Farm Help

roducers need to plan way ahead of the time period when they will start weaning, while also paying attention to their calves throughout the production system,” said Max Irsik, Extension veterinarian at the University of Florida. Watching indicators like the cow condition, range quality and general calf health can help producers decide on the best time to wean.

You can’t blame cattlemen for feeling they’ve been victims of circumstances – from BSE scares that cut off export demand, to a recession that sapped domestic consumption, to droughts that have prevented herd rebuilding.

roducers need to plan way ahead of the time period when they will start weaning, while also paying attention to their calves throughout the production system,” said Max Irsik, Extension veterinarian at the University of Florida. Watching indicators like the cow condition, range quality and general calf health can help producers decide on the best time to wean.

Urinary calculi is a common metabolic disease among male sheep and goats. According to sheep and goat specialist Susan Schoenian, the disease occurs when calculi, which are small stones, become lodged in the urinary tract. The most common type of calculi according to Dr. Richard V. Machen, Associate Professor and Extension Livestock Specialist from Texas, is struvite. Struvite stones generally contain calcium, magnesium and ammonium phosphate. There are several causes and risk factors for developing urinary calculi.

In the old days, horse thieves and cattle rustlers, if caught (and in most movies they were), were often taken care of in a way that would not be politically correct anymore.

Stress induced meat quality problems such as dark cutters cause large monetary losses to the livestock industry. The National Beef Quality Audit estimates that dark cutters cost the beef industry $5 for every fed animal slaughtered. Dark cutting beef is darker and drier than normal and has a shorter shelf life. Good quality beef has a final pH value close to 5.5. At pH values of 5.8 and above, both the tenderness and keeping quality of the fresh chilled meat is adversely affected. High pH meat is unsuitable for the premium trade in vacuum-packed fresh meats, and, depending in the commercial use of the product, dark-cutting meat may be discounted by 10 percent or more. High meat pH is caused by an abnormally low concentration of lactic acid. Post mortem production of lactic acid requires an adequate content of glycogen in the muscles at slaughter. Ante mortem glycogen breakdown is triggered by increased adrenaline release in stressful situations, or by strenuous muscle activity.

Each farmer, rancher, and agronomist brings different ideas and levels of learning into an operation. Holistic Management is the term applied to the practice of viewing the entire operation as a whole. According to Cody Holmes, owner of Rockin’ H Ranch in Norwood, Mo., the practice of taking all things into consideration is holistic management. "Holistic management says, ‘How can I produce more grass or hay in that field without destroying something?’” Holmes practices what he calls “Holistic Planned Grazing” on the thousand acres he owns. He directs his holistic management at the point of grazing because he feels nothing is more important than growing grass.

When you walk into a grocery store, you’re surrounded by choices of several branded beef lines. This is a relatively new development, promising better beef, that has become most apparent in just the past 10 years.

The Center for Rural Affairs, a non-profit corporation, has a mission statement to establish strong rural communities, social and economic justice, environmental stewardship and genuine opportunity for all, while engaging people in decisions that affect the quality of their lives and the future of their communities. With this in mind, the center, located in Lyons, Neb., created the national program Land Link.

The booming agricultural market of two years ago made selling large tracts of land much easier than it is today. There are several options available to property owners ranging from selling the land directly, to putting it up for auction.