Veterinary Feed Directives and Natural Resources Legislation| Podcast

Antibiotics Use Livestock ResistanceOne of the bigger topics last week’s Montana Nutrition Conference was a discussion with Dr. Bruce Hoffman of Elanco Animal Health and Dr. Marty Zaluski, Montana State Veterinarian. These two had a great question and answer session regarding changes with Veterinary Feed Directives and our ability to continue using feed grade antibiotics in the livestock industry.

Montana Stockgrowers has been working with Dr. Hoffman and we’ll be providing you plenty of information about these changes and the relationships ranchers will need to build between their veterinarians and feed dealers with the implementation of these new regulations.

We recently had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Hoffman for a lengthy discussion regarding these VFDs. He explained the changes in requirements in more detail and what we need to know before the new rules are in place by the end of 2016. Key points in the changes coming with Veterinary Feed Directives include the importance of involving veterinarians and nutritionists in our management decisions, abiding by label uses for antibiotics, and ensuring customers that we’re being good stewards of our resources in these conversations about antibiotics use in livestock.

On today’s podcast we’ll have a portion of that conversation, as well as some information about what Elanco is doing to bring greater awareness to the importance of protein in providing healthy food for the hungry amongst a rapidly growing global population through their Feed The Nine Campaign. Follow #FeedThe9 on Twitter or go to SensibleTable.com for more information.

But first, Ryan Goodman will catch up with MSGA Director of Natural Resources, Jay Bodner, for a quick review of a few bills during the Montana Legislative Session that affect wildlife management and landowner property rights here in Montana.

Branding on Montana Cattle Ranches | Video

With Spring comes one of our favorite times of year. As calving is wrapping up for many ranches across Montana, those who started calving earlier in the year will begin branding in preparation for turnout on Spring and Summer grass ranges. Often when we ask ranchers across the state what they love about ranching, branding is an event that will more than likely be included in their response. It’s a great time for community as several neighbors join in to help, with great food and many memorable experiences.

One of our ranchers near Sidney, Montana recently captured their family’s Spring branding in aerial video. It’s a very cool perspective to watch as the cattle are gathered, sorted and branded.

Why do Montana ranchers brand cattle?

Livestock branding has existed for centuries in European countries and eventually migrating to Central and North Americas. Since the earliest days on ranges, hot iron brands were used as a form of permanent identification to prevent rustling and served as a marker when sorting out mixed herds in common grazing areas.

Today, ranchers still brand cattle as a form of permanent identification to differentiate cattle from neighboring ranches and to prevent theft. Branding day is an opportunity for ranchers to give calves vaccinations and closely inspect their herds before turning cattle out on summer pastures. The branding events also serve as a strong tie to the heritage and culture of the American West.

During recent years, the cattle industry has recognized the significant contribution of cattle hides in leather markets and the negative impact excessive brand scarring can have on the value of that leather. Efforts have been made to reduce the number of brands, or relocate brands to reduce negative impacts on the hide value. Freeze branding has also become more popular in certain regions of the country as an alternative to hot iron branding.

We asked our current President, Gene Curry, a rancher from Valier, Montana why his family brands their cattle. Find out his perspective and watch branding day with his family in this video.

Who regulates cattle brands?

 

As a permanent form of identification, each brand, and its location on the animal must be different. Each state handles its registration and regulation of brands differently. In Montana, this is tracked and regulated by the Brands Enforcement Division of the Department of Livestock (DOL). Brands Inspectors must inspect cattle at the time of sale or when cattle are transported from one location to another to verify ownership or record change of ownership.

To ensure that all brands are different, the DOL records brands and their location on the animal, which are published in a Brand Book. Brands must be recorded every 10 years. Ranchers are keeping up with technology, as last year this database of brands was made available in a mobile application, which can search through the entire brands database to identify an owner or location of the brand.

Brands must be recorded as being on a specific location on the animal. These locations often include the hip, rib, shoulder, side or jaw. The image to the right shows several different locations for brands on cattle.

Read more about how brands are registered and tracked by visiting the Montana Department of Livestock.

How do I read cattle brands?

