Water is the most important nutrient for livestock. Water is needed for all metabolic processes essential for life, including growth and reproduction. The amount of water animals consume is affected by many physiological and environmental factors, one of which is the quality of available water. Many producers rely on ponds to provide water for livestock, but there is little data available on pond water quality in the Southern Great Plains. Therefore, a water quality survey was conducted by the Noble Foundation to determine the effects of pond location and watershed grazing management on pond water quality in southern Oklahoma and north-central Texas.
Water samples were collected and analyzed from 83 farm ponds during the summer of 2009. Additional data were collected for each pond to determine if water quality was affected by grazing management, cattle access or location of the pond.
We found that grazing management (continuous versus rotational grazing) did not affect any of the 22 water quality parameters we measured. However, watersheds of most of the ponds we sampled were properly grazed. Overgrazing that results in poor forage stands within a watershed could contribute to erosion and nutrient transport, resulting in decreased water quality.
We also found that intensity of cattle access to the pond did not affect most measured parameters. However, cattle access did affect the level of suspended solids in pond water. Ponds that had no cattle access had significantly fewer suspended solids compared to ponds with unlimited cattle access. High levels of suspended solids have been shown to decrease water intake in cattle. This problem can be avoided by fencing off ponds to provide limited access points or using gravity-fed water troughs. Water troughs that are gravity-fed from ponds reduce the time cattle spend in ponds, which in turn can decrease fecal contamination and prevent cattle from stirring up sediments.
Our data showed that geographic location did affect water quality, but no ponds were determined to be unacceptable for use as livestock water. From south to north within our sampling area, sodium concentrations decreased, while magnesium and nitrate concentrations increased. In addition, sodium, calcium, magnesium, potassium and sulfur concentrations decreased from west to east. These findings could simply be a result of different soil types and rainfall patterns across the sampling area.
The ponds sampled were representative of a wide range of pond and watershed management systems in the south-central U.S., and most water quality parameters were within the acceptable range for livestock drinking water. However, testing your livestock water sources is the only way to know if they are acceptable for livestock use. All water sources should be tested annually at the beginning of summer to identify potential problems and assess the quality of each source.
Livestock should be provided with free-choice access to clean, quality water at all times. Contact a livestock consultant at the Noble Foundation or your local extension agent for additional information about livestock water testing. You can find this and past articles on the web at http://www.mycountrytractor.com/ for your reference. Extension programs serve of all ages regardless of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, disability, or national origin. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating serve of all ages regardless of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, disability, or national origin. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating .
Mycountrytractor.com is the destination for those looking for community info. Mycountrytractor is involved with county events and child involvement to help support local 4-H and FFA events. We have wonderful Agriculture information for our visitors for all your farming and ranching needs
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Chute N The Bull
The cattle industry has made many advances over the last few decades.
Fewer cattle are producing more pounds of beef that is arguably of
better quality. There are many reasons, including improved genetics,
advances in pharmaceuticals, implementation of Beef Quality Assurance
(BQA) practices, improved management practices and other factors.
Challenges facing the cattle industry are the same as most agriculture
sectors - costs of production are increasing more rapidly than the
prices for the product, market uncertainty lies ahead and the weather is
unpredictable. How can a cow-calf producer minimize risks while
increasing the potential of positive margins for the enterprise?
To start, develop an operational program that complements your resources
and goals, incorporates the industry's best management practices,
establishes mechanisms to monitor and measure the critical production
and economic variables, minimizes expenses and strategically markets the
product. Each of these steps must be applied consistently and be
repeatable. In short, manage the operation as a business, regardless of
its size or scale. There are many successful business models in the
cattle industry. Many producers, however, are reluctant to adopt one for
various reasons: they may think that they are not large enough,
implementation is not a priority, there's not enough available time, or
there is uncertainty about what to do or how to do it. Granted, larger
operations have more options, but adopting a specific program also
brings benefits to smaller producers.
If you are a cattle producer and would like a simple cattle program that
can be planned and scheduled on a calendar basis, want to utilize the
most proven management practices in the industry, are willing to follow
a designed production protocol, are willing to keep and use meaningful
production and financial records, and desire to participate in a
producer organization dedicated to best practices, then you should
investigate the Integrity Beef program.
