Weather on a late July Saturday couldn’t have been better for an outdoor educational program hosted at Michelle Mouser’s Hereford farm outside of Tenstrike, Minn.

With the sun shining and mid-80-degree-F temps, more than 50 women gathered to participate in the Minnesota CattleWomen’s WIRED event. WIRED — Women in Ranching, Education and Development — is an American National CattleWomen’s sanctioned program that emphasizes sharing knowledge, networking and encouragement in a supportive environment. Each state tailors the event to its members’ needs, with an emphasis on chute-side learning and speakers covering timely topics. This was the first time that Minnesota has hosted the national event.

Mouser, president-elect of Minnesota CattleWomen, served as co-chair of WIRED, along with Rosemary Gustafson, MNCW vice president. They first learned about WIRED in December 2019 at their annual meeting. Wanda Pinnow, ANCW president at the time, shared about the WIRED event she had hosted in her home state of Montana.

“Rosemary and I saw the value of the program, that it was tangible, and immediately started planning the event,” Mouser says. The national organization only had two requirements for states who host WIRED: It must be hands-on, and all participants must become certified in Beef Quality Assurance.

Originally, WIRED in Minnesota was planned for July 2020, but due to COVID-19, organizers were forced to move it to this July.

Easy to put together the day's schedule

Pulling together the day’s agenda was relatively easy, given the national direction.

“One of the guiding values is that the women would never feel like they were in a classroom,” Mouser says, “and we wanted the day to incorporate BQA topics all throughout using various speakers.” Nine speakers gave presentations throughout the day on topics ranging from animal nutrition to chute-side animal care.

“Having a hands-on, boots-on low stress cattle handling session was non-negotiable,” Mouser adds. “Finding the right person was up in the air until I watched Dr. Kip [Lukasiewicz] present to the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association this past February. I knew then he was the right person for our event. We were thrilled that he was able to attend and willing to drive from Grand Island, Neb.”

The day began early, with breakfast followed by an introduction to Beef Quality Assurance training by Allison VanDerWal, executive director of the Minnesota State Cattlemen’s Association and BQA coordinator with the Minnesota Beef Council. Then, the group headed to an outside pen to watch veterinarian Kip Lukasiewicz demonstrate low-stress cattle handing. After the demonstration, the group was subdivided into three smaller groups for hands-on sorting and moving cattle; and chute-side vaccine handling, doctoring and branding.

After lunch, the group heard presentations from sponsors, practiced giving implants in frozen cattle ears and listened to a beef industry panel discussion. The day concluded with a delicious prime rib dinner and dessert.

Moms brought daughters

There were several mom-daughter pairs who attended WIRED, making it a memorable day for supporting each other in learning and practicing new skills. One mom-daughter pair, Sarah and Mackenzie Kuschel, Sebeka, enjoyed the day together. They operate a multigeneration beef ranch in Cass County and enjoy cattle handling on horseback.

“The WIRED event was truly remarkable,” Sarah says. “Being able to share these workshops with like-minded woman really made for high-end experiences. It was extra-special that I got to bring my own daughter along to work on our cattle handling skills together in such a low-stress setting. It’s not often you get such high-powered events in northern Minnesota, so I also appreciated that.”

Adds Mackenzie: “It was fun to learn from people across the state and at different stages of their beef careers. I really enjoyed getting to chat with Dr. Kip and work at Dr. Gib’s. I hope to become a large-animal vet myself.”

Satisfying day

The opportunity to attend a cattle program specifically for women was the main draw for Kerri Steinbrecher, Milaca, and she was not disappointed. She farms with her husband and two teenage children, managing a small cow-calf herd and operating a registered and commercial bull rental service.

A friend told her about the Minnesota CattleWomen’s organization and that she should join and that this special WIRED event was coming up.

“I looked into the organization and then into this event and got super-excited,” Steinbrecher says. She signed up and thoroughly enjoyed the day.

“Every piece of the event had something I was able to take home with me,” she says. “Overall, my favorite part was how open it was; you could ask questions, learn hands on and not be uncomfortable to do so. I also [liked] that everyone was BQA-certified when they left at the end of the day.”

With all that she learned, Steinbrecher says she would be using new skills on her beef farm. Her favorite? The cattle handling session.

“We were shown some different techniques on how to move and sort cattle. It was really interesting,” she adds, chuckling, “Now, if I could just teach them to my husband.”

See video clips of veterinarian Kip Lukasiewicz working cattle on the Mouser Hereford farm during WIRED here:

Upcoming Minnesota CattleWomen events

Future events of the Minnesota CattleWomen’s Association include:

Sept. 18. “The Butcher and The Chef,” an evening dinner event at Armstrong Farm, Owatonna. Attendees will watch and learn as the butcher carves different cuts of beef, and the chef prepares dinner.

Oct. 21-24. The annual Minnesota Beef Ambassador competition will be held during the Minnesota Beef Expo, Minnesota State Fairgrounds. The competition is open to youth ages 16 to 19 who have a desire to promote beef and develop their leadership abilities while connecting with consumers. The 2021 Beef Ambassador team consists of Kestlyn Willert, Brookings, S.D.; Haley Mouser, Tenstrike; Emma Heiden, Rushford; and Audrey Redalen, Chatfield. Follow them on social media at @mnbeefambassadors.

Visit mncattlewomen.org to learn more about MNCW membership, details on upcoming events or to register for events. Questions? Contact Michelle Mouser at [email protected].