Maternal function vs. marbling. Is it an either/or? This report by Steve Suther discusses an Iowa State University research paper, and quotes long-time ISU animal scientist Dan Loy.
Is docility economically important? We’d say so. Cattle graded Choice or higher was 63.5% for calm temperaments, compared to 55.5% for their excitable pen mates. The calm advantage was $56 per head.
Alexis “Lexi” Koelling has been pulling a heifer around since she was three. Now 15, she’s no stranger to the winner’s circle, but you wouldn’t know by talking to her. You’d have to prod her a bit to find out she won Grand Champion in both the carcass steer and bred-and-owned carcass steer at the National Junior Angus Show this summer. It’s her 5th year in that competition, her second bred-and-owned.
“I wish I could just move west and buy a ranch.” It’s something I’ve heard my dad mutter for years. He’s been around agriculture all his life, stacking hay as a teen and raising Hereford steers for the freezer as an adult. But Maryland is not big country. These days, he’s living vicariously through his three daughters’ 4-H projects and FFA events (and my internship here at CAB of course).
Young kids often have a misplaced sense of confidence. “Wook, how high I jump.” As a toddler, one of my girls used to love to show off that skill. She’d squat down, chubby thighs almost touching the ground and she’d give it her all. Her jump would maybe clear all of two inches. She was always thrilled.
“Good cattle sell themselves,” says Nebraska cattleman Trevor Dam. He uses artificial insemination, breeds based on EPD parameters and is trying Angus Link to give him even more information on this year’s calf crop.
Control what you can and deal with the rest. Cattlemen can’t stop drought or hurricanes, but they can set their herd up to be successful during “everyday” challenges. “We can manage their feed. We can manage their health protocol. We can’t manage their stress,” said Kelly Sanders, Westway Feed Products. “From my feed standpoint, how do I mitigate that problem the best I can?”
Don’t let the unknown paralyze you. Think about the end goal and why you’re inspired to do something different in the first place.
Maybe you’re looking to recoup some investment or perhaps just trying to make specific points in the calendar flow a little more smoothly. Maybe you hear about these loads that are reaching 50% Prime and thinking, “I want my cattle to do that.”
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