News Update

News Update
Aug. 10, 2007

Cattlemen’s Boot Camps Planned for Pennsylvania, Kentucky

The American Angus Association and Angus Foundation will conduct two Cattlemen’s Boot Camps this fall. More are planned for winter and spring. The Boot Camps will be hosted by the University of Kentucky in Lexington, and Pennsylvania State University (Penn State), State College.

Boot Camps are two-day educational programs open to all cattle producers and cover all aspects of the beef industry from basic production practices to the end product. All participants must preregister by the set deadline, and a minimal fee of $75 is charged to offset meals and materials.

“The American Angus Association and Angus Foundation appreciate the opportunity to partner with the universities to educate beef producers across the country,” says Jim Shirley, vice president of industry relations for the Association. “The Boot Camps offer an intense overview of beef production in a short amount of time.”

The University of Kentucky Boot Camp is set for Sept. 21-22 at the Fayette County Extension Center in Lexington. The Boot Camp begins at 12:30 p.m. The registration deadline is Aug. 31.

The Boot Camp at Penn State is Oct. 29-30 at the Beef/Sheep Unit on the Penn State Campus. The activities begin at 8 a.m., and the registration deadline is Oct. 1.

Hotel blocks have been reserved at both locations and rates negotiated at Holiday Inn Express. In Kentucky, the Holiday Express Downtown, 1000 Export Street, is the headquarters. Call 859-389-6800 and ask for the Cattlemen's Boot Camp block to get the negotiated rate of $89.95 per night plus tax. Rooms must be reserved by August 24 to get the rate.

In Pennsylvania, a block of rooms has been reserved at the Holiday Inn Express, Williamsburg Square. Call 814-867-1800 and ask for the Cattlemen's Boot Camp block to get the block rate of $82 per night plus tax.

Complete schedules and program topics are available online at www.angus.org. In addition to these Boot Camps, a Boot Camp is set for Dec. 18-19 at Iowa State University in Ames. A Boot Camp is also tentatively set for early January at Washington State University, Pullman. Watch the web site for more information about these and other educational events.

— Release provided by the American Angus Association.

Stable Flies Becoming Pest for Pastured Cattle, Too

Stable flies, which used to be found only in confined animal areas such as feedlots and barns, are now being found on cattle in pastures, according to a Kansas State University (K-State) Research and Extension livestock entomologist.

“The current methods of feeding hay in pastures are creating a new habitat for stable flies,” said Alberto Broce, K-State livestock entomologist who studies fly populations. “These methods are very wasteful. Cattle can waste up to 45% of the hay in round bale feeders, which then gets mixed with manure on the ground and creates a suitable habitat for stable flies.”

There is no effective chemical treatment for pastured cattle against stable flies because any applied insecticides are easily removed from the animals’ legs by vegetation and dew. Producers can reduce the number of stable flies in pastures by frequently moving hay feeders to new sites and removing manure and hay from the old feeding sites soon afterwards.

Stable flies feed mostly on the legs of their host and can cause up to a half-pound reduction in weight gain per calf or cow each day, Broce said. Cattle will react to the flies by stamping their feet, switching their tails, tucking legs under their bodies and remaining in water for extended periods of time.

Stable flies colonize the manure and wasted-hay mixtures of winter feeding sites in early spring and will maintain their largest population levels for six to eight weeks during May and June. Stable fly populations crash in July and August due to high temperatures and drier weather, but will reach a second peak during September and October.

In late May 2007, traps placed in pastures near Manhattan, Kan. averaged up to 255 stable flies per trap each day, he said. In mid-July, those same traps were only catching about two flies per day.

— Release provided by K-State Research and Extension.

Rain, Flooding and Mud Stress Cattle

Recent rains and flooding have been hard on livestock, but producers can help them weather the unusually wet summer. The following tips from Joe Paschal, Texas Cooperative Extension livestock specialist, were written for cattle, but could apply to sheep and goats in most cases:

• Cattle can tolerate rain fairly well, but hard rains tend to make them walk in the opposite direction the rain is coming from, and rising water will confuse them unless a leader finds a raised area. What has recently stressed cattle more has been that the rain has come every day in some areas — not always hard or all day, but just enough to keep them from grazing as they usually would like and settling down. This increases stress, especially in younger cattle and calves.

• Flooded areas, even if cattle are on dry land, can restrict their grazing and disrupt normal behavior, increasing their stress. As a result, cattle in flooded areas are more prone to diseases and infections, especially respiratory infections such as pneumonia. Again, the younger cattle and calves generally are affected. Stomach worm and liver fluke infestations will probably increase, and producers can expect a boom in horn fly and other sucking and biting insect populations.

• Cattle standing in flooded areas, wet areas and mud for a long time tend to have softer hooves and will exhibit signs of tender feet. These problems will be manifested when these areas start to dry, or the cattle are moved to drier areas. This condition is often mistaken for hoof rot. Hoof rot occurs when an animal has a crack that allows bacteria to invade it. Hoof rot would most likely infect the entire herd.

• Two things occur while cattle are grazing in these wet areas. First, the dry matter (DM) content of the forage is greatly reduced due to the excessive moisture in the plant. Secondly, this excessive moisture causes the forage’s rate of passage through the cow’s rumen to be greatly increased. As a cow needs about 48 hours to absorb what it has eaten, fast rates of passages can cause malnutrition. Faster rates of passages can be slowed with hay. A cow will suffer from deficiencies of protein, energy and most minerals. Even if the cow eats more, the feed value is still low and the rate of passage is high. When cattle lose weight or have increased stress, milk production and calf growth are also reduced.

• Because flooding may damage fences, some cattle may get mixed in with neighboring herds. Good fences are good for herd health and biosecurity because livestock are not allowed to wander. When these cattle are returned to their owners, they should be isolated for a few weeks to see if they develop any disease symptoms. During that time the cattle should be treated for internal and external parasites, and at any signs of disease treated according to a veterinarian's recommendations.

— Release provided by Texas A&M Agricultural Communications

— compiled by Crystal Albers, associate editor, Angus Productions Inc.