2015 Fall Frontline Beef Producer by International Brangus Breeders Association

FRONTLINE

A NEWS SOURCE FOR COMMERCIAL BEEF PRODUCERS

Fall 2015

VOLUME 7

ISSUE 2

beef producer

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 1

Your SOURCE for Top Quality Registered & Commercial Brangus Cattle

Proud Members of

GO TEXAN

Circle Land & Cattle Co., Ltd. Camp Cooley Ranch • Bobcat Bottoms Ranch • Persimmon Creek Ranch Spring Valley Ranch • Windy Hill Ranch • Vista Ridge Ranch

2 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

located just off Hwy. 6 and OSR 1415 East OSR • Bryan, Texas 77808 Office: (979) 776-5760 • Fax: (979) 776-4818 Website: www.circlexbrangus.com Steve Densmore, Cattle Mgr., (979) 450-0819, cell • S.Densmore@bre.com Chris Duewall, Operations Mgr., (979) 777-6803, cell

Total Commitment

TOWN CREEK FARM WEST POINT, MISSISSIPPI

Since 1993

Saturday, October 17, 2015 • 12 noon

160 TOWN CREEK FARM BULLS

BRANGUS BULL 4329A SELLS. YEAR MARBLING SCORE: 4.92%.

Entire 2 year-old calf crop sells. No bulls have been sold from this crop of bulls. Powerful, practical, functional bulls developed on a high roughage forage-based ration. Bulls guaranteed fertile and reproductively sound. Largely Cow Creek Ranch based genetics.

260 COMMERCIAL BRANGUS BRED HEIFERS

Multi-generation genetically-tracked heifers sired by Cow Creek Ranch bulls and bred back to Cow Creek Ranch and Town Creek Farm bulls.

BRANGUS BULL 007B SELLS. YEAR REA/CWT: 1.25 SQ. INCHES.

BRANGUS BULL 779B2 SELLS.YEAR REA/CWT: 1.19 SQ. INCHES.

BRANGUS BULL 15A SELLS. YEAR MARBLING SCORE: 3.60%.

BRANGUS BULL 067A2 SELLS. YEAR SCROTAL: 42 CM.

BRANGUS BULL 180A3 SELLS. YEAR MARBLING: 4.25%.

THESE COMMERCIAL BRED HEIFERS SELLS PLUS LOTS MORE.

■ Bulls developed on high roughage, forage-based, low energy ration to ensure longevity and reliable travel. ■ Grow-Safe System used to identify most efficient feed and forage animals. ■ Expansive herd health program. Annual whole herd Johnes testing. Bulls sell Trich tested, Johnes free (bulls & dams Johnes free), BVD-PI tested. ■ Fertility. We are committed to proving genetics that are functional and fertile. Heifers must calve as two-year olds. ■ Large selection of user-friendly, high maternal, low birth weight bulls to produce valuable heifers. ■ Slick haired, heat and humidity tolerant bulls. Guaranteed reproductively sound.

Quality Assurance always comes first. Total Commitment

Since 1993

Town Creek Farm

Milton Sundbeck, Owner Office 662.494.5944 • 32476 Hwy. 50 East, West Point, Mississippi 39773 Joy Reznicek 205.399.0221 • Joy@TownCreekFarm.com Ron Flake 662.509.2233 • Ron@TownCreekFarm.com www.TownCreekFarm.com

Call, email or go to our website for a 2015 Sale Catalog.

ULTRABLACK BULL 1144B SELLS. YEAR MARBLING: 5.11%.

FALL 2015

Out Front:

Brangus Releases Genomic Enhanced EPDs by: Tommy Perkins, Ph.D., PAS

FRONTLINE Beef Producer

MARKETING:

Brangus Publications Inc. Editor and Layout/Art Director

Faces of the industry:

Making Plans for Fall Sale Season by: Kyle Dykes

Tyler Dean

Communications Coordinator

Jessica Johnston

Panhandle Cattlemen: The Rhoades Path to Success by: Kyle Dykes

Commercial Marketing Coordinator

Kyle Dykes

Feature:

The Use of Ultrasound Technology in Commercial Embryo Transfer by: Audy Spell, M.S.

Feature:

Genetics:

Management:

Brangus Influenced Cattle Excel in the Packing Plant

The Value and Importance of Using Genomically-Enhanced EPDs by: Bob Weaber, Ph.D. and Matthew L. Spangler, Ph.D. A Practical Guide for the Use of GE-EPDs by: Megan Rolf, Ph.D.

44 46

Industry:

48 50 52

SERVICES

Tommy Perkins, Ph.D., PAS Kyle Dykes Audy Spell, M.S. Cari B. Rincker, Esq. Bob Weaber, Ph.D. Matthew L. Spangler, Ph.D. Megan Rolf, Ph.D. Blair Fannin Del Williams John Alan Cohan Advertising

Key Performance Indicators Can Lead to Cattle Profits by: Blair Fannin

Management:

Frances Miller

Contributing Editors

Checklist of Issues to Consider for Your Bull Lease by: Cari B. Rincker, Esq.

Administration/Circulation

Hay Bale Heaven: Move Bales Faster with Less Labor and Equipment by: Del Williams

Melanie Fuller, 979.255.3343 Kyle Dykes, 254.371.9388 Operations

Rosanne Nelson Patti Teeler

FRONTLINE Beef Producer is a product of:

Brangus Publications, Inc. 5750 Epsilon San Antonio, Texas 78249 Phone: 210.696.8231 Fax: 210.696.8718

Are “Ag-Gag” Laws Constitutional? by: John Alan Cohan

CALENDAR

Brangus Publications, Inc. Directors: Mike Vorel, Chairman Tommy Perkins, Ph.D., PAS, President Brandon Belt, Secretary/Treasurer Michael Kammerer, Director Eddy Roberts, Director

AD INDEX

Information appearing in this issue may be reprinted only with written permission of Brangus Publications, Inc.

oN the Cover: Mo Williams of Sorrento, Florida, submitted this shot of a five month old Brangus bull calf. 2 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

LPC Livestock Publications Council Member

CX Meathouse 930/U

SBR Night Train 781RZ

CX Mr. Black Diamond 36/U

Sire of Progeny Selling

10B…She Sells

101B…She Sells

862B…She Sells

84B…She Sells

307B…She Sells

74B…She Sells

23B…She Sells

107B1…She Sells

948A4…She Sells

515B…She Sells

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 3

Sale Time...

Offering 150+ Herd Sire Prospects 2 Year Olds | Coming 2â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s | Yearlings Including 60+ calving ease bulls will sell.

DVAuction

Broadcasting Real-Time Auctions

Offering 150 Commercial Bred and Opens... Bred to Brangus and Angus Bulls 4 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

Detail Information...

theoaksfarms.com Sale Headquarters__________________________ Wingate by Wyndham Country Inn & Suites LaGrange, GA 30241 Newnan, GA 30263 706.298.5270 770.304-8500 I-85, Exit 18 I-85, Exit 47

Sale Managed By:

Mark Cowan 903.495.4522 Trey Kirkpatrick 979.324.5518 Richard Hood 979.224.6150 www.amscattle.com

Joe and Catherine Kassler, Owners 4810 Smokey Road, Newnan, Georgia 30263 H:770/251-6522 Fax:770/502-1510 theoaksfarm.com

Vince Roberts, Manager: 678/378-4697 Joey Smith, Cow Herd Manager: 601/299-1552

Offering 60+ Registered Brangus Open and Bred Females...young heifers to proven bred cows.

Selling these commercial bred heifers, Saturday, October 31st FRONTLINE Beef Producer 5

OUT FRONT

by Tommy PERKINS, Ph.D., PAS ibba Executive vice president

Brangus Releases Genomic Enhanced EPDs

to Further Validate them as the Low Maintenance, User Friendly Breed to Rebuild the Nations Cowherd

lthough calf prices have been steady to lower lately, economists continue to show a strong retail demand for beef and extremely tight cattle supplies. It appears the cow-calf producers will have continued good financial times ahead. The value of every pound of weaned calf continues to have greater significance in the commercial cattle segment and I know of no faster way to increase weaned calf weight than to utilize a good crossbreeding program that maximizes heterosis.

Brangus is the reliable beef breed with more than 60 years of planned crossbreeding where all of the hard

EARN

WITH

work has been done for you. Brangus breeders have built the perfect replacement female that is adaptable from the West Coast to the MORE PROFIT East Coast, from the North to the South and everywhere in between. The Brangus female excels in efficiency of weaned calf production, she WEST COAST BRANGUS excels in milk BREEDERS ASSOCIATION production For more information, contact any member of the under limited West Coast Brangus Breeders Association listed below: BELLA TERRA FARMS Atascadero, CA, (805) 391-0044 feed inputs BRUNDY FARMS Seeley, CA, (760) 554-1044 COURTNEY CALLAWAY New Cuyama, CA, (805) 598-7659 and other DEER CREEK RANCH Los Molinas, CA, (541) 817-2535 EL RANCHO ESPANOL DE CUYAMA New Cuyama, CA, (805) 245-0434 environmental KELONUKAI RANCH Hilo, HI, (808) 969-7982 ROMANS BRANGUS Vale, OR, (541) 212-1790 constraints, and RUNNING STAR RANCH Lincoln, CA, (916) 257-5517 SPANGLER RANCHES Corona, CA, (951) 735-5000 her Bos Indicus STARDUST FARMS Oak Run, CA, (530) 356-9300 TUMBLEWEED BRANGUS Delhi, CA, (209) 484-0152 heritage gives WALKING S BRANGUS Sheridan, CA, (530) 633-2178 WAYNE GLASGOW Santa Ysabel, CA, (760) 789-2488 her built-in WYMAN CREEK CATTLE COMPANY Oroville, CA, (530) 713-5111 calving ease, fertility and www.westcoastbrangus.com longevity â&#x20AC;&#x201C; all

BRANGUS & ULTRABLACK

Genetics.

