A Chill in the Air
KATRINA WATERS
The Cattleman
After a long, hot summer, fall’s cooler temperatures are a welcome change throughout the region. But a few brisk mornings in a row can put cattle under cold stress, increasing their nutrient requirements and even indirectly affecting their health.
Emalee Buttrey, a doctoral student at West Texas A&M University and an Extension assistant at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Amarillo, says it is a common misconception that cold stress only occurs in the Panhandle or only in a rare snowstorm. In actuality, a "not-so-cold" day — a day you might not even need a jacket — could cause cold stress in cattle, depending on other environmental factors.