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- [00:06]
Weston Hendricks
Welcome to season three of Empower your. And I'm Weston Hendricks, the owner and host, and this is my team.
- [00:11]
Augustus Sexton
Hey, guys, I'm Augustus Sexton. I'm the co host and supervisor of the podcast.
- [00:17]
Quinn Hartley
And I'm Quinn Hartley, the social media manager as well as another co host of the platform. With that said, season three comes with change. Every Friday, a new episode is released with sneak peeks on our social medias out the day before.
- [00:32]
Augustus Sexton
Our goal is to be consistent, competitive, and Christ like. We as a team strive for excellence in all that we do and want to gain knowledge from industry leaders and expand on trends of the industry and what they offer.
- [00:46]
Weston Hendricks
Our priority is to empower you as an individual in the livestock industry and to gain knowledge and confidence while consuming it from some of the most influential people in our industry. So, as always, enjoy the episode and here's to empowering you. All right, folks, we finally are able to have a pig episode. For all of the people that are in the show industry, it's an honor to have this individual on our platform. We're not heavily involved in the pig industry ourselves, but we do look up to people who make an impact. And Mr. Jason Lackey does that in tremendous ways. And so, with that said, I do appreciate him coming on. I'm sure Augustus and Quinn do as well. And Jason, before we get started, asking questions, if you want to introduce yourself so the listeners can get to know you a little better. And then after that, we'll kick this thing off.
- [01:43]
Jason Lackey
Yeah, I'm Jason Lackey. We live here in Haskell, Texas. We've been here for about 10 years now. I've got two boys, Weston, which I think both of you know, and then Grant, my youngest. It's an 8th grade ratio pigs. We've been doing it kind of exclusively here for, you know, about, I guess about 10 years, ever since we moved to Haskell, graduated high school in 99, which I guess was before you guys were born probably, and went to, went to Clarendon to judge in junior college and went to Texas AM after that and got my bachelor's and master's there. And then after that I had a few internships coaching. I coached with Brian Anderson there at Fort Scott Community College. And then my final stop was there at Louisiana State University, where I coached and taught there for, I think it was three or four years. And I don't remember the exact date, but finally ended up back in Aspromont, where I grew up, where my dad, my granddad, run the oil business and had some commercial cattle and Moved back there then and really kind of got our start to the show. Pig part of it then. And I think at that point only had maybe about 10 sows. And then like I said, we moved back here about 10 years ago when Jackie had moved her business to Haskell. We bought a place and just started, expanded from there. And now we're, we're, we're running probably 150 sows here in our place and, and that's what we do.
- [03:25]
Weston Hendricks
That's awesome. Y'all have been extremely, extremely successful with what y'all do. Y'all are very known, have set standards in the industry. So where I kind of want to start, I want to hit on the judging side of your life. You know, you mentioned you went to A and M, you judged. What I would like to know is what's the biggest thing you took away from judging and how do reasons compare to now from back in your time? Like, what's the biggest difference you see in people teaching and coaching nowadays? And maybe even what are some of the struggles you see as a reasons taker in the room collegiately with folks now?
