Cattle are designed to consume forages. When grains, byproducts, and most other concentrate feeds are fed it is critical to gradually increase the amount of these feeds in the diet …
Read more “Proper Supplementation for Optimal Cattle Performance”
Unfortunately, sometime animals die. Proper carcass disposal is important for multiple reasons including animal health, environmental stewardship, public safety, and public perception. Natural decomposition is the most common method used …
It is important to clean multi-dose syringes after working cattle. Never use soap or any disinfectants as they can leave residues in the syringe which can reduce vaccine efficacy. One …
Read more “Best Practices for Cleaning and Storing Cattle Syringes”
Monitoring reproduction in cow-calf operations with metrics like pregnancy rate and weaned calf crop percentage are important for operation success. Weaned calf crop percentage is the most important of these …
Read more “Measuring Reproductive Success in Cow-Calf Operations”
Animal performance in the southern United States typically decreases during the summer. For grazing animals this reduction is due to a combination of lower feed intake and lower quality forage. …
Poor drought management strategies can result in negative impacts on forage production and cow herd productivity long after the drought is over. During a drought it is important not to …
Read more “Drought Management Strategies to Protect Forage and Herd Productivity”
For maximum effectiveness, vaccines need to be maintained at the appropriate temperature. Most vaccines should be stored between 35 and 45 Fahrenheit. However, it is always important to double check …
When administering vaccines, it is important to make sure that syringes are labeled so that the products are not accidently mixed when refilling syringes. Mixing different products in the same …
If male calves will not be kept for breeding purposes they should be castrated before 3 months of age. Castration of older, heavier animals causes greater stress and increases the …
Iodine is an important trace mineral that is involved in energy metabolism and other physiological functions. Very little data is available on the iodine content of forages and other feeds. …
Read more “Iodine Requirements and Supplementation in Beef Cows”