNOW OF SOMEONE WHO THINKS THEY ARE UP FOR THE CHALLENGE, YOU CAN WATCH FOR UPDATES ON OUR WEBSITE. THEY HAVE NOT POSTED THE NEW DATES FOR THE 2024 CHALLENGE BUT WE WILL HAVE THAT INFORMATION WHEN THEY DO.
Handmade Cane Duck Calls
{AVERY}
THIS NEXT STORY IS SURE TO GET YOU QUACKED UP.
{KRISTEN}
I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU JUST SAID THAT. DUCK HUNTING IS A LOUISIANA TRADITION THAT GOES BACK TO WHEN CAJUNS FIRST SETTLED HERE. SO IS MAKING THE DUCK CALLS THAT BRING DUCKS IN.
{AVERY}
ONE MAN IN CENTRAL LOUISIANA IS KEEPING THE OLD WAYS ALIVE. THIS WEEK, TWILA'S NEIL MELANCON TRAVELS TO DEVILLE, LOUISIANA WHERE CAJUN TRADITIONS ARE A WAY OF LIFE.
Handmade Cane Duck Calls
*Duck call nat sound*
FOR DALE BORDELON, WHEN IT COMES TO DUCK CALLS, LOUDER ISN'T ALWAYS BETTER. HERE IN HIS SHOP, FINE TUNING HIS OWN HAND MADE CALLS IS A LOT LIKE FINDING THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE RIGHT JOB.
Dale P Bordelon, Bayou Beast Duck Calls
"Like this old timer told me, anybody can kill a duck. Anybody can call a duck to 50 yards, but it's from there that lightning that takes a duck call and you've got to have a soft call. The army ducks work and where to fine tune them."
NOT ONLY DOES HE MAKE THE DUCK CALLS, BUT PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING ELSE. HE MAKES THE PIROGUES, LIKE THIS ONE, AND THE OARS THAT HE PADDLES OUT IN. EVEN MORE, HE MAKES THESE MOLDS HE CRAFTS THE CALLS WITH AND THESE KNIVES HE USES TO CARVE.
Dale
"So this is how I make my sound board. I'll pull it all together. Now, take that smooth end smooth it out. Take my sandpaper and I sand it down and I end up with a perfect dowel pin that's smooth all around one side."
DALE SPENT MOST OF HIS CAREER WORKING FOR A NEARBY GRAIN ELEVATOR. HOWEVER, HIS PASSION HAS ALWAYS BEEN DUCK HUNTING AND OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS, HE'S MADE A CAREER OUT OF IT.
Dale
"I'll build them like they did in the 1800s. So, I didn't plan on nothing. I just started making calls with people. People did.... I had a few magazine articles and podcasts, and I just kind of took off. And then people got a hold of me and then other people seen. So it just kind of a word-of-mouth deal. And now I'm doing this full time. So that's a job. I got a job and I got my son helping me."
DALE MAKES HIS DUCK CALLS USING RIVER CANE, WHICH IS DIFFERENT THAN BAMBOO. IT GROWS BEST UNDER FOREST CANOPIES ON RIVERBANKS AND HAS A UNIQUE PROPERTY THAT MAKES IT IDEAL FOR DALE'S CALLS.
Dale
"This is a clumping bamboo versus a river cane. See that river? How small? You talk about strong. You can't hardly split that river cane."
HIS PRODUCTS HAVE WON AWARDS AND ATTRACTED CUSTOMERS FROM ALL ACROSS THE WORLD. FOR A GUY WHO JUST WANTS TO HUNT, HE'S BUSY MOST DAYS. HIS CALLS HAVE A TWO YEAR WAITING LIST.
Dale
"Whenever my kids got grown. And I started doing this as a hobby and I had a friend of mine that wanted a call, so I made him one. He showed somebody. He wanted one, and next thing you know, ten people want them. And now I have a waiting list, two or three years long."
FOR DALE, IT'S MORE THAN JUST WORKING WITH HIS HANDS ON A HOBBY. IT'S ABOUT THE PRESERVATION OF A CULTURE THAT'S BEEN HANDED DOWN SINCE CAJUNS FIRST CAME TO LOUISIANA. THE PASSION FOR HIS CRAFT, HE SAYS, COMES FROM KNOWING IT WILL SURVIVE ANOTHER GENERATION.