- [04:06]
Jason Lackey
You know, when, when we did it, I was pretty, you know, I judged some in high school, but, you know, we weren't, you know, we were not, I was not as good as you guys. I'll just put that out there point blank. I wasn't as good as what you guys were, but, you know, we had a decent run and went to state, but we weren't nearly as competitive as we needed to be. But it wasn't nearly as flashy. It probably wasn't nearly as animated back then as what it is now is probably the biggest difference that I see. You know, the biggest things that I got out of it. And you'll see this one day, I mean, not, not necessarily related to livestock is just the, even the people that I met across the country, I mean, it's, it's still to this day we talk, you know, I see those people and we talk about judging and we were on different teams. You know, I see those people all the time. And we, you know, not just in the pig barn, but in the cattle, sheep, goat barn. I mean, we still, you know, see each other and use each other as resources all the time. So that was one of the more beneficial parts of that. But you know, from a, from a. The teaching aspect and the stuff that I learned, you know, I was on Ryan Rathman's very first team at A and M and so he was, he was obviously very beneficial in, you Know, helping guide us along, you know, to teach us, you know, the fundamentals and the basics of, you know, what we needed to do. But, you know, I'll tell you, Jerry Hawkins, which I don't. I doubt that you guys are familiar with who he was, but he was my coach at Clarendon. But he was, he was so good with, you know, understanding the mindset, the mentality of all of his, all of his kids on his teams. And that's what was always so good with us is. I mean, he understood where our heads were, and he understood where we needed to be pushed or pulled back. And, you know, just a philosophy and an understanding of a philosophy and how, you know, each kid needed to be handled was something that I really took away from, know, from that with him and from Ryan. Both, I thought were both extremely good. And Dr. Skaggs, obviously was there at a. M. When I was there, and I thought all three of them were very good at that. You know, but from the reason standpoint, like I said, you know, when you're judging shows and stuff like that, me especially, I mean, I'm not, I'm not, you know, I'm not gonna, you know, say anything cool. You know, we just, I, I, you know, we. I've raised livestock for, for a long time now, and just they are what they are to me, and I just, you know, I call them how I see them, and that's just kind of what it is. And, you know, and I understand, you know, the reasons thing is, it's, it's a lot of showmanship, and you've got to go in and you've got to, you know, differentiate yourself from everybody else in the room. And that's part of it. But, you know, I think the biggest thing from a reasons taker standpoint for me, just sitting there and you guys know this. I mean, you know, everybody can, everybody can say flowery stuff, and everybody can, you know, do that all they want. But, you know, the number of truth tellers versus the number of kids that say flowery stuff, it's, it's, it's very different. So being accurate and being descriptive, I would tell you that, you know, those first, those first. I tell Weston that all the time, those first 30 seconds or 10 seconds for that matter, out of your mouth, if you can hit somebody in the mouth with your presentation and then tell the truth for the next minute and ten seconds, you're. You're gonna, you're going to get along very well.
- [07:27]
Augustus Sexton
Absolutely. One thing I wanted to know is, I mean, you had very Successful and well known coaches throughout both your junior college and senior college levels. How did they help prepare you in that for when you took on coaching positions?
- [07:45]
Jason Lackey
You know, they were, like I said, the thing that I respected the most about all my coaches is just, you know, they were, they were very, you know, every, every place that I went, you know, was, was, you know, very high class, I thought, I mean that was what, that was what struck me the most about A and M. I mean I, I really didn't know where I was going to go after I left junior college. And I took one visit A and M. And it, you know, it was, it was night and day on, on, you know, just the way that place is set up and the way that everything was there. And I was very thankful for that and thankful to get to know the people that were there. But you know, the thing, the thing that I probably took away the most is like I'd said before, just the way that they understood people knowing people well, because, you know, I think, you know, your evaluation of livestock, you know, at times, I mean, we all can understand the fundamentals of how they need to be built and what they need to be done. But you know, when you're, when you're at a level coaching those kids collegiately where all those kids are so immensely talented, you have to know psychologically, you know, when to, when to push and when to pull back and know what that individual can do and what they can't do. And so I thought that was one of those guys biggest strengths is being able to identify that in each of those team members.
- [09:06]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir. Yes, sir. And so fast forward now today or even back then when you just gotten out of college. It's a question that I asked some last season, but I want to ask you, just because of your experience, your knowledge, your impact you have in the industry, what are your thoughts on the phrase you have to judge in college to judge a national major county show? And how do you approach that?
- [09:37]
Jason Lackey
No, absolutely not. That, that's, I don't think, I don't think that is true at all. I mean there's a lot of guys and I couldn't tell you who all judged in college and who didn't. But it obviously helps. I mean, you know, you guys, I mean you guys could get on the mic and you know, and sound as fluid as any judge in America right now just because of your repetition with reasons and that's all very helpful. But you know, for a guy that raises livestock and does that stuff every day, you know, the Importance of their just fundamental belief in what they believe in is just, you know, pick and take two steps in the ring, and they know within two seconds whether they like him or hate him, because they're looking at him every day at their farm. And so there's. There's pieces of livestock in my place that I. That I do not like. There's pieces that I like that I gravitate to. And I just do it so quickly, not because I know more than the next guy, just because I know what I like, because I know, you know, what works here and what doesn't. And so I think that's a big part of that, that you've got to be convicted in what you believe in. And it just takes, you know, not that I'm, you know, I'm saying, you know, young kids could do an incredible job evaluating lifestyle, but it just takes years of experience to find that conviction of what you believe in because you figured out what works or what doesn't. And I think also, you know, young, younger, you know, the younger kids that understand that. That. That, you know, I think that understand that maybe, you know, that they could be the next, you know, they. They could be the next big thing in the. In the ring judging one day, but understanding that maybe it's just not their time yet. You know, it doesn't matter who you are when you're 21 years old, you do not need to judge San Antonio. Like, it just. That's. No one. No one 21 years old needs to judge Santon. And I think that's just something that needs to be understood. But, you know, anybody over time can do it. I don't think it's necessarily relatable, you know, to judging in college or not judging in college. I just think you just have to have the maturation to know what you like and to be comfortable enough in your own skin to get to that point to know that you're ready to do one.