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in a polled, moderate framed, solid colored (black or red) phenotypic package. Use of Brangus and Ultrablack genetics will produce cattle capable of producing consistent carcasses that meet or exceed requirements for the value added marketing programs of Angus and other breeds as well as leaving behind progeny with the survivability traits found in Brahman cattle. You can find Brangus and Ultrablack genetics that will add a little more hump and loose skin or you can find Brangus genetics that will add minimal hump, minimal sheath, and slick hair coats. Both phenotypes come in a naturally polled, tropically adapted animal with multiple generations of genetics. Brangus breeders have built the ideal herd sire that fits the needs of commercial cattlemen. Brangus and Ultrablack bulls add profitable pounds of weaning weight to their calves, produce outstanding (continued from page 8)

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 7

OUT FRONT The increase in EPD accuracies allows commercial cattlemen to buy with more confidence when selecting young, unproven bulls. (continued from page 6) replacement females, and leave feeder calves with superior feedlot gains. They require fewer days on feed and produce industry acceptable carcasses. The cattle produce large ribeyes and more marbling because of their Angus heritage which continue to make them the American breed of choice. With the commercial cattlemen in mind, the Brangus association released Genomic Enhanced EPDs (GE-EPDs) on all traits reported

by the IBBA including growth, reproduction and ultrasound traits in April 2015. The GE-EPDs were estimated by John Genho, President of Livestock Genetic Services, using the approximately 2,200 animal profiles generated at Neogen or Zoetis on 30K to 850K testing panels. GE-EPDs are the tool of choice in breed improvement strategies in the livestock industry today and it is our role to give IBBA members and commercial cattlemen the best tools to make improvements in beef

Big D Ranch Bull Sale Saturday, October 10, 2015 11:00 a.m. at the ranch in Center Ridge, Arkansas

45 Brangus & Ultrablack Bulls Coming 2 year-old & Yearlings 60 Brangus Innuence Commercial Females Bred and Open Heifers

BDR Ultra Bossy 1822B2- He sells!

OďŹ&#x20AC;ering Herd Sire Prospects with Proven Genetics, Carcass Value & Growth

Selling over 100 lots of Big D Ranch Genetics! Thank you for taking time to visit the Big D Ranch operation. We look forward to working with you!

Bull Videos & Sale Catalog @ BigDRanch.net

Luke Mobley Auctioneer/ Livestock Marketing (205) 270-0999 LukeMobley.com 8 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

Phillip & Beth DeSalvo 173 Miller Lane Center Ridge, Ark. (501) 208-6119 BigDRanch@att.net BigDRanch.net

production. More importantly, GEEPDs increase the accuracy of EPDs on younger, non-proven animals. The increase in EPD accuracies allows commercial cattlemen to buy with more confidence when selecting young, unproven bulls. Brangus breeders continue to add to the genomic database as they recently released the second genomic EPD run in August. The Brangus breed was developed to do it all. They are cattle that economically excel in the pasture for commercial cow-calf producers, in the feedlot for cattle feeders, and in the grocery store for retailers. Brangus cattle are known to produce a tender, high yielding beef product with optimum levels of marbling which meet the stringent demands of health conscious consumers. The outstanding maternal strengths, feedlot performance, and carcass merit of Brangus cattle make them the reliable beef breed to build the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cowherd. Do not hesitate to call us if you have any specific questions about Brangus genetics for use in your operation. For information about IBBA programs or other inquiries, please call (210) 696-8231 or visit www. GoBrangus.com. Stay connected to IBBA through Facebook, Twitter or receive news updates by joining our email list. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dr. Perkins is the Executive Vice President for the International Brangus Breeders Association. He most recently was the executive for another breed association after serving as a professor at Missouri State University and Texas State University for nearly twenty years. His professional career is most noted for excellence in the field of beef cattle ultrasound. He has a doctorate in animal breeding from Texas Tech University.

Black Gold

First Edition

DDD BLACK GOLD 804S25 路 R10063991

8G FIRST EDITION 804Y 路 R10208184

CED BW WW YW Milk M&G CEM SC REA IMF FT 3.7 1.1 27 59 10 23 4.6 0.73 .69 -.06 -.031 55% 55% 40% 30% 50% 45% 30% 25% 10% 80% 85%

CED BW WW YW Milk M&G CEM SC REA IMF FT 4.4 0.6 17 36 17 26 3.8 0.06 .33 .11 -.033 40% 45% 80% 70% 4% 30% 65% 85% 50% 25% 80%

Proven sire of Champions including the 2013 Grand Champion Female at the Brangus Futurity.

Put some heterosis in your herd with this first generation powerhouse from the proven 804 cow lineage.

8G BRANGUS Jackie & Kelly Grissom 5984 CR 164 路 Breckenridge, TX 76424 (254) 559-0101 路 kellygrissom61@gmail.com www.8glivestock.com

BLACK GOLD - $35/Straw - Domestic FIRST EDITION - $25/Straw - Domestic Both bulls have CSS Semen Available. Contact 8G Brangus to place your order!

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 9

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FRONTLINE Beef Producer 11

MARKETING

by Kyle DYKES ibba commercial marketing coordinator

Making Plans for Fall Sale Season

all sale season is upon us and it is time to start thinking about buying bulls and replacement females for many, if you are not currently doing so. The demand for a good replacement female is high because every producer enjoys the benefits of having quality beef cattle on their ranch in order to take advantage of the current market. We are still experiencing amazing cattle prices in today’s market, even though there has been some fluctuation over the past few months in some areas. I am willing to bet that mother nature putting a kink in the water hose had a little to do with it. Nonetheless, summer of 2015 was one for the record books at least for me, as I don’t recall ever experiencing one that green for that long. I hope this issue of the Frontline Beef Producer finds you well and in good order on your operation. My goal is to help you, the commercial cattleman, utilize the most efficient ways to manage and promote your cattle to achieve the best value that the market has to offer.

When looking to buy bulls and females it is important to judge them using every bit of information that you can. For instance when you attend a sale this fall, get the catalog and sort through them “on paper” and select for the traits that will be the biggest benefit to your operation. Then go through those selections on the hoof. Now I tend to work the other way around. I like to give every animal in that pen a chance to impress me from a phenotypic standpoint, pick my favorites in terms of what I feel I want my cattle to look like and then sort them on paper after I make sure they fit my eye. Regardless of which way you choose to start, put forth the necessary effort in both aspects of the selection process. After all, you are paying a premium price in today’s market so you want the best bang for your buck! After I confirm that the animals I am looking at are reproductively sound, my number one selection 12 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

criteria is structural soundness. Now that’s just me, but I feel that it plays a major role on any rancher’s operation, for both bulls and females. If they are not able to get out and travel properly without any limitations then how are they going to become a top producer in your operation? Personally, I would never sacrifice soundness unless you feel the animal excels in another desired trait and the seller gives you a guarantee. Soundness for any animal starts from the ground up. I am not going to go into detail on all the different foot scores that are out there but that animal needs to have a normal functional hoof-set and toe that isn’t uneven, curled, twisted or crooked. A shallow heel could be a sign of weak pasterns or

hocks, short toes are caused by the animal dragging the foot as it is set in motion, and the list can go on. You want a big-footed animal that can handle what they carry up top. I will say that within the Brangus breed our members have done an excellent job in building their cattle correctly. There will always be an exception but breeders in the seedstock industry and especially Brangus producers won’t allow you to take an animal home that they will not stand behind. After examining feet, move up the animal’s body to its lower joints meaning pasterns,

MARKETING hocks and overall leg structure. You want that animal to stand square at the ground and have adequate flex in its pasterns, not too straight and not to weak but a happy medium between the two. The same goes for the hocks. If I had to choose between having too much set to the hocks and being too straight I would take the extra set of course. Especially on bulls because a straight one may be out of commission come breeding season. Nevertheless, you want a natural flex to hocks and pasterns that allows that animal to travel freely when on the move. As far as front legs go, again you need to see them square at the ground. If you can get feet and legs how you want them, the rest kind of falls into place in terms of skeletal structure. Having structural correctness throughout the animal will ultimately insure that animal is put together well the rest of the way up. From the angle at the shoulder back to the hooks and pins or hip set, you want that animal to be level and stout spined, no breaks behind the shoulder or a rise or dip along the loin. In Bos Indicus type cattle; I would say it is a little more acceptable to see cattle be a touch more round from hooks to pins because that is just the way God made them. Having said that, too steep of an angle and an extremely rounded hip is a sign that the animal has too much set to their hocks causing them to carry their legs underneath themselves a bit more than preferred when they get out on the move. Other things to look for on both bulls and females and especially on females, is rib shape. You want cattle to show that they have the capacity

to develop a good stout calf during the fetal growth stage. I sure do love seeing a stout cow with plenty of power and soundness that has a lot of volume and middle. These females tend to make their way to the front pasture and will be the cows that produce thick calves if you select a bull that follows this same trend. Bulls need to be rugged, powerful, and growth oriented with the bone to back it up. Bold sprung, thick-topped cattle tend to cut a larger rib-eye area, and it just makes sense. Ultimately, pounds of beef is what we are producing. Generally, a bull or female that has natural width at the ground is going to be heavier muscled because that’s what is pushing that skeleton apart as it grows…muscle. After all of this you can start to let your personal preference sort your top pick of the pen. Move on to sheath and underline scores; it is not necessary to have excess underline on cattle especially if you are raising them in a rough brushy environment. Too much underline or sheath might run into some problems with sticker brush or grasses that can damage your bulls reproductive system if you know what I mean. On bulls you want to see proper sheath angle that is naturally forward not hanging straight down with an ideal sheath score of your choosing. I tend to prefer bulls to have a sheath score no greater than a three, but every operation demands different preferences. When it comes to females it’s not necessary to have excess navel. I realize they are Brangus, but don’t get too crazy and I will leave it at that. Tie your top pick together with body length and

