News Update
January 27, 2016
What to Max Out?
Cow-calf production occurs across most of the United States in a wide variety of production environments. I had a very enjoyable opportunity to visit several ranches in southern Florida last week and learn more about the challenges of cow-calf production in one of the most unique production environments in the country.
Producers in this region are keenly aware of the need to match cattle to the environment and of the tradeoffs between production targets and costs of achieving those targets. Though perhaps not as obvious in less extreme environments, the decision principles used by the Florida producers are the same for cattle producers everywhere.
It is easy for ranchers to focus on various production attributes and get caught up maximizing technical measures of production such as weaning weights, conception rates or stocking rates. However, as those Florida producers are keenly aware, it is obvious that maximizing narrow production measures will not be economical. For example, attempting to maximize conception rates will result in increasing cost to achieve the last increments of additional conception.
For more information, please view the full Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.
Low-stress Stockmanship Benefits the Feedyard
“Quite simply, stockmanship is a requirement for a sustainable future,” said Anne Burkholder, owner of Will Feed Inc., Cozad, Neb. Her No. 1 job is to serve as an animal caregiver and to minimize stress on calves, which allows them to convert finite resources into more gain in the feedyard.
Coming from a non-ag background, she shared with attendees of the Range Beef Cow Symposium in November that her business plan is a reflection of herself, and it is different than that of her father-in-law, who preceded her in feedyard ownership. Her feedyard has vertical collaboration to reduce stress and improve product quality and efficiency. She traces vaccination and health history on incoming cattle, which she buys through private treaty to build relationships and ease transportation stress. She uses professional veterinary and nutritional consultants.
She also uses careful bunk-reading techniques and delivers feed in a timely fashion. They make sure all home pens are clean and comfortable. This business plan may not make the operation more money, but everyone is happier at the end of the day, she noted.
For more information, please view the full Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.
Kansas Angus Tour
A cloudless sky and 73° F day welcomed participants to the Kansas Angus Tour Nov. 2, 2015. Tour-goers from all stages of life and from across the United States, South America, Canada and even South Africa gathered in Overland Park, Kan., to spend their day viewing Angus cattle.
By 8 a.m. Monday morning, participants had filled five tour buses and the Angus convoy was ready to pull out of the Overland Park Convention Center parking lot.
An 88-mile drive straight west, with plenty of beautiful Kansas scenery, landed the group at the first stop of the day.
Mill Brae Ranch of Maple Hill, Kan., welcomed around 204 Angus enthusiasts. As they filed off buses, participants were greeted with the smell of cowboy coffee, warmed over a rustic, open fire and enough muffins to feed a crowd.
Mark Nikkel, managing partner of Mill Brae Ranch, received his guests with a general overview of the ranch.
“We’re situated here in the Flint Hills, which is a tall-grass prairie, some of the last left in North America,” he said.
For more information, please view the full Angus Journal article online.
Wild Pig Management Workshop set for Feb. 9 in Luling, TX
The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will host a Wild Pig Management Workshop for landowners and the general public from 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Feb. 9 at the Luling Foundation, 523 S. Mulberry St. in Luling, Texas.
The program is free, but attendees have the option of paying for a catered lunch.
Five Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units — two general, two integrated pest management and one laws and regulations — are available for private pesticide applicator licensees who attend.
“Wild pigs are responsible for millions of dollars in agricultural and other losses annually in Texas,” said Josh Helcel, AgriLife Extension associate, Burnet County. “They are also known as sources of bacterial impairment and potential carriers of disease.”
Helcel also noted that the prolific breeding of wild pigs has created additional challenges for landowners and increased the need for further education on the control strategies that might work best for their property.
Michael Haynes, former AgriLife Extension agent for Caldwell County and now the AgriLife Extension agent in Bandera County, said the event is provided at no cost through a Clean Water Act nonpoint source grant from the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
For more information, please view the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.
Artificial Insemination School
Southeast Select Sires Inc. will be conducting an artificial insemination (AI) School on March 7-9, 2016, at the Calhoun Stockyard on Hwy. 53 near Calhoun, Ga. The class will begin at 12 noon on Monday and will finish at 12 noon on Wednesday.
The cost is $450 per person. If you plan to attend, please mail your $225 deposit and completed application to Southeast Select Sires Inc., 3789 Old Port Royal Rd., Spring Hill, TN 37174. The deadline for this application is Feb. 22, 2016.
The training course will consist of classroom sessions and lab sessions on live cattle. Some of the topics that will be covered in the class include — anatomy and physiology, AI technique, semen handling, heat detection, and estrus synchronization. You will need to bring rubber boots and coveralls.
For more information, please view the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.
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