- [11:46]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir.
- [11:48]
Augustus Sexton
That's awesome. And now I want to talk about kind of lackey livestock, and how did that come about? And you say once you got done with college and that you started raising pigs, and when did y'all kind of elevate that brand to the level it is now?
- [12:04]
Jason Lackey
Well, probably, you know, the. The lackey livestock brand itself was my. Was my dad and granddad's thing, but it wasn't, obviously, it wasn't branded. It wasn't, you know, a big national thing. It was just, you know, what they had, you know, with their commercial cattle there back at Home, you know, when I started playing with a few sows, obviously you know, Jackie's a very talented marketer and she, she took that, you know, the Lackey livestock brand and started, you know, putting it out. And at the time, I mean it was, it was something fun to do. It was a, it was a hobby slash passion of mine. And so we, we did that and you know I'd say we got to, we got back to aspramont. You know, I bought my first double L building and started to get a little more serious about it. I built a sow barn there that was looking back, terribly built building. And then we, we went from there. We moved to Haskell, moved. I think over probably about a five year span we built four or five more buildings that once again were not very well built. Just because I didn't know, I mean I didn't know know I hadn't seen enough places. I didn't really know how that kind of stuff worked. And so we've kind of worked over 10 years and to be honest with you here in the last two months I've about got, other than one building being green, I've about got everything pretty close to how I want it. So you know it just took off over time and you know it took a lot of you know, me helping, you know, back I guess 10, 12 years ago, me helping one kid to now, you know, us having 100 and whatever it is, 110 hundred and 20 barrels at San Antonio. It just took, you know, it took, it took off like that. So you know, the brand, the brand grew slowly. I don't know if I can say it grew slowly and quickly at the same time. It feels like it was a slow process but I mean you know we, I think we looked the other day at our training day. This was our ninth year to do this. The first year we did it we had 39 kids. And then the other day when we finished up we had 180. So you know that over a nine year span that's kind of what we've grown into.
- [14:22]
Quinn Hartley
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- [15:16]
Weston Hendricks
That's awesome. And just you bringing up, like, the training day and such. What brought upon that idea? And what is the Helping Hand award? And how do y'all decide who gets that?
- [15:31]
Jason Lackey
So training day started nine years ago, and my initial thought, because, you know, this time of year, I spent a lot of time on the road checking on pigs and, you know, checking people's stuff. So I wanted to bring everyone together, you know, for one. You know, for one event. And so, you know, when I did that, I thought it'd save me some time on the road to be able to do that. But then once we did bring them all together, I think it worked pretty well. But then that turned into a little bit more. And like I'd said earlier, Jackie kind of got involved and turned it into, you know, a lot more than what we had. It became a bigger event. And, you know, the last. I would say probably three or four years, it's turned into more of a conference, you know, than anything. We've got some speakers that I think are, you know, nationally recognized leaders in our industry that come to do it. It's a very intense showmanship thing on Saturday that. That, you know, that we. That we take a lot of pride in. And so that. That's kind of what it's turned into. But it evolved from, you know, just getting all those pigs in one site initially. But the helping hand thing, Cole Gordon was. Was the inspiration behind that. And I don't. I'm bad at dates, but it's been probably four, five, five, six years ago now. After our September sale, he was on his way home with a group of pigs, and he was with a buddy, and. And they got in a wreck, and Cole didn't make it. It was right before Dallas, and the kid was. He was. He was a really neat kid. He was. He was very selfless. And, you know, it's like I say every year when I introduce that award. He's. He was. I think he liked working more than he liked showing. He, you know, one big. On being in the limelight. And so, you know, after that, we wanted to recognize him every year and give, you know, someone in our group an award on, you know, recognizing them, on being selfless and being a hard worker and being all those things that, you know, that we want them to aspire to be. And so we started doing that and it's. It's completely. The kids have to submit the votes is how they do it. Jackie and I have nothing to do with who wins or who loses there. We do a. You know, all the. I think there's about 10 of them that get nominated every year, and about three of them get. We. We give scholarship money to the top three that get that get voted in. So the cool. I mean, the real neat part of it, you know, that. That those kids get recognized for being so selfless. And honestly, the last two or three years, those kids that have won have. Have been. I think it's meant the world to them. And I never thought it would be mean as much as it means to them, but I'm really glad that it does.
