Raise ’em or Buy ’em
Insight offered in deciding whether to raise or buy replacement heifers.
Deciding whether to raise or buy replacement heifers is never an easy decision. It isn’t the same for every operation.
Scott Brown, University of Missouri assistant extension professor, said the decision fluctuates according to the cattle cycle. High cattle markets make heifer development more expensive, but sometimes, lower cattle markets make producers more interested in buying heifers instead.
Brown said producers have to start with evaluating their herds. It’s important to determine the genetic potential and identify what’s missing.
“If you want to successfully grow replacements, you have to understand your current herd,” he said. Some producers may have high-quality genetics, while others are lacking in certain areas. Read more.
Terry Cotton
Association Perspective
State of the West and fall bull-buying resources.
Region 11, which includes Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah, is a vast and varied region of the United States that excels in multidimensional agricultural production. The American Angus Association plays a part in the multiple layers of food production here in the West. Cattle production is an important part of the agricultural cycle, but I would like to divert a moment and provide background on a couple of recent issues that ranchers and growers deal with in the far West.
In a recent newsletter published by the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association, it was interesting how ranchers have played an important role in the growth of the sage grouse population by some 63% in Nevada, where approximately 80% of all land is owned by the federal and/or state governments. These ranchers play an important part of rural communities by not only tending to their own livelihoods, but also to the rangeland that supports their herds and wildlife. Read more.
Come to Terms
It’s time for producers to get a grip on their role in antibiotic stewardship.
Cattle producers might as well accept it. Increasingly, livestock are being managed in a glass house. Because consumers are interested and sometimes worried about food animal production practices, they want transparency. To a Kansas State University (K-State) veterinarian’s way of thinking, that means the use of antibiotics in food production must change. It is changing, according to Mike Apley, a practitioner-turned-professor at K-State’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
In a presentation to the 2016 International Symposium on Beef Cattle Welfare hosted June 8-10 in Manhattan, Kan., Apley said public concern about bacterial resistance to antibiotics is growing. People worry that animal agriculture’s use of antibiotics is part of the problem. Apley told producers to accept two facts. Read more.
Angus Convention Just Around the Corner
Host Doug Medlock visited with Becky Weishaar, Angus Media’s director of Creative Media, about the American Angus Association’s upcoming Angus Convention. Here are some outtakes of their interview. See additional outtakes in the October Angus Journal, which will include the convention program.
- Q: From outstanding educational seminars to nationally known entertainment, the 2016 Angus Convention is an event you won’t want to miss. The 2016 Angus Convention will be Nov. 5-7 in Indianapolis, Ind. How long has the American Angus Association hosted the Angus Convention?
- A: For 130 years the American Angus Association has had an Annual Convention of Delegates. Two years ago, in 2014, we took that annual meeting that had such a long, rich history and made the Angus Convention. We were able to add more education, entertainment and a trade show, and it’s just been a fantastic fit to put all those elements together. Read more.
What’s Inside …
In this August edition of the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA, you'll find valuable articles devoted to the management, marketing, and health and nutrition of your beef enterprise. Select from the tabs at the top of the page to access this month’s entire offering by category. A few select features include:
- 300 Days of Grazing
- Pied Piper to Water
- Prevent Bloat on Fall Pastures
- Liver Abscess Control and Prevention
- Move ’em Out … Slowly
- Heavy Considerations
- Welfare Concerns at Packing Plants
News Briefs …
The American Angus Association and its subsidiaries generate a wealth of information to keep members and affiliates informed of what's happening within the industry, as well as with the programs and services they offer. Click here for easy access to the newsrooms of the American Angus Association and Certified Angus Beef LLC and the Angus Journal Daily archive available in the API Virtual Library.
Deadline Extended:
Cattlemen’s Boot Camp in Nebraska
Register by Aug. 29 to secure your spot at this premier educational workshop.
Cattle producers, mark your calendars. A Cattlemen’s Boot Camp will be hosted Sept. 21-22 at the Animal Science Complex on the University of Nebraska’s East Campus in Lincoln, Neb.
The educational event will be hosted jointly by the American Angus Association and the University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL), and will provide purebred and commercial cattle producers with timely information presented by academic and industry professionals. Read more.
Stem Cell Therapy Heals Injured Mouse Brain
Animal study examines method for restoring brain cells killed by stroke or other neurological diseases.
Scientists and clinicians have long dreamed of helping the injured brain repair itself by creating new neurons, and an innovative National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded study published Aug. 22 in Nature Medicine may bring this goal much closer to reality. A team of researchers has developed a therapeutic technique that dramatically increases the production of nerve cells in mice with stroke-induced brain damage.
The therapy relies on the combination of two methods that show promise as treatments for stroke-induced neurological injury. The first consists of surgically grafting human neural stem cells into the damaged area, where they mature into neurons and other brain cells. The second involves administering a compound called 3K3A-APC, which the scientists have shown helps neural stem cells grown in a petri dish develop into neurons. However, it was unclear what effect the molecule, derived from a human protein called activated protein-C (APC), would have in live animals. Read more.