Integrity Beef is a terminal beef cattle program. It assists producers
in the production and marketing of ranch-raised stocker/feeder cattle
that are preconditioned and have superior growth potential. The
Integrity Beef program is directed by participating producers with
guidance from the Noble Foundation Agricultural Division. Progressive
producers formed the Integrity Beef Alliance in 2009 after several years
of the program's development. Producers and the Noble Foundation set out
to distinguish Integrity Beef by requiring standards that are above and
beyond most others. A program protocol was established through which
participating producers uniformly administer, document and report all
practices. The protocol is designed to simplify management decisions and
increase the marketability of calves through the production of uniform
and age- and source-verified cattle. Integrity Beef has advanced to the
point to which producers' calves are now commingled and marketed in
larger, uniform lots. Commingling was successfully implemented in the
Decembers of 2008 and 2009 at sanctioned Integrity Beef calf sales. This
marketing strategy works very well for small and medium producers who
cannot market truckload lots of calves.
The Integrity Beef protocol is a set of standards for a spring calving
cow-calf program and includes requirements that participants agree to as
the basis for program inclusion. Following are the basics of the
protocol.
Calves must:
• be sired by Integrity Beef-accepted bulls (see bull requirements)
• have permanent individual tag or brand identification
• be age- and source-verified as Integrity Beef program calves through
Micro Beef Technology
• be from groups with recorded first and last birth dates of the calf
crop (or individual birth dates recorded)
• be castrated and dehorned
• have individually recorded weaning weights
• be preconditioned a minimum of 45 days
• be trained to eat from a bunk and drink from a water trough
• have two doses of clostridial (one in spring), one dose of
anthelmintic and two doses of respiratory vaccine (MLV for IBR, BRSV,
PI3, BVD Types 1 and 2) given at or around weaning
• test negative for PI-BVD (persistently infected-bovine viral diarrhea)
at year one.
Cows must:
• have a breed composition of at least 50 percent British breeds (Angus,
Red Angus or Hereford)
• be no more than three-eighths Brahman influence with no Longhorn,
Corriente or dairy breed influence
• have permanent identification
• be palpated annually for pregnancy
• have annual vaccinations against respiratory disease, vibriosis and
leptospirosis (prior to the breeding season)
• have anthelmintic applied in the fall and spring
• test negative for PI-BVD upon purchase or entry into the program, and
calves from replacement females must also test PI-BVD negative.
Bulls must:
• be Angus or Charolais with EPDs in the top 20 percent of their
respective breed for weaning weight and yearling weight
• have annual vaccinations against respiratory disease, vibriosis and
leptospirosis (prior to the breeding season)
• have anthelmintic applied in the fall and spring
• have permanent identification
• have a breeding soundness exam 30-90 days prior to the breeding season
• have a 90-day breeding season maximum for a late winter/early spring
calving season
• test negative for PI-BVD upon purchase or entry into the program.
Additional requirements include:
• participants to be active Noble Foundation cooperators
• participating operations to have premise identification numbers
• operational managers to have BQA certification
• participants to annually provide preconditioning expenses to the Noble
Foundation for summary reporting
• participants to provide production, performance and economic data to
the Noble Foundation for operational annual reports.The primary costs associated with the Integrity Beef program are the age
and source verification fees, the Alliance enrollment fee and the PI-BVD
testing of new animals before they are added to the herd. Age and source
verification carries a base fee of $4 per calf with audit fees not
included. Integrity Beef Alliance enrollment is an annual $1 per calf
fee to participate in the program. Fees are assessed and collected by
the Alliance and are used as the membership designates for such things
as promotions, field trips and research.
PI-BVD testing costs about $4 and is conducted by testing services such
as Cattle Stats LLC and the Oklahoma Animal Disease and Diagnostic
Laboratory at Oklahoma State University. The producer is responsible for
contacting a service for PI-BVD testing and is responsible for
associated expenses.
As participants in Integrity Beef, producers receive ongoing services
from the Noble Foundation consultation program. This service includes
assessments of land and livestock resources, and reports providing
annual production and economic summaries of the operation. Members who
maintain annual reporting requirements also receive annual summary
statistics (individual production information remains confidential) from
the overall program.
When Integrity Beef cattle have been marketed in large lot sizes, calves
have demonstrated the ability to top the market within each class
represented on any particular sale day. On Dec. 2, 2009, Integrity Beef
producers marketed approximately 1,200 head of commingled calves for a
$5.72 per hundredweight premium over all other cattle marketed that day.
