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MANAGEMENT...


Grazing Season Extension
for the Beef Cow-Calf Producer

Tight forage supplies and lack of available grazing land make the goal of grazing-season extension even more important.

Cost of production for cow-calf producers has risen drastically over the last decade. Because of the widespread drought of 2012 and high cash-crop prices, forage prices remain at record highs and supplies are very tight. Couple that with the fact that available grazing land is also getting harder to find and beef producers can have challenges in keeping their costs of production at profitable levels.

Grain prices remain high and so will the competition for these acres. It’s important that cow-calf producers utilize available land as efficiently as possible to keep feed costs at a reasonable level. Improving grazing management on pastures and utilizing crop residues will be very important for the survival of the cow-calf industry. Read more.


MiG vs. Mob Grazing

Holistic management instructor explains the difference between management-intensive grazing and mob grazing.

A growing number of ranchers are using rotational grazing to get more production from pastures. The management-intensive grazing (MiG) system, for instance, has cattle eating grass while it is still in a vegetative (growing) stage. This gives high animal performance by grazing the plants while nutrient levels are high, before the plants become mature.

“Graziers using this method believe that the only vegetative stage is with a short recovery period, which is what an MiG system does, but with a short recovery period there isn’t much bulk by the time you graze those plants again,” says Ian Mitchell-Innes, a holistic management instructor from South Africa. Read more.


Kris Ringwall
Kris Ringwall

Beef Talk

A one-way ticket to town.

Bull 50 just bought himself a one-way ticket to town. For bulls, there are only two pens. One is the pen for breeding bulls, while the other bulls go to the “for beef market” pen.

I climbed over a fence instead of using the standard gate to enter one of the bull pens. Bull 50 decided that was not acceptable. In a fraction of a second, he was on me. There is no lack of understanding when one comes face-to-face with a bull that is seeking dominance. He is the boss. So, in this case, I needed to move. I took the quick exit and scaled the fence.

Although Bull 50 won the moment, I won the event. By that afternoon, Bull 50 was on a trailer heading to town destined for the next day’s market. Market beef would become his new name. Read more.


Drought Adjustments for Cattle on Pasture

Keith Harmoney, Kansas State University (K-State) beef scientist, speaks at the Southern Plains Drought Summit on the adjustments needed for cattle on pasture during drought. The 8-minute video is provided by K-State Research and Extension.


Managing for Puberty

Beef cattle researchers explore nutritional strategies to time puberty in replacement heifers.

Cattle producers typically wean replacement heifers at 7 months of age and raise them with limited nutritional input before their first breeding. This managerial strategy is often associated with delayed puberty, particularly in tropically adapted Bos indicus-influenced cattle, according to researchers.

To maximize successful pregnancies in replacement heifers early in their first breeding season, studies conducted at Texas A&M University and at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research Station–Beeville are evaluating nutritional strategies to promote puberty consistently by 12-14 months of age in Bos taurusBos indicus crossbred heifers. Read more.


The New I-9 Is here

The new Form I-9 is now available. Farmers should begin using the new form immediately for all new hires.

The I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form is required to be filled out for every newly hired employee on the farm (applies to all individuals hired after Nov. 6, 1986, with some limitations). The Form I-9 is used for verifying the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States.

According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, “All U.S. employers must ensure proper completion of Form I-9 for each individual they hire for employment in the United States,” and this applies to citizens and noncitizens that are employed. Read more.


New Products

Industry affiliates provide a wide array of products and services to assist you on the farm and ranch. Here's an assortment of new products to hit the market recently.


Angus Advisor

Click here for May herd management tips from cattle experts across the nation. Advice separated by region.

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