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Beef Tips

Author: Jessica Jensen

Management Considerations for June 2024

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

COW HERD MANAGEMENT 

  • For spring-calving cow herds:
    • Monitor BCS relative to feed/forage availability.
    • Formulate your plan if you anticipate early-weaning or supplementing on grass.
    • Schedule early pregnancy checking activities with your vet if not already done.
  • For late-summer and early-fall calving cow herds:
    • Ensure mature cows are ≥ 5.0 and 2-4 year old females are ≥ 6.0 at calving.
    • Review your calving health protocols as needed.
  • For free-choice salt and mineral programs:
    • Record date and amount of product offered, calculate herd or pasture consumption.
    • Adjust how you are offering product to cattle if they over- or under-consume.
    • If consumption is 2X the target intake, then cost will be too!
    • Properly store bags and pallets to avoid damage and product loss.
  • For bulls at the start of the breeding season:
    • Watch for injury so you can intervene and treat bulls promptly if needed.
    • Ensure they are aggressively covering cows.
    • Monitor BCS, particularly on young bulls.
    • If pulling bulls from cows to manage the length of the breeding season, schedule those dates and have them on the calendar in advance.

CALF MANAGEMENT

  • If considering creep feeding calves, make sure you understand what your objective is by doing so and calculate the value of gain relative to cost of gain.
  • Monitor calves for summer respiratory illness.
  • Schedule any pre-weaning vaccination or processing activities.

GENERAL MANAGEMENT

  • Visit KSUBeef.org for info and events!
  • Evaluate early-summer grass growth and adjust your grazing plan as needed.
  • Make concerted efforts to control invasive species in pastures.
  • Take inventory of remaining forages and feedstuffs carried over to this fall.
  • Use the Management Minder tool on KSUBeef.org to plan key management activities for your cow herd for the rest of the year https://cowweb.exnet.iastate.edu/CowWeb/faces/Index.jsp.
  • Employ multiple strategies and chemistries for controlling flies and insects.
    With high feeder calf prices, consider price risk management tools.
  • Make and evaluate important production calculations (always a good time for this):
    1. Calving distribution (% 1st cycle, % 2nd cycle, % 3rd cycle)
    2. Calving interval
    3. % calf crop (# calves weaned/# cows exposed for breeding).

Mineral Supplement Selection Tips

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

One of the challenges cattle producers face is determining which mineral supplement they will use during the upcoming grazing season. Often this decision is based on the information provided on the mineral tag and price sheet. Although, price is an important consideration, other factors such as the concentrations of the minerals in the mix relative to the animals’ requirements and sources of minerals used should be considered.

The first step in selecting a mineral supplement is to know what you are shopping for. Mineral mixes are often categorized based on the concentration of phosphorous in the mineral mix. Phosphorous is often deficient in cattle consuming forage-based diets and is our first priority in developing mineral supplements for grazing cattle. The amount of phosphorous required in a mineral mix to meet the requirements of a cowherd is a function of forage phosphorous content (determined via forage mineral analysis) and animal requirements, which are driven by mature body weight and production stage. A mineral mix that contains 6 to 10% Phosphorous would be adequate in many situations.

The next step is to spend some time reading the mineral tag. The guaranteed analysis section of the tag guarantees the concentration of the minerals listed. In general, the more guarantees the better, and if a mineral is not listed then it is not guaranteed to be in the mineral. The sources of the minerals used in the mix also warrant consideration as mineral sources differ in bio- availability (Table 1). For example copper sulfate is 100% available to the animal, whereas copper oxide is unavailable.

For more information about mineral supplementation, see “Questions and Answers on Beef Cattle Nutrition (http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/lvstk2/c733.pdf).

For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu

It’s Not Always About the Money

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

If you have an employee who seems to continually be bothering you about not being paid enough, there are usually two possibilities. 1) You’re a tightwad and you’re not paying them enough; or 2) the person is disgruntled about their role in the organization. To find out if the answer is #1, make a few phone calls to managers you trust in your general geography and find out what your neighbors are paying for similar jobs in your industry. If you’re within 50¢ or so per hour, then move on to answer #2. Some people are just better employees than others. If this person is worth more than the ‘scale’, you’d better pay more to keep them.

