As I drive to and from work this week, I have begun to see a green tint in the road ditches and in the draws of pastures. Here in western South Dakota, we have already had a number of days in the 50’s and 60’s and even a few over 70 degrees. While we can sure use more moisture, there is enough in the ground to start some cool season grasses. Several long range forecasts have predicted that the upper plains should see a good deal of moisture in March. Either way, grass tetany season is about to start…
Self-fed supplement intake variation
Building off of Jon Albro’s blog from last week, I too had some interesting observations from the NCBA Cattleman’s College. One Researcher provided some information on the intake variation of self-fed, as well as hand-fed supplements. Most notably it was stated that the percent of non-consumers of hand-fed supplements was probably around 5%.
A great winter for feeding CRYSTALYX
I was riding through Montana last week with a sales associate, and one of his comments regarding the year we have been having was, “What a great winter for feeding CRYSTALYX®!” I have heard this comment many times over the years when we have had a milder fall/winter.
Don't gamble with lower calf prices
Calf prices seem to be in a freefall here lately. If we look at what CattleFax has for their summary of five and six-weight calves this week compared to last year, we see a fifty dollar per CWT decline, with 15 dollars in the last week. Certainly the market is adjusting to all the red ink in the feeding industry.
You don't feed cows like steers in a feedlot
The single greatest advantage a cow-calf operation has over other livestock production systems is the ability of a cow (and her calf) to graze and harvest forages in places you cannot plant corn and soybeans, or that you cannot feasibly access with a windrower and baler. Even though ruminants “may” contribute somewhere between 5% and 8% of all greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere, their unique ability to turn most any forage on the planet into usable human nourishment, insures a bright future for the beef industry around the world.
The heat of the summer is upon us
July is here, and with it, some of the hottest days of the summer are just ahead of us. Self-fed intake of CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements can be higher in the summer/warmer months. During the manufacturing process, CRYSTALYX® is packaged in to barrels at a temperature of approximately 150 to 175 degrees. At this temperature, CRYSTALYX® is very pliable, much like Play Doh® or thick cookie dough. As it cools, it becomes hard. Hardness is a primary factor in determining the self-fed intake of CRYSTALYX®. As you would expect, if CRYSTALYX® warms back up towards that 150 degree temperature, it will become softer again. That is just the nature of a Low-Moisture Block.
BioBarrels, 48 row corn planters, GPS and net wrap
What do BioBarrels®, 48 row corn planters, GPS and net wrap have in common? They all allow one person to do much more than you could, 10 or 20 years ago.
Looking at how agriculture has progressed in the last generation, we have seen any number of innovations that allow you to do much more with your time. Much of this was necessary as today’s farmers and ranchers need to operate more acres or total animals than their parents and grandparents did, just to maintain a similar living.
CRYSTALYX: The game changer
This may show that I watch a little too much reality TV, or, as a Friend calls it, “Far from reality TV”, but, I many times hear the phrase “this is a game changer”. People mining for gold in Alaska, may bring some new equipment or technology into play, and they proudly state, “This, is a game changer”, hoping to strike it rich.
Change Is coming: Let better nutrition make you a winner
Saying that change is coming is about as earth shattering as saying the sun will rise again tomorrow.
Having traveled around the country a bit in the last month, I have had the chance to hear some reactions from beef producers and Allied Industry Associates on the upcoming Voluntary Removal of some antibiotics and/or antibiotic claims from feeds. Removing some antibiotics from feeds is certainly a change for us. The intent of the rule is to reduce the amount of antibiotics used in animal agriculture. You will still be able to use most antibiotics to treat or prevent diseases, but using antibiotics for claims to increase feed efficiency, or to increase rate of gain, will come to an end after December of 2016. Antibiotics in feed for prevention and treatment of diseases will remain available, but will require veterinarian oversight in the form of a Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD). If you wish to use allowed antibiotics in feeds in 2017, you will need to have a good working relationship with a veterinarian.
We don't make your cow herd... we make your cow herd better
Remember that old advertisement that stated, “We don’t make a lot of the products you buy,… We make a lot of the products you buy, better?” It was actually trademarked for a time, by BASF Corporation. I have always thought that it applied very well to how CRYSTALYX® works. I might change it just a little, to state that, “We don’t make a lot of your assets,… We make a lot of your assets, better.”
