Go big or get out......so he got out.
Back in the day farms were 160 acres. Now that is considered to be a garden. Times change.
My brother in law is a dairy farmer in Wisconsin, having grown up on a dairy farm and taking over his wife's family farm after he returned from Vietnam. He incrementally grew the operation to the point now where he milks about 700 cows 3 times a day. He was one of the first dairies to do this schedule as it increases overall production about 15%. He has always been on the cutting edge of technology, and although he doesn't name his cows, they all have microchips in their ears so they can be tracked for their daily milk production and diet modification. They do almost all of their veterinary procedures and have a very profitable business that likely will remain in his family.