But “pay” can come in many forms. You can “buy” an employee’s loyalty and general job satisfaction with many perks other than another few cents or bucks per hour. Make sure your insurance, savings investment, and/or profit sharing plans are at least in line with the industry. This is especially important if this person has a family to look after. Non-monetary benefits include things like flexible time off. Those early mornings and long days are a lot easier to take if a person knows they can take Thursday afternoons off for a child’s ballgame or whatever.

What about goals? Have you asked your employee what they want out of this position? They may want to move up in the organization or have opportunities for a management role elsewhere. You can be selfish about this or you can take on the role of mentor and teacher. By taking care of your employee and training them for a leadership role they will most certainly be a better employee, and will have a harder time leaving for a different job. And even if they do leave for a different opportunity, they will give such a glowing report on your leadership and team approach, you can be certain to find a good, young person to replace them.

The question you need to ask yourself is “Do you really want this person around for the long haul?” If you DO, take some time to privately evaluate your plans, then take some more time one-on-one with this employee to find out their long-term needs and goals. If you DON’T want this person to remain in the organization, you still need to get your plans in order because after you inform this person they are not what your organization needs, you’d better have a pretty good plan set up to attract a quality person to replace them.

For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu

Management Considerations for May 2024

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

COW HERD MANAGEMENT

  • If cows are in marginal BCS (4.0 – 5.0) going into breeding, possibly consider:
    • Supplementing 2-3 weeks prior to and through 1st cycle.
    • Using monensin (200 mg/hd/day) in feed supplements.
    • Temporary calf removal or a CIDR to initiate estrus in anestrus females.
    • Early weaning if BCS doesn’t improve during the season.
  • Pregnancy check and cull fall calving cows, if not already done.
  • With higher costs, it’s important to closely manage salt and mineral programs.
    • Record date and amount of salt and mineral offered and calculate herd consumption.
    • If consumption is 2X the target intake, then cost will be too!
    • Properly store bags and pallets to avoid damage and product loss.
  • Continue to provide high magnesium mineral formulas to cows grazing high risk forages: wheat, rye, triticale, oats, bromegrass, and other cool-season forages.
  • Risk of grass tetany is greatest for lactating cows and older cows.
  • The estrus synchronization planner (https://www.iowabeefcenter.org/estrussynch.html) is a helpful tool for scheduling synchronization protocols.
    • Order your AI supplies well prior to starting your protocols.
  • Closely monitor bulls at the start of the breeding season for injury and to make sure they are aggressively covering cows.

CALF MANAGEMENT

  • Calculate the value of gain relative to cost of gain for:
    • Implanting nursing calves and grass cattle.
    • Creep feeding nursing calves
  • Finalize health protocols for spring-born calves and cattle going to summer grass.
  • Consider supplementing or feeding replacement heifers for a period when initially turning to grass if they don’t have post-weaning grazing experience and/or forage supply is limited.

GENERAL MANAGEMENT

  • Reconsider stocking rates and turn-out dates for drought stressed pastures.
  • Begin implementing early-season weed/invasive species control.
  • Use the Management Minder tool on KSUBeef.org to plan key management activities for your cow herd for the rest of the year.
  • Employ multiple strategies and chemistries for controlling flies and insects.
  • With high feeder calf prices this spring, consider price risk management tools.
  • Make and evaluate important production calculations:
  • Calving distribution (% 1st cycle, % 2nd cycle, % 3rd cycle)
  • Calving interval
  • % calf crop (# calves weaned/# cows exposed for breeding) for calves born in fall 2023.

What’s in Feedlot Diet

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

The commercial cattle feeding industry is incredibly diverse in many ways. A recent survey of consulting nutritionists conducted by Samuelson et al., (2016) gives us some insight into the feeding and management practices of the cattle feeding industry. This survey summarized responses from 24 consulting nutritionists that service in excess of 14 million cattle annually. As expected the primary grain used in both receiving and finishing diets was corn. However, the most commonly reported secondary grain used was wheat. The most common processing methods were steam-flaking and dry-rolling. The typical grain inclusion was 60% or less for receiving diets and 34.8% of the respondents reported an inclusion of 60-70% grain in finishing diets with a range of 50-90%. The reported range in grain inclusion of finishing rations is likely attributed to the use of byproduct feedstuffs. The most commonly used byproduct in both receiving and finishing rations was wet distiller’s grain. Alfalfa was the most common roughage source used in receiving diets (58.5% of responses). In finishing diets corn silage was the primary roughage source used (37.5% of responses), followed by corn stalks (29.2% of responses) and alfalfa (20.8% of respondents). The majority of nutritionists in the survey recommend an energy content 0.68-0.70 Mcal/lb of Net Energy for gain and 13.4% crude protein in the finishing ration.