Similar premiums are consistently reported from participating producers
who retained ownership to heavier weights and/or marketed their cattle
independently.
The largest benefit from participation in the Integrity Beef program is
the advancement of operational objectives through a proven cow-calf
business model. The system can be confidently planned and administered
backed by the knowledge that other producers are producing a more
uniform and marketable product under the protocol. Additionally, the
Noble Foundation continues to support this program through consultation
and education. One Integrity Beef producer recently explained his
reasons for participation, "The program has me doing all the right
things because it is the right thing to do for the beef industry.
Following Integrity Beef standards, I know what to do, when to do it and
can now run my operation as a business."
The Integrity Beef program requires discipline, and it is not for
everyone. If, however, you are ready to take your cow-calf operation to
the next level, contact Hugh Aljoe, consultation program manager and
acting executive director of the Integrity Beef Alliance at 580-223-5810
or speak to a Noble Foundation agricultural consultant for more
information. You can find this and past articles on the web at
http://www.mycountrytractor.com/ for your reference. Extension
programs serve of all ages regardless of socioeconomic level, race,
color, sex, religion, disability, or national origin. The Texas A&M
University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County
Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating serve of all ages regardless
of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, disability, or
national origin. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of
Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating
Thank you,
Tommy Neyland
County Extension Agent
Texas Agrilife Extension Service
P.O. Box 188
Centerville, Texas 75833
903.536.2531 phone
903.536.3804 fax
Fewer cattle are producing more pounds of beef that is arguably of
better quality. There are many reasons, including improved genetics,
advances in pharmaceuticals, implementation of Beef Quality Assurance
(BQA) practices, improved management practices and other factors.
Challenges facing the cattle industry are the same as most agriculture
sectors - costs of production are increasing more rapidly than the
prices for the product, market uncertainty lies ahead and the weather is
unpredictable. How can a cow-calf producer minimize risks while
increasing the potential of positive margins for the enterprise?
To start, develop an operational program that complements your resources
and goals, incorporates the industry's best management practices,
establishes mechanisms to monitor and measure the critical production
and economic variables, minimizes expenses and strategically markets the
product. Each of these steps must be applied consistently and be
repeatable. In short, manage the operation as a business, regardless of
its size or scale. There are many successful business models in the
cattle industry. Many producers, however, are reluctant to adopt one for
various reasons: they may think that they are not large enough,
implementation is not a priority, there's not enough available time, or
there is uncertainty about what to do or how to do it. Granted, larger
operations have more options, but adopting a specific program also
brings benefits to smaller producers.
If you are a cattle producer and would like a simple cattle program that
can be planned and scheduled on a calendar basis, want to utilize the
most proven management practices in the industry, are willing to follow
a designed production protocol, are willing to keep and use meaningful
production and financial records, and desire to participate in a
producer organization dedicated to best practices, then you should
investigate the Integrity Beef program.
Integrity Beef is a terminal beef cattle program. It assists producers
in the production and marketing of ranch-raised stocker/feeder cattle
that are preconditioned and have superior growth potential. The
Integrity Beef program is directed by participating producers with
guidance from the Noble Foundation Agricultural Division. Progressive
producers formed the Integrity Beef Alliance in 2009 after several years
of the program's development. Producers and the Noble Foundation set out
to distinguish Integrity Beef by requiring standards that are above and
beyond most others. A program protocol was established through which
participating producers uniformly administer, document and report all
practices. The protocol is designed to simplify management decisions and
increase the marketability of calves through the production of uniform
and age- and source-verified cattle. Integrity Beef has advanced to the
point to which producers' calves are now commingled and marketed in
larger, uniform lots. Commingling was successfully implemented in the
Decembers of 2008 and 2009 at sanctioned Integrity Beef calf sales. This
marketing strategy works very well for small and medium producers who
cannot market truckload lots of calves.
The Integrity Beef protocol is a set of standards for a spring calving
cow-calf program and includes requirements that participants agree to as
the basis for program inclusion. Following are the basics of the
protocol.
Calves must:
• be sired by Integrity Beef-accepted bulls (see bull requirements)
• have permanent individual tag or brand identification
• be age- and source-verified as Integrity Beef program calves through
Micro Beef Technology
• be from groups with recorded first and last birth dates of the calf
crop (or individual birth dates recorded)
• be castrated and dehorned
• have individually recorded weaning weights
• be preconditioned a minimum of 45 days
• be trained to eat from a bunk and drink from a water trough
• have two doses of clostridial (one in spring), one dose of
anthelmintic and two doses of respiratory vaccine (MLV for IBR, BRSV,
PI3, BVD Types 1 and 2) given at or around weaning
• test negative for PI-BVD (persistently infected-bovine viral diarrhea)
at year one.