extension and you have just sorted one to the top end of your herd. Lastly, have confidence when heading to the sorting pen. Go to the sale knowing the type of cattle you need to make your operation run successfully, and stick with that plan. Don’t hesitate to ask breeders and ranch managers about their cattle. They are happy to help and proud of the product they raise and no one knows their product better than they do. Overall, I hope that you are as excited as I am to see some of the great cattle that will be offered this sale season. Brangus cattle have improved tremendously over the years and have been molded to fit the commercial stockman’s needs. They have what it takes to deliver quality and consistency in all sectors of the business and ultimately send you smiling all the way to the bank. Do some homework this sale season and cash in on moneymaking cattle that are out there, and as always Build with Brangus! ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A native of Killeen, Texas, Kyle Dykes grew up on a small farm raising commercial crossbred cattle. Agriculture has always been a passion of his, and he has been actively trying to help make a difference and be a part of the growth of agriculture in Texas. Previously, Dykes worked as the Natural Resources County Extension Agent for McLennan County. This allowed him the opportunity to work with some of the finest 4-H youth in Texas as well as producers in the Central Texas region. His educational background helped him build a strong network within the industry that he is now able to apply to his current position as the IBBA Commercial Marketing Coordinator. Dykes received his bachelor’s degree in animal science from Texas A&M University in 2013, and has also been a licensed auctioneer in Texas since 2011. Dykes believes it is truly an honor to have the opportunity to promote Brangus and play a role in the cattle business on a national level. Contact Dykes to see how you can get involved too! FRONTLINE Beef Producer 13

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY

by Kyle Dykes ibba commercial marketing coordinator

Panhandle Cattlemen: The Rhoades Path to Success

ampa, Texas, a town located in the panhandle of the state that started out as just a railroad and a telegraph office, has grown much over the years. With a population of almost 18,000, most today would still consider Pampa a small town. However, those that live in the panhandle would say that it is quite the attraction in Gray County, as it is the county seat. Over the years, the railroad and the oil business have allowed Pampa to develop significantly into an ideal place for many locals to call home. One family in particular that calls Pampa home is the Rhoades family.

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FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY Jerry Rhoades and his wife Suzy were both raised in Pampa. Jerry grew up in the rodeo and ranching world under the influence of his father Dusty Rhoades, who was a hard working stock contractor and rancher, and who even put on the first junior rodeo in Pampa in 1963. “I guess that’s where I got my love for horses and cattle”, Jerry said. There is a rich ranching history in the town of Pampa and to this day that is a large part of the town’s culture, as the city hosts the Top of Texas Rodeo every year. Jerry’s wife Suzy also has an extensive ranching background. She is a fifth generation rancher from Pampa, and the present day Rhoades Ranch actually comes from her side

of the family. Suzy’s great great grandfather Albert Combs, and great great grandmother Phebe Worley, purchased a ranch for Phebe’s children to eventually operate. Little did they know, the ranch located in Lefors, Texas, would give way to the first producing oil well in Gray County. Suzy passed on a quote from Phebe Worley stating, “I told myself I would never milk another cow again, but I did, because hard work was just a way of life back then.” After a really neat history lesson that is archived at the White Deer Land Museum in Pampa, at which you are strongly urged to look up the story “The Legacy of Phebe Worley”, it was learned that two additional ranches were acquired for Phebe’s children at

a whopping $2.50 per acre in 1913. One of Phebe’s children was Inez Carter, Suzy’s great grandmother. Buster Carter, Suzy’s father, bought what is now the Rhoades Ranch from Inez in the early ‘60s and raised Registered Hereford cattle like many before him until Suzy and Jerry inherited the place in 2002. Since then, they have started a cowcalf operation selling weaned calves out of Brangus bulls bred to Angus crossed cows. Hard work is still a way of life on the ranch to this day. Jerry and Suzy also operate a ranch in Ashland, Kan., that was bought by her father, Buster Carter, at auction about 26 years ago. He had leased land in Englewood, Kan., (continued on page 16)

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FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY (continued from page 15) and actually was about to lose the lease when he found land for sale at auction on his way back to Pampa. He bought it and to this day as Suzy said, “It’s been pretty handy to have, especially during the drought days”. The operation is currently called the Rhoades Ranch; Jerry and Suzy are thankful that they have been able to provide for their children and raise a good family, and plan to continue doing so for generations to come. The family works together to make the ranch a success. Jerry and Suzy are proud to have their daughter

and son in law, Lindsay and Jarrett Kotara, the sixth generation, working alongside them, and hope to pass it along to the seventh made up of their grandkids Rylan, Makenna and Kolt who also seem to enjoy the ranching lifestyle. Tyler Rhoades, Jerry and Suzy’s son, lives on the ranch as well and works alongside the rest of the family. Jerry said, “We just try to be good stewards of the land that we are blessed with, put God and family first, and the business handles itself.” This vast and beautiful ranch spans about 14,000 acres in Pampa and another 5,000 in Kansas. The cattle thrive on the native buffalo grass and serve the Rhoades family well in the commercial

Above: Jerry and Suzy Rhoades are blessed to have their families help. Right: Son Tyler and son-in-law, Jarrett, hold a calf while Jerry and grandson, Rylan work it. Below: The family works together to gather cattle in Kansas.

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sector of the cattle business. They raise commercial Brangus, Angus, and Angus crossed cattle and have been using this combination to produce commercial Ultrablack type calves to market to their customers. The Rhoades Ranch runs about 20 cows to a section, and they turn bulls out at the first of May and pick them up at the first of August. “We started out using Angus bulls, but we just didn’t like the way they performed in our environment… they just wouldn’t stay as sound as we needed them to, and they didn’t work quite as long in the hotter months”, said Jerry. The Rhoades were in search of a bull that fit their Angus crossed cowherd along with

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY one that could hold up well enough to travel long distances during the breeding season. The ranch also wanted cattle that could stand up to the heat of the summer for a longer period of time while breeding. A local rancher in Pampa suggested the use of Brangus bulls, Jerry did some homework and found Danny Farris, a nearby Brangus Breeder, from whom he bought 10 registered bulls. Since they made the switch, the Rhoades Ranch is now currently up to 35 Brangus bulls producing stout and hardy calves each and every year. “We have great luck with the Brangus bulls and the Ultrablack calves”, Jerry said. “The Brangus bulls seem like they never stop working

no matter what the weather is like they are willing and able to get out and make our operation profitable in the harsh environment that we use them in.” They truly offer the best of both worlds according to Jerry. The Brangus breed ties excellent carcass quality from the Angus along with growth and hardiness from the Brahman. Not only have Brangus genetics worked well for the Rhoades during the heat of the summer in Texas and Kansas, they have proven to last in the winter months as well. “The Panhandle of Texas has pretty harsh winters…it can get down to wind chills of 10 below here and even lower at the ranch in Kansas”. In talking to Jerry and Suzy, they recalled having

their doubts about Brangus cattle fairing through the winter months. However, after giving them a try the Rhoades were pleasantly surprised and wouldn’t hesitate to tell you that Brangus cattle can work just about anywhere they go. “Honestly, after running the Brangus bulls through the first winter in Pampa, it didn’t even cross my mind NOT to send them to the ranch in Kansas”, said Jerry. “The bulls seem to work just as good at both locations”. The Rhoades family is very satisfied with the Brangus sired calves that they have hitting the ground, and so are their customers. With a strong customer base in Pampa, the Rhoades do not have (continued on page 18)

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FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY (continued from page 17) to send their cattle further than down the road. “The Ultrablack and Brangus crossed calves seem to market themselves. We’ve never had any problem getting them sold”, said Jerry. They don’t pre-wean their calves at the ranch. They sell “bawling calves” as Jerry puts it, and they haven’t had any issues due to the great mothering ability, natural heterosis, and disease resistance of the eared cattle on the Bos Indicus side. Everything is done from horseback on the ranch and spring finds the family branding and conducting their annual vaccinations. The Rhoades family is very satisfied with the disposition of Brangus and Brangus influenced cattle. “These cattle see everything from little kids on four wheelers to men on horseback and don’t seem to have any issues when we handle them”. It is all about the way you handle the cattle. According to Jerry, if you treat them right and handle them with ease they will respond very well as with any animal.

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All in all, the Rhoades Ranch is very satisfied with the way Brangus genetics have improved their operation and helped them capitalize on the great opportunities that the cattle industry has provided over the years. The Rhoades’ plan on producing a quality beef product for years to come and will continue to build upon the foundation that they have started for the future generations. Not everyone gets to be a part of the cattle business like the many great cattlemen and cattlewomen do in this country. As producers of our nation’s food supply we have a responsibility to meet the challenging demands of the consumer and strive to make improvements in every area that we can. It is important to be involved in the decisions that are crucial to our industry whether those decisions are at your breed association, state,

national or international level. Set a plan and a goal and push to achieve that goal just as many producers like the Rhoades family have and you will begin to see the rewards that can follow. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 19

FEATURE

by Audy SPELL, M.S. advanced reproductive associates, llc

The Use of Ultrasound Technology in Commercial Embryo Transfer

ltrasound, or sonography, technology has been in use since WWII. Ultrasonography was originally developed as an outgrowth of defense efforts. Although in recent years, ultrasound technology has found a place in more than just hospitals. Dairy and beef industries are adopting ultrasound because it is a valuable reproductive tool for them. Many veterinarians are now utilizing ultrasound to diagnose pregnancy and the presence of twins, determine fetal sex and age and identify early embryonic death. Ultrasound allows the veterinarian to acquire much more real time information about the pregnancy than what is available through rectal palpation. Furthermore, the data gathered is more reliable because of the ability to see in addition to feeling. Ultrasound provides a â&#x20AC;&#x153;liveâ&#x20AC;? moving image of the reproductive tract, ovaries and pregnancy in the animal.

