Holey cow

Holey cow
Research helps cows live longer, healthier lives
Kansas State Collegian
Published on Tuesday, March 7, 2006

Matt Quinn, manager of the beef cattle research unit gets a sample from the stomach of jersey cow while Cody Duft, junior in animal sciences and industry assists Monday afternoon at the Beef Cattle Research Center. The cows have permeant holes in their stomachs that enables research.
Catrina Rawson/Collegian

Dayne Logan
Kansas State Collegian

Located on the northeast corner of Kimball and Denison avenues are the animal pens for K-State’s animal science program. There is a stable, a silo and typically a medium-sized herd of cattle.

It all seems pretty normal for Manhattan, but look closer.

What is that yellow rubbery thing on the side of that cow? Is it a tumor? Is it some kind of cow band-aid? Did an errant Frisbee somehow lodge itself in the cow’s abdomen?

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Calf growth depends on dry matter intake

Calf growth depends on dry matter intake

By DAVID A. WIELAND, Nutrition News
Thursday, March 2, 2006 1:02 PM CST
Minnesota Farm Guide

Dairy heifer calves are the future of your milking herd, so getting young calves off to a good start is of utmost importance.

Calves are started on various milk diets, and dry feeds are introduced and gradually increased until weaning at some interval when milk is no longer fed. Most calves are weaned at 6-8 weeks of age but the range is from 17 days to more than 12 weeks in some instances.

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ARGENTINE BEEF

ARGENTINE BEEF
Changing times, obstacles eat away at culture of cattle
No. 3 exporter may face smaller herds, markets

By DANIEL HELFT
Bloomberg News
Chron.com

Felix Quintana recalls the times when he and 70 fellow workers at a Buenos Aires construction site would eat 110 pounds of grilled beef for lunch each day.

“That was the tradition,” Quintana, 62, said.

Two decades later, the aroma of ribs cooking over builders’ barbecues has become a rarity, and that is only one of the mounting obstacles facing Argentine ranchers.

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Pinhook enters dictionary

Pinhook enters dictionary

Double Tounged word wrester dictionary

pinhook v. to speculate in race horses.
Categories: English Business Sports
Etymological Note: This is a jargonized variation of pinhook defined by the Dictionary of American Regional English as “to act as a pinhooker,…a small-time speculator in farm products, esp. tobacco, esp. one who buys directly from farmers.” DARE traces the origins of later forms to the adjective pinhook, meaning “petty, small-time,” which is recorded as early as 1834 in Davy Crockett’s Narrative Life.

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USTR Welcomes Malaysia’s Move on Resumption of Beef Imports

USTR Welcomes Malaysia’s Move on Resumption of Beef Imports

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Executive Office of the President Washington, D.C.

Portman calls decision to reopen market to boneless beef a good first step

U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Rob Portman is welcoming the government of Malaysia’s decision to reopen the country’s market to imports of U.S. boneless beef and beef products from cattle less than 30 months of age.

“This is a good first step toward resuming normal U.S. beef trade with Malaysia,” Portman said in a statement released March 7. He urged the Malaysian government to move toward full restoration of trade.

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America’s Beef Producers supply beef jerky to troops

America’s Beef Producers supply beef jerky to troops
Mar. 7, 2006
Agprofessional.com

The Colorado Beef Council and the USO have again partnered on the “Operation BEEF UP Our Troops” campaign to supply high-quality U.S. beef jerky to troops overseas. More than $215,000 has been raised since the promotion launched in November 2004.

One of the items most requested by troops, beef jerky will continue to be included in Operation USO Care Packages distributed by the USO to service members in Iraq, Afghanistan and other overseas locations.

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East TN legislator wants to ban animal parts from livestock feed to prevent mad cow disease

East TN legislator wants to ban animal parts from livestock feed to prevent mad cow disease

WBIR-TV, Knoxville, TN

A state legislator says Tennessee is “playing Russian roulette” with mad cow disease.