For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu

Send Everyone Home Safe

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

Most of you reading this are likely involved in agriculture in some capacity. Would you consider agriculture to be a high risk industry?

The reality is that agriculture is a dangerous business. A recent report (12/2023) from the U. S. Department of Labor contains some staggering statistics and emphasizes the need for safety. In 2022, workers engage in farming, fishing and forestry had the highest fatal work injury rate among U.S. occupations with 23.5 fatalities per 100,000 full-time employees. A total of 5,486 fatal occupational injuries occurred in the U.S. in 2022 with 146 fatal injuries occurring among agricultural workers. Fatal work injuries due to contact with equipment and machinery (738) increased 4.7% from 2021 to 2022. These statistics are sobering. The need for safety in agriculture is real and present. When was your last discussion about safety with your family or employees? Now is the best time to have those discussions.

A quote from Dr. Keith Bolsen, K-State emeritus professor, comes to mind:

“Our number one goal is to send everyone home safe at night; if an operation isn’t safe nothing else really matters.”

The full report from the U.S. Department of Labor may be accessed at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cfoi.pdf

For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu

Management Considerations for April 2024

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

COW HERD MANAGEMENT

  • Evaluate BCS and adjust nutrition for spring-calving females going into breeding.
    • Ensure thin (BCS ≤ 4.0) females are on an increasing plane of nutrition.
    • BCS 5.0+ females should be maintaining weight and condition.
    • Record cow BCS and use it as a guide for future management.
    • Start lactation rations/supplementation by end of first calving cycle.
  • Pregnancy check fall calving cows and make culling decisions.
    • How were pregnancy rates relative to last year?
    • Do we need to re-think our fall/winter nutrition program?
  • Plan your mineral supplementation for this coming spring and summer.
    • Make effort to measure intake regularly and adjust it as needed.
    • If using fly control products, start them at recommended area times.
    • Properly store bagged mineral and avoid damaging bags and pallets.
  • Risk of grass tetany is greatest for lactating cows and older cows. Consider magnesium levels in mineral supplements, particularly for cows grazing the following:
    • wheat, rye, triticale, oats, bromegrass, and other cool-season forages
  • Use the estrus synchronization planner to help plan synchronization protocols.
  • Schedule breeding soundness examinations on bulls well prior to turnout.
    • Allow plenty of time to re-test or find a replacement bull if needed.

CALF MANAGEMENT

  • Review health protocols for spring-born calves and schedule processing activities.
  • If not already completed, wean and market fall-born calves.
  • Consider the economic return by implanting nursing calves and grass cattle.
  • If not already done, schedule your breeding protocols for replacement heifers in advance of the breeding season.
    • If synchronizing with MGA, make sure intake is consistent at 0.5 mg of melengestrol acetate per hd per day for 14 days, and remove for 19 days prior to administering prostaglandin.

GENERAL MANAGEMENT

  • Use the Management Minder tool on KSUBeef.org to plan key management activities for your cowherd for the rest of the year.
  • Adjust turn-out dates as needed for drought stressed pastures.
  • Consider your storage method for any leftover hay and feed and look for opportunities to minimize shrink during extended storage.
  • Good sanitation around winter feeding and bedding areas helps reduce stable fly populations.
  • Take a balanced, multi-tool approach to fly/insect control.
  • Wrap up any last minute pasture management projects before spring turn-out:
    • Finish repairing fences.
    • Conduct burns, work to control trees and brush.
    • Ensure sufficient water is available when cattle are turned out.

