| MESSAGE FROM THE OWNER
New on Our Website...
Easy-to-Use Product
Comparisons
Help! Too many
options, too many choices! That's how I feel when I enter grocery stores and encounter so many kinds of milk, bread, cereal, cheese or wine.
I like variety—but at such times I yearn for a simple, swift method to reduce the choices to the two or three that suit my needs at the
moment.
Some Premier
customers have commented that the "too many choices" problem is also sometimes true at Premier—because we offer many types of electric
netting, energizers and ear tags, etc.
I agree. So we're
introducing interactive comparison tables on our website. I know the name sounds complex—but they are very simple to use.
The best way to
understand is to click here to see an example. Click on "Click to view a Comparison Chart", which is
the button left of the product photo. That will bring up all of the eight different electrified rope products we offer, all shown in an
easy-to-read table with their varying specifications and capabilities (including cost/ft, color, length, filament type, conductivity,
durability, etc.)
If you are on our
home page, click on Fencing, Conductors, click on any of the electrified ropes and then click on "Click to
view a Comparison Chart, which is the button left of the product photo.
Also, and this is
"neat" feature to me, if you then click on any of the headings at the top of the column, you can sort the eight ropes into
ascending/descending order. This allows you to focus on the most important feature for your situation. Again, it's actually easier to use
the table than it is to explain it. Just one click and it's done.
Over the coming
weeks we will add similar interactive tables for electrified netting, fence energizers, insulators, etc. For energizers, we'll presort them
according to AC vs. DC (battery vs. plug-in), but you can then sort up to 25 energizers instantly as you prefer: cost, output joules for dry
soils, output joules for wet soils, suitability for species (such as sheep, cattle, horses, poultry) and more.
Best wishes to you
all—and may spring come soon for all of us.
Stan Potratz, Owner
ANNOUNCEMENT
New from Premier...
Write a review!
We're happy to announce the addition of rating and reviews as an added value to our customers on premier1supplies.com.
We value your thoughts, and so do other Premier customers. Help others make informed decision by sharing your personal experience with our products.
If you've ordered online from Premier, submit and rating and write a review today!
PREMIER TIP
Getting Ready for Kidding Season
About one month before:
- Give a booster of CD&T vaccine to the does.
- Increase grain ration.
- Monitor condition of does.
- Monitor quality of forage/hay.
- Check and clean jugs (individual pens for doe to bond with kids).
- Prepare warming box (for cold kids).
- Set up heat lamp (in cold areas).
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Make a kid birthing kit:
Meds to have on hand:
Items to have for after kidding:
Kidding signs (not all are the same):
- Bleating
- Appropriating a spot and defending it
- Teats and bag look full
- Tailbone prominent, tendons on either side relax
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Problems in kidding:
- Hard labor and nothing showing
- Tissue hanging and no labor or progress
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Learn how to assist in the following situations:
- (Talk to your veterinarian)
- Hypothermia
- Tube feeding
- Dextrose/glucose injections
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Watch for problems and learn how to prevent them in future years:
- Mastitis Rejection Illness
- Floppy Kid Condition
- Serious Diarrhea
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VIP ARTICLE
Master Equine Manager Program
by Dale Miller
Primary operation
I grew up on a
combination crop and livestock farm in southeast Iowa where we bred and trained registered quarter horses along with raising cattle. Our
biggest crop was hay and pasture, so getting good production out of those acres for livestock feed was important to our bottom line.
I began judging open
horse shows with my father when I was in high school and I continue to judge 4-H horse shows today. Horses have been a part of my life since
I was born, even during several years that my wife, Leslie, and I spent in Maryland/Washington. The cattle and horse operations out East,
with smaller farms, urban populations and congestion, are somewhat different from those in the Midwest. But I did have the opportunity to
learn about hunter/jumper horses and even found a cutting horse ranch in neighboring West Virginia.
