Warren Rusche SDSU Extension Beef Feedlot Management Associate Whether because of reduced forage production caused by drought, or increased competition for grazing acres, feeding lactating cows in a drylot is being at least considered as an option by more ranchers. In some pasture rent markets the total cost per day for drylotting pairs is similar to or even lower than the total costs on pasture. When feed supplies are short, it may be…
Krista Ehlert Assistant Professor & SDSU Extension Range SpecialistAdditional Authors: Jameson Brennan Growing up, I remember asking the question, “Why do we need to learn this?” The “this” being math, and I posed the question to my algebra, geometry, calculus and statistics teachers from grade school all the way through high school. All I ever received for an answer was, “You’ll use it someday.” In college, math seemed slightly more important, since I needed to figure out how…
Warren Rusche SDSU Extension Beef Feedlot Management Associate Beef specialists and nutritionists often advise ranchers to wean calves at younger ages as a response to drought conditions. However, what about when moisture conditions are normal? Can weaning calves at 100 to 180 days of age be profitable? For any management practice to be economically feasible, income must increase more than expenses, or expenses must decrease more than income declines. Almost by definition, early…
Krista Ehlert Assistant Professor & SDSU Extension Range Specialist Written collaboratively by Krista Ehlert and Pat Johnson. The best businesses are the ones that are properly managed in ways that result in profit. However, if you’re a livestock producer this is probably where you’re thinking, “easier said than done.” At the core, though, livestock production is no different than any other business out there – effective management requires good metrics, and metrics come…
Christina Bakker SDSU Extension Meat Science Field SpecialistAdditional Authors: Amanda Blair The need for more small meat processing capacity and skilled workers is not a new problem facing rural America, but the COVID-19 pandemic has caused an uptick in those interested in building small meat processing facilities. This interest can be related to a variety of motives: livestock producers with an interest in gaining more control over their end products, processors looking to expand…
Kiernan Brandt Ensuring that cattle and any other livestock being pastured in exposed areas have adequate access to shelter to escape the wind and cold is especially important. Livestock grazing open crop residue fields or large pastures can be left exposed during extreme bouts of cold, and producers should try to mitigate these effects. In addition to cold, wind chills will increase heat loss dramatically by penetrating even the thickest winter coats, increasing…
Russ Daly Professor, SDSU Extension Veterinarian, State Public Health Veterinarian Written collaboratively by Russ Daly and Taylor Grussing, former SDSU Extension Cow-Calf Field Specialist. Reproductive losses account for $1 billion in lost revenue to the beef industry each year. All the way from conception to birth, we depend on a lot of things to go right, whether we are talking about natural or artificial breeding programs. Nevertheless, reproductive failure whether presented as early…
Russ Daly Professor, SDSU Extension Veterinarian, State Public Health Veterinarian Infectious disease can impact cow-calf operations in dramatic (death losses and illnesses) and not-so-dramatic (drains on weight gain and reproductive performance) ways. Some of these disease issues are caused by endemic germs (those found normally in a herd’s animals), while other problems arise after a novel germ has found its way onto an operation. These novel disease issues tend to be more noticeable…
Olivia Amundson SDSU Extension Cow/Calf Field Specialist Written collaboratively by Taylor Grussing, former SDSU Extension Cow/Calf Field Specialist and Olivia Amundson. Rain, snow and warming temperatures are making their way again this winter as future forecasts indicate another wet spring. However, with last year’s flooding we’re a little wiser on how to tackle the predicted flooding. Last year’s flooding, blizzard conditions and excess snow wreaked havoc on livestock producers in South Dakota. While…
Warren Rusche SDSU Extension Beef Feedlot Management Associate Winter in South Dakota is often not for the faint of heart, especially for livestock producers. The good news is that eventually there will be some signs of spring. The bad news is we there are often significant challenges to overcome. As the snow melts, we are going to be left to deal with mud at a minimum and extensive flooding as a possible worst-case…