Cattle U women’s panel brought leading ladies of cattle industry together for discussion of key issues

For the first time, High Plains Journal’s Cattle U & Trade Show—held July 29 to 30 in Dodge City, Kansas—integrated a women’s panel discussion into its program.

Moderated by television host, Fancy Lady Cowgirl creator and native Kansan Courtenay DeHoff, the panel included four women from diverse sectors of the cattle industry who discussed animal agriculture and the keys to their industry success.

The panel included environmental scientist and dairy farmer Tara Vander Dussen, also known as the New Mexico Milkmaid on social media platforms; Jan Lyons, former National Cattlemen’s Beef Association president and owner of Lyons Ranch LLC in Manhattan, Kansas; Dr. Rosslyn Biggs, DVM, beef cattle Extension specialist and director of continuing education at Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine; and Trista Brown Priest, CEO at Cattle Empire in Santana, Kansas.

The segment started off with the panelists sharing what they have found to be the keys to success. Lyons explained how she found success on her Angus operation by picking the right female livestock for her ranch.

“I went to some of the best operations, primarily in the state of Kansas, and I picked top animals I thought would fit as foundation females in the herd,” Lyons said. “We have not purchased additional females in over 25 years. The first cows were picked on their maternal qualities. We wanted to know if they would produce females to put back into the herd and provide the kind of bulls that we could use for embryo transfer, artificial breeding and natural service sires.”

Many of the panel members agreed on several keys to success, including having a dream and working hard to achieve it.

“At the end of the day, I think hard work is probably the key and a lack of fear in hard work and determination,” Biggs explained. “(And) In the ability to pivot and be resilient when you’re faced with a challenge. People in agriculture do whatever it takes and so that’s one of those qualities I hope I’m able to pass onto my daughters too.”

Vander Dussen agreed with Biggs, especially on learning to be adaptable.

“The worst phrase in the English language is ‘that’s how we’ve always done it,’” Vander Dussen said. “I think change is something you have to embrace. Instead of just pushing back on everything, we need to be able to adapt and understand that if we come to the table and say OK, we make some changes instead of just saying this is the way we’ve always done it and we’re not going to change it. It really puts us on the defense and makes us look defensive to our customers.”

Vander Dussen said misinformation is one of the biggest issues agriculture faces every day, and it will take a targeted approach of better communication and transparency to overcome it.

“We have to better connect with our consumers,” Vander Dussen said. “They have to better understand why we do things and they have a lot of questions that we have to be there to answer with open arms. I think when you get in a room full of farmers and ranchers and you bring up climate change you’re going to see a lot of heads start shaking, but if that’s what’s important to our consumers, we need to answer those questions. We need an open-door policy in order to combat misinformation.”

On the topic of dealing with the biggest challenge in animal agriculture right now, Priest said she sometimes feels the agriculture industry battles itself more than anyone on certain economic issues, such as how cash price is discovered for fat cattle.

“We have to come together as a group to figure that out,” she said. “We do not want the government to help us settle that. We have to try to get more equilibrium in the economics between all parts of the supply chain. We need to have some of these big picture conversations and stop fighting amongst ourselves.”

Girl power

Although the discussion questions ranged from production topics to bridging the gap between consumers and producers, DeHoff also asked the panelists to give other women and young girls advice on finding a career in the cattle industry and the lessons they’ve learned from a females’ perspective. Lyons, one of the original trailblazers of the cattle industry in Kansas and the nation, encouraged the women in the room, but also praised the men who supported her when she wanted to take on leadership roles in NCBA and other organizations.

“No one told me I couldn’t be a part of things,” she said. “No one said you’re not supposed to be here. People were very supportive. Women provide a unique perspective and we need everyone’s input. If you have a dream and you want to do it, don’t let anyone tell you, you can’t. And no matter what, you have to be willing to learn, I don’t care if you are a man or a woman.”

Vander Dussen offered similar sentiments when she said women often limit themselves in agriculture instead of believing in their own abilities and qualifications.

“I think probably a lot of women in ag have felt like they’ve been put in a box and breaking out of that box has been really challenging, so I would say don’t put yourself in a box,” she said.

For Priest, the feedlot industry is most definitely a male-dominated industry, but she has learned to embrace being the only woman in some instances and focus on being your best and forgetting about gender.

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked what my brother does on the operation—I don’t have a brother,” Priest said. “You need to be OK with being the only girl. It’s OK that you’re the only one and there’s no line to the women’s bathroom.”

Biggs, who mentors numerous future veterinarians, said 60% of the veterinarians graduating from vet school right now are females and she offers them advice on how to be successful in their careers as well as help others in their profession.

“This is what I tell my veterinary students—but particularly females—be brave, confident and walk with authority,” Biggs said. “Whatever you set your mind to, you can do it. Lean up, lean sideways and lead down. You may rise up the ladder, but you better leave it down because you should always try to help someone else come up with you.”

Lacey Newlin can be reached at 620-227-1871 or [email protected].