About Us


“Walkup Holsteins is more than a business, it’s a way of life, about cows, and about family.”
 Farmer Spotlight > Myers

 

Green-living on seventh generation farm


Farmer: State: Number of Cows:
Dan Myers Virginia 130

Welcome to our farm, Walkup Holsteins. I’m the seventh generation that’s lived on our farm, and this year we celebrated 130 years of farming in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

I’ve milked for over 30 years, and in 2002, Walkup Holsteins, LLC was formed to continue the tradition. My wife Charlotte, our son D.J. Myers, our daughter Teresa and her husband Donald, contribute to our LLC. D.J.’s wife, Kimberly, is a teacher in a local elementary school. We currently milk 130 Holsteins and farm approximately 325 acres owned and leased.


We are located in the city limit, which means we have to work closely with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to ensure we are doing our part to protect the environment. We strongly believe that farm environmental practices and animal welfare practices are important. For example, we no-till plant our crops and follow a strict nutrient management plan to retain our most precious asset, our soil. Over the past seven years we have updated our milking parlor, machine shed, and bed pack barn. Last year, we began an expansion project designing and building a dry cow and bred heifer barn, all with the goal of taking care of the environment and our animals well-being.

The barn was planned and built with the cooperation of state and federal agricultural agencies. Our barn resides 200 yards from the main cluster of buildings on the top of a hill. When the weather warms, we open all walls and doors to form a picnic-type shelter that helps cool the animals; during the cold periods, we close the curtain wall on the west and overhead doors on the north and south leaving the east open, forming a 3-sided shelter that helps warm the barn. Natural ventilation works well on our farm in the Shenandoah Valley.


We work hard to keep our dairy cows healthy and well cared for so that they will produce pure, wholesome milk. We depend on them for our livelihood, so we want them to be in great shape, which means providing healthy living conditions for them. We strive to be good stewards of the land because we want our cows to be healthy – and we live on the land, too!


Last year we were honored to receive the 2006 Harrisonburg Rockingham Chamber of Commerce “Farm Family Stewardship Award.” We strive to educate our community by taking cows to state fairs, offering farm tours and sharing our family farming tradition with our community. Walkup Holsteins is more than a business, it’s a way of life, about cows, and about family.
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