All dairy farms have pet cows

We don’t know whether it will go anyplace or not, but there is a bill in Congress that gives a tax break for pet owners. The bill labeled HAPPY (Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years) has been introduced by Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.). It would give taxpayers a deduction for pet care expenses of up to $3,500 per person.

The bill defines a pet as a “legally owned, domesticated, live animal”. Hey, maybe that would work for cows. If not for the whole herd, it should at least work for pet cows. Every farm has at least one.

“It is the special cows that bring a personalization to the farm that makes dairy farming a life-style rather than a job,” says Marilyn Hershey in her Common Threads column on page 27 in the January 10 issue. That’s so true. There’s no denying that cows have personalities and some have a lot of personality. They are ones that will lick the stocking cap off your head. They are the ones that can master gate latches. They are the ones that can give looks that kill.

And what’s interesting to us is that there are pet cows on farms of all sizes. Sure there are special cows on farms where every one knows every cow’s name, birthday, and family tree. But it also is true on larger farms, as well. For example, Marilyn and Duane Hershey have about 600 cows on their farm in Pennsylvania. Marilyn’s January 10 column is about “Feliz."

A few weeks ago we toured Shiloh Dairy at Brillion, Wis., where we were reminded of Patsy Cline, the matriarch of Gordon and Cathy Speirs 1,300-cow operation in northeast Wisconsin. Patsy is so special that Gordon and Cathy chose to be photographed with her when they were recognized as Platinum Winners in the National Dairy Quality Awards competition in 2007.

It does our hearts good to know there are special cows on all farms, regardless of size. They speak to the unique relationship that America’s dairy farm families have with their cattle. It’s a bond that few outside of our industry have any appreciation of.