State Representative Frank Niceley of Strawberry Plains says Tennessee needs to clamp down on livestock feed regulations.

He’s sponsoring a bill that would go beyond federal regulations by banning all feed containing cattle protein or bone meal made from cattle or other ruminant animals such as sheep.

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Salazar takes on Meat Packers

Salazar takes on Meat Packers

Written by Sen. Salazar
NorthDenverNews.com
Tuesday, 07 March 2006

Cherry Creek – In January, a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) audit uncovered a broad cover-up in the Department’s Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) where phony investigations were logged to keep up appearances of enforcement while none were taking place. Senator Ken Salazar pushed the Senate Agriculture Committee to hold hearings to determine what can be done to prevent this kind of fraud in the future. The hearings will take place Thursday, March 9th.

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Black Vultures Prey on Livestock

Black Vultures Prey on Livestock

Heather MacWilliams
WTVQ
Mar 7, 18:02 PM EST

It’s a page out of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds…swarms of black-headed vultures feeding on living things. And it’s happening in our own backyard.

“I’m not afraid of much but it sent a cold chill up your back just to see them … They were in a semi-circle and just watching me,” remembers Maysville farmer Eddie Gerhard.

Within seconds some 40 black-headed vultures swarmed in and attacked the farmer’s newborn calf.

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Commercial heifers featured in show ring, auction ring

Commercial heifers featured in show ring, auction ring

By CAROLYN ROST
Countryworldnews.com, South Central Texas Edition

Justin Platt (left) readies for the start of the Commercial Heifer Auction at Lockhart Auction Barn. Platt’s two beef heifers earned the Grand Champion honors at the Caldwell County Junior Livestock Show’s commercial heifer show. The sale event, which featured heifers owned by the show’s seven young competitors, saw prices reflective of the current drought situation. Platt’s champion heifers sold to Craig Archer, representing Hills Prairie Livestock, for $1,250 per head, the highest bid in the sale.
– Staff photo by Rost

March 9, 2006 – The chant of the auctioneer was the point of interest for seven kids from the Delhi 4-H Club during the commercial heifer auction held Feb. 23 at the Lockhart Auction Barn in Lockhart.

The seven exhibitors, who competed with their pen of two commercial heifers at the Caldwell County Junior Livestock Show the day before, stood before the large crowd of buyers in attendance.

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Latest Ohio Beef News Letter available

Latest Ohio Beef News Letter available

The March 8, issue # 477, of the Ohio BEEF Cattle letter is now posted to the web at:
http://fairfield.osu.edu/ag/beef/beefMarc8.html

Cull cows can account for about 15% of the annual income on Ohio cattle farms.
“Marketing” instead of simply “selling” cull cows could add even more profit to this commodity. Consider Brian Roe’s thoughts on cull cow price trends in this week’s letter.

Articles this week include:
* Cull Cow Price Trends
* Managing retained placenta
* Maintain Body Condition Between Calving and the Breeding Season
* Where are the Wheat Pasture Cattle?
* Weekly Purcell Agricultural Commodity Market Report

PS: This is last call for reservations for the
Ohio Beef Heifer Development Short Course

Stan———-
Stan Smith Program Assistant,
Agriculture OSU Extension,
Fairfield County
831 College Ave., Suite D
Lancaster, OH 43130
e-mail: smith.263@osu.edu
voice: 740.653.5419 ext. 24
fax: 740.687.7010

Automated systems simplifying farm data

Automated systems simplifying farm data

Mar 3, 2006 9:13 AM

By Hembree Brandon
Delta Farm Press

ROBINSONVILLE, Miss. — Agriculture is on the cusp of technology that can make really complex recordkeeping simple, says Ted Macy. “It’s a very exciting time” in terms of hardware and software that will automate generation, storage, and analyzing much of the data related to crop production, he said at the ninth annual National Conservation Systems Cotton and Rice Conference.

“Precision agriculture technology has become a given, an integral part of everyday farming operations.”

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