Teaching animal science through interactive gaming CowSim helps educate those with little to no cattle experience understand the processes behind working cattle before stepping out into real-world scenarios. (Photo courtesy of the Department of Animal Science.) COLLEGE STATION — For students studying animal science, interactive gaming can now help introduce concepts of working with cattle, before they’ve even stepped foot in a pen or pasture.  Nicholas Free, animal science senior at Texas A&M…

Dr. Les Anderson, Extension Beef Specialist, University of Kentucky Have you ever looked at your cow-calf operation and had the thought “Geez, what a mess?!” Even if we don’t want to admit it, often our lack of organization and planning sometimes really hinder our opportunity to succeed especially in our cattle operations. An example; it’s September. Have you pulled your bull? If a bull pen is not available, is your breeding season over?…

Victor Shelton, NRCS State Agronomist/Grazing Specialist Whether winter predictions are correct or not, it’s time to start preparing! The Old Farmer’s Almanac has released their forecast for this winter. “Mild, with soakers” is how Indiana is labeled. I don’t put a lot of weight on these forecasts, but they often line up with other forecasts and occasionally are completely correct. If this forecast holds true, I think we all need to prepare for…

Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock conference at K-State MANHATTAN, Kan. – The meaning of the word “sustainability” in livestock production varies from person to person and country to country which adds a layer of difficulty when governments are negotiating trade agreements, according to Tom Vilsack, president of the U.S. Dairy Export Council and former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. Vilsack was a panelist during the Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock annual conference held Sept.…

David P. Anderson, Professor and Extension Economist, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Cull cow prices continued their slow increase into September. Prices in the Southern Plains reached their high of the year, so far, at $54.36 at the end of August. That was 12.5 percent higher than a year ago. There is some good reason to think that prices may continue to be above a year ago. Cow slaughter hit some multi-decade highs…

Jason Hartschuh, OSU Extension Crawford Country, AgNR Educator Winter wheat, barley, triticale, and cereal rye planted in the fall can produce high quality forage in the spring when harvest is in the boot stage. These forages are not equal though in there speed of maturity or quality in the soft dough growth stage. Rye grows and matures faster than the other cereals making it the ideal choice for double cropping with corn silage…

Karla H. Wilke, UNL Cow/Calf Systems and Stocker Management Dry edible beans impacted by drought and hail may have some salvage value for livestock feed. Photo credit David Ostdiek. Listen to a discussion of the content in this article on this episode of the BeefWatch podcast. You can subscribe to new episodes in iTunes or paste http://feeds.feedburner.com/unlbeefwatch into your podcast app. Dry edible beans such as pintos, great northern, and black beans are…

“We are very pleased that Delano has committed to host this historic event in the famous Old Cowtown Museum.  There is not a better place to celebrate the history of the Chisholm Cattle Trail,” said D.R. Katzenmeier President of the International Chisholm Trail Association (ICTA). The 2019 Chisholm Trail Conference and annual meeting will take place in Wichita on September 12 -14.  “If you attend, we will educate you with top notch historians…

By attending one evening of in-person training, farmers become certified in Beef Quality Assurance (BQA). BQA, a voluntary national program, is now offered in east-central Missouri. The Sept. 16 training starts at 6:30 p.m. with University of Missouri (MU) Extension veterinarian Craig Payne teaching food safety and quality cattle practices. “Beef quality assurance should be a staple in beef farm management,” says Kendra Graham, MU livestock specialist in Farmington. While BQA isn’t legally…

Michelle Arnold, DVM-Ruminant Extension Veterinarian (UKVDL) Water is the most essential nutrient in the diet of cattle and during hot and dry weather, it is especially important to monitor water quality if using farm ponds for livestock. What is a “harmful algae bloom” or “HAB”? During periods of hot and dry weather, rapid growth of algae to extreme numbers may result in a “bloom”, which is a build-up of algae that creates a…