- [18:18]
Augustus Sexton
That's such a neat way that y'all are able to carry on his legacy through that award and as well as the training day and always teaching those kids good morals and values to instill in their life. One thing that I want to ask you about is how did. I mean, when you started, obviously didn't have kids yet. How has that changed from once you started having kids growing up in lifestyle industry and then once they've started showing how is maybe your perspective changed while breeding livestock?
- [18:55]
Jason Lackey
Well, you know, it, it, it changed, I guess. You know, having kids changed, you know, it. It really changed everything. You know, growing up, you know, I never knew if. If you would have asked me, you know, 16 years ago, before he, Before Weston was born, if, you know, those three banners that you see behind my head, there's no way I'd have told you that that was ever going to be, you know, in our house. I never, you know, would have thought that was possible, but it was something that was kind of cool to see. You know, the thing I would tell you is that, you know, for this to. For this to happen, for the brand to grow, you know, like our business has, for, you know, the kids to be as successful as they possibly can be. For all that stuff to happen, I mean, every. Every person that lives under the roof has got to be completely committed. And that's, that's the way our, you know, our family is lucky enough to have that here that, you know, Jackie grew up with a livestock background, obviously did, and it's just something that we're passionate about, something that Weston really likes doing, something that the boys, Weston and Grant both really like doing. And so. But watching them, watching them succeed is probably changed my. Change my. You know, because there's. There's days or most days that, you know, there's. There's things at the farm that happen that. That, you know, don't. Can kind of break your spirits in a hurry. But to know that the kids are, you know, still excited about what's going on at the barn and, you know, they ask you questions about pedigrees and they ask you questions about this or that or, you know, other people's pigs. I mean, it kind of keeps the fire burning for me, at least for most of the time. So, you know, having them around and having them as excited about what we do surely makes everything a lot easier.
- [20:47]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir. Yeah. And so what I want to ask you is how did you essentially, instead of following the path of chasing the norm and operating at a normal level and marketing at the normal level, how did you create your own path and come up with these marketing ideas and present bearers and guilts to a higher degree? What is it that drove you to that? How did you accomplish that, and what's been the best thing that's come out of the ordeal?
- [21:21]
Jason Lackey
Well, I mean, I'd be lying if I told you that. I mean, I was barely able to turn on my computer and get on this earlier. So to tell you that I'm some marketing genius. I'm not. But obviously, Jackie had a lot to do with our marketing success and, you know, our ability to put that on the map of where it's been. But, you know, the bottom line of all of this is the people and the way you treat people. And I think that, you know, over time, you know, you can put, you know, you can put as much on the Internet, you can spread all this as much as you want. But, you know, people have got to trust you. And if they trust you, then they're going to tell somebody else how much they trust you. And, you know, we're in a business of kids, obviously, and, you know, the, you know, people are not going to put their kids in a position with someone that they don't feel like, you know, puts them either in the. In the best scenario to win, or most importantly, the best scenario for that, they feel like they're being very well taken care of. So I just think that. I think that just trying to make sure that each and every family, that they know that you're giving them everything you've got from right now, especially from right now until the middle of March tomorrow, someone, they want me in Amarillo. They want me in San Antonio. They want me in Midland. They want me in the other side of the state. And I'm trying my best to make it all happen between now and the middle of March. You know, marketing is a big thing, and, you know, trying to get these pigs ready to look their best is a big thing. But treating people how they should be treated, I think is the. Is the biggest part of how our business has grown the way that it has.