Mineral Supplement Selection for the Cow Herd

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

Although, the upcoming grazing season may be hard to picture at this point, it’s not too early to begin making preparations. Among those preparations is selecting a mineral supplement, especially for those operations that are looking to take advantage of “early booking” discounts for mineral orders. It can be challenging to select a mineral program, as there are many different products and mineral formulations currently available. When evaluating mineral supplements the phosphorous concentration may be used as a basic guide to determine if the mineral fits the production stage of the herd and forage base. Phosphorous is one of the most common mineral deficiencies in grazing systems around the world and is one of the primary reasons we provide mineral supplements to grazing beef cattle. The table below illustrates the amount of phosphorous required in a mineral supplement required for cattle at various production stages consuming forages with different phosphorous concentrations. Forage phosphorous concentrations vary and are typically greatest during the spring and lowest in the winter. In Kansas, phosphorous content of native range during the grazing season is typically between 0.15 and 0.20%. Thus, the maintenance requirements of lactating cow (20 lbs milk/d) could be met by a mineral with at least 8% phosphorous (average of 6 and 10 in the table).

For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu

How to Find More Time

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

One of the more common issues for many of us in the workplace is trying to find more time for family, friends, exercise or some new activity. However, the question becomes how we can find more time within the day or week for the aforementioned activity of choice? One of the ways that many people try to find more time (including myself) is the “do I really need that much sleep” method of finding more time. Although, this method does work; it may also result in some undesirable outcomes, especially if the activity involves interacting with others. Time management experts suggest that the best way to make more time for any new activity is to become more efficient within our day. Efficiency is essentially organizing and prioritizing the daily “to do list” but it also includes looking for places in our day where we simply waste time. The most common “time waster” for many people involves a computer or a phone in today’s world. Procrastination is also another common “time waster” that reduces our ability to get things done. Many strategies have been developed to combat procrastination. One simple strategy that I recently came across is the 2-minute rule and it essentially targets all those little things that we encounter during the day that eventually add up. This informal rule essentially says that when we encounter anything in our day that will take less than 2-minutes that we should do it, be it a quick email response or cleaning up our computer files. It is difficult to find more time in our busy work schedules, but one thing is clear seconds turn into minutes, minutes into hours, hours into days and so forth, which proves that little things do add up over time.

For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.

Management Considerations for March 2024

Posted on by Jessica Jensen

COW HERD MANAGEMENT

  • Start post-calving nutrition programs for spring-calving females.
    • Begin lactation rations once first calving cycle is complete.
    • Make sure thin (BCS ≤ 4.0) females are on an increasing plane of nutrition going into breeding.
  • Pregnancy check and wean fall-calving cows if not already done.
  • Evaluate your mineral program for the coming spring and summer seasons.
    • What was your average consumption last year?
    • Do you need to make changes this year to achieve targeted consumption?
  • Consider magnesium supplementation levels, particularly for lactating cows grazing wheat, rye, or triticale in the spring.
  • If synchronizing females for breeding, schedule your protocols now well in advance of the breeding season and mark your calendars.
  • Evaluate herd bulls for BCS and adjust as needed prior to breeding.
    • Bulls need to be in a BCS ≥ 5.0 prior to the next season of use.
    • Schedule breeding soundness examinations with your veterinarian.

CALF MANAGEMENT

  • Market your fall-born calves if not already done.
  • Schedule your spring calf working activities and visit with your veterinarian to discuss your calf health protocols.
  • Monitor growth and pubertal development of replacement heifers.
    • Heifers should be having active estrous cycles prior to breeding.

GENERAL MANAGEMENT

  • Make sure you complete your spring calving records!
    • Don’t forget late-calving females as you focus on other spring projects.
  • Rethink your turn-out dates if pastures were stressed from drought last year.
    • Plan/adjust your feeding dates accordingly.
  • Take inventory of any feed/forage that will be left over from winter.
  • Cover piles or close bags if silage is left over and won’t be fed until fall.
  • Clean up any soiled bedding or unused/wasted feed to reduce the breeding and development of stable flies as the weather warms up.
  • Finish pasture management projects started last year:
    • Repair or replace fences as needed.
    • Burn if conditions allow, cut and pile trees, particularly Cedar trees!
    • Clean and repair tanks and equipment as needed so watering sources are working properly when cattle are turned out to pasture.
  • If making bull selection decisions:
    • Review your herd performance relative to your marketing and genetic goals.
    • Study EPDs impacting your marketing and genetic goals and do your homework well before sale day.