Dale
"I love doing it. And the biggest thing of all, I love sharing my Louisiana heritage--that means a lot to me. So if I could just stay healthy like them old people, I'd be happy to keep this going."
Neil Melancon, TWILA Reporter:
"Okay. So Dale, I've never blown duck call before. I want you to show me how to how we're going to do it here."
Dale:
Okay. So, Neil, you take your index finger and your thumb. You put that exhaust barrel in there, that's just to hold it. You don't kill it. Leave it open just hold it. Put that call in your mouth like you're drinking out of a Coke bottle. The bottom lip, the put the top lip and you open your mouth up a little bit and there you go. All you want to do is three, four or five notes, with the first note longer, coming down. You never blew a call before! I believe that's pretty good.
Neil:
Well, thank you. I learned from a master. Only reason I'm any good is because of you. Thank you very much, Dale. And we're going to have a link to Dale's website on our website at TWILATV.org. Where you can get your very own handmade Louisiana duck call Reporting for This Week Louisiana agriculture, I'm Neil Melancon.
Handmade Cane Duck Calls
{AVERY}
AS YOU HEARD IN THE STORY, THERE IS A WAITING LIST TO GET DALE'S DUCK CALLS. IF YOU WOULD LIKE A PIECE OF LOUISIANA HERITAGE FOR YOURSELF OR TO FIND OUT MORE, WE'LL LINK YOU OVER ON OUR WEBSITE AT TWILATV.ORG.
Tease 1
{AVERY}
STILL TO COME ON TWILA...
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE THE BEST FARM DOG IN ALL THE LAND? WE'LL FIND OUT...
{KRISTEN}
BUT FIRST, STRAWBERRIES ARE FRESH FROM THE FIELD RIGHT NOW, AND WE TAKE A LOOK AT HOW HARVEST IS GOING. STAY WITH US.
LSU Pkg - Strawberries
{KRISTEN}
IT'S THE PEAK OF STRAWBERRY SEASON IN LOUISIANA, AND THE BRIGHT RED FRUIT IS BEING HARVESTED IN FIELDS ACROSS SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA.
{AVERY}
THOUGH MANY PRODUCERS HAVE STRUGGLED WITH DISEASE, TWILA'S CRAIG GAUTREAUX TAKES US TO ONE FARM THAT HAS SEEN GREAT PRODUCTION IN LIVINGSTON PARISH.
LSU Pkg - Strawberries
Narrator: The strawberries are big, sweet and ripe at the Landry-Poche Farm near Holden.
Rhonda Poche: We have a wonderful crop out here, and we are hoping to keep picking berries all the way through Mother's Day.
Narrator: Production has been good at the farm. Warmer weather in January and February helped kick start the growing season, and only a brief cold snap just after St. Patrick's Day slowed the harvest down.
Poche: Weather has been really perfect around here. Perfect strawberry growing weather is 50-degree nights and 70-degree days. So everything has been really good.
Narrator: For some growers, a disease issue has hampered production, but the Landry-Poche farm was able to control the disease with only minimal fruit loss.
Clark Robertson: It's a fungus, and it will produce spores that can easily be spread by workers handling the plants, by workers moving through the fields. Later, it can produce spores that can be windblown as well.
Narrator: The strawberry industry has seen the numbers of growers shrink because of hard economic times. Fighting a disease places an added burden.
Robertson: The fungicides are not cheap. They are expensive and having to do additional applications is costing the farmer each time. So that is cutting into profit.
Narrator: This time of year is Rhonda Poche's favorite because she starts opening up her farm to school groups and teaches them the importance of farming.
Poche: The strawberry industry is dwindling, and if we can get one child interested in doing some type of farming, then I think we have accomplished something.
Narrator: If one decides to go to a u-pick strawberry farm, make sure the berries are completely red because strawberries do not ripen after being picked. With the LSU AgCenter, this is Craig Gautreaux reporting.
