News Update
Feb. 14, 2011

PLC, NCBA Support Renewed Efforts to Delist the Gray Wolf

The Public Lands Council (PLC), the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), the American Sheep Industry Association (ASI) and 32 other livestock organizations from across the nation sent letters to U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and U.S. Representative Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) in support of legislation they recently introduced to remove the gray wolf from the endangered species list under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). H.R. 509, introduced by Representative Rehberg, has bipartisan support from 15 cosponsors, while Senator Hatch’s (R-Utah) similar legislation, S. 249, has eight cosponsors.

The bipartisan effort calls for a new management regime for the gray wolf that will empower state and local officials to create and implement recovery plans on a state-by-state basis, thereby bringing relief to livestock producers experiencing depredation, said NCBA President and Montana rancher, Bill Donald. Instead of delisting wolves, Donald added, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service continuously increases ESA Recovery Plan goals, making delisting impossible.

“Currently, agency officials are unable to promptly make on-site visits to confirm kills. In fact, for every confirmed killing of a calf or a sheep, there are likely many that go unconfirmed. Yet reimbursement programs for confirmed kills are being exhausted,” Donald said. “Simply put, ranchers are losing livestock and taking massive financial hits.”

PLC President and federal lands rancher John Falen said that, unlike many species listed under the ESA, wolves pose a serious threat to wildlife, humans and private property, especially livestock.

“Rather than continuing to allow the distant federal government to dictate how ranchers manage and care for their herds, these bills would return authority to the states where it rightly belongs,” Falen said. “Wolf depredation threatens ranchers’ livelihoods, [and rural communities and economies relying on a profitable agricultural industry. It is time to end the unwarranted listing of the gray wolf. We appreciate the broad support for Senator Hatch’s and Representative Rehberg’s legislation and urge more members of Congress to support these bills as well.”

— Release by NCBA.

Estrus Synchronization Planner Updated, Available to Beef Producers for Free Download

Thanks to financial support from a multistate extension group, beef producers are now able to access the Bovine Estrus Synchronization Planner on the web at no charge.

The Estrus Synchronization Planner V11 for cattle producers includes the latest recommendations for application of estrus synchronization protocols and is now available as a free download from the Iowa Beef Center.

The planner is a spreadsheet that assists herd managers in selecting a protocol, planning for implementation and creating a calendar to ensure the appropriate activity occurs on the correct day, said Kansas State University (K-State) livestock specialist Sandy Johnson.

The extension group — the Beef Reproductive Task Force — updated the web tool to help beef cattle producers make decisions for the breeding season. Johnson, who is based in Colby, Kan., represents K-State Research and Extension on the task force, which is comprised of specialists from K-State, the University of Missouri, the University of Nebraska, South Dakota State University, the University of Florida, and the University of Idaho.

The Estrus Synchronization Planner V11 helps:

• assist with planning and implementing some of the more complicated synchronization systems;
• eliminate errors in the timing of injections, starting and ending the feeding of MGA, CIDR® insertions, etc.;
• optimize labor use; and
• provide analysis and comparison of input costs of several synchronization systems.

It includes recommended systems for cows and heifers and helps select systems by type (heat detection and artificial insemination (AI) systems; heat detection and cleanup timed AI systems; and fixed-time AI systems). The planner also provides a list of daily activities, a barn calendar and estimates cost per AI pregnancy.

A list of recommended synchronization protocols for beef cows and heifers, updated for 2011, is also available online. This year’s recommendations include a new protocol designed to reduce synchronization treatment costs.

Future Beef Reproduction Task Force meetings, which are open to veterinarians, artificial insemination technicians, producers and others with interest in artificial insemination in beef cattle, will take place Aug. 31-Sept. 1, 2011, in Joplin, Mo., and Sept. 30-Oct. 1, 2011, in Boise, Idaho. Watch Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle for information on these meetings. Online coverage of recent meetings, provided by Angus Productions Inc., is available.

— Release by K-State Research and Extension.