My wife, daughter
and I currently live on 40 acres with three horses, a dog and a few barn cats. I use a rotational pasture grazing system that allows me to
extend the grazing season. Using deferred grazing of paddock areas reduces the amount of hay needed to get through the winter. I plan to
graze pasture through December and not feed hay until January. Of course, this doesn't work every year with our ever-changing Iowa winters.
Additional operations
I have worked more
than 25 years for Iowa State University Extension as a county extension director and a few years ago started the ISU Extension Master Equine
Manager program. This educational experience teaches the science of horse management along with riding and training concepts. The program
combines discussion with hands-on experience in six core curriculum sessions: Behavior Management, Nutrition and Feeding, Facilities and
Equipment, Selection and Evaluation, Health Care, Hoof Care and Equine Care Assurance. We currently have more than 100 graduates of the
program.
During the past year
we have added a Level II curriculum. In this advanced level, we provide in-depth training on specific topics for horse enthusiasts including
Emergency Health Care, Functional Anatomy, Breeding, Applied Nutrition and Business Management.
For more information
about the Master Equine Manager program, check out our website for upcoming classes and events.
Advice for other producers
Seek out information
and advice from knowledgeable people. I have learned from seasoned producers who learned by trial and error on their farm or ranch and from
young people who have a tremendous curiosity for what could be done. I have learned from academic experts who have done specialized research
studies and from business professionals throughout the agriculture industry. I think all would agree they don't know everything and that we
can all learn something from each other. Just view each day as an opportunity to learn something new.
Favorite Premier
product and why?
I like the
IntelliRope fence for horse pasture division fences, along
with the appropriate insulators and tension springs. It provides good visibility, is durable and easy to install.
Dale Miller
Marion County Extension Office
dmill@iastate.edu
www.extension.iastate.edu/masterequine
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT
Koby Freeman
This month's
featured employee is Kolby Freeman. She has been at Premier for seven months as a sales consultant. Kolby says the best part about her job
is "helping customers and talking to so many different people throughout the US and other countries." She adds: "I think it is interesting
to find out situations the customers face and how I can help them. I really enjoy customer service and that's what makes Premier stand
out."
Kolby says she
enjoys working with the team at Premier. "You can't find any better people to work with than at Premier. Everybody has such wide knowledge
of all the products, and if they don't know, they will sure find out for you, always honest about products pros and cons. I am so thrilled
to be here!"
Kolby and her
husband, Brad live in Mt. Pleasant, IA with their 3 1/2 month old daughter, Peyton, and Brad's son, Parker, age 2. Also part of the family
are two dogs—an Aussie named Brindle and a Border Collie/Great Pyrenees-cross puppy named Private Striker, and four horses—Rosie, Oops,
Gauge and Gee Whiz.
Her special interest
is breaking horses, training barrel horses and competing in rodeo/barrel races. "I am addicted to the speed and the rush of riding barrel
horses." She is a member of the IA NBHA District 5. She and Brad are in the process of starting their own purebred flock of Suffolk and
Dorset Sheep, with the goal to sell them as market and club lambs. They also have some poultry. "If there is any time left, I like to draw
and do some of my own sewing."
Kolby's favorite
statement: "I believe in giving your all, and standing up for what you believe in. Can't is a mind-set—you can do what ever you put your
mind to. The strongest thing in life is your willpower."
RECIPE
Homestyle Baked Spaghetti
Ingredients:
8-oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1-1/2 c sour cream
3 Tbsp onion, grated
12-oz pkg spaghetti, cooked
2 lbs ground beef, browned
2 tsp salt
3 6-oz cans tomato paste
2 c water
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp pepper
Grated Parmesan cheese
Blend cream cheese, sour cream and onion together; stir in cooked spaghetti. Spread in ungreased 3-quart casserole dish. Set aside.
Combine beef, salt, tomato paste, water, sugar and pepper in a saucepan. Heat thoroughly. Pour over spaghetti mixture; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
From Julie Cole, Premier employee
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