Cows must:
• have a breed composition of at least 50 percent British breeds (Angus,
Red Angus or Hereford)
• be no more than three-eighths Brahman influence with no Longhorn,
Corriente or dairy breed influence
• have permanent identification
• be palpated annually for pregnancy
• have annual vaccinations against respiratory disease, vibriosis and
leptospirosis (prior to the breeding season)
• have anthelmintic applied in the fall and spring
• test negative for PI-BVD upon purchase or entry into the program, and
calves from replacement females must also test PI-BVD negative.
Bulls must:
• be Angus or Charolais with EPDs in the top 20 percent of their
respective breed for weaning weight and yearling weight
• have annual vaccinations against respiratory disease, vibriosis and
leptospirosis (prior to the breeding season)
• have anthelmintic applied in the fall and spring
• have permanent identification
• have a breeding soundness exam 30-90 days prior to the breeding season
• have a 90-day breeding season maximum for a late winter/early spring
calving season
• test negative for PI-BVD upon purchase or entry into the program.
Additional requirements include:
• participants to be active Noble Foundation cooperators
• participating operations to have premise identification numbers
• operational managers to have BQA certification
• participants to annually provide preconditioning expenses to the Noble
Foundation for summary reporting
• participants to provide production, performance and economic data to
the Noble Foundation for operational annual reports.The primary costs associated with the Integrity Beef program are the age
and source verification fees, the Alliance enrollment fee and the PI-BVD
testing of new animals before they are added to the herd. Age and source
verification carries a base fee of $4 per calf with audit fees not
included. Integrity Beef Alliance enrollment is an annual $1 per calf
fee to participate in the program. Fees are assessed and collected by
the Alliance and are used as the membership designates for such things
as promotions, field trips and research.
PI-BVD testing costs about $4 and is conducted by testing services such
as Cattle Stats LLC and the Oklahoma Animal Disease and Diagnostic
Laboratory at Oklahoma State University. The producer is responsible for
contacting a service for PI-BVD testing and is responsible for
associated expenses.
As participants in Integrity Beef, producers receive ongoing services
from the Noble Foundation consultation program. This service includes
assessments of land and livestock resources, and reports providing
annual production and economic summaries of the operation. Members who
maintain annual reporting requirements also receive annual summary
statistics (individual production information remains confidential) from
the overall program.
When Integrity Beef cattle have been marketed in large lot sizes, calves
have demonstrated the ability to top the market within each class
represented on any particular sale day. On Dec. 2, 2009, Integrity Beef
producers marketed approximately 1,200 head of commingled calves for a
$5.72 per hundredweight premium over all other cattle marketed that day.
Similar premiums are consistently reported from participating producers
who retained ownership to heavier weights and/or marketed their cattle
independently.
The largest benefit from participation in the Integrity Beef program is
the advancement of operational objectives through a proven cow-calf
business model. The system can be confidently planned and administered
backed by the knowledge that other producers are producing a more
uniform and marketable product under the protocol. Additionally, the
Noble Foundation continues to support this program through consultation
and education. One Integrity Beef producer recently explained his
reasons for participation, "The program has me doing all the right
things because it is the right thing to do for the beef industry.
Following Integrity Beef standards, I know what to do, when to do it and
can now run my operation as a business."
The Integrity Beef program requires discipline, and it is not for
everyone. If, however, you are ready to take your cow-calf operation to
the next level, contact Hugh Aljoe, consultation program manager and
acting executive director of the Integrity Beef Alliance at 580-223-5810
or speak to a Noble Foundation agricultural consultant for more
information. You can find this and past articles on the web at
http://www.mycountrytractor.com/ for your reference. Extension
programs serve of all ages regardless of socioeconomic level, race,
color, sex, religion, disability, or national origin. The Texas A&M
University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County
Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating serve of all ages regardless
of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, disability, or
national origin. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of
Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating
Thank you,
Tommy Neyland
County Extension Agent
Texas Agrilife Extension Service
P.O. Box 188
Centerville, Texas 75833
903.536.2531 phone
903.536.3804 fax
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)