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Full-Text Articles in Animal Sciences
Integrating Information Into Selection, Loren Berger
Integrating Information Into Selection, Loren Berger
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Berger’s Herdmasters is located on the southern edge of the Sandhills near North Platte, Nebraska and is home to our composite seedstock operation with a base of approximately 350 head. Our business is focused on the production of hybrid bulls consisting of Red Angus X Simmental and Angus X Simmental, plus we do have some high percentage Angus bulls (both Red and Black) that are designed to be used on heifers. Our operation conducts an annual bull sale on the second Saturday in February and continues to see expansion each year. This year’s offering will consist of around 180 bulls …
New Beef Products Research, Chris R. Calkins
New Beef Products Research, Chris R. Calkins
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Muscle profiling research conducted in the early part of this decade by the University of Nebraska and the University of Florida for The Beef Checkoff was highly successfully. This research led to the development of the flat iron steak, the petite tender, and the ranch cut from the shoulder clod and has been credited with increasing the value of market cattle by $50 - $70 per head. In 2007, over 92 million pounds of flat iron steaks, 40 million pounds of petite tenders, and 37 million pounds of ranch steaks were sold into foodservice. Although difficult to track, additional sales …
Selecting For Efficiency, Nick Hammett
Selecting For Efficiency, Nick Hammett
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Why is efficiency so important to the beef industry? "Efficiency impacts unit cost of production, thereby having the potential to increase beef's competitiveness in both the domestic and global marketplace, to improve industry profitability, and to enhance long-term sustainability of the industry." (Ritchie, 2001). In simple terms, from a producer’s standpoint, efficiency can make you more money by lowering costs, increasing returns, or both. But, only if measured, interpreted and implemented correctly.
Impacts Of Calf Nutritional Management On Quality Grade, Scott Lake
Impacts Of Calf Nutritional Management On Quality Grade, Scott Lake
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Why is quality important? An enormous amount of research and money have been invested in determining the impacts of just about every management practice on the effects of marbling. Marketing and management practices have been developed around the choice/select spread. But the question begs to be asked, “Is marbling important?” Regardless of the choice/select spread or any other premiums received due to carcass quality, the answer to that question should be a resounding “YES”, for no other reason than the importance of a quality eating experience from consumers. The 2005 National Quality Beef Audit reports that the #1 concern of …
Managing Annual Bromes In The Northern Great Plains, Lance Vermeire, Matt Rinella, Jennifer Muscha
Managing Annual Bromes In The Northern Great Plains, Lance Vermeire, Matt Rinella, Jennifer Muscha
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Annual bromes periodically have substantial impact on rangelands in the northern Great Plains. The often rapid increases in annual brome populations and there negative effects on forage and animal production are justified cause for concern. However, population increases are predictable and management tools have been successfully identified for short-term control. Fort Keogh Livestock and Range Research Laboratory is examining new applications of established methods and testing whether careful timing and integration of control methods may be key to long-term reduction of annual bromes.
The Two Best Decisions I Have Made, John Maddox
The Two Best Decisions I Have Made, John Maddox
Range Beef Cow Symposium
You might be surprised when I tell you the two best decisions made on our ranch, are much easier to come up with than the two worst decisions. Now, not even for a second, do I believe that I haven’t made some big mistakes. A matter of fact some of them have been real dousies. And there have been so many big mistakes somehow prioritizing them in order to come up with two of the worst is not only difficult but they are painful to recollect! So lets start with the best decisions.
