The Livestock Conservancy

Selecting Your Best Breeding Stock Pig Chat with Mark Knauer

Special Guest Mark Knauer, Swine Extension Specialist at North Carolina State University (https://www.youtube.com/@ncstateswineextension7030/videos), joins Charlene Couch and Brittany Sweeney to chat about inbreeding and selecting your best breeding stock.

Mark Knauer was born and raised on a pure-line pig and cattle operation in southern Wisconsin. He received his B.S. in agriculture education and M.S. in animal breeding at Iowa State University. Following his time at ISU, Mark completed his Ph.D. in animal breeding and genetics at North Carolina State University. After graduating Mark completed a short Postdoc at the Institute for Pig Genetics in the Netherlands before accepting a position with the National Pork Board as the Director of Animal Science.

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring today's Pig Chat. Learn more about how you can nurture life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/n...

Marketing Monday - Year in Review

Brittany Sweeney and Samantha Gasson from FACT (foodanimalconcernstrust.org) answer your questions and chat about tips for reviewing your year and planning ahead for the next year. ​

 

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Marketing Mondays this year! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/n...

Cotton Patch Goose Chat with Audrey Morris

Special Guest Audrey Morris joins Brittany Sweeney to chat about her microgrant project with Cotton Patch geese.

Learn more about Cotton Patch Geese and Microgrants at https://livestockconservancy.org/.

Follow the Cotton Patch Goose Society on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/CottonPatchGooseBreeders/

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Marketing Mondays this year! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/n...

Heritage Breeds and Native Trees with Linwood Watson

Special guest Linwood Watson joins Brittany Sweeney to chat about how native trees and plants can boost your bottom line with heritage breeds. He hopes regardless of your plant skills- be it none or advanced, you will leave today's chat with some tips and tricks to strengthen your heritage breed efforts with 2 crux native trees- the American persimmon and American mulberry.

 

 

Linwood Watson is an amateur orchardist with his family at the AspenSkye orchard in Fuquay-Varina, NC. His family is entering their 10th year in the homestead, specializing in hyperlocal, hard to ship items like mulberries, figs, and persimmons (American and Asian).

 

Linwood is an enrolled member of the Haliwa-Saponi tribe and is old enough to have grown up on a small farm when farms were actually still small. From his work with the North Carolina Native Ethnobotany Project (www.ncnativeethnobotany.org), he has enjoyed intersecting traditional uses with Native plant advocacy.

 

While Linwood and his family keep no animals, his tribal travels and ethnobotany work has shown that the most sustainable solution will at least

partially involve Native plants/trees nourishing Heritage breeds. The importance of eventually reuniting these two realms is why Linwood has been a member of The Livestock Conservancy for several years and avidly enjoys hearing people’s voyages with animal husbandry. He appreciates the real world practical side of The Livestock Conservancy, especially how “to save an animal it needs a purpose."

 

​Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Marketing Mondays this year! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022

Marketing Monday Turkeys and On-Farm Classes

Brittany Sweeney and Samantha Gasson from FACT (foodanimalconcernstrust.org) chat about marketing your Thanksgiving turkey and how on-farm classes and events can create a community around your farm. ​

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Marketing Mondays this year! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022

Turkey Chat with Richard Schock

Special Guest Richard Schock joins Jeannette Beranger and Brittany Sweeney to talk turkey.

 

Richard grew up in Boonville, N.C. with his grandparents and received his first turkeys at age 10, including a Bronze turkey tom as a Christmas present. He has shown turkeys at several shows in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Florida, and North Carolina, and holds the titles of Grand Master Exhibitor and American Poultry Association (APA) Judge. Richard now breeds primarily Black Sumatra and Black Minorca chickens and Bronze and Narragansett turkeys. He also maintains a small herd of Ankole Watusi cattle on his farm, where he also grows Crepe Myrtles and other woody plants.

 

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Turkey Chats this month! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022

Turkey Chat with Christine Heinrichs

Special Guest author Christine Heinrichs joins Jeannette Beranger and Brittany Sweeney to chat about updates to The Livestock Conservancy's heritage breed turkey manual, "How to Raise Heritage Breed Turkeys on Pasture," during this pre-recorded session. You can find the first edition of the manual on The Livestock Conservancy's website at https://app.etapestry.com/.../livesto.../default/item.php.... The second edition will be available in early 2023.

Christine Heinrichs writes from her home on California’s Central Coast. She keeps a backyard flock of a dozen hens, seven large fowl of various breeds, and five bantams.

 

Her book, "How to Raise Chickens," was first published in 2007, just as the local food movement was starting to focus attention on the industrial food system. "How to Raise Poultry" and "The Backyard Field Guide to Chickens" followed. Both books are now out of print, but available on the APA website, https://amerpoultryassn.com/store/, as well as Amazon and other websites. "How To Raise Chickens" is available at Tractor Supply stores as well as independent bookstores and online.

 

Christine holds a B.S. in Journalism from the University of Oregon and belongs to several professional journalism and poultry organizations.

 

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Turkey Chats this month! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022

Gate to Plate Myotonic Goat Chat with Renard Turner

Special Guest Renard Turner of Vanguard Ranch Natural Gourmet joins Cindra Kerscher and Brittany Sweeney to chat about the process of moving Myotonic meat goats from pasture to consumer. 

Renard Turner was born into a career Air Force family. When his father was stationed in California at Travis Air Force base, he attended Armijo High School in Fairfield, California, where he was introduced to vocational agriculture. He later went on to study agricultural science and engineering, including in-depth histories of all commercially raised domestic livestock breeds, cattle, sheep, horses, swine, and poultry. He loved it, so much so that during this time, Renard also participated in livestock judging contests as a member of The Future Farmers of America.

Renard’s passion for agriculture remains to this day. He and his wife Chinette own Vanguard Ranch (https://vanguard-ranch-natural-gourmet.com/) in central Virginia, where they have raised registered Horned Dorset sheep, Karakul sheep, Kiko goats, Spanish goats and horses. Currently they raise Myotonic goats, white utility king squabs, and organic herbs and vegetables. He is passionate about conservation and responsible breeding of functional animals. To Renard, the old genetics are special and must be preserved.

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Goat Chats this month! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022. 

Spanish Goat Chat with Dr. Phil Sponenberg

Special Guest Dr. Phil Sponenberg joins Cindra Kerscher and Brittany Sweeney to talk about the past, present, and future of Spanish goats.

D. Phillip Sponenberg, DVM, Ph.D., is Professor of Pathology and Genetics at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech University. His breed conservation endeavors include technical advisor for The Livestock Conservancy as well as extensive work in Latin America. This work has been pivotal in saving several endangered livestock breeds.

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Goat Chats this month! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022

Donkey Training Chat with Rachel Ann Karneffe

Special guest Rachel Ann Karneffel of Hee-haw Halfway House Donkey Rescue chats with Charlene Couch and Brittany Sweeney about training donkeys.

 

In addition to running the rescue, Rachel is the author of "Starting the Saddle Donkey." She is also a donkey trainer and may give us all a sneak peek at her two mini-donkey foals! Find out more about Hee-Haw Halfway House Donkey Rescue on their website, https://www.heehawhalfwayhouse.com/

 

Big thank you to Manna Pro for sponsoring Donkey Chats this month! Learn more about how Manna Pro is Nurturing Life at https://www.mannapro.com/promotions/nurturing-life-2022