Growing a family dairy farm

Many farmers who tell the story of their dairy farm have similar condensed versions about the operation’s origin: their grandparents purchased a farm, milked cows in a small barn and the farm grew over the years.

One such farm is in Mercersburg, PA. Stoner’s Hijos Hill Dairy Farm (hijos is Spanish for sons) was purchased by Todd Stoner’s grandparents in 1942. The Stoners milked cows in a bank barn, and with sons who were interested in continuing in dairy farming, the farm expanded. Today, six Stoner family members are owners of Stoner’s Hijos Hill.

“Grandpa Stoner was an only child, but he and my grandma had eight kids,” Todd said. “That’s one reason they could expand the farm.”

Todd studied accounting in college and wasn’t sure he would return to the farm, but by his senior year, he realized he didn’t want to spend a lot of time in an office. Being away from the farm during college gave him valuable perspective.

Todd’s father Bob and Bob’s six brothers made significant expansions. To accommodate the growing herd, in the late 1960s the family built one of the first double-8 herringbone parlors in the area.

“We had expanded to about 200 cows at the time … We were closer to 300 cows by the early 1990s,” Todd said. “That’s when we built the operation on this side of the road and expanded to 500 cows, and it’s where we are now.”

Additions over the years included a dry cow facility and several heifer barns. The double-16 herringbone parlor was added in 1992. The new Sturdy Built calf barn houses 108 calves with plenty of ventilation and protection from severe weather.

“We added a dry cow barn in 1998, which is connected to the free-stall barn,” Todd said. “When cows freshen, they walk from there to the birthing barn. We milk fresh cows in a separate four-stall parlor, and their milk is pasteurized in a 60-gallon pasteurizer and fed to calves. Fresh cows are milked in this parlor for four days; first-calf heifers are milked there for three days.”

Raising productive dairy cows begins with feed, which means there’s a lot of effort in the field. The Stoners are currently growing corn, soybeans and alfalfa on about 1,700 acres for several nutritionist-formulated TMR rations, which are supplemented with purchased concentrate and dry hay.

Good manure management is a priority. Depending on the barn, manure is scraped either automatically or cleaned several times a week. Storage includes a 1.2-million-gallon Slurrystore® and a recently added 1-million-gallon concrete pit. The farm has a tanker for manure application on 900 acres of owned ground and uses a custom hauler for more remote owned and rented acreage.

Todd noted that using custom operators for some aspects of the operation allows him and other family members to concentrate on cow care. While each worker is well-trained for their job, everyone can do other tasks as necessary.

Cows are maintained in four groups according to age and lactation, and cows have Afimilk® ankle monitors to detect heat through activity. Todd said this saves a lot of time in catching heats for the breeder. Heifers have a Genex® ear tag activity monitor. The herd veterinarian confirms pregnancies via ultrasound.

The Stoners choose bulls with high calving ease, which Todd said greatly reduces assisted calvings. They also select bulls for feet and legs, moderate stature and components. A young bull, which no one has direct access to, is used for cleanup breeding in one section of a free-stall barn. The bull is either one with exceptional genetics from the farm or purchased from a known herd. Young bulls are used for several years or sold at the first sign of aggression.

Close-up cows are housed in the farm’s birthing barn, an airy structure with small group and individual pens. Calves are moved to the calf barn, which Todd appreciates for its easy-to-clean features and the ability to quickly convert single calf pens to small group pens for young heifers. Following colostrum feedings, calves receive pasteurized milk twice daily.

“The calves get used to group housing,” Todd said, noting the benefits of raising calves in pairs or small groups. “It’s a lot less stressful. We used to take them from a hutch to another barn. They did okay but it took longer for some of them to get used to it. They’re already stressed because milk is no longer fed. Calves receive grain and water for one to two weeks while they’re still in the small groups.”

While the farm is currently retaining all heifers, facilities for the milking herd are at maximum capacity.

“I’m more selective about which cows I keep,” Todd said. “I don’t like to sell a young heifer that might be a good cow.”

The Stoners are involved in community activities. After hosting a Franklin County Farm Fun Fest, Todd’s wife Jamie continued to invite the public to their working dairy farm. It is open from mid-September to the end of October and features a walking farm tour, calf bottle feeding, a petting zoo and other family-friendly attractions. A five-acre corn maze is a big draw with special events including trick-or-treat in the maze, flashlight night and haunted nights in late October.

Jamie also organizes field trips for local school students, which provide first-hand, accurate information about dairy farming for both children and their adult chaperones. Students visit the birthing barn and the parlor to learn how cows are milked. Autumn school trips include a hayride to the pumpkin patch and a pumpkin to take home, the corn maze and several play areas.

The farm was transferred to the next generation in 2000, and the Stoners are proud to continue the family tradition of producing high-quality milk. Awards include State Grassland Farmer of the Year (for forage cropping), Dairy of Distinction, Franklin County Conservation Farmer of the Year, Mercersburg Area Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year and the Chambersburg Kiwanis Club Agricultural Achievement Award.

by Sally Colby