It has been a while since I have had a guest post in my series of cotton being part of our daily lives. I love that Ashley Messing Kennedy took me up on the offer.  She’s a long-time friend who got me out of my comfort zone and into Michigan in the dead cold of winter.

Not only did I get to see ice sculptures while I was there, but I also had the chance to learn a bit about dairy farming and meet some of the dairy farmers in that area. It was a great experience for me. One thing I noticed…. folks in the dairy business were really interested in the fact I was so passionate about cotton, especially since they knew a very different side of my favorite fiber crop.

Cotton is Everywhere, Even in Cows

You know that saying, “You are what you eat”? If that truly is the case, the cows on our farm must be partly made of cotton! That might sound strange to you, but in a way it is the truth.

On my family’s dairy farm we feed our cows a mix. In the mix; called a ration, we blend all of the ingredients in what we call a mixer wagon. Our goal is to provide the cow with exactly the nutrients she needs in each bite of feed she takes.

You are probably asking how this relates to cotton at all. One of our favorite ingredients is a leftover from the cotton ginning process. We actually feed our cows cottonseed.

We add the cottonseed in our ration because it has some wonderful advantages for the cows. With the type of digestive system a cow has they can eat a lot of things we cannot. (Editor’s note: Can we eat cottonseed? may be an interesting read for you. )

The oil inside of the seed is extremely healthy for cows. With the cows working hard producing milk, we need to make sure they are eating enough energy. The cottonseed still has some of the fibers on the outside too. The fibers are helpful in a cow’s digestive system as well. In the same way we eat vegetables to keep our digestive systems moving and healthy, the fibers help do that along with other ingredients.

Although the cottonseeds are a leftover from the ginning process, what is one farmers trash is another farmer’s treasure. In dairy farming we have found out that cottonseed is a valuable resource to help feed our cows. If you want to learn more about our family dairy farm come see my blog at MessyKennedy.com.

If you have a particular connection to cotton or simply have a favorite item of cotton clothing, feel free to join the series of guest posts. There’s a lot more info here for your consideration.

The post Feeling the Cotton Love on a Dairy Farm! appeared first on Hundred Percent Cotton.

I’m not sure what I thought a stereotypical dairy farmer was like when I got on social media, but I didn’t think I’d find a bunch of them tweeting. And I certainly didn’t expect to meet farmers who have secret agent cows blogging from their farms. Then I met Ryan Bright. Ryan is a 5th generation farmer with a slightly overactive imagination. He works alongside his father and uncle on a 100 cow dairy farm. He has one normal blog, Silo Skies, that talks about life on his dairy. His other blog, The Udder Side, is a sometimes humorous look at farm life from the point of view of secret agent spy cows. You can follow him on Twitter @Farmerbright.

I love cotton

One hundred percent

All the other fabrics

Never make a dent

(in my wallet)

As just a regular guy and a dairy farmer, I am a big fan of cotton. I buy it for both reasons. No, I don’t purchase cotton clothes for my cows, although they might have liked to wear pretty cotton sundresses over Easter. Cotton for me is both feed and clothing.

Our cows are fed a balanced ration of hay, silage, and grain. The grain contains cotton and I sometimes even see a bit of the white fibers. It makes a great source of energy and nutrition in their diet. I think it must be the secret ingredient to great tasting milk, at least that’s what Janice Person told me and I’m sure she’s not biased.

food rations for dairy cows include cottonseed

With three kids and a wife I am definitely a cotton supporter in the clothing department as well, but today I’m going to talk about me. My favorite item of cotton is a faded blue flannel shirt.

Dairy Farmer Ryan Bright in Old Blue

Old blue the shirt has been with me for a very long time, 1992 or so. This makes my shirt about 497 in clothing years. There were also brothers to this shirt, red and brown, but blue is the favorite and the other two have both passed on. He, he’s definitely a he, is almost always untucked and worn over a cotton t-shirt. I have owned him longer than I’ve owned a car or even started dating my wife. As far as that goes, he’s probably seen most of my old girlfriends, too, not that we want to talk about that.

While some folks turn to mac and cheese or chocolate for comfort, I turn to blue. He’s just comfortable and home-y. These days he’s washed on gentle (when I wash him) and worn only on special occasions like on a cool day when I have the opportunity to hang out at the house and watch tv (moments that grow fewer!).

Generally speaking there is a timeline for clothing in my house. New shirts and pants start out as going to church or town clothes. They graduate to hangin’ at the house clothes to going to the barn clothes to grease rags. Obviously stains and rips move the timeline forward and there is still an opportunity for some to take a detour to the goodwill boxes. My wife has threatened to move old blue past his unnatural state of being into barn clothes or worse, but so far I’ve kept him safe.

Is cotton the fabric of our lives? If it is what makes you comfortable and feel good then it is definitely the fabric of my life and especially so when I’m wearing old blue.

What’s your “old blue” comfy cotton story?

Related Reading

• The Udder Side — Secret Agent Cows taking the upper hand on Ryan Bright!
• Silo Skies — Ryan’s perspective on the dairy
• AgProud: Tennessee Dairy Farmer Ryan Bright (agricultureproud.com)

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