U.S. Beef Demand Drivers And Enhancement Opportunities: A Research Summary, James R. Mintert, Glynn T. Tonsor, Ted C. Schroeder
U.S. Beef Demand Drivers And Enhancement Opportunities: A Research Summary, James R. Mintert, Glynn T. Tonsor, Ted C. Schroeder
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Large shifts in domestic beef demand have had substantial impacts on the beef industry. Before the late 1970s, growth in the U.S. economy and rising consumer incomes contributed to beef demand increasing for a sustained period. In response to growing product demand, the beef industry increased in size. However, starting about 1980, domestic retail beef demand weakened and subsequently declined every year through 1998. The long-run decline in retail beef demand contributed to a reduction in cattle industry size, particularly in relation to competing meat sectors such as poultry and pork. In 1999, following nearly 20 consecutive years of decline, …
Rumen Physiology For The Rancher, Ivan G. Rush
Rumen Physiology For The Rancher, Ivan G. Rush
Range Beef Cow Symposium
The ruminant animal has two unique features – it chews its cud and has four distinct compartments in the stomach. More importantly the ruminant can convert forages that are comprised by large quantities of cellulose, that is poorly digestible by non-ruminants, into high quality protein (muscle) that provides excellent eating experiences and nutrients for humans. Rumen Physiology is the study of the mechanical, physical and biochemical function of the rumen. When I first enrolled in an animal nutrition course I felt this area was unnecessary in order to feed cattle. All I wanted to learn was does the cow need …
Two Best And Two Worst Decisions, Kory Bierle
Two Best And Two Worst Decisions, Kory Bierle
Range Beef Cow Symposium
My name is Kory Bierle and I am from a family ranch just east of Midland, South Dakota, on the Bad River. The name of our ranch is the Madsen Ranch. We use that name because it was my mother’s family that settled and started the place. My great-great-grandfather showed my great-grandfather where a good place for a ranch would be, and we’ve been there ever since. My house is just a few yards from where the original log house was. The gal that talked to me about participating in the Range Beef Cow Symposium this year said that, from …
Bovine Respiratory Disease & Diagnostic Veterinary Medicine (Managing Respiratory Diseases In The Herd), Donald Montgomery
Bovine Respiratory Disease & Diagnostic Veterinary Medicine (Managing Respiratory Diseases In The Herd), Donald Montgomery
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Year in and year out, diseases of the respiratory system are a major cause of illness and death in cattle from 6 weeks to two years of age. Sadly, this is as true today as it was 30 years ago despite development of new and improved vaccines, new broad spectrum antibiotics, and increased fundamental knowledge as to the cause of disease. WHY? I don‟t have the answer and I doubt if anyone does. As a pathologist, I often see firsthand the devastating effects that bacteria can have in the lungs of cattle that die from respiratory disease complex or shipping …
Antagonisms And Protagonisms Of Alternative Energy Sources And Their Effects On Ranchers, Leanne Stevenson
Antagonisms And Protagonisms Of Alternative Energy Sources And Their Effects On Ranchers, Leanne Stevenson
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Over the past 20 years, the United States’ use of power has increased about 25 percent. Couple this with the fact that Americans are looking for more clean energy choices, and it is easy to see the incentive for energy generation and use from alternative energy sources. Agriculture can provide the potential for clean, alternative energy sources.
Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) require that affected electricity providers include a specified amount of renewable energy as part of their portfolio of generating fuels. There are many varieties of RPS; of the twenty-six states that adopted RPS, no two states have enacted exactly …
The Impacts Of The U.S. Corn/Ethanol Policy On The U.S. Cattle Industry, Andrew Gottschalk
The Impacts Of The U.S. Corn/Ethanol Policy On The U.S. Cattle Industry, Andrew Gottschalk
Range Beef Cow Symposium
The oil shock in the early 1970’s initiated government support for the ethanol industry. Initially, Federal support was primarily in the form of fuel tax exemptions that gave gasoline blenders incentives to blend ethanol with their gasoline blends. As world oil prices began to rise in 2002, governmental support for ethanol began to rise, as did popular demand and industry production. Simultaneously, fear grew amongst gasoline blenders regarding any liability for MTBE pollution. A growing number of studies have detected MTBE in ground water throughout the country. Even low levels of MTBE can make drinking water supplies undrinkable due to …
Small Wind Systems For The Ranch, Home And Business, Antony B. Frank
Small Wind Systems For The Ranch, Home And Business, Antony B. Frank
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Small wind electric turbines intended to serve a ranch, home or business – given the right combination of a good wind resource, favorable utility policies, incentives and relatively high electric costs – are an economically feasible option for many in our region.