Brands on livestock come in many shapes and sizes, and are based on a characters consisting of letters, numbers, lines or symbols. The brands are read from left to right. top-down, or outside-in. The position of the character makes a difference in how it is read. If a letter or number is on its side, it is read as “lazy”. If it has a quarter/half circle underneath the main character, it is read as “rocking”. Other symbols include diamonds, circles, rafters, crosses and bars.

Learn more about reading cattle brands from the Texas Brand Registration.

Every brand has a story

What is the story behind your ranch’s brand? Has your brand been passed down through the generations? Is there a story to the characters included? Maybe its a new brand with a nod toward a bright future?

Share your story with us and share a photo of your brand. Email [email protected] or visit our Facebook page to join the conversation!

What is the Beef Checkoff and Who Pays? | Checkoff Chat

Establishing the Beef Checkoff DollarsQ: Who is required to pay into the Beef Checkoff?

A: By law, all producers selling cattle or calves, for any reason and regardless of age or sex, must pay $1 per head to support beef/veal promotion, research and information through the Beef Promotion and Research Act, which is the 1985 enabling legislation for the Beef Checkoff Program. The buyer generally is responsible for collecting $1 per head from the seller, but both are responsible for seeing that the dollar is collected and paid.

In addition, the checkoff is collected at the same rate on every live beef animal imported and at the equivalent rate of $1-per-head on all beef products that are imported. [The current equivalent weight on live cattle is 592 pounds, and the formula for figuring the equivalents on imported beef and beef products is in the Beef Promotion and Research Order. See details of the rule in the Federal Register that set the current rate].

Q: Is anyone exempt from paying the dollar?

A: Producers of 100 percent USDA-certified organic products are exempt from most commodity checkoffs, based on separate legislation, but they must meet strict requirements and re-apply for certification on an annual basis. No other producer is exempt from the beef checkoff, according to the Beef Act. Buyers who resell cattle no more than 10 days from the date of purchase may file a non-producer status form and avoid paying an additional dollar. They are, however, responsible for remitting collected funds and reporting any transactions to the qualified state beef council.

Q: What is the penalty if someone doesn’t pay the $1 per head assessment?

A: A late fee of 2 percent on the assessments owed is compounded monthly. USDA can assess a civil penalty of up to $7,500 per transaction [the sale of one animal], plus those late fees.

Q: Can we vote on the checkoff?

A: Yes. The federal legislation that created the beef checkoff states that the Secretary of Agriculture may call a referendum as to continuation of the program when 10 percent of producers request it. Cattlemen would pay the cost of the referendum out of checkoff dollars.

Checkoff Chat Montana Beef CouncilRead more about the Beef Checkoff Programs in our Checkoff Chat Series with the Montana Beef Council. Click here to submit your own questions to be answered in future posts.

About the Beef Checkoff
The Beef Checkoff Program (MyBeefCheckoff.com) was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. It assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the $1 and forward the other 50 cents to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval. The Montana Beef Council was created in 1954 by cattlemen as a marketing organization for the Montana beef industry and is organized to protect and increase demand for beef and beef products through state, national and international beef promotion, research and education, thereby enhancing profit opportunities for Montana beef producers.

Short Cattle Supplies and Beef Demand | Checkoff Chat

beef consumer demand meat case

Retail beef demand increased 7 percent year over year in 2014.

Q: Cattle supplies are down and beef prices are up, so is demand going to bust?

A: Anyone who has listened to a CattleFax presentation in the previous 12 months will recognize the confluence of factors that were deemed to be the market’s “perfect storm.” Prices for beef, pork and poultry were elevated due to tight per capita supplies and stronger demand.

Intuition would say higher prices should lead to demand destruction, yet since all of the competing meats were facing limited supplies, customers were willing to pay more for what was available. Retail beef demand increased 7 percent year over year in 2014 with a record-high annual average all-fresh retail price of $5.60 per pound. Fed cattle prices averaged $154 per hundredweight in 2014, which was up $200 per head at this price level. While both supply and demand were very supportive to profits last year, there is still and important piece missing from the discussion. Read more from Beef Issues Quarterly.

