Management

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Topics of Interest

Dealing With Drought

Resource for producers across the country who are affected by drought.

Applied Reproductive
Strategies in Beef Cattle

Beef Improvement
Federation Annual Meeting

Range Beef
Cow Symposium

Estrous Cycle Learning Module Reproductive performance of the cow and heifer is one of the most important factors that influence ranch profitability. Understanding the biological mechanisms associated with getting a cow or heifer bred can be a significant management tool for increasing realized income. This learning module summarizes the endocrinology and physiology of the bovine (beef cow) estrous cycle.
Click here.

Angus Productions Inc.

Survive Summertime Heat

An Update on U.S. Pasture and Range Conditions

Conditions on a national basis have deteriorated some since the onset of the grazing season, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA-NASS) weekly pasture and range conditions report released early July.
Still, national pasture and range conditions in early July were a little better compared to normal and a year ago. On a regional basis, conditions in some key grazing areas have worsened due to scarce rainfall and hot temperatures, especially in the Southern Plains.
At the beginning of May, USDA reported 21% of the nation's pasture and range in Poor to Very Poor condition; in early June that rating dipped to only 15%. However, by early July, 21% of pasture and range ranked in the lowest two categories due to seasonally warmer and drier conditions. At this time a year ago, 24% was considered Poor to Very Poor, the same for the prior five-year average.

In the Southern Plains, pasture and range conditions have deteriorated notably since mid-June due to lack of rainfall. Conditions in that region are now worse than last year and the 2003-2007 average. Similarly, conditions in the Southeast have worsened as the summer grazing season has progressed, with 16% of pasture and range in the poorest two categories vs. only 10% at the start of the season. Still, overall pasture conditions in the Southeast as of early July were better than in 2008.

Compared to a year ago, the most improved pasture and range conditions have been in the Great Plains and Western regions. In the Corn Belt, so far in this grazing season pasture conditions have remained rather steady and were similar to better than normal conditions of a year ago.

Source: www.lmic.info

Watch Cattle for Heat Stress in Summer's Heat

During summer heat, cattle producers need to take steps to ward off heat stress in their herds, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) beef specialist said.

Rapid rises in temperature and sustained moderate to high levels of relative humidity can be disastrous for cattle that have not had a chance to get adapted to such conditions, said Terry Mader, beef specialist at UNL's Haskell Agricultural Laboratory near Concord.

"Sunny days with temperatures above the mid-80s can be stressful, particularly if there is no wind and humidity is above 50%," Mader said.

Cattle can begin to experience some level of heat stress when the heat index approaches 80° F, with most cattle being severely stressed when the heat index exceeds 100° F, according to UNL.

Also, when early morning temperatures are above 70° F and/or the heat indices are in the mid-70s or above, chances are cattle did not adequately cool down at night, and feedlot managers should be prepared to provide as much relief to cattle as possible during the day. Read more.

Good Management Can Reduce
Incidence of Heat Stress

Understanding and avoiding heat stress in cattle can be a valuable management tool in Oklahoma, where most areas of the state experience 70 or more days each year with temperatures that exceed 90° F.

"Cattle have an upper critical temperature that is approximately 20° F cooler than humans," said Glenn Selk, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension livestock specialist. "When we're uncomfortable at 80° and feel hot at 90°, cattle may well be in the danger zone for extreme heat stress."

The potentially bad news does not end there. Humidity is an additional stress that intensifies ambient temperature problems by making body heat dissipation more difficult. In other words, it can be tough to cool off during the summer, for people and cattle. Read more.

Some Producers Forced to Sell in Texas Drought

Texas conditions could be simply summed up as "hot and dry." But read between the lines and you'll find drought severely stressing crops, livestock, agricultural producers and rural communities, according to Texas AgriLife Extension Service personnel.

"The crops continue to be affected adversely by the continuing drought," said Ron Holcomb, AgriLife Extension agent for Liberty County, northeast of Houston. "Pastures are also being adversely affected by the drought. They decline each day without rain. Some pastures are almost at the point of bare ground."

"Feeding and/or selling of cattle due to the drought is becoming common now," said Joe Janak, AgriLife Extension agent for Victoria County, southeast of San Antonio. "Conditions are remaining dry too long to continue in the cattle business without rain or feeding." Read more.

Impact of Heat Stress on Cattle

Loss of production, and death losses due to heat stress, cost cattle producers millions of dollars each year. Don Spiers, University of Missouri, says the cost to dairy producers amounts to $897 million on average, and the cost to beef producers nationwide is about $369 million annually. The effect on feeder cattle alone is $10 to $20 million per year, and this does not include heat waves that result in abnormally high losses.

"In June this year we've already had severe heat in the Midwest. More than 1,000 feedlot animals in Nebraska perished in mid-June, and we've also lost cattle here in Missouri. Our temperatures got close to 100° F last week, and the problem was compounded due to rain the week before, so it was very humid," Spiers said in a June interview. The combination of heat and humidity reduces the animals' ability to dissipate body heat. After several days the effect is cumulative, and body temperature becomes too high, resulting in heat stroke and death.

— by Heather Smith Thomas

Susceptibility to Heat Stress

Some cattle are more heat-tolerant than others. Tammy Brown-Brandl, Clay Center, Neb., has developed a computer model to determine susceptibility to heat stress. Factors that affect risk include environmental conditions (temperature and humidity), management practices (whether cattle have access to water and shade) and susceptibility of the animal.

Her computer model includes 11 characteristics of the individual animal that can help producers estimate the risk. These characteristics include

• color (dark animals will be hotter);

• sex (heifers are slightly more susceptible to heat than steers);

• species (Bos indicus are more heat-tolerant than Bos taurus);

• temperament (excitable animals overheat more quickly than calm ones);

• hair thickness (thin-haired animals stay cooler than those with thick hair);

• previous exposure to heat (whether the animal is acclimated);

• age (older animals have more body mass and less heat dissipation);

• body condition (fatter animals have more insulation and heat retention);

• previous cases of pneumonia (an animal that's had pneumonia may have lung damage and respiratory insufficiency);

• other previous health issues; and

• current health status.

These 11 categories, put into the computer model, give a prediction of how that animal will deal with heat stress, and can be a decision-making tool for producers in managing the animals to minimize losses. Read more.