BeefTalk: How Early is Too Early to Wean?

BeefTalk: How Early is Too Early to Wean?

Kris Ringwall, Beef Specialist, NDSU Extension Service

Can I wean 90-day-old calves that weigh 300 pounds?  The answer is yes. Dry weather has made this – and variations – the question of the day. In an ideal world, mother and calf should enjoy green pastures from birth until weaning at about 7 months of age. The typical weaning age is 192 days for producers in the Cow Herd Appraisal Performance System (CHAPS) program. However, some calves are weighed along with the administration of preweaning vaccinations prior to the actual weaning day, so the average age at weaning could be a few days older.

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Cattle producers rely on new tech, data

Cattle producers rely on new tech, data

Jeff DeYoung

Iowa Farmer Today

Remember the first cell phones, those bulky gadgets that always seemed to be more trouble than they were worth? Did you ever think you would be able to store production records on it?

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Glynn Tonsor Explains What’s Been Driving Up Boxed Beef’s Choice/Select Spread

Glynn Tonsor Explains What’s Been Driving Up Boxed Beef’s Choice/Select Spread

Oklahoma Farm Report

In the beef industry, wholesale boxed beef prices are used to gain insight into consumer demand. In recent days, Choice beef prices have climbed above $2.50/lb. – very strong demand indeed compared to year-ago prices. But with the Choice/Select spread currently backing off the $30/cwt where it was earlier this week, now hovering at approximately $27.53 as of Tuesday at midday, Extension Livestock Market Economist Dr. Glynn Tonsor tells Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Farm Director Ron Hays that this price swing may have peaked out for the year.

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Poultry litter in a haying system

Poultry litter in a haying system

Adam Russell

Progressive Forage

Producers can find value in evaluating fertilizer input costs and comparing traditional nitrogen sources like urea and ammonium nitrate with popular nontraditional sources such as poultry litter, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts.

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Consider implants for calves

Consider implants for calves

Janna Kincheloe

Agri View

Growth-promoting implants are one tool livestock producers can use to help optimize cattle performance. Implants are small pellets applied to the middle third of the back of the ear. Various implants are designed for use during the nursing, growing and finishing stages in beef-cattle production.

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What is Your Pasture Score?

What is Your Pasture Score?

Clif Little

Ohio Beef Cattle Letter

It is difficult to objectively evaluate what we see every day.  We have all heard the old saying “can’t see the forest for the trees”.  Important decisions such as livestock feed inventory, forage stand replanting, fertility needs, weed control, etc., all hinge on what we see in the pasture. That is why an objective evaluation of a pasture is a valuable tool. 

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USDA proposes changes to beef quality grading

USDA proposes changes to beef quality grading

Beef Producer

USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is proposing a revision to the U.S. Standards for Grades of Carcass Beef. The revision would include dentition and documentation of actual age as additional methods of classifying maturity of carcasses for quality grading.

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Improve your forage management skills during four-stop bus tour

Improve your forage management skills during four-stop bus tour

Purdue News Service

Livestock producers can learn what it takes to develop better forage management skills during a four-stop bus tour. The South Central Indiana Forage Tour includes first-hand lessons on forage selection for various livestock, best forage management practices and direct marketing.

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U.S. bans fresh Brazil beef imports over safety concerns

U.S. bans fresh Brazil beef imports over safety concerns

Reuters

The United States halted imports of fresh Brazilian beef on Thursday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said, after a high percentage of shipments failed to pass safety checks. The USDA had "recurring concerns about the safety of the products intended for the American market," after increasing tests on Brazilian beef in March, according to a statement.

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Jody Johnson, Livestock Journalist Passes

Jody Johnson, Livestock Journalist Passes

Jody was a retired editor-publisher of livestock sale catalogs and trade newspapers. She also published a cookbook, The Poll-Ette Hostess, which is a collection of family-favorite recipes from folks in the livestock industry, and it also included recipes from several First Ladies. Her newspaper, "The Hub" had over 5000 subscribers and an international circulation.

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