Farm & Ranch

Calf weaning procedures and post calf vaccination protocol

Published

8 years ago

April 24, 2016

NTFR

By Jessica Crabtree and Dr. Jered Harlan

Weaning for cow/calf producers is a time of gratification, when all the hours of work finally pay off and the majority of their income is made.
However, the trend is changing and more producers are keeping their weaned calves and administering a preconditioning program.

This equals value added to their recently weaned calf crop. This method seems to be a more progressive piece of management to pay in dividends when managing their herd. Weaning is critical in areas such as breeding efficiency and feed utilization as well as feedlot performance, carcass merit and marketing of cattle.

However, for the calves weaning time is a stressful period in their lives, second to birth. Traditionally calves are weaned at six to eight months, early at three to five. At six to eight the calf is exposed to less stress, is more marketable and requires fewer days to finish, equaling lower input cost.

At three to five months, producers can conserve forage and cow condition if under a drought, accelerate finishing time and elevate marbling and better feed to gain. To read more pick up a copy of the May 2016 issue of NTFR.

Farm & Ranch

Hazards of Backyard Poultry

Published

3 days ago

April 21, 2024

NTFR

By Barry Whitworth, DVM

Having backyard poultry is a popular agriculture enterprise. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, 0.8 percent of all households in the United States have chickens. People keep chickens for a variety of reasons with table eggs being one of the more common reasons.

Unfortunately, some of these poultry producers are not aware of the hazards that come with keeping poultry because many times they carry pathogens but appear healthy.
Chickens are carriers of several zoonotic diseases. These are diseases that can be passed from animals to humans. According to a recent survey in Pennsylvania, a majority of backyard poultry producers were aware of the dangers of avian influenza. However, this study also revealed that far fewer producers were aware of the risk of possible exposure to Salmonella and Campylobacter.

The lack of knowledge about the hazards of raising poultry likely contributes to the continued issues of Salmonella outbreaks associated with backyard poultry. In 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 1,072 illnesses of Salmonella linked to backyard poultry, and 272 of those patients required hospitalization. Oklahoma reported 43 individuals with the disease.

To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.