Eastern Oklahoma Beef Cattle Summit set for March 23

Producers interested in taking advantage of the latest science-based information on enhancing the health and handling of cattle should register now to attend the March 23 Eastern Oklahoma Beef Cattle Summit.

“Getting live and healthy cattle to market is essential for producers, especially given current cattle prices and beef inventory numbers,” said David Cantrell, Pittsburg County Extension director and agricultural educator.

Cantrell said the ultimate goal of the summit is to help participants promote profitability in their operations.

The 2011 summit will take place at McAlester’s Southeast Expo Center, located at 4500 W. State Highway 270, off the Indian Nation Turnpike. The summit will begin at 8:30 a.m. and finish mid-afternoon.

Cost is $20 for each primary participant and $10 for each additional family member attending the summit. Lunch and refreshment breaks will be provided. Although the official registration deadline is March 16, participants are asked to register as soon as possible.

Registration brochures are available through all OSU Cooperative Extension county offices. Anyone seeking additional information should contact Cantrell by e-mail at david.cantrell@okstate.edu or by phone at 918-423-4120.

Sessions will be led by educators, specialists and researchers from OSU’s Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources and from Texas AgriLife Extension.

Topics will focus on the importance of animal husbandry, stockmanship and stewardship, the economics of good fly control, how safety and consistency promote profitability and tips for preventing anaplasmosis of robbing a cattle operation of profits.

A cattle industry trade show will take place in conjunction with the summit, allowing participants to examine products and ask questions of company representatives.

The 2011 summit is sponsored by the division’s Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service and the Oklahoma Beef Council.

— Release by Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service.

Cash for Manure? Workshop Looks at Ways to Clean Up Grand Lake St. Marys

A workshop next month in western Ohio aims to clean up Grand Lake St. Marys — and in doing it, give farmers a new source of income.

“Turning Manure into Ca$h” features new technologies for turning livestock waste into sellable fuel, fertilizers and bioresins. It’s on March 8 in Maria Stein, about 10 miles south of the lake. Five state organizations that work in agriculture and natural resources are behind it.

“We have new manure rules in place for Grand Lake, but we still have the same amount of manure, so we need to look at ways of reducing our nutrient loads,” said Jim Hoorman, one of the speakers and an Ohio State University (OSU) Extension educator in Mercer County.

“Farmers can adopt these technologies, sell their manure for a profit, and reduce their nutrients,” Hoorman said.

Grand Lake St. Marys has been hit hard the past two summers by toxic algae blooms, which caused boating, fishing and swimming closures and threaten the lake’s tourism industry.

Scientists link the blooms to nutrients in farm runoff, with nitrogen and phosphorus the main culprits. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources, as a result, has put new rules in place limiting manure use near the lake.

“Many farmers are reaching limits on how much manure they can apply to their fields due to phosphorus limits on their fields,” Hoorman said. “So these alternatives give them a way to stay in business and get value-added products from their manure.”

One option is selling swine manure to produce bioresin, which Hoorman said can replace up to a quarter of what’s in asphalt. Paint and fertilizer coatings can be made from it too.

With the demand for asphalt high and the price over $500 a ton, a farmer can make up to $10 per pig space by selling their manure to make bioresin, Hoorman said.

Other topics will include anaerobic digestion and methane production, removing phosphorus from dairy wastewater and from swine manure, the results of a bio-oil farm demonstration, and the water quality benefits of removing nitrogen and phosphorus.

The speakers will be from OSU Extension plus the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Louisiana State University, Shoup Farms, Innoventor Inc., Multiform Harvest Inc. and NuVention Solutions Inc.

A question-and-answer session will follow the talks. Get a complete list of topics and speakers at http://go.osu.edu/B3A.

Hours are 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. at the Knights of St. John Hall, 8608 State Route 119, Maria Stein.
Attendance is free and includes lunch, but is limited to 300. Register by March 4 at 419-586-2179. Registration is needed to guarantee space and a lunch.

— Release by Ohio State University Extension.

— Compiled by Mathew Elliott, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.