From New York to Texas: Lindsay Lowe’s Experience at Pearcy Ranch

At six a.m. in Fairy, Texas the alarm goes off, and it’s time to get to work. Feeding,
helping sort cattle, administering vaccinations, tagging new calves, and so much more,
this is what a day looks like for Pearcy Ranch spring intern Lindsay Lowe.

Lowe, 20, who as a senior at SUNY Cobleskill studied to receive her Bachelor of
Technology in Animal Science, graduated in May of 2023. Lowe grew up in Pavilion,
New York on a dairy farm.

“When I was young, my family sold their herd, but we continued to crop farm and board
dairy heifers,” she said. “This gave me hands-on experience working with cattle.”

In high school, she continued to gain more experience by taking on a job at a dairy farm
near her home. She started as a calf manager and worked her way up. When she returns home
after her internship with Pearcy Ranch she said she will be resuming her job at the dairy farm,
as the top herd manager.

Although her background is in dairy, she applied for internships that “were out of my
comfort zone.” From the beginning, she said she wanted to travel, get out of New York State,
be in a new climate, and learn from new people.

“I think it’s easier to learn from different people you’ve never met before,” Lowe said.
Lowe did her research and said there were quite a few internships that she wanted to
apply for. But ultimately after finding Pearcy Ranch, and looking over its mission statement,
descriptions of the ranch, and the internship itself, she felt the push to apply. After her interview
with the ranch and the great communication she received afterward, Lowe said she knew
“this is the place for me.”

A day for Lowe in this internship changes daily. The team at Pearcy Ranch switches roles
and jobs around frequently so she can get a well-rounded hands-on education.

“Hands-on learning, there’s nothing better,” she said. “I don’t think there’s a better way to
learn than doing a job. In the classroom, I don’t want to say was boring but it’s being told
information, when you are out doing things, you do have the moments of ‘Oh yeah, I did
learn how to do this,’ and you can learn to apply what you learned to what you are doing.”

After this experience, Lowe said there were a few things she was learning at Pearcy
Ranch that she will apply at the dairy when she returns.

“I’ve learned a lot from this experience so far but some of the things that I have learned
are new cattle management skills, reproduction skills, and some new reproduction knowledge
that I can try to use when I get back to the dairy,” Lowe said.

She said her favorite part of this internship was the personal growth she’s gained.
“This has been such a different kind of growing experience than I’ve ever had before,”
Lowe said. “It’s given me a lot of confidence and strength that I can take on anything. I also
gained a lot of independence from this experience, I don’t have anyone babysitting me or
telling me what to do which, I think, is setting me up for success after I graduate.”

Lowe shared some advice for any students having to find an internship or looking at an
out-of-state internship. “Stop doing things just because they are convenient,” she said.
“It could have been convenient for me to stay home, work my job, and have that count,
but I wouldn’t have grown and had this experience that I will remember forever.”

Written by Amanda Ruscitti | Photos by Morghan Leah Photography

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