High school senior is building his own dairy herd
By Jean Caspers-Simmet
simmet@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 09/01/2011 8:46 AM
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DES MOINES —Jake Mills, 18, loves the show ring, but he says milk pays the bills for the Strawberry Point dairy operation that he is building.
The senior at Starmont High School milks 11 cows, including the four-year-old Brown Swiss that was reserve grand champion in the 4-H Dairy Show at the Iowa State Fair. Her name is Anna Jill, but he calls her Brown Cow because she's the only brown cow in his herd. His aunt, Karen Schantz, gave him Anna Jill for working for her. Mills also showed a Holstein summer yearling, which won a blue ribbon.
"I'd like a herd of Holsteins and Brown Swiss, but any breed is good to me as long as it milks," said Mills, whose herd name is Millstar.
Mills' operation is on his parents Cathy and Jay's farm.
He also feeds dairy steers, owns three beef stock cows and a percentage of a bull. He sharecrops 160 acres with his dad raising corn, soybeans and hay. He gets one-third of the crops.
"Dad quit milking in 2000," Mills said. "A year ago I had the equipment gone through, put in some makeshift stalls and started milking."
Mills is a member of Starmont FFA and received his Iowa FFA Degree this year.