Is/Was your ol' lad a hindrance or a help?

Muckit

You all know what I'm talking about here...

You're young and have fresh ideas and your way of doing things .... he had his ways ...:rolleyes:

There's a balance.

If your of the age where your ready, or have just taken the reins you'I know what I mean... If you are a few year older, cast your mind back to when you were younger and your father was around... also perhaps you have sons/daughters coming up now, how do you deal/see things?

An interesting topic for discussion ...... perhaps...

1chippy

he has a far more cautious approach to farming than me. one with the other we get a reasonable balance. i actually enjoy the challenge of persuading him into a new approach. sometimes when your reasoning out things you see hes right. Not that often though:D

johngalway

Both, I've found that I need a span of around 10 years to introduce a new idea

same 130

when i took over the farm me and aulad disagree alot but over the years he seen i was right:D but sure what would ya do with out them:)

lefthooker

You never know how good you had it till the ol' lad is gone, even if he's just the go-for so as to let you get on with the heavy work. Time is more precious when the ol' boss is gone from the yard. And you always need someone to bounce ideas off.

vanderbadger

lefthooker wrote: »

You never know how good you had it till the ol' lad is gone, even if he's just the go-for so as to let you get on with the heavy work. Time is more precious when the ol' boss is gone from the yard. And you always need someone to bounce ideas off.

100% right there

pakalasa

You don't miss the water till the well runs dry.....

yog1

lefthooker wrote: »

You never know how good you had it till the ol' lad is gone, even if he's just the go-for so as to let you get on with the heavy work. Time is more precious when the ol' boss is gone from the yard. And you always need someone to bounce ideas off.

too right,
we had a plan that i would leave work at lambing season in april 09, and from then on i would stay on the farm to learn the ropes, one monday morning at the start of february the same year i got up to go to work and he was at the door telling me that he needed me to take him to the hospital, wasn't feeling too well,
that was the start of my farming career, the oul boy was diagnosed with cancer and made it till the 31st may, long enough to see how i coped with lambing on my own, (200 ewe's split between 2 farms:eek:) i have spent the last 3 yrs trying to lean about how to look after livestock, how to sell animals, grass management, and how to keep the dam thing afloat :rolleyes:
whenever he was alive we would get into more argument about how to do things and how "life would be so much easier if you just spent the money on modernising things around here, we could get more done in less time if you'd just spend a few quid"

i see now that it wasn't that simple
listen lad's if you can get on at all with your oul lad, try, cause things might have be different in there day, they probably done it the hard way, you'll understand things better and appreciate them whenever it's too late

Seaba

I am only the last few years trying to get Dad to change a little - introduce paddock/strip grazing, get cows calving earlier, tighter calving interval etc and its not easy.
Trying to get him to change his way of thinking a little is a lot like farming - you must first sow a seed in his mind, then nurture it, SLOWLY - you can't force it, then encourage it, soon enough he starts to see the benefits and even may convince himself that he came up with the idea in the first place!
I'd be lost without him though and even if it takes a few years for things to happen its better than arguing and fighting, like I see a lot fathers and sons doing around my way.

johngalway

The best way to get the ould lads to change is to have them think they thought of the idea first, if ye can do that...



Let me know how

redzerologhlen

Seaba wrote: »

I am only the last few years trying to get Dad to change a little - introduce paddock/strip grazing, get cows calving earlier, tighter calving interval etc and its not easy.
Trying to get him to change his way of thinking a little is a lot like farming - you must first sow a seed in his mind, then nurture it, SLOWLY - you can't force it, then encourage it, soon enough he starts to see the benefits and even may convince himself that he came up with the idea in the first place!
I'd be lost without him though and even if it takes a few years for things to happen its better than arguing and fighting, like I see a lot fathers and sons doing around my way.

Im in the exact same boat as you at the moment. We have at least one row a day though but a few minutes after it does be all forgotten about :rolleyes:

Bodacious

redzerologhlen wrote: »

Seaba wrote: »

I am only the last few years trying to get Dad to change a little - introduce paddock/strip grazing, get cows calving earlier, tighter calving interval etc and its not easy.
Trying to get him to change his way of thinking a little is a lot like farming - you must first sow a seed in his mind, then nurture it, SLOWLY - you can't force it, then encourage it, soon enough he starts to see the benefits and even may convince himself that he came up with the idea in the first place!
I'd be lost without him though and even if it takes a few years for things to happen its better than arguing and fighting, like I see a lot fathers and sons doing around my way.

Im in the exact same boat as you at the moment. We have at least one row a day though but a few minutes after it does be all forgotten about :rolleyes:

my ole lad has some queer notions about things, one of the worst people ever around stock gets too excited but I'd be lost without him.

I'd have no weekends worth talking about only for him

reilig

The best way that I have found to introduce change is to bring the old man to various farm walks and open days. The suckler discussion group that we have been in for the last few years has been a god sent. He can see things in action, he can look at the profit monitors and realise that we can make more money, reduce costs, improve quality. He's not a man for "hair brain ideas", but if he sees something in action and knows that it works then he is quick to agree with change.

He is the bones of the operation. I rely on him to look at all animals and to be around the place during the day. If he wasn't there, we wouldn't be doing what we are doing!!!

We don't ever row. If there's a problem, we just mightn't talk for a few hours, but there's never a bad word.

Milton09

johngalway wrote: »

The best way to get the ould lads to change is to have them think they thought of the idea first, if ye can do that...



Let me know how

Another approach that works well is to tell them that one of the neighbours (one that he admires) was going doing the same thing, it must be right then!