Horses, goats and show dogs. That’s how Brenda Murray of rural Dallas County outside Urbana, Mo., characterizes life on her family’s 84 acres.
Brenda operates her own dog grooming business in nearby Buffalo, Mo., Dog Gone Pretty, and Todd works for John Deere Reman, as it is known locally, remanufacturing John Deere engines in Springfield, but it is their life at home with a variety of four-footed friends that is the heart of their life in the Ozarks.
Daughters, Kourtney and Kayla, show dogs and horses respectively. Todd has remodeled what was an open barn to one with nine stalls over the years to accommodate Quarter horses, Appaloosas and a lone Fox Trotter, but he is all about the goats and the hay that help to keep it all going.
“I traded a round bale of hay for a baby goat a few years ago and they took in a little Pygmy goat. Now, there are 10, along with Nubian-Boer crosses,” he laughed. “I keep trying to get some of those goats to market but you know once you name them.
“Actually the goats do the job on the brush and that old wives’ tale about goats keeping horses healthier really is true. Don’t know exactly why but from what we’ve experienced, it does work and they are easier to maintain than cattle.”
Life and work on the farm is a family affair for the Murray family, including Todd’s custom hay bailing business.
“I do custom square baling and my daughters help me,” Todd said. “It is hard to get help to buck bales these days and my oldest daughter can buck more bales faster than a lot of young men. Maybe they are afraid she will show them up.
“I do a lot of my hay on 50-50 shares. If I supply the fertilizer and lime, then I work it on a 70-30 percentage. I do small pieces, 10 acres and under and the guys with the big equipment, they can’t get in there a lot of times. I also help folks out, fixing their equipment while I’m there. Lots of things going on here – goats, hay, horses.”
Brenda’s passion is her 15 show dogs, which includes Whippets, Dalmatians, Ibizan Hounds and Chinese Crested breeds. She and Kourtney have shown dogs in Oklahoma, Kansas, Florida and several other states. Kourtney has also been invited to the Westminster Dog Show.
“She is gone a lot right now, working for professional dog handlers and frankly, good dog help is hard to find,” Brenda said.
Todd and Brenda moved to the Ozarks from New Jersey after 911.
“We were looking for a safe place to raise our kids,” Todd explained. “I’d worked in corrections in New Jersey and then hurt my back. There is just a limit and we decided we had reached ours. Life is very different out here but better for us in so many ways. We came out here several years ago to buy a horse from some friends and took it back to New Jersey. A few months later, we moved out here and brought that same horse back with us. … For me, working on the farm is my relaxation.”
Brenda agreed. “I love going out to watch the dogs run on the property.”
“I had my own construction company for many years so it’s one more way to be playing in the dirt,” Todd shared. “Whatever I do, I’ve always done hands-on work. Raising our girls, working with and caring for the animals has taught them respect for hard work and responsibility. It is really sad to see fewer and fewer in the next generation wanting to be a part of life on the farm. Kids need to be involved in that kind of hands on work. That is truly why we moved to the Ozarks.”
