Three Ag Businesses Keep Him Busy

Three Ag Businesses Keep Him Busy LIVESTOCK Sheep/Goats “Sometimes there doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day for everything I need to do but I wouldn’t have it any other way ” says Dr Justin Luther who raises sheep on his Wisconsin family farm is a college professor in Reproductive Animal Physiology and operates Reproductive Services LLC Luther says when he was a kid showing sheep he always wanted better animals in the show ring and the only way to do that was through natural selection and breeding which took time and quite a lot of money In his junior year at UW-River Falls he became interested in laparoscopic artificial insemination a way to infuse superior genetics without owning the sire After earning his M S and PhD in Reproductive Physiology at North Dakota State University Luther trained veterinarians in “Lap AI” and learned that many producers were interested in the procedure In 2009 he joined the UW-River Falls faculty as an Animal Science professor and began offering Lap AI services on his farm Since then Luther says “This business has grown from an idea for a 4-H project into something way beyond what I ever expected ” In 2017 he built a special building at his farm for Lap AI services From that facility he offers artificial insemination semen collection and evaluation semen cryopreservation and reproductive consulting services Customers from Minnesota and Wisconsin bring sheep and goats to his facility where most services are scheduled on weekends during the school year or in the summer He also takes his AI services on the road in the fall to game farms that raise deer Luther notes that raising his own sheep and offering AI services brings value to his role as a professor “Being able to combine my hands-on work with teaching makes me a better educator and gives my students a better feel for what to expect in their work ” he says Pre-veterinary students sometimes help at his farm to gain valuable work experience Even as his business grows he and his family will continue raising Hampshire/Suffolk ewes His wife and children are actively involved in day-to-day sheep management and they assist with AI at the farm facility All three of his children manage and show their own market lambs during the summer In the future Luther plans to offer embryo transfer and in-vitro fertilization to small ruminants using eggs collected from elite female breeding stock “My work is a balancing act no doubt but it’s very fulfilling for everyone involved ” Luther says Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Justin Luther Reproductive Services LLC Hammond Wis 54015 ph 701 212-8385

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