- [23:08]
Augustus Sexton
Absolutely. Can you tell us how the trends, how you've seen them change through the years and if we're going in the right direction in your mind or if you think we're getting off the path?
- [23:23]
Jason Lackey
Yeah, I mean, so, you know, the trend shift, and I'm probably not, as, you know, to talk about this. You know, there's probably older breeders than me that would. That would, you know, say different things than I would. I mean, I, you know, I'd say our heaviest involvement, you know, has been, like I said, in the last 10 years, and I've seen a little pattern change. You know, we were able to, you know, make a couple bores that made a. Made a pretty sizable impact on the industry. And I'm pretty proud to see their genetics, I mean, still in, you know, the majority of sows across the country. And that's still, you know, kind of neat to see. But, you know, there's times and there's shifts all the time. And I, you know, over the last three, I guess, you know, four or so years, there's been, you know, pieces that have been injected into the, you know, different lines of pigs that, you know, have probably made them more extreme, and you're seeing those win here and there. But obviously, every. Every, you know, every extreme piece that you inject into a piece of livestock comes with a problem. And it doesn't matter what species you're talking about, but it does. And so I think that, you know, I think the industry recognizes that, you know, that, you know, that we've. We've injected, you know, this certain, you know, trait that makes them this extreme, and those extremities obviously allow them to stand out well enough to win. But I think on the flip side, they also understand that with those traits comes these negatives. And now we're put putting ourselves in a position to where, you know, if we don't get back out of that. I know I'm not specifically answering your question, and I'm not going to, but that if we don't get back out of that, then, you know, we're going to put ourselves in a bind maternally. And so I think, although that. Although that we want to, you know, make bears that win. And that's what makes us money and we want to do those kinds of things. I think, you know, as stockmen, we still have to, you know, look, step back and understand that, you know, what's going to make this sustainable is, you know, for function still to be important. And so that's always been our mentality here. It's what I believe in. You know, I, I won't, you know, a short hipped one, I won't, I won't tolerate it. You know, ones that don't lay down and do their job, I won't tolerate it. And you know, there, there's times that I haven't injected extreme enough pieces because of that, but, you know, that's kind of where I stand. But I think a lot of people, you know, could, could have this conversation and have different views on that opinion. But, but again, I think that's what, you know, it's what makes our, our industry go round is that, you know, people look at it and come at it from different angles and we all hope to come out with, you know, the very best one at the end.
- [26:16]
Augustus Sexton
Absolutely. And from someone not directly involved in the industry, from the outside looking in, I'd say in the last couple years, the bone and hair y'all have been getting on pigs is absolutely insane. But, but like you say, also you can get in a bind maternally when you make those things with that biggest circumference of bone, you can run into a lot of farrowing problems.
- [26:37]
Jason Lackey
Right.
- [26:38]
Weston Hendricks
One thing I'd like to tack on real quick, Jason. It kind of just popped up in my head when the concept of putting adhesive in legs in the hog industry came to be. Do you think that kind of changed the game a little bit?
- [26:55]
Jason Lackey
I'm glad we live in Texas. I'll just, I mean, I judge up there and I think it's, I'm not a fan, you know, it. I think it doesn't look natural, the, you know, spraying them and you know, and you know, in their defense, I guess at times, you know, we've got more. I don't know if the sun doesn't shine north of the, of the, of the river, but, you know, I, I just, I don't understand why they paint them. I don't understand why they glue their legs. I don't, I don't understand any of it. I'm just going to say I'm 44 years old and I'm not ever going to try to understand that. So.
- [27:33]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir, I agree how is the.
- [27:37]
Augustus Sexton
Presentation of baby pigs? How do you think that helps you or can really hurt you in the marketing game when you're, when it comes to selling them?
