MANAGEMENT...
5 Tips for Bull Selection
As you select your next herd sire, here are five considerations to keep in mind.
Sale season is just around the corner, and for bull buyers, it can be a stressful couple of months. Looking at sale books, walking through pens and sitting ringside is time-consuming. Planning ahead can ease the stress and help make the selection process a little easier. Following are five steps that will help bull buyers pick their next herd sire. Read more.
Nine Farm Strategies for a Profitable 2017
Take a hard look at expenses and weigh wants vs. needs for the farm.
Despite low commodity prices, Ohio farmers can stay in the black in 2017, but they will need to tighten their belts and slash expenses, said Barry Ward, Ohio State University (OSU)agricultural economist.
“Farmers need to re-evaluate all of their inputs in general, and focus on those things that give a clear ROI (return on investment) when corn is bringing $3.50 to $4 per bushel,” said Ward, who works for OSU Extension, the outreach arm of the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Read more.
Managing Cattle Through an Arctic Blast
Attention to bedding, feed intake and pen maintenance can get cattle through extreme cold.
Extremely cold temperatures gripped the cattle feeding areas of the Northern Plains in mid-December with cold temperatures expected the remainder of the winter. Although cattle producers can’t alter the weather, there are management steps that can be taken to help maintain cattle health and performance, explained Warren Rusche, SDSU Extension beef feedlot management associate.
Rusche outlines research which shows that by managing bedding, pens and feed intake, producers can help their cattle through the extreme weather. Read more.
Bedding During Winter Months Pays Off
“To bed or not to bed?” With apologies to William Shakespeare, that is the question on many feedlot managers’ minds as we head into the winter months. Will providing bedding result in enough extra performance to outweigh the additional expenses in both material and labor?
The answer is often yes.
Depending on conditions, the ability to provide bedding to feedlot pens is certainly a valuable tool to increase cattle comfort and performance during extreme weather conditions in the Northern Plains. Cattle producers should begin making plans and preparations now if they are considering implementing a bedding program. Read more.
Kris Ringwall
Beef Talk
Controlling cow size means knowing one’s cows and what they weigh.
“Would a herd of 120 smaller-framed cows be a better fit than a herd of 100 larger-framed cows?” That’s an often-asked question throughout the beef industry.
The number of cows will vary, but for the sake of answering the question, let’s set the herd size as 120 smaller-framed cows and 100 larger-framed cows. The Dickinson Research Extension Center has explored the question since the mid 1990s.
Recently, we summarized some thoughts as we explored cow size, expanded the forage base, adopted May-June calving and retained ownership of calves. The net result was a 10% increase in revenue for the smaller-framed cows, when compared with the larger-framed cows, based on steer calf performance. Although the smaller-framed cows’ revenue per finished steer was lower, $821.81 vs. larger-framed cows at $895.82, the total finished steer net return was $4,517 greater from the smaller-framed cow herd.
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 January herd management tips from cattle experts across the nation. Advice separated by region.
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