Checkoff Chat Montana Beef CouncilRead more about the Beef Checkoff Programs in our Checkoff Chat Series with the Montana Beef Council. Click here to submit your own questions to be answered in future posts.

About the Beef Checkoff
The Beef Checkoff Program (MyBeefCheckoff.com) was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. It assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the $1 and forward the other 50 cents to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval. The Montana Beef Council was created in 1954 by cattlemen as a marketing organization for the Montana beef industry and is organized to protect and increase demand for beef and beef products through state, national and international beef promotion, research and education, thereby enhancing profit opportunities for Montana beef producers.

New Series Answers Beef Checkoff Questions | Checkoff Chat

Checkoff Chat Montana Beef CouncilAfter increased attention in news headlines over the past year, we have been receiving several questions about Beef Council programs and how your Checkoff dollars are being used to promote beef to consumers. MyBeefCheckoff.com offers many pages of information to answer these questions about national Cattlemen’s Beef Board (CBB) programs. Locally, the Montana Beef Council (MBC) administers many programs at the state level for Montana consumers.

We recognize ranchers may not always see the full extent of these promotion efforts because most programs are directed at beef consumers and encouraging them to purchase more of our product. Montana Stockgrowers receives Checkoff grant funding for our Environmental Stewardship Award Program, which shares stories of ranches’ environmental stewardship, conservation and sustainability with consumers.

Announcing a new series – Checkoff Chat

To answer your questions, we’ve teamed up with the Montana Beef Council for a Q&A series, Checkoff Chat. Over the next several months, Checkoff Chat will address questions about how your Checkoff dollars are being used to promote beef to consumers as part of a healthy diet and lifestyle. Click here to see all posts in the series as they are posted, and be sure to share these posts with your friends, neighbors and followers.

Looking for a place to submit your questions about the Beef Checkoff programs? Use our Contact form to send us a message and we’ll pass it along to the Montana Beef Council to be answered in a future post!

The first post in the series is available tomorrow morning. Don’t miss a post in the series! Use the subscription form on the right-hand side of the page to receive emails each time we share a new post.

Grown in Montana Features State’s Top 10 Agriculture Products

Image via Grown in Montana

Image via Grown in Montana

Montana is definitely the beef state and that is confirmed by an article in Montana Department of Agriculture’s recent Grown in Montana publication.

Cattle and Calves make up the largest of agricultural commodities in Montana (based on 2013 cash receipts), with more than 2,550,000 cattle bringing over $1.5 billion to the state’s economy. Beaverhead and Fergus counties lead the state in the number of all calves and beef calves born in the state, respectively.

What about the state’s agricultural commodities? Here is a Top 10 list:

  1. Cattle and calves – Did you know, there are more than 2.5 cattle for every person living in Montana?
  2. Wheat – Montana ranks No. 3 in the nation for wheat production. This crop brings $1.4 billion in cash receipts to the state with more than 5,400,000 acres planted.
  3. Hay – Montana ranks as 4th in the nation for hay production with an economic impact of $753,480,000 in cash receipts. Alfalfa makes up a large portion of this crop valued at an average $141 per ton.
  4. Barley – In 2013, this cropped reached its highest production value in more than a century and is used for malting or feed. 990,000 acres bring in cash receipts of more than $283 million. Teton county leads the nation in barley production with 7,670,000 bushels. Montana leads the nation in number of barley acres planted.
  5. Image via Grown in Montana

    Image via Grown in Montana

    Dry Peas – This pulse crop hit records with 520,000 acres planted in 2014 and $96 million in cash receipts. Montana ranks number 1 in the nation for dry peas and lentils production.

  6. Sugar Beats – Montana ranks No.6 in the nation for sugar beet production. In 2013, 1,250,000 tons were harvested from 42,800 acres, drawing $92,895,000 in cash receipts.
  7. Hogs – Montana hogs recently hit prices not seen in more than a decade, with an average value of $145 per head. In 2012, the state had cash receipts of more than $64,109,000 from pig farming.
  8. Milk – The average milk produced from Montana dairy cows comes out to 21,286 pounds annually, consuming a total of 3 million pounds of feed. The dairy business brings $55,165,000 in cash receipts to the Montana economy.
  9. Potatoes – Idaho may be most famous as the potato state, but did you know Big Sky Country produces its fair share of seed potatoes? The crop tallies up to $44,389,000 for Montana farmers on 11,000 acres.
  10. Honey – This sweet treat lands Montana in the No. 2 slot nationally. Montana is home to 160,000 bee colonies, doubling production in 2013 with a value of over $31 million.

