Meet The Kenobbie's

Lyle and Linda Kenobbie were named the Iowa Outstanding Commercial Producers of 2016. From Greenville, Iowa, Lyle and Linda own and operate Walking L ranch, a commercial breeding herd of 150 cows and row crops.

Lyle and Linda have been in the cattle business for some time; 47 years to be exact. Starting in 1968 with 20 head of cattle, the couple has weathered many storms over the years, starting in 1975 when a terrible blizzard struck their area, killing most of their cattle. To rebuild, Lyle bought a load of cattle from South Dakota to begin again. While working to build the herd back up, Lyle sold a majority of the herd during the 1980’s farm crisis. Walking L Ranch has since been growing and expanding.

Described as “self-efficient”, Lyle has never considered any job out of reach when working with his cattle. He does most of the “vet work” himself, such as pulling calves during birth, castrating bulls in the spring, vaccinating and more. Lyle has also branded his cattle for a number of years.

Quality is apparent at Walking L Ranch. Giving three vaccination shots per year before it was required by the Green Tag program, although at the time not economically incentivized, helped Lyle and Linda to decrease health problems in their herd, therefore increasing long term profitability.  Selecting well dispositioned medium to low birth weight bulls and utilizing a tub grinder to increase feed quality all have been improvements made over the years to grow their successful commercial operation. Lyle has also kept performance records all 47 years, using them to make breeding and culling decisions. This management and use of data has allowed Lyle and Linda to market their calves through the local ICA sanctioned Green Tag sale yearly in Spencer.

Named Clay County Cattleman of the Year in 2006, Lyle continues to grow Walking L Ranch with his wife Linda, where the operation is very much centered around his family, as well as producing quality beef.