- [27:47]
Jason Lackey
You know, I think it's, it's become, it's become an art, to be honest with you. Not for us, we don't, I don't even try. If you asked anybody who was the worst at getting baby pigs ready, I would probably be in their top three, I would say, but I would, I would tell you that, you know, it's those guys that are good at it, are very good at it. And I mean, you can't, if you want to go to a baby pig sale now and have one that's, that, you know, that gets a crowd's attention. I mean, you need to have them looking like a 260 pound pig would look. It's just the truth of it. And, you know, there's no good or bad to it. I mean, I don't want to say that there's. The people that do it are doing it bad or the people that don't are doing it bad. It's just, you know, some people are, you know, that's, that's what they want them to look like now, you know, here at home, you know, we've got so many and we, you know, we put them on feed and when people come here, they buy them off the feeders and take them home and, and you know, a lot of times I like that because of the escalation that they get when they leave here. I mean, they're just, they're pigs and they're healthy and they go home and they've never been on a different diet than they were, you know, just, you know, just being here at the house. So I, it makes me feel better about the pigs when they leave here. But also, you know, when you go to those sales and you've got the best breeders in America that are at those sales and I mean, you, you gotta, you know, it's, it's like, it's showmanship just like anything else. I mean, you gotta make your product look the very best that it can. And, and so, you know, some people try harder at that than others. You know, we kind of just showcase what we've got and we're proud of that. But you know, I, I don't think it's a positive or a negative if you, if you try to get them ready or if you don't, it's just, you know, it, you know, they're, they're 30 pound pigs. And so I think pumping that much energy in them, obviously, or that early in their life, you know, it, you know, sometimes they bounce back from that and sometimes they don't.
- [29:40]
Augustus Sexton
Yeah, absolutely. And that's a good segue into. Our next question is, you know, what does customer service mean to you and how important is that?
- [29:51]
Jason Lackey
Oh, it's, it's, it's number one. It's like I said a while ago, I mean, that I spend. I'll spend the next 45 days on the road, you know, take looking at pigs and taking care of people and. And I really think that's the number one reason that we, we are able to do what we do in Texas is because people know that good or bad, that I'm, I'm going to be there, I'm going to do my best. I'm going to, you know, look over what they've got and make sure that they're headed in the right direction. And, you know, we've got those layovers before all the bigger shows down there down south. And, and, you know, I think people really appreciate the fact that we get to get there about five days before and their pig gets every opportunity to meet to, you know, reach their max potential. Before we go to town, do you.
- [30:40]
Augustus Sexton
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- [31:08]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir. Yeah. And with that said, what does care after the sale with clients look like at Lackey Livestock? And how involved should a breeder be with that kid's project or that family's project? But it's kind of a long question. I know. What I'd like to know is how has feeding these show pigs changed since you started to now? And what kind of program do y'all run with to make those hogs 12 o'clock for their show?
- [31:39]
Jason Lackey
We try to keep it as basic as possible when they leave here. I mean, we try to, you know, I've got kind of a plan and those guys that have fed with me for a while really understand, I mean, kind of, you know, what they need to do when they get home, you know, what the next 30 days looks like and when, honestly, when, when to start asking questions. I Mean, you know, when they, when they first get them home, you know, health is always initially a, you know, a bit of a battle because they're getting pigs not only for me, but that, you know, I'm trying to find them pigs from everywhere else also. And so, you know, when that happens, they're going to co. Mingle and that's going to be a bit of a struggle when they first get them home. But then when they get them healthy, you know, they'll, they'll feed them and just do what they do. Typically, you know, Training day has been in December and it was, it was about three weeks ago. And that's really about the time that we need to start getting a plan, you know, on feed and starting to, you know, not necessarily push, but kind of starting to get a plan on protein levels and, you know, and, you know, the way we're gonna push, the way we're gonna, you know, manipulate here in the next 60 days. And so, you know, that, that kind of makes it, makes it nice, you know, to see those at that point. And then, yeah, I mean, we've fed, you know, we've fed Lindner for the last six or so years, I'd say. And, and, you know, that's, that's worked well for us. But I would also tell you that, that, you know, that the people designing these feeds are all, you know, very smart people. And so, you know, I don't think you could look back and say that this feeds better than this one or this versus that. I think there's a lot of different value. And, you know, I just, you know, I tell people all the time, accessibility is probably the most important part of the feed program. If you can get it, if you can get it quickly and get it fresh, that's the most important part of the feed thing. So, you know, that's what we've used and that's kind of been very successful to us.
