Category: Breeding

Education, change: Beneficial discomforts

Date: Mar 26 2019

A cowman’s response to the ebb and flow of the industry is entirely up to the individual – but a choice is imminent. That’s why Dusty Abney, cow-calf and stocker nutritionist for Cargill Animal Nutrition, called out a few of the areas where producers have had to adapt through the years: volatile markets and regulations for starters.

Really that good

Date: Mar 15 2019

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.

Uncomfortable change

Date: Mar 13 2019

WHAM! Tap-tap-tap. Some changes are noisy…like the current remodel and addition to our 115-year-old house.

The cost and value of quality

Date: Mar 12 2019

To add value to Angus calves, target this brand

Date: Feb 18 2019

Targeting the Brand is now used much like one for a genetic test would be used to denote individually tested animals.

Moo-ving the big rocks

Date: Feb 15 2019

The new year now feels old once you get into a busy season like calving. There are many spans of time in cattle country that can make us feel there’s too much to do, or too little time in each day. By now, some resolutions have fallen to the wayside, the rush of reality helping us sort out what matters most in the commitment to get better. Yet, there are still some that rise above the rest, beat the average and make it look easy

Trevor Dam, Angus Link and focus

Date: Jan 30 2019

“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.

Matching cow herd needs to overall goals

Date: Jan 23 2019

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?”

Uncomfortable change

Date: Jan 08 2019

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.”

Cause and effect

Date: Dec 12 2018

We sometimes associate cause and effect without knowing the real link, or as an academic buzz phrase has it, “correlation does not equal causation.” A quick search provides a humorous example. Did you know ice cream sales and shark attacks are highly correlated? While true in a broad sense, the actual reason for similar seasonal trends is that hot weather brings greater ice cream consumption as well as more swimming along beaches where sharks lurk.