Danny Wann
In Town: “I have been teaching science at Carl Albert State College, a community college in Poteau, Okla., for 24 years after graduating from Carl Albert and then earning both a bachelor’s and master’s at Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant, Okla. I teach biology, zoology and physiology. My wife, Elizabeth has been in public schools for over 20 years including working for the Hodgen schools for the past 16 years as a speech pathologist. We have four children: Gauge age 5, Faith age 7, Nick age 21 and Sabrina age 23.”
In the Country: “Our 900-acre breeding seedstock ranch is family owned by my mom and dad, Nancy and Jim Wann, and by my brother, Roger and me with the entire family and one hired hand, Cody Stacy, involved in every decision. We lease another 300 acres and have 175 registered Angus and a few commercial mommas. We run two rounds of AI before turning out the cleanup bulls and purchase most of our semen. To manage overhead costs, we bale up to 3,500 bales in a year but we do purchase some alfalfa hay locally in lieu of using cubes. Another cost saving measure is using BovaZyme: molasses-based, cooked protein tubs. Because they worked so well in increasing the efficiency of our cattle, we wanted to use them year around but traveling back and forth to the only dealer in Western, Okla., was cumbersome considering our volume. Consequently, we decided to open up D and E Feed Supplements and sell the product off the farm to others while saving ourselves time and money. We work long hours to maximize our resources and produce superior products. Perhaps most important part of overhead control and the key to our success is personal family involvement and a commitment to run a Christian-based business as stewards rather than owners of the cattle and land.
“Our breeding stock business is a niche market, and I had three calls just this week about purchasing bulls. We have a large sale on the farm every spring, which will be in March, and love to see new faces as well as old friends. The Community State Bank in Poteau holds our loans and is a very important part of our operation. During the sale the bank brings out a cooker and fixes food for over 200 people. Representatives of the BovaZyme enzymes product also set up an informational booth.”