- [33:33]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir. So one thing that, like, so my dad owns a feed store and whatnot. We get all this question a lot. So something I'd like to ask you. A lot of people, you know, throw sow cubes out or sow pellets out. How important is it to feed a high quality feed to your sows, your gilts, your boars, and feeding a certain brand or the quality of the feed to breeding stock, does that inject into progeny? And do you think it makes or benefits the progeny more? And do you think that progeny works better off of that brand of feed or that quality of Feed?
- [34:13]
Jason Lackey
Well, I don't, I'm not going to tell you that it injects into their progeny from a phenotypic standpoint. But you know, the, your corn source is very, very important. I mean, you know, it just depends on the time of year you can, you breed. And I can tell you that I can look at conception rates around here and tell you when the corn has been maybe not as fresh as what it, what it has been in the past. And I mean, it doesn't matter, you know, if you're talking, because I talk to buddies up north, it doesn't matter what mill where you're at in the country. You know, the base source of your ration is obviously going to affect conception rates. It's going to affect flesh on your sows. And then obviously, if that affects all those things, their ability to milk and perform in the crate are going to be lower. And if their ability to milk and perform in the crater lower, those pigs aren't going to get off to as good of a start and you're not going to have as much, you know. You know, those pigs in the nursery aren't going to look as good then, you know, then it takes everything backwards. Obviously, if your conception rate's lower, you have less pigs. They don't get off to as good of a start on feed. They don't look as good. Then you're going to be able to have less sellable pigs. And so, yeah, I guess to answer your question, you know, the base ration and the quality of the corn and the quality of all that that you get is very, very important, regardless of what brand it is.
- [35:33]
Weston Hendricks
Yes.
- [35:34]
Augustus Sexton
And so have you seen with higher protein rations in that, does that affect joints and hogs the same way it can with cattle?
- [35:43]
Jason Lackey
Yeah, yeah. I mean, we, we try to, you know, we feed a lot of just basic, you know, I guess basic, you know, like an 18, 17% feed this time of year. It doesn't get you in trouble. It kind of lets them grow and just lets them do what they need to do. You know, anytime we try to get, you see, and I'm sure you guys see it a lot in cattle too. I mean, ever every jackpot warrior that wants to win a vinyl banner and when it doesn't matter, that feeds, you know, that feeds, you know, those real hot feeds, you know, they're going to mess one up and the guys that are just sitting at home, you know, being patient and being consistent and just letting them grow and then, and then hammering them when it's Time. I mean, that. That's always our approach. So. Yeah, we don't try to get. We don't try to get them too hot, too early. We just kind of let them grow and be pigs here for a while.
- [36:35]
Weston Hendricks
Yep. I. That's best way to go. I agree. Especially with cattle, I feel like getting them out this late, especially like Fort Worth ones. If you're getting Fort Worth ones out right now, I think it's kind of. I don't know.
- [36:48]
Jason Lackey
Yeah, just.
- [36:48]
Weston Hendricks
You got. Yeah, yeah.
- [36:50]
Jason Lackey
Grant's got. Grant's got sheep, in fact, and we might go to one more show. And I. We were. We thought. We talked about going this weekend. And I. I think even. Even for sheep, it's kind of getting a little too late to take them out. So, you know, it's. It's about. I think it's about to start, you know, time to start putting all of them.
- [37:08]
Weston Hendricks
Yeah, even just like getting them out this late, you're prone to more diseases, especially with weather changing and stuff like that. I think that goes for every specie.
- [37:17]
Jason Lackey
Right, right.
- [37:20]
Augustus Sexton
So as we start to wrap this up, I want to know, what's your favorite quote or Bible verse that you like to go by?
- [37:30]
Jason Lackey
Oh. Kind of got me off guard there, Augustus, huh? Oh, yeah, yeah. My wife was there to aid me. No, my grandpa always told me not. Don't ever get too out of bounds where you can't get back in. And that. That kind of. It applies to a lot of stuff in my life. Anyway, I think about it all the time. But that's. That's the. That's the one liner he always told me. And I think about it in about everything I do, so.
- [38:01]
Weston Hendricks
Yes, sir. Yeah. So this is a question that goes in to every episode. I love the perspectives that we always get on it. Um, but, Jason, I'd like to know what empowers you as a person, caretaker, operator, or even a customer to be better than who you were before?