Improving Human Health With Beef Products, Marilynn Schnepf
Improving Human Health With Beef Products, Marilynn Schnepf
Range Beef Cow Symposium
The optimum diet for humans has been the subject of much debate ever since it was discovered in the nineteenth century that certain nutrients in food were essential for human health. Nutrition science is a relatively young science with new information being presented about the role that foods and the nutrients they contain play in human health. The connection between the foods we eat and overall health is becoming more evident. The role that meat and specifically beef plays in our diets continues to be a topic of interest among the public as well as nutrition researchers. The purpose of …
Country Natural Beef….”An Idea To Be Constantly Examined”, Doc Hatfield, Connie Hatfield
Country Natural Beef….”An Idea To Be Constantly Examined”, Doc Hatfield, Connie Hatfield
Range Beef Cow Symposium
That “idea” is now imbedded in a cooperative with over 100 family ranch’s plus a number of prospective member ranches who together own more than 100,000 mother cows and operate on well over 4 million acres of rangeland. The cooperative which started marketing in 1986 with 35 head per week will in fiscal year 2007 market over 50,000 head of cattle as boxed beef primals, hamburger and hot dogs.
A working partnership with Beef Northwest Feeders in Boardman, OR and ABFoods (formerly Washington Beef) at Toppenish WA allows individual ranchers to maintain ownership and control of our cattle as boxed …
Colorado Homestead Ranches – Our Success Story: How Do We Sell Branded Beef Direct To The Consumer, Robbie Baird Levalley, Dawn D. Thilmany, Dale Dexter, Jim Ayer, Susan Ayer, Karl And Joetta Burns, Jess, Lynda, Calvin, Tracy, And Chad Campbell, Steve And Wendy Kossler, Mark, Hank, And Robbie Levalley, Mark And Jody Roeber, Norm And Susan Smith
Colorado Homestead Ranches – Our Success Story: How Do We Sell Branded Beef Direct To The Consumer, Robbie Baird Levalley, Dawn D. Thilmany, Dale Dexter, Jim Ayer, Susan Ayer, Karl And Joetta Burns, Jess, Lynda, Calvin, Tracy, And Chad Campbell, Steve And Wendy Kossler, Mark, Hank, And Robbie Levalley, Mark And Jody Roeber, Norm And Susan Smith
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Colorado Homestead Ranches (CHR) markets natural beef, pork and lamb direct to Western Slope consumers. CHR is a partnership of six ranches that own their own USDA packing plant, a wildgame processing facility, and two storefronts. CHR markets direct to consumers via retail and farmers markets, restaurants, and wholesale distributors. CHR produces and markets value added sausage, jerky, meat sticks, and ready to cook entrees. The current strategic position of CHR is marketing of a niche, differentiated line of beef products, targeted at consumers who want a consistent quality product, raised on Colorado ranches, with natural production practices.
Using Byproduct Feeds In Cow/Calf Programs, Ivan G. Rush
Using Byproduct Feeds In Cow/Calf Programs, Ivan G. Rush
Range Beef Cow Symposium
The topic of byproduct feeds can be a very long list from well known oil seed meals to corn byproducts from the distilling industry to potato waste to orange peels. In addition, people feed chocolate candy, Keebler’s cookies and the list can go on and on. This paper will focus primarily on byproducts from the alcohol and oil industry. Even though byproducts from the oil industry, such as cottonseed meal and soybean meal, have been available for many years, the tremendous growth into the bio-fuels industry has increased the quantity of byproducts available for cattle feed. Historically, we have looked …
Cow Condition And Reproductive Performance, Julie Walker, George Perry
Cow Condition And Reproductive Performance, Julie Walker, George Perry
Range Beef Cow Symposium
It has been understood for decades that reproductive performance is the most important factor affecting production efficiency of a cow-calf enterprise. To maintain a yearly calving interval (one calf every 365 days), a cow must re-breed in 80 to 85 days after calving. With the nutrient priority of beef cattle being body maintenance, growth, lactation, fetal growth, breeding, and body reserve according to Short et al. (1990) indicates that reproduction is low on the list. Body condition score at parturition has been implicated as the single most important factor affecting postpartum interval to estrus and pregnancy in multiparous cows.
Why Did We Change To June Calving?, Paul D. Redd
Why Did We Change To June Calving?, Paul D. Redd
Range Beef Cow Symposium
We finally admitted we were violating our own principles, for 50 years we have said:
We believe it makes good cow sense to:
1- Use yearling bulls
2- Sell the old bull
3- Buy only top end performance bulls
4- Buy the best bulls you can find.