Learn more about Montana agriculture and read stories behind the state’s farmers and ranchers in Grown in Montana – “a guide to the state’s top crops, livestock, agribusiness, tourism, food safety and local products – by visiting this link from the Montana Department of Agriculture.

Team BEEF Montana: Fuel for the Finish

Montana Beef Council logoBy Lisa Murray, Registered Dietitian, Director of Nutrition – Montana Beef Council

For many Americans, the journey toward better health and active living is an ongoing struggle.  For the 90-plus percent of Americans who love beef, it has been the role and responsibility of the Beef Checkoff Program to explain how to incorporate beef in a healthful diet and lifestyle.  While beef offers sizzle, great flavor and ten essential nutrients (zinc, iron, protein, and B-vitamins to name a few) it is also a healthy way to fuel physical activity.

Research has found that physical activity is more effective when coupled with a protein-rich diet because it helps to maintain muscle mass while losing fat.  A 3-ounce serving of lean beef (about the size of a deck of cards) supplies 25 grams of protein in only 150 calories.  Whether you’re just starting to exercise or you’re a seasoned athlete, the protein and nine other essential nutrients in the more than 30 lean cuts of beef work together to build muscle and keep your body healthy. Following a healthy diet before, during and after exercise helps maximize performance and recovery.

Team Beef Montana members are walking, running, biking, hiking, active billboards for beef.  The team includes athletes, moms, engineers, students, farmers, ranchers, dietitians, researchers, teachers, and healthcare professionals. While their backgrounds may be diverse, their passion is what brings them together: living an active lifestyle and loving beef. Team Beef Montana currently has 55 active members around the state.

What is required to be a Team Beef Montana member? You must eat Beef as part of your healthy active lifestyle (weekend warrior to elite athlete), be a Montana resident and be at least 18 years old.

For more information about Team Beef Montana visit www.montanabeefcouncil.org or you can e-mail Lisa at [email protected].

Postpartum Interval and Fertility | Rancher Education

Rachel Endecott, Montana State University Extension Beef Cattle SpecialistBy Dr. Rachel Endecott, MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist

After calving, cows go through a period of temporary infertility known as postpartum anestrus. Cows will not experience estrous cycles during this time. Another common term associated with this phenomenon is postpartum interval, which is the time from calving to the subsequent conception. Postpartum interval plays an important role in determining a cow’s calving interval, or the number of days from calving date in one year to calving date the next year. To maintain a 365-day calving interval, a cow must have a postpartum interval of 80-85 days. If a shorter calving interval is desired to move the cow up in the calving cycle, she must have a postpartum interval of less than 80-85 days.

Several factors can influence the length of the postpartum anestrous period, including uterine involution, short cycling, suckling effects, and nutritional status. Uterine involution is the regression of the uterus—in both structure and function—to a status that is capable of carrying another pregnancy. This entails the uterus returning to a non-pregnant size, shape, and position, shedding all fetal membranes, and the repair of uterine tissues. This process is completed in approximately 20-40 days post-calving if no complications arise.

The first ovulation postpartum often occurs without visual signs of the cow being in heat, and is often followed by abnormal function of the corpus luteum (CL). Normal CL lifespan takes up 14-18 days of the typical 21-day estrous cycle of a beef cow. The short estrous cycles experienced by cows overcoming postpartum anestrus are characterized by a CL lifespan of 10 days or less. This is thought to be due to high levels of prostaglandin production and metabolism by the uterus during uterine involution. Prostaglandin is responsible for regression and death of the CL in a normal estrous cycle, but at the elevated levels described, that regression and death of the CL is premature. If fertilization of the egg from this ovulation were to occur, maternal recognition of pregnancy would fail as CL regression would take place too soon, and the embryo would be lost.