- [38:22]
Jason Lackey
Oh, you know, every. Every day is a chance to grow, you know, personally, spiritually, and, you know, as a dad, as a husband, I think, you know, every day, you know, every day you can wake up and be better than you were the day before. You guys get to be my age and you'll start seeing some stuff that will open your eyes to, you know, what's really important and what's not. And so I would tell you that, you know, I was, you know, when I was, you know, in my early 20s and, you know, thought, you know, all that stuff was, you know, you know, all the stock show scene, I mean, it's all I ever wanted to do. And I looked at it as a. I guess as a fascination or as a fantasy world of something that, you know, that just, you know, my biggest idols were doing. You know, now I look at it as a. Just almost. I guess in the same way. I just can't believe that this is what I do for a living every day. I can't believe that I get to sell pigs to people that I consider my family. You know, I just. I. It's. It's a. It's a place that I feel very blessed to be in. And I think all of us have a calling in life. And I feel like that this was. This is our, you know, this is my opportunity, my family's opportunity to, you know, to use our faith to, you know, to show other people. And this is our best way to reach out and be, you know, Christ, like, in a way, you know, in the livestock world and, you know, reach out and help others, you know, the best we can.
- [40:00]
Weston Hendricks
One thing I want to tack on real quick, and it's something that I just thought of. How can we be Christ like and competitive at the same time?
- [40:11]
Jason Lackey
Oh, it's not hard. It's when you, you, you. Like I said, you'll. You know, I've been in. I've been in some scenarios in the last couple years, and I finally told somebody about two years ago, we got beat at a show, and, you know, in my opinion, we shouldn't have. And I said, hey, we've won when we shouldn't have, and we were going to get beat when we shouldn't have. And it's all going to even out someday. Now, trust me, there's times where I've got to go outside and talk to myself for a second, but, you know, it's. At the end of the day, this is not that big of a deal. You know, it's my livelihood, it's what feeds my family. It's everything that I love. But Jerry Hawkins, one thing he told me is if this affects your life that seriously, in six months from now, then it was a big deal. And I can't ever think of one circumstance where one of my pigs getting beat was that big of a deal six months later. And I also think about that all the time that he told me that we can all be competitors. And there's people in this state that I want to beat so bad for 60 days straight, and I hope they don't win a class. And then first of April, we're good, we can talk again. But I think the maturation process and understanding that is very important. And just knowing that you can be competitive but still be cordial towards one another.
- [41:42]
Weston Hendricks
Absolutely. Yes sir.
- [41:44]
Augustus Sexton
And that goes along with, I mean, livestock projects and that is just a way to help raise and develop kids. I mean and you're, you're with raising animals and selling them, you're helping develop all those kids. And with Yalls training day, y'all are helping develop them even more. So it all ties together of what the main goal is. And that leads us to our scripture verse that we like to end all the episodes with the different verse. This episode is second Timothy 3, verses 16 through 17. It says all scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
- [42:34]
Jason Lackey
That's good.
- [42:35]
Weston Hendricks
That goes along with everything that we just talked about in tremendous ways. So with that said, Jason, we do appreciate you coming on and giving us your thoughts, opinions and knowledge. It does mean a lot. You're someone that a lot of people look up to and have wanted you on the platform for quite some time. So we do appreciate you taking time and getting on here with us.
- [42:58]
Jason Lackey
Yeah. Thanks guys. Appreciate you having me.
- [43:00]
Weston Hendricks
Absolutely. So with that said, this can be empowering you with Mr. Jason Lackey. We thank you all for tuning in. Ranch House Designs is America's rural marketing hub. They're a proud sponsor of EmpowerU's new and improved website. We couldn't be more grateful for their efforts in helping us build a brand. But with that said, they can do the same for you, creating and backing some of the biggest brands and websites in the industry. Trust the process and Visit them at.
- [43:28]
Quinn Hartley
Ranchhousedesigns.Com make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram EmpowerUp for episode sneak peeks and merchandise updates.
- [43:43]
Augustus Sexton
But also go take a look at our new website, empowerupod.com where you'll find our team's story, sponsor updates and much more. Once again, we just want to thank you all for tuning in and please follow us on Spotify or Apple Podcast and leave a five star rating. If you like what you hear, have a blessed day.
- [44:05]
Weston Hendricks
Sa.