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M&M feedyard cattle

Nice to Meat Ya: Kenny Montgomery

A journey from water tank washer to cattle manager

Kenny Montgomery is a cowboy.

The definition fits him well, too. He’s tough, unassuming, he’s resilient – the kind of guy you could ride around with in the pick up, the one you want on your side.

Maybe that’s why Pratt Feeders has made him a part of their team for so long. A chance occurrence (a mutual friend’s wedding) put part owner and general manager, Jerry Bohn, in the same room as the then about-to-graduate animal science senior. A short conversation and nearly 18 years later, the men work together to finish cattle at the prominent feedyard.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAComprised of three commercial yards with a one-time capacity of 85,000 head, the company has a long relationship with the Certified Angus Beef brand.

But there’s more to it than simply placing your bets on DNA and hoping for the best. As far as sorting cattle for the grid and collecting for CAB, “It’s trying to manage each animal to their full potential for their owners,” Kenny says. “How can we get them to generate the most, and be able to relay carcass data back? I just feel we can optimize each animal’s performance.

“It’s an ongoing deal. You continue to strive to want to learn more, want to do more, to help people in the beef industry.”

That industry is layered with passion; people wanting the very best for the cattle and product they place in the market. So Kenny’s role is crucial. Each day is spent working that much closer toward the goal cattlemen set out to reach well before they unloaded at Pratt.

154A thought not lost on Kenny. Growing up playing basketball in small town Oklahoma he learned a thing or two about teamwork and how it can lead to success. He applies that sentiment at Pratt as he works alongside his staff as opposed to in front of them or from an office desk.

“I guess in my opinion you’ll get a lot more buy in if you’re willing to roll up your sleeves and jump in and help them instead of just saying, ‘You’re here until it’s done,’” he says.

It’s about having respect for the people you lead. For Kenny, that’s a crew of 12 who report to him directly. Pen riders, processors, part timers, they’re responsible for cattle coming in, going out and everything in between.

“It takes everybody to do it. Everyone’s role, from the water tank washer to the general manager, nothing works without one piece of that being accomplished along the way.”

2003_0102Image0013Making it work can often mean arriving at the barn at 4 a.m. and not leaving until 6 p.m. during the busy season. But it’s the integrity of the place and the people who work there that make the 65-70 hour workweek doable.

“Trust is a lot of what Pratt Feeders is about,” he says. “We built ourselves on being trustworthy and having a lot of integrity.”

So he’ll take phone calls in the middle of the night, go back to the feedyard even if he just left it or answer questions if that’s what his customers need to rest easy.

“I want people to be assured that if they do decide to feed cattle and they decide to feed cattle at Pratt Feeders that the best possible care is going to be given.”

It’s likely to be given by Kenny, personally.

“I know what it’s like to be out there when you’ve got to chip the ice away from the plug to get it to drain out. I would never send anybody to do something that I wouldn’t do myself.”

That’s what makes him a man worth introducing.

Thanks for allowing me to tell your story,

Laura

PS–We hope you enjoyed our 30-day blog series! Catch up on the whole thing with these links:

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