News Update
August 29, 2017
Angus Offers Support
of Hurricane Harvey Victims
The American Angus Association’s thoughts and prayers are with those in the wake of disastrous Hurricane Harvey. The devastating flooding in southeast Texas has impacted nearly 150 Association members in multiple counties. With more rain on the way, many of our fellow Angus producers are in need of aid in the aftermath of the damaging winds and rain.
“The impact Hurricane Harvey has had on southeast Texas is almost unfathomable,” said Allen Moczygemba, Association CEO. “While the nation watches the heroic acts by both the first responders and local citizens as they work to save countless lives, it’s also important to keep in mind that rural Texans will face similar challenges. In most cases, however, there won’t be video cameras on hand to capture their efforts as they work to protect the livestock under their care. All of us at the American Angus Association are praying for their safety and for that of their livestock, as well.”
American Angus Association members in Atascosa, Bexar, Brazos, Caldwell, Cameron, Comal, Grimes, Guadalupe, Hardin, Jasper, Kerr, Lee, Leon, Madison, Montgomery, Newton, Tyler, Walker and Washington counties have been affected.
The Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association has initiated a relief fund. It can be found at http://tscra.org/relieffund/.
Free Program Via Facebook can help
with Recovery from Disaster Later
We’ve had drought, wildfires, a spring blizzard and flooding in Kansas this year, and it’s only August. If your home or office was affected by a disaster, would you have an accurate record of what you lost? Would you easily know who to report it to and how to reach them?
Prepare Kansas 2017, an online challenge to all Kansans and others available through the Kansas State University (K-State) Research and Extension Facebook page, will provide tips to guide you through how to be more prepared to handle emergencies. That can make recovery smoother and faster, according to K-State associate professor Elizabeth Kiss.
Prepare Kansas will run through September to coincide with National Preparedness Month, coordinated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Prepare Kansas this year will help you take steps to be more financially prepared to weather any challenges, plus it’s a good way to stay organized.
- Week 1: You don’t know where to get back to if you don’t know where you started, right? This week’s challenge takes you step by step through preparing a household inventory.
Learn more in the K-State news release online.
Texas Cattle Raisers Statement on Hurricane Harvey
Richard Thorpe, president of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA), issued the following statement in response to Hurricane Harvey’s impact on ranchers:
“Our thoughts and prayers are with all those who have been affected by Hurricane Harvey and the catastrophic flooding that has resulted. TSCRA is working with state and local response agencies to coordinate relief and support efforts and does have special rangers in the region to assist producers. However, many areas are still experiencing flooding, making it difficult for ranchers and response teams to safely assess the impacts to cattle herds. As the rain and flooding subside later this week, cattle raisers will be able to better assess their needs and TSCRA stands ready to assist.”
Visit http://tscra.org/hurricaneupdate for additional information and resources on locating a holding facility, how to report missing or found cattle, and how you can help.
ARSBC Symposium Kicks Off in Manhattan, Kansas
Cattlemen, academia and allied industry interested in improving reproductive management of beef cattle are gathering at the Hilton Garden Inn and Conference Center in Manhattan, Kan., Aug. 29-30 for the 2017 Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle (ARSBC) symposium. Watch a live stream via LiveAuctions.tv, also available from the Welcome page at www.appliedreprostrategies.com. The Beef Reproduction Task Force is also streaming the meeting live on its Facebook page.
Visit the Newsroom at www.appliedreprostrategies.com throughout the week as we post articles, along with PowerPoints and proceedings papers. Audio will be added soon after.
Considered the premier national event in beef cattle reproductive management, the meeting has a long history of providing the latest information on the application of reproductive technologies and includes a range of topics related to cow herd reproduction — such as nutritional interactions, management and male fertility.
See www.appliedreprostrategies.com for full coverage.
Cattle on Feed Inventory Remains Above a Year Ago
USDA released its August Cattle on Feed report Friday, Aug. 25, along with the monthly Livestock Slaughter report. The two reports provide some updated information to use in projecting future cattle and beef supplies.
“The Cattle on Feed report confirmed that the on-feed inventory continues to be larger than a year ago, as the August inventory was 1.5% larger on Aug. 1,” says Purdue University Extension economist James Mintert. “Marketings of cattle from feedlots with a capacity of over 1,000 head increased 2% in July versus a year earlier, while net placements (placements minus other disappearance) changed little (up less than 1%) compared to July 2016.
“This was a big shift in the placement pattern compared to the March-through-June time frame, when net placements increased by 12% to as much as 17% (in June) compared to the same month in 2016,” Mintert continues. “Placements on feed during July typically fall well below June’s, but the decline this year was larger than usual. Finally, by at least one measure, cattle feeders appeared to slow down the pace of fed-cattle marketings as fed-cattle marketings expressed as a percentage of the on-feed inventory fell below a year earlier in July.”
Read the full University of Illinois news release online.
Control of Invasive Plant Species
on Rangeland Topic of Sept. 7 Webinar
Understanding and Controlling Invasive Species will be the title of the Sept. 7 natural resources webinar conducted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service ecosystem science and management unit.
The webinar is a part of the Texas Range Webinar Series scheduled the first Thursday of each month from noon to 1 p.m., said Pete Flores, AgriLife Extension webinar coordinator in Corpus Christi.
Bill Rogers, Texas A&M AgriLife Research ecosystem science and management professor in College Station, and Megan Clayton, AgriLife Extension range specialist in Corpus Christi, will be the presenters.
This webinar will cover information on the basic ecology of invasive plant species and conclude with practical control methods, they said.
One integrated pest management Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education unit will be offered during this webinar, Flores said.
For more information, visit the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events.
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