I am an avid supporter of having a solid, trustworthy mentor. I am speaking about home dairying here, but having a mentor in most areas in life can be crucial to success. My dairy mentor made a tremendous, positive impact on my home dairy education. The value of mentorship cannot be overstated.
Recently over a cup of coffee, I spoke with several new and previous dairy cow owners. The topic of longevity with regard to owning a family cow arose. The question was asked – why do so many new dairy cow owners “throw in the towel” before reaching their first year of cow ownership? Where is the breakdown? Some of the reasons definitely fall into their own category, in which situations occur that cannot be avoided, nor could they have been predicted. However, many folks stop home dairying because of two reasons – lack of education before purchase, and no support thereafter. More often than not, if the homesteaders I spoke with had someone they could have talked to, admittedly, by them, they would still be milking today. The learning curve for new dairy cow owners can be steep.
With technology such as zoom, facetime, and the like, there is no reason new cow owners need to struggle or feel overwhelmed and alone. When they struggle the cow is at risk, which is certainly not what anyone wants. Yes, there are social media groups that cow owners can utilize, but they sometimes lack the direct, consistent, one on one relationship needed to build a solid mentorship foundation.
PMJS believes in mentorship. Registered members benefit from having access to PMJS’ mentors. If members need guidance, they are fully supported. The goal of PMJS’ mentor program is to uplift and educate cow owners, which simultaneously benefits the cow. This is instrumental in adding to the success of the owners’ dairy experience.
PMJS’ Lifetime Members also have access to a private network enabling them to chat with mentors, ask questions, and hopefully share their success stories!
Happy Milking!
~Sarah, PMJS Advisory Board
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