Ultrasound utilizes mechanical pressure, or sound waves, with frequencies above 20,000HZ (oscillations per second). The piece of the ultrasound unit that emits and receives the sound waves is called the transducer. When sound waves are passed through the body, some of the sound waves are reflected back when they hit the surface between layers of tissue while the rest pass through until they hit the next surface where the same thing happens again. At the same time as this is going on, the different tissues will change the sound slightly so that the sound that is bounced back to the transducer is not exactly the same as the sound that was originally sent out. The sound waves are fed back into a relatively simple computer called the monitor. The changes in the sound 20 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

or frequency are reconstructed into a visual image of varying shades of grey. These varying shades of grey allow us to identify different density of tissues like bone, fluid, Uterine and ovarian structures to name a few. Prior to ultrasound, evaluation of ovarian follicles and Corpus Luteum was limited to palpation, laparoscopy or visual examination of excised ovaries. With the advent of ultrasound, however, noninvasive, repeated monitoring of follicular and luteal development became possible. The use of Ultrasound technology has helped to usher in many new reproductive technologies and techniques. The ultrasound machine has allowed us to understand the reproductive cycle of cattle in much more detail

than ever before. We now know that cattle exhibit 2-4 follicular waves. That information has allowed us to develop donor flush protocols that are much more successful than years past. It has helped scientist to develop timed AI and Embryo transfer protocols which reduce labor cost to producers. The use of ultrasonography has made an impact on the commercial embryo transfer industry as well. The key to the success of an Embryo transfer program is having a recipient that is roughly 60 days postpartum, in adequate body condition and has resumed cycling post calving. Once those requirements are met, the next logical step is to synchronize the estrus cycle of all available recipients to the same stage of the cycle. For (continued on page 22)

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 21

FEATURE The use of ultrasonography has allowed the development of revolutionary new assisted reproductive techniques that many producers are utilizing today. (continued from page 23) Embryo transfer, we want that stage to be between days 6 and 8 of the cycle. There are several methods of synchronization to accomplish this with very high success. Many of these do not require the labor of checking heat anymore. And this is where the ultrasound machine has proven its value. The next, maybe most important step in transferring embryos into recipients is the identification of the corpus luteum (CL). The CL forms from the follicle following ovulation, and produces progesterone, the

Ultrasound technology has allowed more technicians to better identify high quality CLs like the one on the ovary pictured above and the cross section shown to the right. Photos courtesy of OvaGenix 22 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

hormone of pregnancy. On day 7 following estrus, it is usually found on only one ovary. This is very significant in the transfer process. There is very localized communication between the CL and the embryo residing in the uterus. If the embryo is transferred to the uterine horn opposite of the ovary with the CL, the chance of establishing a pregnancy is significantly less than if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s transferred to the correlating uterine horn. This has been done by rectal palpation fairly accurately since the inception of nonsurgical Embryo Transfer. However, Embryo Transfer practitioners have often rejected recipients presented for transfer based on the absence of a palpable CL, or the presence of a small, irregular, or fluid-filled or soft CL. Ultrasonography does provide a better method of evaluating CLâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in embryo transfer recipients as demonstrated in a large scale study published in 2001 (A.R. Spell, W.E. Beal, L. R. Corah and G. C. Lamb.

Evaluating Recipient and Embryo Factors That Affect Pregnancy Rates Of Embryo Transfer In Beef Cattle. Theriogenology 2001) The objective of the study was to determine the effects of Corpus Luteum characteristics, progesterone concentration, donor recipient synchrony, embryo quality, type, and developmental stage on pregnancy rates after embryo transfer. The largest focus of the study was designed to evaluate recipient selection based on CL characteristics determined by rectal palpation verses ultrasonography. At the time of embryo transfer one technician performed transrectal ultrasonic examinations of the CL. In addition to ultrasound measurements, a single experienced embryo transfer veterinarian used the following criteria to assign each CL a quality score: 1) the CL had a palpable diameter of greater than 10mm and firm or moderately firm consistency= excellent/good; or 2) the CL had a diameter of less than or equal to 10mm, or the CL had soft texture or fluid filled=poor. Under normal field conditions recipients with a CL characterized as poor would have been rejected. Ultrasound evaluation determined whether or not a recipient received an embryo. Results of the study showed the (continued on page 24)

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FEATURE (continued from page 22) diameter of the corpus luteum differed among recipients that received and embryo from 6.5 to 8.5 days after estrus. The CL diameter and volume did increase with each day post estrus. However, pregnancy rates did not differ among recipients receiving an embryo. When embryos transferred to recipients that had acceptable luteal tissue (CL) based on ultrasound evaluation, but had been rejected based on rectal palpation of the CL just prior to transfer, the pregnancy rate of the recipients was similar to that of recipients whose CL’s had been classified as “satisfactory” or “excellent”. In fact, 79% of the recipients that would have been rejected because of unsatisfactory CL’s based on palpation alone became pregnant. Early observations indicated that CL’s with a fluid filled center may be cystic and a possible cause of early embryonic mortality. Pregnancy rates did not differ among recipients with a CL containing fluid and those that did not. In this study, researchers were not able separate and identify a threshold measurement at which pregnancy rates would begin to decline. The average CL measured 13mm in this study, so inferences are not made on extremes in this case. My selection process when transferring will allow a minimum measurement of 10mm CL’s. I do not reject large fluid filled CL’s determined by ultrasonography. I have found that the use of ultrasound has allowed me to utilize more recipients presented at transfer. A common practice is to “recycle” recipients every 21 days. This is the most efficient use of recipients, but 24 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

is only possible with the use of early (28d) pregnancy diagnosis and CL identification by ultrasonography. The use of ultrasonography has allowed the development of revolutionary new assisted reproductive techniques that many producers are utilizing today. Transvaginal AI allows the semen to be deposited at the utero tubal junction instead of the conventional deposition past the cervix. A very common procedure today is transvaginal aspiration of ovarian follicles. This technique allows the skilled technician to utilize an ultrasound guided needle directly to the ovary to suck out the oocyte (unfertilized egg). The oocyte is then matured and fertilized in a petri dish (IVF). This procedure has proven to be very popular and allows for faster genetic advancement. Producers are getting virgin heifers pregnant and sending them to have the procedure done on them while pregnant. This ultrasound assisted procedure can be done on pregnant animals until the pregnancy is heavy enough to pull the ovaries out of reach, generally 100+ days. Ultrasound has offered us the ability to identify tumors of the reproductive tract and other uterine or ovarian abnormalities. Technicians are able to identify, with remarkable accuracy, abnormalities in fetal development. Fetal sex determination in bovine can be very accurately determined by approximately 60 days. Potential uses for ultrasound technology in beef cattle reproductive management seem to be many. The primary applications seem to be in ovarian activity and pregnancy determination.

However, fields such as Embryo Transfer can benefit tremendously with its use to increase the usage rate of synchronized recipients. The introduction of timed ET protocols can be a benefit to producers by reducing the labor needed to check heat and ultrasound evaluation of the ovaries before transfer can verify that the recipient did respond to the protocol. Ultrasound technology offers yet another tool that has the potential to improve reproductive management. The increased use of ultrasound equipment in research and industry has driven the cost down to make it cost effective in most Embryo transfer practices.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Audy Spell completed his B.S. in agriculture in 1990 at the University Southwestern Louisiana (Lafayette, La.). His interest in embryo transfer began there through the influence of his advisor Dr. Terry Clement. Upon completion of his B.S., he went to work for Granada Biosciences in Marque, Texas. At the closure of Granada, he went to work for Cross Country Genetics in Manhattan, Kan. After a four-year term, Spell returned to graduate school at Kansas State University, where he completed his M.S. in Agriculture. His research involved synchronization protocols for artificial insemination, electronic implant ID and embryo transfer. He produced a thesis that evaluated several factors that affect success rates of embryo transfer in beef cattle. Upon completion of graduate school, he was immediately employed by Trans Ova Genetics in Sioux Center, Iowa. Years later Spell accepted a position at Cyagra in Manhattan, Kan., as Director of Operations for the cloning lab and recip herd. As life evolved he became self-employed performing embryo collection and transfer along the gulf coast and internationally. More than 10 years later, Spell still enjoys the thrill of helping ranchers increase their genetics and assisting university researchers in various projects.

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26 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 27

FEATURE

by Cari B. RINCKER, ESQ. RINCKER LAW, PLLC

Checklist of Issues to Consider for Your Bull Lease

here are many reasons why a cattleman may choose to lease a bull. Oftentimes, these transactions are done “on a handshake”; however, memorializing the terms of the lease can protect both parties, help articulate a clear agreement, and provide a roadmap for resolving disputes to preserve a business relationship. This article illuminates the salient points that should be considered in your bull lease.

