Tips to increase quality, consistency and competitiveness of market cows.
Troy Smith
Angus Beef Bulletin Extra
“Market cows should not be considered a byproduct of the beef industry,” stated Colorado State University (CSU) meat scientist Keith Belk. “They are much more than that.”
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Pregnancy Checking Ensures No Freeloaders
Chel Terrell
Cattle Today
Tight margins, lean pastures and rising input costs mean that every cow on the ranch needs to be earning her keep. If a cow is not going to produce a calf every year, she’s simply a freeloader – costing the operation a valuable paycheck and utilizing resources more productive animals can benefit from.
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Building a better heifer
Mark Parker
FarmTalk
You have to use the right tools if you’re going to build a better replacement heifer. That was Bob Weaber’s focus at last week’s Kansas State University replacement heifer management meeting in Girard, Kansas.
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Cattleman stretches out grazing season
Jeff DeYoung
Iowa Farmer Today
A couple of inches of snow crunch under Tim Kaldenberg’s boots as he watches some of his cows mill around his truck. With wind chills well below zero, fertilizing this pasture any time soon may seem a bit far-fetched for the South Central Iowa farmer.
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Recordkeeping and Documenting Livestock Indemnity Program Eligible Losses
Jay Parsons
University of Nebraska
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) provides information about acceptable documentation in the Livestock Death Loss Documentation section of their Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) Factsheet, but it is worth expanding on that information with additional explanation given that the relaxed documentation requirements utilized for livestock deaths occurring from October 1, 2011 through December 31, 2014 have run their course and producers should now expect a stricter interpretation of the documentation rules.
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Management or Leadership
Kindra Gordon
4cattlemen
“The challenge with leadership and management is that people think they are the same thing, but they are fundamentally different,” LaPlante said. To help those in attendance understand the differences, he described management as “dealing with current complexities.”
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Analysis of cost-effectiveness of veterinary interventions
Robert (Bob) L. Larson, DVM
Bovine Veterinarian
In business, we often hear that we need to spend money to make money. That concept certainly applies to animal health in our clients’ operations, where investments in prevention and control of diseases, parasites and injuries pay off by improving productivity and reducing economic losses associated with animal morbidity and mortality.
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More want local beef, but fewer want tough job of cutting it
Ashland Times Gazette
Kent Weise loves his work, but after 38 years slaughtering cattle, lugging carcasses that can weigh more than 1,000 pounds and slowly, methodically slicing cuts of meat, he understands why few people want to go into the business anymore.
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Cowboy’s intuition
Laura Mushrush
Drovers
Hardened hands hook into the pockets of cowboy-cut jeans as a smile lights up his eyes, hinting of an untamed spirit. But looking deeper, the quick wit and creative mind shine through the international businessman whose intellect has put him on the map for arguably the most recognized cattle-processing equipment in the world.
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Cattlemen plot strategy to fight Calif. grazing regulations
Tim Hearden
Capital Press
A cattle group is gearing up to fight a California water board’s plan to regulate livestock grazing near rivers and streams. The California Cattlemen’s Association plans to meet with the State Water Resources Control Board and with other farm groups in the coming weeks and will conduct ranch tours to educate water board members in early April, according to a CCA newsletter.
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