Farm & Ranch
Connecting the Numbers
By contributing writer Rayford Pullen
As we continue to get calves on the ground and pray for rain, I often get to tinkering with our numbers to see how we have been doing regarding our birth weights and weaning weights. In 2013, our average birth weight for all calves was 81 pounds. Broken down, it was a 77 pound average for heifers and an 84 pound average
for bull calves. Our average weaning weight for all calves was 612 pounds with heifers averaging 600 pounds and bulls averaging 625. The weaning weights were adjusted to 7 months of age and the calves did not receive creep feed.
Calves were sired by 24 different bulls. When we looked at birth weight difference and weaning weight difference by sire, we saw a range for average of weaning weights per sire from a high of 706 to a low of 570 pounds, or 136 pounds. On the birth weight ranges per sire, we had a range from 64 to 94 pounds or 30 pounds.
To read more pick up the March 2014 issue of North Texas Farm & Ranch.
By Barry Whitworth, DVM, MPH
With the prolonged drought, most pastures in Oklahoma end up in poor condition. With the lack of available forage, animals may go in search of alternative foods.
If oak trees are in the pastures, acorns may be a favorite meal for some livestock in the fall. This may result in oak poisoning.
Oak leaves, twigs, buds, and acorns may be toxic to some animals when consumed.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Tony Dean
There are a handful of grasses on North Texas grazing lands ranchers need to know, not because they are highly desirable, but rather because they are not of much value. I call them “decom” plants, which is am acronym for “Don’t Ever Count On Me.” Silver bluestem is a “decom” grass.
Silver bluestem is a perennial which grows in all areas of Texas. It can survive in almost all soil types, and in full sun conditions or in semi shade. It grows up to three feet tall and is easily recognized with the presence of the white fuzzy seed head. Also, one of the identifying characteristics of Silver bluestem is a bend in the stems at each node, causing the plants to take on a rounded shape as they mature.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Rayford Pullen
Fall is here which means winter is closing in on us and before we officially get into winter, we need to make sure our factories are either producing or will be producing in a few months.
We have been pregnancy testing our cows this fall and if they are not bred or nursing a calf, we are bidding them adios. With annual costs somewhere between $900.00 and $1,000.00 per cow, those cows not producing a live weaned calf are costing us quite a bit.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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