Identification

The Bull(s). The lease should be clear on which bull(s) are subject to the lease. If the bull is registered with a breed association, it is recommended to include the breed registration number and a copy of the registration paper as an addendum. Cattlemen should consider putting

the approximate weight and body condition score of the bull at the time of the Agreement; in some cases, the bull owner will include a photograph of the bull to illustrate his condition on or around the date of delivery. The Cows. In most cases, bull leases should be clear on which females the bull will be bred to. In some instances, a detailed list of the cows, their identification numbers, dates of birth and breed may be attached as an addendum to the lease. This may be important for multiple reasons: (1) to show that the bull will not be overworked, (2) to demonstrate that the bull will or will not be used on virgin heifers, or (3) the bull will not be bred to unapproved cows owned by the breeder or third parties.

Bull Use Location(s)

The bull lease should be clear where the bull will be housed. Will the bull be on pasture on the breeder’s property? Will the bull transfer among three 28 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

different properties owned or rented by the breeder?

Delivery

How is the bull being transported from the bull owner’s property to the breeder’s property? Who is paying for the expense of the transportation and bearing any risk of loss, injury or illness of the bull during the delivery time? Are there penalties for late delivery? Will the bull be transported to a bull stud once a month during the lease? It is also recommended that both parties agree to comply with transportation laws for the truck and trailer and any animal welfare laws that apply to the transportation of livestock, including the “TwentyEight Hour Law”.

Term

The term of the lease and procedures for extending the term should be clear.

Payment Terms

Bull leases should have unambiguous payment terms. What is the rate, timing for payment, payment method(s) and instructions,

FEATURE and penalty for late payment (including interest). Some bull leases require a security deposit for $X to help insure the delivery of a healthy bull at the end of the term.

Option to Purchase

Will the breeder have an option to purchase the bull at the end of the lease or is this a “rent-to-own” contract for a bull?

Insurance

The bull may be insured to cover risks relating to the death, injury or illness of: (a) the bull, (b) other animals caused, by the bull, or (c) people, caused by the bull. This coverage may be included in the Farmowner’s Comprehensive Liability Policy, coverage by specialized and targeted livestock insurance, or another type of commercial insurance; however, the parties to the bull lease should address this issue.

Representations

Are the parties making any representations to the other party? For example, the bull owner might be representing the bull’s ownership, breed, pedigree, Expected Progeny Differences (“EPD’s”) according to the breed association, genetic DNA markers, health, fertility, and structural soundness. If the bull owner represents that the bull tested positively for a certain genetic marker then the bull owner should make sure that the lease acknowledges that genetic DNA tests are not 100% accurate and the bull owner is not taking responsibility for any error by the tester. On the flip side, the

breeder may represent the health of his/her cowherd, the breed or age of the cows, certain nutrition programs, and that the animal handling practices used on the cattle operation are in compliance with federal and state animal welfare laws.

Record-Keeping

Are there any record keeping requirements under the lease? For example, is the breeder required to keep any feeding or breeding records? Does the breeder have to supply the bull owner with any data on the progeny (e.g., weaning weight, yearling weight, genetic DNA markers)?

Veterinary Care

The issue of veterinary care should be addressed in the bull lease. It is recommended that the breeder be required to call the bull owner immediately if a medical issue ensues. Do the parties have a list of approved veterinarians? If there is an emergency, can the breeder use any available veterinarian? Who will pay for reasonable and necessary veterinary expenses?

Care of the Bull

Parties to a bull lease should consider adding language concerning the care of the bull. Is the breeder required to use certain management techniques or nutrition programs? Is there a penalty if the bull is delivered back to the bull owner at the term malnourished or has experienced a significant loss of weight? Unless otherwise agreed, there should be a clause restricting the breeder from taking the bull to a bull stud or otherwise collecting his semen.

Risk of Loss, Injury or Illness

Who is bearing the risk of loss, death, injury or illness to: (a) the bull, (b) other animals, caused by the bull, or (c) people, caused by the bull. Is there a penalty if the bull is injured (either with or without the fault of the breeder) so as to make the bull unserviceable to other females (including but not limited to him being crippled, unsound, or injured sheath, penis or scrotum)? As noted above, how should risk of loss, injury or illness be addressed while the bull is being transported between farms and ranches?

Warranty/ Guarantee

Is either party making a warranty or guarantee? Perhaps the bull owner wants to give a warranty that the bull is of a certain breed and free of genetic birth defects. Most breed associations have posted online the genetic testing status of registered bulls, which can be included as an addendum to the lease, illustrating that the bull is pedigree-free, testedfree or assumed-free of genetic birth defects. If a warranty to the bull’s fertility is made, then the bull owner should supply a veterinarian approved and signed “Bull Breeding Soundness Evaluation” as proof that the bull is a “Satisfactory Potential Breeder”. On the other hand, the breeder may guarantee that the cows are healthy. Warranties on health and fertility are common if the payment terms are directly related to confirmed pregnancies. (continued on page 30) FRONTLINE Beef Producer 29

FEATURE (continued from page 29) Conversely, the bull owner may want to specifically state that he does not warrant that the semen is fit for a particular purpose or that the bull’s semen will result in the production of a calf or that the progeny will result in congenital birth defects.

Termination

Under what circumstances can either party terminate the bull lease? For example, many bull leases allow for the termination of the lease if either party materially breaches the contract. Furthermore, there could be a clause saying that either party could terminate the lease giving the other party X days written notice.

Confidentiality

This issue of confidentiality should be discussed when negotiating a bull lease. If the parties haven’t already signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement, do they want the terms of the bull lease to be confidential? Will any exceptions to this confidentiality apply and for how long should the obligation of confidentiality apply?

Dispute Resolution

Few bull leases address dispute resolution and they should – just ask anyone who has been a party to law suit. Litigation can be long and expensive. Parties should consider having a mediation clause requiring the parties to a bull lease to use an experienced agriculture mediator to help facilitate a settlement of the dispute. If mediation is futile, the parties should consider having a binding arbitration clause under the 30 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

rules of the American Arbitration Association.

Relationship of Parties

In most cases, the contract should be clear that the bull owner and breeder are not forming a partnership, joint venture, agency, or any other formal business association. As an exception, if the bull lease includes a provision that the parties will sell the progeny from the bull and split the proceeds, then this is a partnership – instead of a “bull lease” the parties should have a “general partnership agreement”. Put simply, when two or more people go to business together and share profits then they have formed a partnership. This is an important concept to understand because general partnerships are oftentimes formed in the livestock community, sometimes inadvertently. Partners can legally bind other partners. If it is not your intent to form a partnership then make sure your lease includes a simple clause clarifying that it is a lessor/lessee relationship vs. a partnership.

A Few Other Provisions

If the bull owner and the breeder are in different states, it is paramount that the contract should say what the choice of law is (e.g., New York, Illinois, Texas). Is there any exclusivity between the parties? Can the agreement be modified in writing? How will the parties handle Acts of God (e.g., tornado, earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, fire)? Can the bull be subleased? As you can see, there is no “one-size

fits” bull lease that is suitable for every transaction. That’s why it is dangerous for cattle producers to pull a form off the Internet, fill in a few blanks, and hope that it’s “good enough.” Bull leases should be carefully tailored for the unique needs of your operation and the circumstances surrounding a particular transaction. It behooves cattle producers to hire an attorney to help craft a suitable bull lease. Cattle producers can help keep legal costs down by using this checklist and working through all the issues with the other party before consulting an attorney. Even if an attorney is not used as the draftsman, cattlemen should try to memorialize the terms of the bull lease in writing.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Cari Rincker is the owner of Rincker Law, PLLC, a national general practice law firm concentrating in food and agriculture law with offices in New York and Illinois. She is licensed to practice law in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Illinois and Washington D.C. She is currently the Chair of the American Bar Association’s General Practice, Solo & Small Firm Division’s Agriculture Law Committee and serves on the New York State Bar Association’s Agriculture & Rural Issues Committee. She is a prolific writer and blogger on a myriad of food and agriculture law topics and has been recognized as an author of a Top 100 Blawg from the American Bar Association. She recently co-authored a book with Pat Dillon titled “FIELD MANUAL: LEGAL GUIDE FOR NEW YORK FARMERS & FOOD ENTREPRENEURS.” Cari grew up on a Simmental beef cattle operation in Shelbyville, Ill. Cari has a Bachelors of Science from Texas A & M University and a Masters of Science from the University of Illinois in Ruminant Nutrition. She completed Juris Doctor from Pace University, School of Law, in White Plains, N.Y. At Pace, Cari completed certificates in both Environmental Law and International Law. Cari is a recognized leader in the agriculture industry and the recipient of the 2014 Excellence in Agriculture Law Award by the American Agriculture Law Association.

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FEATURE Brangus Influenced Cattle Excel in the Packing Plant

ick Beck, manager at Three Trees Ranch, recently reported carcass data from the steer mates of bulls to be sold in the November 2, 2015 Three Trees Bull Sale in Sharpsburg, Georgia.