5- Take advantage of hybrid vigor
6- Don’t buy fat bulls
7- Make Mother Nature your partner. Build a cow herd adapted to work efficiently in your country (your environment). Keep those good producing cows that wean a good calf every year. Cull the cows that don’t pull their weight.
8- Select four …
Production Systems, Terry J. Klopfenstein, Will Griffin, Aaron Stalker, Dan Adams, Darrell Mark
Production Systems, Terry J. Klopfenstein, Will Griffin, Aaron Stalker, Dan Adams, Darrell Mark
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Expansion of the ethanol industry is having a major impact on all of agriculture including the cattle industry — the largest impact of any development we have seen in the past 40 years. Cattle feeding has enjoyed relatively inexpensive corn and therefore greater amounts of weight have been put on cattle in feedlots rather than outside of feedlots. Calf-feeding has developed to the point where up to one third of fed cattle might be considered calf-feds. Increased corn production in 2007 is keeping corn prices at moderate levels — higher than the last 40 years but less than the prices …
Benefits Of Weaning Calves At Younger Than Traditional Ages, Trey Patterson
Benefits Of Weaning Calves At Younger Than Traditional Ages, Trey Patterson
Range Beef Cow Symposium
The term “Early Weaning” tends to be used rather loosely in the Beef Industry, and producers can find many articles claiming benefits of early weaning. A few questions arise. How early is early weaning? Is there economic benefit to weaning early? We will address these questions in this paper.
At the Range Beef Cow Symposium XIV, Whittier (1995) categorized early weaning as 1) weaning before the start of the breeding season (birth to 90 days) or 2) weaning during the breeding season (90 to 160 days). Weaning calves before the start of the breeding season has shown to improve reproductive …
Successful Ai And Synchronization Secrets: It’S In The Details, G. Cliff Lamb
Successful Ai And Synchronization Secrets: It’S In The Details, G. Cliff Lamb
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Estrous synchronization and artificial insemination (AI) are reproductive management tools that have been available to beef producers for over 30 years. Synchronization of the estrous cycle has the potential to shorten the calving season, increase calf uniformity, and enhance the possibilities for utilizing AI. Artificial insemination allows producers the opportunity to infuse superior genetics into their operations at costs far below the cost of purchasing a herd sire of similar standards. These tools remain the most important and widely applicable reproductive biotechnologies available for beef cattle operations (Seidel, 1995). However, beef producers have been slow to utilize or adopt these …
Heifer Development – Then And Now, Richard N. Funston, Jeremy Martin, Andy Roberts
Heifer Development – Then And Now, Richard N. Funston, Jeremy Martin, Andy Roberts
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Studies in numerous species provide evidence that diet during development can partially control physiological changes necessary for puberty (Frisch, 1984). Energy balance or plane of nutrition influences reproductive performance in heifers and cows (Short and Adams, 1988; Butler and Smith, 1989; Swanson, 1989; Randel, 1990; Robinson, 1990). Numerous studies have reported inverse correlations between post-weaning growth rate and age at puberty (Wiltbank et al., 1966, 1969, 1985; Short and Bellows, 1971; Arije and Wiltbank, 1971; Ferrell, 1982), and pregnancy rates in heifers were shown to be dependent upon the number displaying estrus prior to or early in the breeding season …
Nutrition During Gestation And Fetal Programming, K. A. Vonnahme
Nutrition During Gestation And Fetal Programming, K. A. Vonnahme
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Historically, considerable efforts have been made to understand how nutrition impacts health and productivity during the postnatal period. While maternal nutrition during pregnancy plays an essential role in proper fetal and placental development, less is known about how maternal nutrition impacts the health and productivity of the offspring. Indeed, the prenatal growth trajectory is sensitive to the direct and indirect effects of maternal dietary intake from the earliest stages of embryonic life when the nutrient requirements for conceptus growth are negligible (Robinson et al., 1977). Not only is neonatal health compromised, but the subsequent health may be “programmed” as offspring …
Preparing Calves For The Feedlot, Daniel U. Thomson
Preparing Calves For The Feedlot, Daniel U. Thomson
