‘Cowed’: The end of the line for cornfed cattle?

‘Cowed’: The end of the line for cornfed cattle?

Irene Wanner

The Seattle Times

Editor’s note: Stories of this ilk are included in the blog to inform those in our industry how agriculture is being presented to and perceived by the public.

To help us make more informed choices, the authors trace human/bovine history, showing how sustainable practices evolved into unhealthful factory farming. Putting ever more livestock on the land eventually causes serious problems, including pollution, disease, erosion, and huge quantities of animal waste.

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Cattle behavior key to facility design

Cattle behavior key to facility design

Emily Adams

Coshocton Tribune

Coshocton County ranks No. 13 in Ohio for inventory of cattle and calves and No. 21 for the value of sales of cattle and calves, according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture. In the past two months, several local cattle producers have participated in continuing education as part of the Ohio Beef Cattle School.

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Cable Acres Farm finds that fighting the trend can pay off

Cable Acres Farm finds that fighting the trend can pay off

Matt Reese

Ohio’s Country Journal

Sometimes it pays to not do what everyone else is doing. In recent decades there has been an undeniable shift away from livestock for many farms in Ohio. The Dagger family from Champaign County went a different direction.

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Dietary changes needed for early lactation beef cows

Dietary changes needed for early lactation beef cows

Glenn Selk

Drovers

Beef cow owners have known for years that body condition at calving time is a critical determinant in the re-breeding performance of the cows during the next breeding season.  Another key factor that impacts return to estrus cycles and re-breeding is the maintenance or loss of body condition after calving and before breeding. 

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Ranchers Should Pay Attention to IRS Do’s and Don’ts

Ranchers Should Pay Attention to IRS Do’s and Don’ts

John Alan Cohan

Cattle Today

People in the livestock and horse industries are already hardpressed with IRS audits and difficult rules requiring the showing of the intention to make a profit despite ongoing losses.

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Evaluate supplementation strategies.

Evaluate supplementation strategies.

Rick Rasby

Angus Beef Bulletin Extra

Calendar year 2014 was a great year financially for cow-calf producers. The input cost increases that were so prevalent for many years prior to 2014 seemed to level off or decrease in 2014. Most states where cow-calf production is a major economic component seemed to see major reductions in the price of forages.

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Hoof Cracks in Beef Cattle

Hoof Cracks in Beef Cattle

Rachel Endicott

Montana State University

I’ve been getting quite a few questions about hoof quality during my winter meeting season travels and in emails and phone calls, so I thought it a timely topic for this month’s newsletter. In general, foot cracks are classified as either horizontal (transverse fissures) or vertical (sand cracks).  

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Using the Estrus Synchronization Planner

Using the Estrus Synchronization Planner

Robin Salverson

iGrow

The Estrus Synchronization Planner has been available since 1998, developed by the Iowa Beef Center. It has evolved over the years, proving to be an effective and easy tool to help select and implement synchronization protocols. The program is available as a free excel spreadsheet download or as a mobile version. Both include the protocols recommended by the Beef Reproduction Task Force.

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Now is a critical time for spring calving cows

Now is a critical time for spring calving cows

University of Arkansas

Less-than-normal rainfall means slower-growing fescue and some operations will be feeding hay longer this spring – a time when grass grazing is critical for spring-calving cows.

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Despite the anticipation, calving season always ends with a weary rancher

Despite the anticipation, calving season always ends with a weary rancher

Troy Marshall

BEEF

I would never argue with those who have moved their calving season to late spring to more closely align with Mother Nature. However, there are those of us who, either from a marketing standpoint or a labor standpoint, are relegated to start calving in January or February.

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