A nursing calf can be a factor in the length of time a cow takes to return to cyclicity. One might assume that the energy demand of lactation is the major issue at play in this case, but it is actually the suckling effect and presence of a calf. Suckling triggers a complex system of brain and hormone responses that result in lack of ovulation.  Frequency of suckling has shown to have a threshold influence on postpartum fertility. Suckling sessions of two or less per day promote return to cyclicity while sessions of greater than two per day tend to cause postpartum anestrus. It has been suggested that the maternal bond between the dam and calf plays an important role in this phenomenon as well. This may be due to the cow seeing, smelling, or hearing her calf or all of the above!

Plane of nutrition is an important part of cattle management throughout the production cycle. Pre-calving nutrition is probably more important than post-calving nutrition in impacting postpartum interval length. Cows with inadequate energy reserves typically have several follicular waves before a successful ovulation. Without ovulation, no CL forms and estrous cycles are not initiated. Due to the dramatic increases in nutrient requirements during late gestation and early lactation, intervention to improve cow condition during times of the year when nutrient requirements are lowest (post-weaning, for example) will result in the most efficient use of nutrients by the cow at a lower cost.

Many different factors interact to impact the postpartum anestrous period in beef cows. This post-calving period of temporary infertility can’t be avoided, but through an understanding of the systems at play, it can be managed to ensure reproductive success during the breeding season.

Know Ranch Employee Needs to Improve People Management

In this video, Casey Risinger, DVM, Risinger Veterinary Hospital, Terrell, Texas, says you have to change yourself to help your team succeed. “I wasn’t sure if this program was something that would work in a veterinary clinic or if it was specifically for a feedyard or dairy. And it wasn’t at all. It was all about if you manage people.” Learn more at GrowPeopleFirst.com.

In this video, Casey Risinger, DVM, Risinger Veterinary Hospital, Terrell, Texas, says you have to change yourself to help your team succeed. “I wasn’t sure if this program was something that would work in a veterinary clinic or if it was specifically for a feedyard or dairy. And it wasn’t at all. It was all about if you manage people.” Learn more at GrowPeopleFirst.com.

Dr. Casey Risinger is a veterinarian. But he is also a manager of people.

Until now, Dr. Risinger had never given a review to any of his team members. He didn’t know how much he, his staff and business needed it.

“I’ve been told by other people, yes, you need to do this, but I had put it off and put it off,” said Dr. Risinger, of Risinger Veterinary Hospital in Terrell, Texas. “I just think everybody knows what’s going on and what to do. I know what I expect and surely everybody reads my mind. But I realize they don’t.”

Learning how to communicate in new ways with staff helped him see how much he could support his team.

“The reviews really helped me have a better understanding of what was expected of me and what they thought I was expecting out of them,” Dr. Risinger said. “They want to know how they can get better, where I think they can get better, and then they want to be able to express what I can do to help them.”

It even made him aware of issues he had never considered before.

“I would realize there was a problem, but I really didn’t understand where it was coming from,” he said. “I never thought about that, and I think that was one of the key things, is just understanding where people are at and where I can help them. Now I’ve got the tools to do that.”

The only way your business gets bigger and better is through your ability to manage people, he continued.

“I have to change first,” Dr. Risinger said. “The better I get, the better I should be able to help staff, help new employees, help existing people find out the needs they have. I can help the staff, and the more they know, and the more they’ve been trained, the more they can help the customer.

“Encouragement is always the best motivator, and when clients give comments and feedback, this gets everybody excited about trying to do a better job.”

In this video, hear more from Dr. Risinger about how you can learn to help your team. For help identifying ways to build a better team and veterinary clinic, operation or business, contact your local Zoetis representative or visit GrowPeopleFirst.com.

This is part of a series on rancher continuing education articles and provided by Zoetis. To see more rancher education posts, click here.

What’s the deal with sainfoin?

Emily Glunk Montana State Forage ExtensionBy Dr. Emily Glunk, Montana State Extension Forage Specialist

I have been getting a lot of questions on my travels around the state about sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia), and how can it fit into forage production in Montana.

