Farm & Ranch
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch
By Rayford Pullen | [email protected]
Now that we are entrenched in the dog days of summer, calves being held over for winter forage or being backgrounded do not gain much as our forage quality bottoms out. From personal experience, stocker calves I ran during July through September had rates of gain of half a pound of gain per day. I realized then we had to supplement these cattle if we wanted better gains.
The limiting factor restricting our gains is protein. If you have a good source of grass, supplementing your cattle with a pound or more of cotton seed cake will increase gains by roughly 30 to 40 percent according to trials conducted by Oklahoma State University.
If calves are worth $3 per pound, this extra gain, according to trials that began on August 16 and continued for 56 days, equals 27.44 more pounds and is worth $82 per head at a cost of $18. We can feed the protein every day, every other day, or Monday, Wednesday, Friday, as long as we average a pound or more per day. Yes, you can substitute 20 percent protein cubes, but you will have to double the amount fed daily, and it will also increase our cost.
To read more, pick up a copy of the August issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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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