The first 35 banded mates were harvested on June 15, 2015. The carcasses graded 100 percent USDA Choice with 77 percent qualifying for the elite Certified Angus Beef brand applied to Premium Choice and USDA Prime carcasses. The entire load of harvested steers had an average USDA Yield Grade of 3.0 (only two Yield Grade 4’s) with an average hot carcass weight of 864 pounds or 1.60 pound average carcass weight per day of age. Beck stated, “We were especially pleased that the three Angus Plus (Ultrablack) steers (13/16 Angus and 3/16 Brahman) harvested in this load all qualified for the Certified Angus Beef brand and once again demonstrated to us that WE CAN produce heat tolerant high marbling genetics in one adaptable and high performance package.” The three Angus Plus (Ultrablack) cattle had an average carcass weight of 886 pounds and an “average carcass weight per day of age” of 1.68 pounds per day! Sold on a quality grid at Tyson, the load of steers beat the top of the live cattle market on the day they were harvested by an average of more than $4 per hundredweight. In a like manner, the steer mates to the 2014 Three Trees sale bulls also harvested well. With an average rib eye area of 16.3 square inches and an 32 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

average back fat measurement of .53 inches, the 2014 carcasses averaged USDA Yield Grade of 3.3 with 52 head (50.05%) qualifying for the Certified Angus Beef brand in the Tyson plant at Amarillo, Texas. The plant average CAB qualification rate is 3.13 percent. Beck said, “Especially pleasing was the validation of our Angus Plus (Ultrablack) breeding program when five of the seven Angus Plus (Ultrablack) steers sired by our Angus marbling leader Three Trees Double Design from daughters of our Brangus IMF leader Lambert of Brinks qualified for the Certified Angus Beef brand — a qualification rate of more than 71 percent in a packing plant with a 3 percent qualification plant average.” The seven Angus Plus (Ultrablack) steers averaged 1.51 pounds per day of age

whereas the entire group averaged 1.43 pounds per day. They also had an average hot carcass weight of 906 pounds and an average ribeye area of 15.03 square inches. Beck further stated, “They did exactly what they were designed to do!” As the national beef cow herd rebuilds, the emphasis on Premium Choice and Prime Quality Grades will continue to increase and those who are focused today on building end product genetics into their cow herds will reap the benefits of the inelasticity of the demand for the very top quality beef products while those who have ignored end product will be scratching their heads and wondering what happened to those record beef prices…

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 33

GENETICS

by Bob WEABER, Ph.D. ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR & Cow-Calf EXTENSION SPECIALIST kansas state university and Matthew L. SPANGLER, Ph.D. ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR & EXTENSION beef genetics SPECIALIST university of nebraska-lincoln

The Value and Importance of Using Genomically Enhanced EPD in Beef Cattle Selection

election decisions in the beef industry have been fostered by the development and delivery of Expected Progeny Differences (EPDs) for a wide variety of traits and across all major US beef breeds. Starting in the early 1970’s, EPDs have been used by seedstock and commercial beef producers to make genetic change in their herds. Today, EPDs are widely accepted across the industry and are used frequently by producers making seedstock selection and purchase decisions. EPDs have gained broad adoption due to the fact that they do effectively explain genetic differences among evaluated individuals. The degree of confidence in an individual animal’s EPDs is described numerically by a computed value called ‘Accuracy.’ Accuracy values in the U.S. are scaled reliabilities and range from 0 to 1 representing the amount of information used to compute the EPD. An animal with accuracy values near zero has very little data available for evaluation while an animal with an accuracy of 0.99 has a very large amount of information (progeny) evaluated.

The rate of genetic change that can be achieved in a beef cattle selection system is limited by a number of factors. Among these factors are selection intensity (how few or many animals we have to select or how choosy we can be), the amount of genetic variation in the trait(s) of interest, and finally, the accuracy of the genetic predictions we use in selection. The product of these three values divided by generation interval (average age of the parents when the next generation is born) yields the

34 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

expected rate of genetic change per year. In the beef industry, producers have the ability to change each of these factors to some degree with the exception of genetic variation. Selection intensity may be changed by utilizing AI or perhaps purchasing very elite genetics. Generation interval may be manipulated by turning over the cow herd faster (higher culling rate) and/or the bull battery. Dramatically decreasing the generation interval may have negative economic consequences

to the operation due to lost capital incurred by selling young cows that have not been fully depreciated. The largest opportunity for changing rate of genetic progress in the beef industry is through improving the accuracy of the genetic predictions on which producers base a large portion of their selection decisions and thus decreasing the generation interval since younger sires can be used with more confidence. Improvements in EPD accuracy have historically been driven

GENETICS by phenotypic record collection directly on the trait of interest or on indicator traits. Record collection schemes vary greatly depending on the trait and the age of the animal when the trait is observed. For traits like stayability or length of productive life, the evaluation of a sire’s daughters is typically completed long after the bull has been removed from production. For other traits like carcass weight, marbling score, and rib-eye area, the animal must be harvested or ultrasound information collected as indicator trait data. All phenotypes incur cost of collection and processing. To achieve high levels of accuracy a great deal of progeny and/or grand progeny data must be included in the evaluation.

Timing is Everything

Accuracy values for bulls purchased by commercial producers as yearlings will be low. In most cases, the bull’s own performance records for traits observed before sale day will be included in the animals genetic predictions in addition to pedigree information. For the maternal traits like heifer pregnancy, stayability and maternal milk no daughters will have been produced so only pedigree estimate EPDs are available and have the lowest accuracies. In order to improve the accuracy of the EPDs of yearling bulls another source of information is needed. Genomic information, in the form of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNP), has always held the promise to increase the accuracy of Expected Progeny Differences (EPDs). This

promise has finally been realized within a highly selected subset of the for those breeds that incorporate sale offering. The benefit of the inclusion of this information into their EPD calculations. For those breeds that genomic predictions into EPD have not, genomic information for estimates is proportional to the complex traits (those controlled amount of genetic variation by many genes) is available to explained by the genomic predictor producers in a disjoined context and (Thallman et al., 2009). In beef cattle to date, multiple breeds is published separately from EPDs. One key advantage to genomic have produced marker-assisted predictors (i.e. Molecular Breeding EPDs including Brangus, Angus, Values (MBV)) is that this Hereford, Red Angus, Limousin, information can be garnered early in Gelbvieh, Charolais, Simmental and the life of the animal thus enabling Santa Gertrudis, with others nearing an increase in the accuracy of EPDs deployment. particularly on young animals, which have not yet produced progeny. Implementation The underlying question Ideally, MBV data should be used to commonly asked by producers influence the EPDs of young animals prior to any selection decisions is “does it work?” It is critical to (performance based culling) made understand that this is not a valid at the seedstock level. Seedstock question, as the true answer is genetic trends and subsequent not binary (i.e. yes or no). The genetic flow to commercial important question to ask is “how producers will only be improved if well does it work?”, and the answer seedstock producers actually use to that question is related to how the genomically enhanced EPDs to much of the genetic variation the make selection decisions for animals marker test explains. The magnitude that will be retained as breeding of the benefits will depend on the animals and offered for sale to proportion of genetic variation commercial producers. Genotyping (%GV) explained by a given marker a group of animals immediately panel, where the %GV is equal to (continued on page 37) before sale after all selection has been completed r (true accuracy) %GV BIF does nothing to improve 0.1 1 0.005 genetics 0.2 4 0.020 of the 0.3 9 0.046 population; 0.4 16 0.083 it only fosters 0.5 25 0.132 marketing 0.6 36 0.200 efforts and 0.7 49 0.286 only allows for better Table 1. The relationship between true accuracy (r), proportion selection of genetic variation explained (%GV), and Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) accuracy. decisions FRONTLINE Beef Producer 35

GENETICS (continued from page 35) the square of the genetic correlation multiplied by 100. Table 1 shows the relationship between the genetic correlations (true accuracy), %GV and Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) accuracy. BIF accuracy is the standard for all U.S. beef breeds. Combining molecular and traditional EPD sources of information has the potential to allow for the benefits of increased accuracy and increased rate of genetic change. Increased rate of genetic change can occur by increasing the accuracy of EPDs, and thus the accuracy of selection, and by decreasing the generation interval. This decrease in the mean generation interval could occur particularly for sires if they are used more frequently at younger ages given the increased confidence in their genetic superiority due to added genomic information. Figure 1 illustrates the benefit of including a MBV into EPD (or Estimated Breeding Value (EBV) which is twice the value of an EPD) on accuracy (on the BIF scale) when the MBV explains 40 percent of the genetic variation (GV), which is synonymous with R2 value of 0.4. The darker portion of the bars shows the EPD accuracy before the inclusion of genomic information and the lighter colored portion shows the increase in accuracy after the inclusion of the MBV into the EPD calculation. As the %GV increases, the increase in EPD accuracy becomes larger. Additionally, lower accuracy animals benefit more from the inclusion of genomic information and the benefits decline as the EPD accuracy increases. Regardless of the %GV assumed here, the benefits of 36 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

including genomic information into EPD dissipate when EPD accuracy is between 0.6 and 0.7. On the other hand, when %GV is 40, an animal with 0 (zero) accuracy could exceed 0.2 accuracy with genomic information alone. This would be comparable to having approximately 4 progeny for a highly heritable trait or 7 progeny for a moderately heritable trait (Table 2).

