Farm & Ranch
Horse Trainer Mike Major
By Dani Blackburn
Horse trainer Mike Major cannot remember a time he was not horseback. At the tender age of seven, he broke his first colt and quickly fell in love with the challenge training presented. With a deep understanding of a horse’s mind, the patience to teach and a strong attention to detail in the show pen, success has followed Major throughout his career.
“It has been great,” Major said of his accomplished career. “I have met a lot of neat people. It has been fun, of course, success makes it fun. I think you learn how to win, but it’s not about beating anybody because I don’t think I have ever competed against anybody other than myself. You just have to be very diligent on everything you do in a show pen.”
His list of accomplishments includes the 2009 and 2010 American Quarter Horse Association Open World Championship Versatility Ranch Horse title on his 1999 bay stallion, Smart Whiskey Doc. Major also claimed the 2010 Battle in the Saddle Ranch Remuda Challenge and the 2012 AQHA Versatility Ranch Horse Open World Championship on Whiskey’s daughter, Black Hope Stik. Most recently, he was named this year’s Road to the Horse winner, but it all began on his father’s ranch north of Magdalena, NM.
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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