Farm & Ranch
Meanwhile back at the ranch…
By Rayford Pullen
With the new year we have an opportunity to make resolutions regarding our personal lives and our business lives and in this case, our cattle operations.
What tops your list of things you’d like to see change or at least improve? Having seen several summers, falls, winters and springs in my lifetime, I don’t know what I’m really willing to change. I guess I’m more into trying to right a few wrong choices from the past while at the same time attempting to do the right thing in my cattle operation, but therein lies the problem and specifically how my ideas shared through a medium such as this may be the best for me but not the best for you.
That is why I try to share what we do here at Pullen Angus as maybe something for you to think about more than “that’s the way it needs to be done.” You’ll also notice I use the phrase “in my opinion” quite often as well as “my observation,” which is my way of letting you know that my thoughts may not be exactly how it is or works or what causes it, but that I’m probably not going to dig any further into that particular subject because I don’t want to do the research. Your job, as I see it, is to follow through on some of my thoughts and how they may be something you need to consider. We all have different goals and objectives and our abilities are limited or enhanced by knowledge, finances and/or our wives or other family members.
Where do you start?
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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