Anaplasmosis is a common disease in cattle and Oklahoma is considered an endemic state. This means that anaplasmosis will occur every year within Oklahoma with some variation on the intensity … Read more

The addition of any new animal creates the potential for introduction of disease into the resident herd. One way to help prevent new disease introduction is by working with a veterinarian to d… Read more

In a drought year, livestock management decisions become more difficult when feed resources are limited. Read more

With summer in full gear it is a good time to evaluate how your fly control program is working. When horn fly numbers are greater than 200 flies per animal we see significant production losses… Read more

Occasionally the question of whether creep feeding is a cost-effective practice comes up. The simple answer for commercial cow/calf operations is “not in most circumstances”. This is particula… Read more

As conditions continue to deteriorate across South Dakota, producers are implementing drought management plans, and a part of the plan should include culling criteria for the cow herd. The pri… Read more

One issue in the buying and selling of cattle that is often not considered until a problem arises is the health aspects of the transaction. While every business deal involves some risk, includ… Read more

For farming and ranching families, summertime often brings with it hay cutting. Knowing when to cut the hay is key for optimum nutrition, said the experts at the Kansas State University Beef C… Read more

As we progress into summer, forage quality can rapidly change depending on factors like rainfall, temperature, etc. A good example of the dynamic interaction of rainfall and forage quality is … Read more

Farming in the winter is usually not a livestock producer’s favorite time of the year. But, if I must give it a positive aspect, the lack of flies and other flying pests make it somewhat enjoy… Read more

As superstitions go, if you compose an article about drought, it will surely rain right before it goes to press. I sure hope so for those that need it. While much of Iowa has been spared from … Read more

Cow-Calf production represents a long-term investment in land and cattle. Accordingly, there is considerable economic value in correctly managing the genetics, calving seasons, weaning and mar… Read more

What is “BLV”? Bovine Leukemia Virus (BLV) is an “oncogenic retrovirus” common in cattle throughout the United States. “Oncogenic” means the virus can cause the infected animal to develop canc… Read more

A confirmation of trichomoniasis in a herd will likely initiate knots in the pits of stomachs, feelings of dread and concern for a farm’s future. Read more

Space and exercise could be almost as important as food and water to the successful development of beef heifers raised in drylots, and quantifying that importance is the aim of a planned study… Read more

Bulls on pasture during the breeding season are vulnerable to many health risks, including lameness and pinkeye. Unfortunately for cattle producers, the list doesn’t end there. Injuries, parti… Read more

For the past several years, fly populations on cattle have been significant beginning in late April then increasing to peak populations in August or September. This year is slightly different … Read more

Veterinarians and cattle producers have long embraced pre-weaning vaccines as effective tools to help reduce the impact of respiratory disease in calves following the stress of weaning. Vaccin… Read more

The North Dakota State University Carrington Research Extension Center’s beef production field day tour will be live this year. Read more

Pasture and supplemental feed inputs represent the lion’s share of a beef producer’s annual expenses and are an ideal starting place for initiating hard-nosed cost control measures. When envir… Read more

The saying ‘knowledge is power’ often rings true in making decisions, and in the case of beef cattle genetic tests, this information can be a powerful tool provided producers know how to inter… Read more

Most cattle producers fully understand the importance of water. After all, providing an adequate supply of clean, fresh water is the cornerstone of animal husbandry and there are very few thin… Read more

Internal parasites cause a variety of clinical signs, including weight loss, diarrhea and death. Other, less obvious parasitic signs, (often referred to as subclinical signs), significantly im… Read more

Being that most of the spring calving cow herds in Ohio and beyond have calved, and breeding season is upon us, there is a cow conundrum that we need to discuss. In the 9 or months that I have… Read more

University of Missouri Extension beef nutritionist Eric Bailey says beef producers can offset rising feed prices with changes in their operations. “It’s time to literally cut the fat from cow-… Read more

Rainfall is one of the most important factors that influence management decisions on the ranch, according to North Dakota State University Extension livestock specialists. Read more

When we think of warm season annual forage crops the summer annual grasses such as pearl millet and sorghum sudan quickly come to mind. Often warm season annual forages are thought of as an em… Read more

Free choice mineral mixes are commonly used to provide the mineral that grazing cattle need. However, ensuring that cattle are getting enough mineral without overconsuming can be a struggle. B… Read more

Cattle are ruminants, meaning their one stomach is comprised of four compartments: the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum. For mature cattle, the rumen makes up approximately 85% of the to… Read more

When the weather forecast calls for a few days of clear skies this time of year, it is a safe bet that many producers are hitting the hay fields to get hay put up to feed their herd this winte… Read more

Many producers with spring calving herds just turned out their bulls. In the May Off the Hoof, we reminded everyone to subject their herd bulls to a breeding soundness exam (BSE). A BSE is the… Read more

Spring-Calving Cow Herd Read more

Significant returns to a cow-calf operation are from selling cull cows, with most culls being sold in the fall when prices are traditionally at their lowest. In this 12 minute presentation, OS… Read more

Choosing an estrus synchronization protocol that can be used with either AI or with natural service can be perplexing, as a number of synchronization protocols are available. To assist cattle … Read more

As cattle producers we often look at ways to improve our bottom line. Where can we profit the most from our production? Is it from sales of feeder calves, breeding stock, finished cattle, free… Read more

Cow-calf producers' economic returns vary considerably over time due to a variety of factors. For example, using Kansas Farm Management Association data, over the last 45 years there has been … Read more

Managing infectious diseases in cattle herds involves all aspects of the beef cow-calf system. Read more

Beef producers look at their developing heifers and wonder which one will make them the most profit over her life. Read more

I like to think about feeding the cowherd like a puzzle. The puzzle pieces are things like stage of production, performance goals, available (and economical) feed ingredients, labor resources,… Read more

Genetic trends for Milk EPD across most breeds have continued an upward trend, although direct selection pressure on Milk EPD has not been an over-arching goal of seedstock breeders in recent … Read more

Estrus synchronization is a reproductive management tool that facilitates the use of both artificial insemination (AI) as well as natural service. Estrus synchronization is never a substitute … Read more

May 20th, 2021 @ 7:00 p.m. Central Read more

As most cattle producers know from year-to-year the fly and tick season is highly variable. Some may have pinned their hope in a hard winter to reduce these external parasites but in reality, … Read more

Ranchers will have an opportunity to learn more about mineral nutrition for beef cattle through an educational series hosted by North Dakota State University, South Dakota State University (SD… Read more

On May 27th at noon, Trey Befort of the AHA will sit down with Dr. Tim Parks, D.V.M., U.S. Cattle Technical Services Veterinarian to discuss the opportunities to generate premiums at sale time. Read more

Frequently over the years we’ve talked about Ohio’s average cow herd size – between 16 and 17 cows at any given time – and how it impacts management and marketing decisions for the ‘average’ s… Read more

Coccidiosis is an important disease of cattle caused by a small parasite that invades the cells of the intestinal tract and if enough intestinal cells are damaged, diarrhea or bloody-diarrhea … Read more

While dairy steers have been an important part of the beef supply chain for some time, feeding half blood dairy steers sired by beef bulls has become a popular and more common practice in rece… Read more

Calves with respiratory problems, cows that naturally abort their calves, deformed calves and scours in the herd are just a few of the signs that a cow-calf producer may have Bovine Viral Diar… Read more