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Evidence based medicine is a balancing act between data and experience (Apley and Thomson, 2003). Decision making with just experience and no data has been termed “wizardry.” This would be similar as to saying we used drug A last year and they all died. This year we used drug B and they all lived. Great! Scientists and statisticians need not apply to work in this environment. The friendly drug representative that sells drug B is the expert. Paralyzed indecision is using only data with no experience to make decisions. This is the art of trying to fix problems from a …
The Immune System And Recovery From Sickness In Cattle, Gordon W. Brumbaugh
The Immune System And Recovery From Sickness In Cattle, Gordon W. Brumbaugh
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Ideally, all diseases could be prevented and beef animals on-feed would finish healthy and with the highest quality of meat. That isn’t realistic for most diseases. In spite the best efforts, some animals will become sick and require treatment. Calves with bovine respiratory disease (BRD) that required more than one treatment had decreased quality of meat and economic returns than did calves that did not develop BRD or responded after one treatment. (Hicks, 2006; McNeill, 1999; Wagner, et al., 2006) Calf-hood diseases in heifer calves had measurable effects on maternal performance for several years. (Waltner-Toews et al., 1986; van der …
I. Basic Principles Used In The “Sandhills Calving System” And How They Apply To Other Production Environments, David R. Smith
I. Basic Principles Used In The “Sandhills Calving System” And How They Apply To Other Production Environments, David R. Smith
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Diarrhea is one of the most likely reasons young beef calves become sick or die.(45) Besides its detriment to calf health and well-being, calf scours is costly to cattle producers due to poor calf performance, death, and the expense of medications and labor to treat sick calves. (3, 41) In addition, catching and treating young calves puts herd owners and their employees at risk of injury, and many producers become disheartened after investing long hours to treat scouring calves during an already exhausting calving season.
Calf scours is a complex disease, with many interrelated causes.(1, 2, 37) Agent, host, and …
Ultrasound-Based Selection: Pitfalls And Rewards, Steve Paisley, Chris Loehr, Frances Niemala
Ultrasound-Based Selection: Pitfalls And Rewards, Steve Paisley, Chris Loehr, Frances Niemala
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Ultrasound has become widely used by the seedstock industry as a selection and evaluation tool. Ultrasound estimates of Ribeye Area, or REA, Intramuscular fat, or %IMF (marbling), and Rump Fat have been used to develop several EPD’s for many breed associations. Despite widespread use by seedstock producers, there is still some apprehension by commercial producers. Additionally, the use of ultrasound for commercial herd replacement decisions, used by some producers, is worth discussing. There are both benefits, as well as cautions, to using ultrasound generated information in a commercial beef herd.
Gene-Testing For Production And Carcass Traits: What Does It Mean To A Rancher?, Robert L. Weaber
Gene-Testing For Production And Carcass Traits: What Does It Mean To A Rancher?, Robert L. Weaber
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Marker assisted selection (MAS) is a process that enables the accurate selection of specific segments of DNA that are associated with a measurable difference or effect on a complex trait, like weaning weight or marbling score. MAS can be an effective way to increase or decrease the frequency of specific DNA sequences in a population. It is important to note that many genes control complex traits, like marbling or tenderness; they are polygenic in nature. Markers for specific variations in DNA sequences are available for only a few genes that contribute to marbling or tenderness. There are many other ‘unmarked’ …
Genetic Information Made Easy: How To Sort Through The Chaff To Find The Nuggets, Willie Altenburg
Genetic Information Made Easy: How To Sort Through The Chaff To Find The Nuggets, Willie Altenburg
Range Beef Cow Symposium
Altenburg Super Baldy Ranch has been a family owned business for nearly 30 years. The yearly calendar of events may help explain the philosophy and the cattle. The 150 head cowherd is made up of Simmental and Angus, both black and red. They are summered on large, native grass pastures on the Soapstone Grazing Association (20 acres per cow) on the Colorado/Wyoming border. They and their calves are trailed horseback there each June, a 15 mile drive crossing two ranches and using the help of friends and neighbors. After weaning and preg check, the cows are trailed home to graze …