Driven by Challenge, Doffin Strives for Continual Improvement
Experience as part of a livestock judging team while in college shaped Dwight Doffin’s love of the cattle industry. Armed with a degree in livestock management, he’s since spent more than 30 years managing the day-in and day-out challenges that arise at a cattle feeding operation.
“I like the challenge of it. That’s what keeps me going. I always try to have one pen do better than the one before it. Have a better close out. I’m constantly trying to improve and do things better,” he says.
Doffin has spent his career at Feller & Co in Wisner, Neb., as the feed and cattle manager, and is the recipient of this year’s Arturo Armendariz Distinguished Service Award from the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame. The award honors feedyard employees who go above and beyond the call of duty to help improve the cattle-feeding industry and the beef it provides to American families.
Feller & Co had only been in operation for a few years when Doffin joined in 1989, giving him the opportunity to learn and grow with the business as it evolved.
“Tom [Feller] really taught me a lot. He took me under his wing, and I was eager to learn. I got to start from the ground up and learn how to get started feeding cattle,” he says.
His experience now ranges from animal health to bunk reads, cattle performance and purchases, mill operation and yard construction, to employee management and customer relations.
When the business expanded into another county in 1992, Doffin was tapped to help head the project, and build up the relationships needed to make it run smoothly, something that he credits as one of the most satisfying projects of his career.
“The expansion in Stanton, it was satisfying to get that yard completed. It was a lot of work, and it was an ongoing challenge because we’d work on it and improve it little by little each year and add on to it. We added a feed mill and added more pens. Over a 15-to-20-year period we built it, and then rebuilt it,” he says. “It was very challenging, because you’re trying to manage the logistics of the cattle company and building new pens and working around everything.”
Years of experience also makes Doffin excited for the future of the industry to grow and change with technological innovations coming, “There’s been a lot that’s changed over 30 years. Walking around the trade show at NCBA, some of the stuff that’s coming, I can only imagine what we’ll have in 10 years. It’s more automated and more accurate, and I’m excited to see what the technology brings us. And it’ll be here sooner than later.”
Outside of work, where his commitment and dedication led to 80-hour work weeks for many years, Doffin’s hobby is rodeos, which he loves for the challenge and the fact that so many different outcomes can happen in a short amount of time, and spending time with family.
“I’m very humbled, and I was surprised, Doffin says of the award. “It’s very gratifying, and it’s nice to be thought of in such an elite group of people.”