Conclusions

Genomics and the corresponding Marker-Assisted or GenomicEnhanced EPDs, have become a reality. Within-breed genomic predictions based on actual or imputed 50K genotypes have proven to add accuracy, particularly to young bulls, for several traits. The push going forward will be the adoption of this technology by seedstock and commercial beef producers. Furthermore, methodology related to the use of this technology in crossbred or composite cattle is critically needed. The crux of adoption will be getting commercial bull buyers to see the value in, and thus pay, for increased EPD accuracy. There is still a need to collect and routinely record phenotypic information by seedstock producers. Commercial producers should realize that EPDs, and economic index values, are the currency of the realm for beef cattle selection. Genomic technology only makes these tools stronger, it does not replace them.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Bob Weaber, Ph.D., Associate Professor, joined the faculty of the Department of Animal Sciences and Industry at Kansas State University in August of 2011 as Cow-Calf Extension Specialist and

faculty coordinator of K-State’s Purebred Unit. Previously, Weaber served in the Division of Animal Sciences at the University of Missouri (MU) as Extension Specialist-Beef Genetics and was responsible for educational programming in the area of beef cattle genetics. Dr. Weaber also serves as central regional secretary of the Beef Improvement Federation, is a co-coordinator of the National Beef Cattle Evaluation Consortium education programs and has served as a member of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Policy Division Board of Directors. The focus of his extension and research programs have been to broaden the availability, use and understanding of genetic selection tools (Expected Progeny Differences, DNA markers and selection indexes) as well as performance data collection schemes implemented by cattle producers. Dr. Weaber grew up on a cow-calf operation in Southern Colorado and went on to earn a B.S. in animal science followed by a Master of Agriculture degree in the Beef Industry Leadership Program at Colorado State University. He completed his doctoral studies in the Animal Breeding and Genetics Group at Cornell University. While there, he served as the Interim Director of Performance Programs for the American Simmental Association for three and a half years. Previously, Weaber was Director of Education and Research at the American Gelbvieh Association. Weaber is the recipient of the Midwest Section of Am. Society of Animal Science Young Animal Scientist Extension Award (2013), Beef Improvement Federation’s Continuing Service Award (2011), Univ. of Missouri Extension’s J.W. Burch State Specialist Award (2011), and the Univ. of Missouri Provost’s Award for Creative Extension Programming by Young Faculty (2010). Bob and his wife, Tami, and their young children, Maddie, Cooper and Wyatt, reside near Wamego, Kan. Matt Spangler grew up on a diversified crop and livestock farm in South-Central Kansas where his family still farms and has a cow/calf operation. After receiving his B.S. degree in Animal Science from Kansas State University (2001) he attended Iowa State University and received his M.S. degree in Animal Breeding and Genetics in 2003. He received his Ph.D. at the University of Georgia in Animal Breeding and Genetics (2006) and is currently an Associate Professor and Extension Beef Genetics Specialist at the University of NebraskaLincoln. He works as part of a collaborative team with colleagues at UNL and US MARC to develop and evaluate methods related to genomic selection and is currently part of a collaborative effort funded by the USDA competitive grants program to develop genomic predictors for feed intake and efficiency in beef cattle.

GENETICS Accuracy r 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 0.999

BIF 0.01 0.02 0.05 0.08 0.13 0.2 0.29 0.4 0.56 0.99

h (0.1) 1 2 4 8 13 22 38 70 167 3800 2

Heritability Levels h2 (0.3) 1 1 2 3 5 7 12 22 53 1225

h2 (0.5) 1 1 1 2 3 4 7 13 30 700

Table 2. Approximate number of progeny needed to reach accuracy levels (true (r) and the BIF standard) for three heritabilities (h2).

Figure 1. Increase in accuracy from integrating genomic information that explains 40% of the genetic variation into Estimated Breeding Values (EBV).

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 37

GENETICS

by Megan ROLF, Ph.D. ASSISTANT PROFESSOR & STATE EXTENSION SPECIALIST OKLAHOMA state university

A Practical Guide for the Use of GE-EPDs

s a Brangus breeder, you have a new opportunity available. Genomic-enhanced EPDs (GE-EPDs) were launched earlier this year allowing you the opportunity to enhance your selection decisions. But what are GE-EPDs, and perhaps more importantly, what can they do for the average producer? The following is meant as a primer covering some of the most common questions regarding the option to use genomic testing in selection decisions.

What is a GEEPD?

A genomic-enhanced EPD is simply an EPD that has been augmented with information from a genomic test. In EPD prediction, pedigree data traditionally defines the relationships between animals. For example, full sibs share on average about half of their genes, half siblings share approximately a quarter, and so on. While we utilize the averages to form the basis of

these relationships, in reality, each animal receives a different sampling of genes from their parents, so they may in actuality share greater or fewer genes than the average would suggest. For the Brangus breed, genomic information is utilized along with the pedigree to help better define those relationships between animals in what is called a “singlestep method,” and the pedigree, performance data, and genomic data all contribute to the EPD prediction. The result is presented as an EPD,

Lack-Morrison Brangus Bulls, Females, Semen and Embryos

Bill Morrison 411 CR 10 Clovis, NM 88101 (575) 482-3254 (575) 760-7263 Cell bvmorrison@yucca.net

Joe Paul & Rosie Lack P.O. Box 274 Hatch, NM 87937 P (575) 267-1016 F (575) 267-1234

www.lackmorrisonbrangus.com 38 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

just like normal, but is more accurate than a traditional EPD on young, unproven animals.

How do I use a GE-EPD?

The greatest benefit of GE-EPDs is that they can be utilized in the same way an EPD is used, so they don’t require any additional knowledge to use effectively. Add to that the increased accuracy on younger animals, before they have their own records or progeny information recorded at the association, and you have a win-win combination.

When should I consider genomic testing for an animal?

The decision of whether to utilize genomic testing for an animal is dependent on a variety of factors and is largely dependent on the producer. Generally, animals that are low in accuracy benefit the most from genomic testing, because they will exhibit the greatest increases in accuracy, and thus, the greatest

GENETICS return on investment. Animals that have large numbers of progeny recorded, such as highly proven AI sires, will not see the accuracy benefits from genomic testing because they should already have highly accurate EPD estimates.

How do I get a GE-EPD on an animal?

To obtain GE-EPDs, you first need to collect and submit a DNA sample for the animal you want tested, along with the relevant IBBA paperwork. The testing company will run the DNA on a genomic panel. Currently, the IBBA utilizes information from the 30K (GGP-

LD) and the 150K panel (updated GGP-HD). Additionally, these tests include parent verification at no extra charge. Alternatively, breeders can utilize other genomics providers, but the results will not be the same as those provided by the tests outlined above. Once the test results are returned to IBBA, that information is added to the suite of information utilized in genetic prediction during the next National Cattle Evaluation. The next time the EPDs are released, that animal will have a GE-EPD along with a corresponding increase in accuracy (in addition to accuracy gained from other sources of information, such as reporting yearling weights or other performance data).

What are the benefits of genomic testing for sire selection?

EPDs are estimates that can change over time as more information gets added to the evaluation, which is why reporting high-quality performance data within appropriately-assigned contemporary groups is so critical. When more information gets added, the accuracy increases. The higher the accuracy, the less that EPD is likely to change over time and the more confidence we have (continued on page 40)

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 39

GENETICS (continued from page 39) in that estimate. Genomic testing essentially provides an accuracy jump-start before a sire has large numbers of progeny records to contribute to an evaluation. Practically speaking, this allows producers to screen herd sires with increased confidence due to that increased accuracy. For example, if a producer endeavors to select a yearling herd sire for breeding to heifers, increased accuracy will result in more confidence in purchasing a calving ease sire. Genomic information can also be extremely useful in shortening the timetable for gaining accuracy for sex-limited traits such as milk production, where the first records on a sire wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t arrive until after his first daughters calve. When keeping replacement heifers, a bull can have enormous influence on the cowherd,

and the increased accuracy gained from GE-EPDs can be helpful in selecting the right herd sire to meet your long-term breeding objectives.

What are the benefits of genomic testing for replacement heifer selection?

Much of the focus on genetic selection is placed on choosing the right herd sire, because the sire has such a heavy influence on the calf crop. However, it is important to remember that the females in the herd contribute the other half of the genetic background of those calves. For this reason, it can pay to place emphasis on choosing quality replacement females. One disadvantage in females is their lack of

prolificacy compared to bulls, which can sometimes limit the accuracy gains in their productive lifetime. For this reason, genomic testing can sometimes provide a greater increase in accuracy for a heifer than all of the individual performance records for her progeny in her lifetime, so it is worth considering testing your replacement candidates. One additional benefit of genomic testing that is often forgotten is that the accuracy gains are equivalent regardless of sex, which can do a lot to level the accuracy playing field early in an animalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lifetime. The release of GE-EPDs provides Brangus breeders with another tool in their selection arsenals. Use of genomic tools for selection provides a variety of benefits that producers can capitalize upon. Increases in accuracy of EPDs can not only provide additional information when purchasing bulls and females, but can also be utilized effectively for within-herd selection and culling decisions. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Megan Rolf, Ph.D. joined the faculty of the Department of Animal Sciences at Oklahoma State University in June of 2012 as Assistant Professor of Beef Cattle Management and State Beef Cattle Extension Specialist. Her extension goals include increasing awareness and understanding of genetic and genomic selection tools within the beef industry. Megan was raised on a small cow-calf operation in east central Kansas near LeRoy. She earned her B.S. in Animal Sciences with a science option at Kansas State University in 2005. Megan relocated to Columbia, Mo. to pursue a M.S. in Animal Science at the University of Missouri, with a focus on use of SNP data to generate genomic relationship matrices. After completion of her M.S., she completed a Ph.D. in Genetics at MU, with a research focus on the exploration of methods to partition training and validation populations for improving across-breed genomic selection for carcass traits. 40 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 41

MANAGEMENT

by Blair FANNIN MEDIA RELATIONS SPECIALIST TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE COMUNICATIONS

Key Performance Indicators Can Lead to Cattle Profits

ey performance indicators have been used in business applications for many years, but not so much in cattle operations. Stan Bevers, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economist in Vernon, discussed 13 key performance indicators, also known as KPIs, at the Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course in College Station recently.

