News Update
August 30, 2017
Growing Yearlings After Early Weaning
John Maddux of Maddux Cattle Co., Wauneta, Neb., has done a lot of early weaning and had to adjust the ranch’s yearling program.
“We eliminated all feeding from the cow end of it as we moved to May calving — letting the cows winter on cornstalks,” he explains. “With a May calf, however, we were under pressure to wean those calves by at least the first of October so we could get our cows onto cornstalks. We did that for a few years, since we had decent moisture and good grass, just weaning the calves in the fall at 140 to 150 days of age and trying to winter them on pasture with supplement to make yearlings by the next year,” says Maddux.
With this program the calves were weighing 350-400 pounds at weaning, to go through the winter.
“We had gotten along extremely well with early weaning light calves we put in the feedlot, but our experience with early weaning and trying to have them on a roughage diet — even with lots of supplementation — was not as successful,” Maddux says.
Continue reading this Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.
AgriLife Extension Helping with Sheltering Animals
Displaced by Harvey
The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service is supporting community animal issues committees and local emergency management coordinators to set up animal sheltering sites around the state because of Hurricane Harvey.
Andy Vestal, AgriLife Extension specialist in emergency management, College Station, said while emergency agencies are working to evacuate and accommodate people, AgriLife Extension is helping set up shelters for the many four-legged animals being displaced by the storm.
“AgriLife Extension personnel are coordinating with the Texas Animal Health Commission to develop a comprehensive list of shelters around the state and the types of animals those shelters can accommodate,” he said. “We are asking that anyone needing to shelter an animal call 2-1-1 for their area.”
For more information, read the AgriLife news release online.
1.2 Million Beef Cows in 54 Texas Counties
Affected by Hurricane Harvey
The 54 Texas counties declared a disaster area due to Hurricane Harvey contain more than 1.2 million beef cows, according to a USDA inventory report.
“That’s 27% of the state’s cow herd,” said David Anderson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service livestock economist in College Station. “That’s a conservative estimate of beef cow numbers because 14 of those counties only have cattle inventory estimates.”
Anderson noted since it is late August, a lot of calves in the affected areas are either close or ready to be marketed. The disaster area also includes a large number of livestock auction markets and Sam Kane meat processing.
Anderson also commented on the recent USDA Cattle on Feed report.
National placements were reported up 2.7%. The average of the pre-report estimates was up about 6.1% from last year, Anderson noted.
“I think it is likely that placements in earlier months pulled cattle ahead, as has happened on the marketing side of the ledger in the first half of the year,” Anderson said. “Placements in July were lower than June, for the first time since 2007. It makes for an interesting placements chart with the counter seasonal move.”
Learn more in the full AgriLife news release online.
Outlook for U.S. Agricultural Trade
Fiscal 2018 agricultural exports are projected at $139.0 billion, down $800 million from the revised fiscal 2017 forecast of $139.8 billion, largely due to reductions in corn and cotton export forecasts. Corn exports are forecast down $1.6 billion to $8.0 billion due to lower volumes and unit values. Strong competition from South America is expected to trim exports.
Cotton is forecast at $4.5 billion, down $1.3 billion from the fiscal 2017 estimate, as sharply higher stocks outside of China will limit U.S. export opportunities and put downward pressure on prices. Oilseeds and product exports are forecast up $500 million to $33.0 billion, driven by record soybean export volume.
Exports of livestock, poultry and dairy products are up $600 million, primarily due to higher dairy and pork exports. Horticultural product exports are forecast to increase $1.0 billion, led by tree nuts and fresh fruits and vegetables. Agricultural exports to China are forecast $300 million higher than fiscal 2017 to $22.6 billion, primarily due to increased soybean and dairy exports, which more than offset reductions in cotton.
Read the full USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) report online.
Ranchers Invited to Discussion of Livestock Production
at NMSU’s Otero County office
Experts and producers will gather Sept. 6 for a Ranchers’ Roundtable discussion of range livestock production at New Mexico State University’s (NMSU’s) Otero County Cooperative Extension Service office.
“Ranching is a key agricultural activity in Otero County and the surrounding area, so we decided to bring this Roundtable to Alamogordo,” said Shad Cox, superintendent of NMSU’s Corona Range and Livestock Research Center. “We’ll enjoy a good breakfast and then have ranchers ask questions of the experts who will be on hand for the event. It should be a good chance for ranchers to gain some helpful information that could make a difference in their cattle operations.”
Cox said topics of discussion at the event, “Let’s Talk! Breakfast in Town,” will depend partly on ranchers’ questions, but could include current or future nutritional needs and assessments, livestock vaccination and disease, reproductive physiology, artificial insemination and marketing.
The event will start at 8 a.m. with a free breakfast at the Extension office, located at 401 Fairgrounds Road in Alamogordo. The program will start at 9 a.m.
For more information, visit the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events.
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