Protein Supplementation Options With Grazing Cattle

Adele Harty SDSU Extension Cow/Calf Field Specialist Additional Authors: Ken Olson COVID-19 and the energy economy has had a dramatic negative impact on the ethanol industry, resulting in limited availability of corn distiller’s grains. This has changed availability and pricing of protein feeds. As cow/calf producers consider how this affects their feed purchases currently and into the future, there are some key points to consider and evaluate. In South Dakota grazing operations, many…

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Management Strategies for Minimizing Early Pregnancy Loss

Sydney O'Daniel, Nebraska Exension Beef EducatorRick Funston, Nebraska Extension Beef Cattle Reproductive Physiologist Managing cows and heifers to be on a positive plane of nutrition at the time of breeding is essential for the establishment of pregnancy. Photo credit Troy Walz. As we approach the breeding season, cows and heifers are faced with a variety of stressors from the metabolic pressure of providing for a calf to changes in environment. Stress during early…

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Flies on Pastured Cattle

Dave Boxler, Nebraska Extension Educator As cattle producers plan for the grazing season, a very important consideration should be what type of flies will impact their pastured cattle, and what method of fly control will work best for their management system. Photo credit Troy Walz. As livestock producers prepare for another grazing season, thoughts are often directed towards grass conditions, animal conditioning, and fence repair. An additional very important consideration should include what…

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Breeding success strategies for beef cattle

K-State beef cattle experts offer advice on ways to manage heifers and cows MANHATTAN, Kan. – Bulls are often the focus when cattle producers are thinking about the breeding season, but experts at Kansas State University’s Beef Cattle Institute said it is important to prepare the females as well. “Achieving a successful breeding season starts long before the cows are turned out with a bull,” said Bob Larson, Kansas State University veterinarian. “What…

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K-State beef cattle experts join effort to help reproductive success of heifers, young cows

Yearling heifers need extra care to help prepare them for breeding. When trouble arises the Heifer CONSULT tool may serve as a resource. Heifer CONSULT is an online resource for cow-calf producers MANHATTAN, Kan. – Many veterinarians say that getting to the bottom of an animal health challenge often involves deducing a series of clues. To help beef producers solve the mystery of why their cattle conception rates aren’t where they’d hoped, Kansas…

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BCI: Beef Prices Up, Cattle Prices Down, Grazing Management and Pasture Turnout, Top Recommendations for Transitioning Cows to Grass, Grass Tetany

https://ksubci.org/2020/04/17/beef-prices-up-cattle-prices-down-grazing-management-and-pasture-turnout-top-recommendations-for-transitioning-cows-to-grass-grass-tetany/

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Spring grazing management for beef cattle

Experts offer ways for producers to best prepare pastures ahead of spring grazing   MANHATTAN, Kan. – Beef cattle grazing on lush, green pastures is a common sight when driving through the Kansas Flint Hills in the late spring. Experts from Kansas State University’s Beef Cattle Institute discussed steps for managing the spring grazing season recently on the weekly podcast Cattle Chat. K-State beef cattle extension specialist Bob Weaber advised producers to begin…

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Three Good Reasons for Early Castration of Bull Calves

Kevin Laurent – Beef Extension Specialist, University of Kentucky These are challenging times market wise and it is easy to dwell on the negative and become complacent in our management. But in times like these we really need to explore every avenue to add value to our calves. If you watch the weekly market reports, you notice that we still have a significant number of intact bull calves being sold. Some producers choose…

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General Management Considerations to Increase the Proportion of Early Calving Heifers and Cows

G.A. Perry, South Dakota State UniversityM.F. Smith, University of MissouriRick Funston, Nebraska Extension Beef Cattle Reproductive Physiologist Maximizing the proportion of cows that conceive early in the breeding season cannot be overemphasized in a beef herd. Photo courtesy of Troy Walz. Artificial insemination (AI) is the most powerful tool cow-calf producers have to improve beef cattle genetics. Still, they have been slow to adopt this technology due to the time and labor of…

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