Sainfoin is a legume, with a bright pink flower (although they can also be white or purple), and leaves with 11-21 leaflets. It may grow a little taller than alfalfa in certain environments, but a lot of times we are seeing similar production results.

One of the biggest benefits of sainfoin is that it is a non-bloating legume, which means that not only is it valuable in hay production, but we can also safely graze our livestock on it without having to worry about any bloat issues. In addition, because it is a legume, it is providing Nitrogen back to the soil via nitrogen fixation, which is a huge benefit and a large reduction in cost. Because let’s face it, the cost of fertilizer these days can be a little hard to swallow. When we add sainfoin, or other legumes, in a mixture with other grasses, we can significantly reduce or eliminate the amount of Nitrogen that we need to apply (however, soil samples should always be taken to know exactly how much we need to fertilize and with what).

We also know that sainfoin is very palatable. I have even heard it described as being “too palatable” (if you can imagine that) with it being preferred by wildlife over alfalfa and other forages. It has been described as being slightly more drought-tolerant than alfalfa, although it likes a little higher average precipitation, typically over 14” of annual rainfall. However, some producers actually state that they have had better luck with sainfoin in dryland situations than alfalfa, although this may not always be the case. It also likes soils with a pH above 7, and it seems to prefer coarser soils, or calcareous soils.

Another huge benefit is that sainfoin does not exhibit the allelopathic, or autotoxic effect that we see in alfalfa. This means that when we have a declining stand, or one that is producing below our desired goals, we can interseed more sainfoin, or allow itself to interseed naturally. This is a huge benefit, as we don’t have to worry about completely renovating our stand.

Typically, we see sainfoin mature at a quicker rate than alfalfa. One study found that sainfoin reached full maturity (100% bloom) while alfalfa was only at 78% bloom.

The same study also recommended that for the highest yield of both dry matter and nutrients that you harvest when sainfoin is closer to full maturity, a little different than that of alfalfa. We do see slightly lower crude protein values when the plants are compared at similar maturities, but they have similar TDN (total digestible nutrients) concentrations, and in some cases the NDF and ADF (see previous column, “The case for RFQ” for an explanation) were actually lower in the sainfoin compared to alfalfa. Because sainfoin is able to retain its lower leaves better than alfalfa, we see a slower decline in nutrient quality through the growing season, another added benefit.

Another interesting thing about sainfoin is that it seems to have a natural resistance to glyphosate (Roundup). This does not mean that it won’t have significant yield reductions like RoundUp Ready alfalfa  after glyphosate application, but when varying rates of glyphosate were applied to a stand of sainfoin over two years in Wyoming, the stand was able to survive glyphosate application. However, it should be noted that it did have a significant reduction in yield. Even glyphosate applied at a rate of 8 fluid oz. per acre resulted in a significant yield loss. However, the stand was able to recover the following year after in the low-rate treatments. So while it may potentially be a tool for weed control, it should not be a first resort.

So what are the drawbacks? Sainfoin can be finicky to get established, and it seems to take a little bit longer than other forages such as alfalfa. It also requires significantly higher seeding rates than alfalfa, which can prove costly. Also, when being grown in a mixture with many forage species, alternate seeding is more conducive to adequate stand establishment than a complete mixture.

This is especially important when it is grown with bunchgrasses like Russian wildrye and crested wheatgrass. Another limitation to establishment is that it does not like soils with high water tables, or soils that are poorly drained. We also recommend that you do not graze for two seasons after planting to allow it to get established.

Care should be taken when harvesting and grazing sainfoin so that there is still some leaf area remaining. Sainfoin does not store carbohydrates during the summer, and relies on photosynthesis for regrowth, hence the need for extra leaf area.

On average, we typically see alfalfa persisting for longer periods of time than sainfoin, but there are stands that are over 20 years old in Montana. The biggest problem that producers have is that it is a little more susceptible to root and crown rots than alfalfa, this typically being the reason that a stand needs to be terminated. But, especially in a rotational setting, sainfoin can be a great option to look at.

Overall, sainfoin is a great forage, with a lot to offer to Montana producers. If you have any questions or comments, contact Dr. Emily Glunk at 406.994.5688 or [email protected].