LSU Pkg - Strawberries
{AVERY}
ACCORDING TO THE LATEST LSU AGCENTER AG SUMMARY, LOUISIANA HAS NEARLY 50 COMMERCIAL STRAWBERRY GROWERS WITH GROSS FARM VALUE OF NEARLY $9 MILLION.
Tease 2
{AVERY}
STILL TO COME ON TWILA...
WE MEET THE TOP FARM DOG IN THE COUNTRY.
{KRISTEN}
A FURRY GOOD TWILA BOOST IS UP NEXT. STAY WITH US.
TWILA Boost
{AVERY}
THEY SAY DOGS ARE A MAN'S BEST FRIEND AND IN MANY CASES THEY ARE A FARMER'S TOO! ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY, FARM DOGS PLAY A PIVOTAL ROLE IN KEEPING AGRICULTURAL OPERATIONS RUNNING SMOOTHLY.
{KRISTEN}
THAT IS WHY THE AMERICAN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION STARTED THE FARM DOG OF THE YEAR CONTEST IN 2019. AND IN TODAY'S TWILA BOOST, WE INTRODUCE YOU TO THE 2023 WINNER, TOUGH, A BORDER COLLIE FROM KANSAS.
(And when we got tough as a two year old, we bonded rather quickly.
She lives to work and she lives for Danny. The more that Danny worked her, the more apparent it was that she was an exceptional dog.
That national Western. She was a reserve champion. This is from 2014 at the Houston talk show. That jacket was tough. She made the cover of the magazine Cover Girl.
She's a cover girl.
This buckle that she won was just not very long before she got hurt. Fortunate to have that one.
We were working some heifers out here and she sustained a severe spinal cord injury, left her paralyzed from the neck down, couldn't move anything. They were unsure what the recovery would be, if there'd be any recovery. Things started to progress in a positive direction. You could just tell every day that she was getting a little better and a little better, and she worked up to where she was probably 90% back to normal again.
It was obvious that she still wanted to work. So we come up with jobs for her to do, to give her purpose.
Purpose. Obviously slowed down the sense the injury, but in her mind, she's still ten foot tall and bulletproof and nobody can tell her and different. She still loves to work. And so what we're doing out here today, we're working for her now. It's probably what keeps her going, really. I mean, outside of being your companion, her favorite thing in the world to do is what she's doing right here, right now.
That's what she's done her whole life. And she's happy when she's doing it. Probably the biggest thing that she teaches is to be happy in your circumstances. And we all have stuff happen that obviously we don't want to happen. And if you can understand the journey that she's come through, we can learn to be happy in our circumstances as to whatever they are.)
{KRISTEN}
IF YOU THINK YOUR FURRY COMPANION HAS WHAT IT TAKES TO BE THE 2024 AMERICAN FARM BUREAU FARM DOG OF THE YEAR, NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN NOW UNTIL JULY 14. THE GRAND PRIZE INCLUDES $5,000, A YEAR'S WORTH OF PURINA DOG FOOD, AND RECOGNITION AT THE AMERICAN FARM BUREAU CONVENTION IN SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH. YOU CAN HEAD OVER TO OUR WEBSITE, TWILA-TV-DOT-ORG, TO LEARN MORE.
Until Next time
{KRISTEN}
THAT DOES IT FOR THIS EDITION OF TWILA. BE SURE TO JOIN US NEXT WEEK WHEN WE WILL TAKE YOU TO THE 2023 WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE CONFERENCE.
{AVERY}
UNTIL THEN, YOU CAN WATCH ALL OF OUR STORIES ONLINE AT TWILA-TV DOT ORG AND BE SURE TO LIKE US ON FACEBOOK, FOLLOW US ON TWITTER AND INSTAGRAM. YOU CAN ALSO FIND ALL OF THESE STORIES AND MORE ON OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL -- BE SURE TO SUBSCRIBE AND TURN ON THE NOTIFICATIONS SO YOU KNOW WHEN WE PUT OUT NEW CONTENT.
{KRISTEN}
FOR ALL OF US HERE AT TWILA, THANKS FOR JOINING US. WE HOPE TO SEE YOU AGAIN RIGHT HERE NEXT WEEK.