News Update
April 17, 2014
Angus Offices Closed Friday, March 29
The American Angus Association and the Angus Journal offices will be closed Friday, April 18, 2014, for our employees to observe Good Friday with their families. Have a happy Easter!
USDA Approves New Combination Vaccine
to Fight BRD Viruses and Bacteria
The USDA has issued a Veterinary Biologics License for Titanium® 5 + PH-M, a new vaccine that protects cattle against the viruses and bacteria most associated with bovine respiratory disease (BRD).
Marketed by Elanco, Titanium 5 + PH-M provides modified-live virus (MLV) protection against bovine viral diarrhea (BVD), types 1 and 2, bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) and parainfluenza3 (PI3). Each dose also protects against Mannheimia haemolytica and Pasteurella multocida bacteria, and is safe for cattle at all stages of production.
“This means veterinarians and producers can protect cattle against the important BRD-causing viruses and bacteria with just one vaccine,” says Brett Terhaar, Elanco beef technical services. “Titanium 5 + PH-M is well-suited for branding and weaning/preconditioning vaccination protocols in cow-calf operations, as well as arrival programs in stocker operations and feedyards. Producers should partner with their veterinarians to determine the best way to incorporate this new vaccine into herd-health protocols designed to fight BRD.”
Respiratory viruses can cause BRD on their own, but they also can compromise the immune system that normally protects cattle against bacteria. This allows bacteria to attack their host and cause severe cases of BRD.
“When cattle are exposed to respiratory viruses, their immune system can be weakened,” says Terhaar. “Once that happens, M. haemolytica and P. multocida bacteria can more easily go deep into the respiratory tract. When they reach the lungs, bacterial pathogens are a major cause of serious BRD, leading to increased illness and death.”
For more information, please view the full release here.
New OSU Extension Expert Working
with Growers to Reduce Nutrient Loads
A new soil fertility specialist with the Ohio State University (OSU) College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences is looking for a few good growers to help update fertility recommendations for Ohio soybeans.
Steve Culman, a newly hired Ohio State University Extension specialist in soil fertility, is part of a team of college experts seeking soybean growers to participate in a project to look at phosphorus and potassium in soybeans as part of an overall effort to update the Tri-State Fertility Recommendations (Ohio, Michigan and Indiana) for soybeans.
“The project, which is sponsored by the Ohio Soybean Council, involves casting a broad net to collect data from a large number of farms across the state to determine updated phosphorus and potassium fertilization rates for soybeans,” he said.
The team is made up of scientists from OSU Extension and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center.
The team includes Anne Dorrance, soybean plant pathologist; Laura Lindsey, soybean and small grains production Extension specialist; Andy Michel, field crops entomologist; and Greg LaBarge, Extension field specialist in agronomic systems and one of the leaders of Ohio State’s Agronomic Crops Team.
Culman said the team is hoping to work with about 30 growers for the project. Growers would have a large degree of flexibility in the layout and management of their fields in the experiments, which could involve either applying additional fertilizer to plots or applying no fertilizer to plots, he said.
“We are ideally looking for farms that help capture a diversity of soil types and soil test phosphorus and potassium ranges,” Culman said. “Since our research farms typically have high phosphorus and potassium levels, low soil test phosphorus and potassium farms are of particular interest.
For more information, please view the full release here.
Saving the Lesser Prairie Chicken:
What Landowners Should Know
Cumulative habitat loss, encroachment by invasive woody plants, wind energy development, petroleum production and the ongoing drought are just a handful of reasons why there are fewer lesser prairie chickens in the wild today, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which recently announced the species as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
Kansas State University (K-State) Research and Extension wildlife specialist Charlie Lee said the designation of the lesser prairie chicken as a threatened species has been anticipated for some time. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s announcement in late March will go into effect the first full week in May, following a 30-day public comment period.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reported that last year, the range-wide population of the lesser prairie chicken declined to a record low of 17,616 birds, an almost 50% reduction from the 2012 population estimate. The five states included in that range —Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado — have a conservation plan in place with a population goal of 67,000 birds range-wide for a 10-year average.
“That doesn’t mean that we have to go from the current estimate of about 17,000 birds up to 67,000 one year, and then having once exceeded the goal, change the status again,” Lee said. “It means having 67,000 birds consistently for a 10-year timeframe.”
Lee said the listing might pose a challenge for some landowners, particularly in western Kansas, where the lesser prairie chicken lives. Significant habitat changes must occur to meet the 67,000-bird decade goal, and those changes will most likely have to come from livestock ranchers and grazers implementing conservation practices that benefit lesser prairie chickens. More normal rainfall patterns would also be beneficial.
For more information, please view the full release here.
Spring Beef Cattle Workshop Slated for May 16 in Bandera
The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Agriculture and Natural Resource Committee for Bandera County will present the “Spring Beef Cattle Workshop” from 3-6 p.m. May 16 in Bandera.
The program will begin at the Mansfield Park Recreation Center, 2886 Highway 16 North, and conclude at the Flying A Ranch.
“With low inventory numbers and high cattle prices, there appears to be a renewed interest in beef production,” said Sam Womble, AgriLife Extension agent for agriculture and natural resources, Bandera County. “More and more landowners are looking at cattle as a management tool to enhance their production system.”
Womble said program presentations will include: Basic considerations for getting started in the cattle business, nutrition 101, facilities and cattle handling, and niche markets.
Speakers will include Rick Machen, AgriLife Extension livestock specialist, Uvalde, and Keith Lake and Brent Trussell, both wildlife biologists at the Flying A Ranch.
Womble said the program will also feature hands-on demonstrations.
The cost is $15 per person and includes refreshments. To register, contact the AgriLife Extension office in Bandera County at 830-796-7755 by May 9.
For more information and to learn about upcoming educational programs, go to http://bandera.agrilife.org.
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