Steven's Blurb:
"My name is Steven Utecht and I am a 3rd year AVS major. I am from the outskirts of Topsham, Maine, where I grew up around Black Angus cattle. I originally came to UMaine to be a physical therapist and quickly realized that that was not where I wanted to end up and decided to try working with animals and found that I loved it. I love my job and working with the dairy cows! my favorite cows would have to be Norma-Jean and her daughter Naya".
Nicole's Blurb:
"Hello there! I'm Nicole Allison. I'm a 4th year Animal Science major concentrating in pre-veterinary medicine. I hope to become a veterinarian (possibly for cows/large animals). My favorite milking cow is #289 UM Jackson Penelope, my favorite heifer is #375 UM Rudolph-Red Nacho-RC, and my favorite 'bad girl' is #272 UM Logan Iron KitCat! Me and Nacho love pina coladas and getting caught in the rain, however we're not much into yoga..."
Kevin's Blurb:
"Hello I am Kevin Arkin. I am majoring in Animal Science with a minor in Zoology. My future plans after graduation is to work in a lab as a lab animal technician. This is my first time working with cows and so far I am enjoying it! My two favorite cows are Loretta and Rayna because they are well behaved animals."
So now you all know a little more about the new employees! We have quite an awesome milking crew this summer! Come visit the farm anytime to talk with us! We're all very friendly!
[LIZZ HERE: Just to add to what Sierra said, a farm can't run without workers, and whether we have a "great summer" or a "tough summer" is largely dictated by who is working here. These students typically work either from 4AM to noon or from 11AM to 7PM. They get days off, but its still a lot of physical labor. Basically they get up at the crack of dawn and work their buns off, OR they come in when its hottest THEN work their buns off.
I have six employees this summer (3 veteran and 3 newbie) and I can honestly say that this group genuinely cares about the cows and their health and well-being. They care about the quality of their work and they do an excellent job working as a team. They want to learn everything there is to know about cattle and dairy management. I can train pretty much anybody who wants to learn how to work with our cows, but I can't train people to care about them. That's something that they have to already have inside their hearts.
One visitor commented about one of our employees "She was very enthusiastic- its obvious that she's been bitten by the cow bug." These guys and gals have great attitudes and a lot of love for our dairy girls. Its looking like its going to be a fantastic summer!]