Farm & Ranch
My Farm Radio App
By Jessica Crabtree
The year is 2016, and by this point modern technology has advanced agriculture far beyond most farmer’s and ranchers wildest dreams. There is GPS in tractors, touch screens and much more.
Emerging technology implemented in recent years include mobile computing, 4G networks you can take along to ensure strong internet connection and telematics technology that allows you to check where each farm vehicle is, the fuel level, amount of crops harvested with it, product applied and even when the vehicle is near breakdown.
Other technology includes mini chromosome technology to identify corn traits, highly efficient ethanol production, drought resistant traits in crops, biologicals which are advances in pest control and growth enhancers, RFID technology that stands for radio frequency identification to indentify livestock, soil crop sensors to read plant health, water needs in the crop and nitrogen levels in the soil and electronic drive systems where tractors, sprayers and other farm vehicles generate electric power to run auxiliaries and attachments.
By this day and age most flip phones have been replaced by smart phones; however, a few still exist. A larger majority of farmers and ranchers were brought into the smart phone movement kicking and screaming; however, over time I would be willing to bet they see how beneficial the phone is, enabling access to the internet, allowing a plethora of knowledge and so much more. To read more pick up a copy of the September 2016 NTFR issue.
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.
By Tressa Lawrence
Babies are tucked away in every nook and cranny. Many ranchers across Wyoming have baby animals popping up all over this time of year.
By Lindsey Monk
Another load of grain in to keep feeding the calves until the green grass can really start popping.
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