“Key performance indicators are measurements to evaluate factors that are crucial to the success of an operation,” Bevers said. “They provide a rancher with an analysis of the operation and detail whether the operation is fulfilling the goals of ownership.” Bevers said KPIs can become a report card for a cattle operation and provide “targets” that can be met to maintain profits. KPIs include the following: • Pounds weaned per exposed female. • Revenue per breeding female. • Nutrition base expense as a percent of total expenses. • Labor and management expense as a percent of total revenue. • Operating expense as a percentage of total revenue. • Net income ratio. • Cost per hundredweight of weaned calf. • Current ratio. • Total investment per breeding female. • Debt per breeding female. • Equity-to- asset ratio or market basis. • Asset turnover ratio on cost basis. • Rate of return on assets on market basis. 42 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

“KPIs identify activities that are incredibly important to the success of an operation,” Bevers said. The KPIs are developed from standardized performance analysis of actual ranch data, he said. During his beef cattle short course presentation, Bevers emphasized the most expensive operational costs for a ranch are depreciation, labor and feed. “They tend to move around a bit,” Bevers said. “We hear all the time feed is the most expensive cost. But that’s not necessarily true. It’s labor and depreciation. A lot of times we don’t even count or factor in our labor. Now, we are paying twice as much as what we used to for bulls. Depreciation has really jumped up in terms of costs.” Bevers said 2017 is the target year to be watching for cattle prices to come down. “We’ve had this record run up in calf prices,” Bevers said. “From an economic standpoint, we know that expenses follow commodity prices. Now that calf prices have kind of been going sideways, we know that in 2016 they could be lower and in 2017 could be lower still. That’s the market side of it, but when we look at the financial side of it, expenses always follow commodity prices and they always lag.

“The point is expenses won’t come down as fast as commodity prices. Cow-calf expenses won’t come down as fast as cow-calf prices. 2016 will have lower calf prices but not to the extent it will affect these higher expenses. During 2017, expenses still will not be coming down, where calf prices will be in their second year of decline. That’s what concerns me.” Bevers said if ranchers still need things done in an operation, such as putting in new corrals, new fences, paying down debt or buying a new vehicle, now might be the best time. “If there is something in the form of a capital asset, get it done in the next 18 months,” Bevers said. “Going into 2017, cash flow could be an issue as calf prices are anticipated to continue to come down.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Fannin is a media relations specialist with Texas A&M AgriLife Communications, serving both Texas A&M AgriLife Research and the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. He provides media support for various departments and programs, including agricultural economics, animal science, the Office of the State Chemist and bioenergy research.

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 43

MANAGEMENT

by Del WILLIAMS TECHNICAL WRITER TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA

Hay Bale Heaven: Move Bales Faster with Less Labor and Equipment Next generation of self-loading/unloading hay trailers promise to improve farm and ranch productivity.

hether farmers and ranchers are hauling hay bales to storage or moving them to pasture to feed cattle in winter, how efficiently they do so has a big impact on productivity and profits. While conventional hay trailers have been around for a hundred years, a new generation of self-loading/ unloading trailer will offer a sort of hay bale heaven, enabling farmers and ranchers to move bales faster with less labor and equipment. The technology, in fact, promises to reduce hay waste as well as improve productivity and profits for years to come.

Reduce Hay Waste

Until recently, “bad side” hay waste has been a costly, unavoidable expense to farmers and ranchers, caused in part by a production equipment bottleneck that leaves bales exposed to moisture in the field. When baled hay sits in the field for days or weeks before it is hauled to storage, the bottom picks up moisture and mildew, creating an inedible “bad side” that’s wasted. The longer baled hay sits before it is moved, the more becomes unusable. Most ranchers do not realize how much money is lost as a result of

44 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

these bad spots. But consider this scenario: If a rancher has 300 head of cattle, he will need about three bales per head for the winter, which adds up to approximately 1,000 bales. If 10 percent is wasted and the bales average 1,000 lbs. each, that is 100,000 lbs. of hay wasted. If a rancher uses the right type of hay hauling equipment to minimize this type of waste, at $40 per bale that is $4,000 or 100 bales per year he does not need to buy or produce. One way to accomplish this is with the latest generation of selfloading/unloading trailers. Unlike conventional hay trailers that must be loaded and unloaded with a tractor, this type of trailer utilizes hydraulic controls to lift bales and set them down where needed. Because the rails slide under the bales, even old and misshapen bales can be lifted and transported with no further damage. This speeds the loading, transporting and then unloading of

bales to storage areas or to remote fields. Better yet, some models can be hitched to a standard pickup truck, not just a tractor. This is a benefit as tractors are often already being used for more critical operations such as baling therefore are not readily available. “With a hay trailer, you’ve got to pick up the bales with a tractor to load and unload it,” says Edwin McLerran, who raises about 150 cows and grows about 1,200 bales of hay a year on his property and rental property in Quincy, Mo. “When the tractor needs to be used elsewhere, the bales are going to stay in the field.” “With a GoBob self-loading/

MANAGEMENT unloading trailer, I’m hauling in the bales without a tractor in half the time,” says McLerran. “That means I can get the bales out to the field faster. Using my pickup truck, I just back up the trailer with my pickup, unload the bales in rows then get another load. I save more time not having to unload the trailer with a tractor.” GoBob Pipe and Steel (www.gobobpipe.com) is a vendor of hay trailers, feeders, fencing, pipe and guards for farmers and ranchers. If the development of a “bad side” to a bale is unavoidable, then creating two bad sides on the same bale is twice as wasteful. Since conventional hay trailers “dump” the hay while unloading, causing the bales to roll, they seldom end up on the original bad side. Therefore additional waste is created, even in well-prepared, uncovered storage lots. Self-loading/unloading trailers do not roll the bales off to unload. For instance, a new trailer slated to be released by GoBob this summer, called the Bale Beast, picks up bales and can set them straight down where needed. Only the original side ever contacts the ground so no new bad sides are created.

Winter Feeding

While loading, moving, and unloading an entire trailer is efficient when bringing the hay bales in for storage, it is not when feeding cattle in winter. Because cattle are usually scattered in different pastures at this time, only a bale or two is usually placed in each location to prevent waste. With conventional hay trailers, however, the entire load must dumped all at once.

Ranchers have traditionally dealt with this issue by making excessive trips from the hay lot to the pasture, taking one or two bales at a time with a tractor or a pickup equipped with a special hay bed. But more trips to the fields requires more time, fuel, wear and tear, plus soil compaction, which reduces forage growth for later feeding. To avoid this problem, selfloading/unloading trailers such as the GoBob Bale Beast allow a rancher to make a trip with up to ten bales, unloading a single bale or as many as necessary at a time. Based on feedback from ranchers, the new trailer has an additional design modification that allows it to be loaded from the front or the back. Conventional hay trailers only load or unload from the back, which is more difficult and time-consuming. While tractors are equipped with hydraulics, most pickup trucks are not unless they already have a bale bed. To make the benefits of this new generation of self-loading/ unloading trailers more widely available, some like GoBob, offer portable hydraulics for use with pickup trucks.

Built FarmTough

Because hay trailers are pulled over rough terrain, including areas with ruts, berms, or potholes, carrying very heavy loads, the trailer itself must be built to withstand the abuse. For farmers and ranchers that move a large quantity of heavy bales each year, that means purchasing a heavy-duty trailer. Trailers in this class, for instance, include the

GoBob Red Rhino, which uses reinforced steel and can haul 10 bales, or the Red Ox, which is even stouter and built to handle 2,500 lbs. silage bales. “We have to go over some rough ground in the pastures with ruts and potholes, and I can’t risk breakdowns when there is hay to be hauled in,” says Wade Penn, who moves about 5,000 hay bales a year for 650 head of cattle on his 5,000 acre Cross B Ranch in Byars, Okla. “In the five years we’ve used GoBob Red Rhino and Red Ox hay trailers, we haven’t had a single problem with them and they have performed well for us,” adds Penn. “In fact, the first year when everyone told us it would take a week to haul in 4,500 bales from the fields, we moved the bales in a weekend.” A new entry into the heavy-duty hay trailer class is the double-wide trailer, which has recently been allowed on public roads. Some of these, like the GoBob Better Built Double Wide, can hold up to 14 bales and come with double jacks and a breakaway kit for safety. When hauling fewer than 500 bales a year, farmers and ranchers may want to look for a hay trailer that’s built to be cost-effective, yet reliable, such as the GoBob Competitor, so named because of its competitive price. Whether farmers and ranchers take advantage of next generation self-loading/unloading hay trailers to improve their productivity, or rely on the most reliable methods to move bales with the least downtime, it is time to reexamine how they operate to get the best results. FRONTLINE Beef Producer 45

INDUSTRY

“A

by John Alan COHAN ATTORNEY AT LAW

Are “Ag-Gag” Laws Constitutional?

g-gag” is the term used to describe anti-whistleblower laws that apply within the agriculture industry. About half a dozen states have passed laws to criminalize surreptitious filming of alleged abuses of animals on farms and ranches. These laws are an attempt to prevent undercover investigative reporting or whistleblowing by employees, and to suppress the use of the videos to build support for stronger penalties for the abuse of cows, chickens, hogs or other animals. Aggag laws are justified as a way of preventing interference with agricultural production.

The bills have been met with stiff and growing opposition in many states, where the proposals have been defeated, including California, New York, Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska, Illinois and others. These laws have been criticized by various groups, arguing that they are intended primarily to censor animal welfare abuses by the agriculture industry from the public. At the same time, a new North Carolina law, the Property Protection Act, was enacted over the governor’s veto, and goes into effect in January, 2016. Are ag-gag laws constitutional? A new ruling issued by the U.S. District Court in Idaho held such a law to be unconstitutional as a violation of the First Amendment: “Although the State may not agree with the message certain groups seek to convey about Idaho’s agricultural production facilities, such as releasing secretly recorded videos of animal abuses to the Internet and calling for boycotts, it cannot deny such groups equal protection of the laws in their exercise of their right to free speech.” (See decision by Judge B. Lynn Winmill in Animal Legal Defense Fund v. C.L. Butch Otter, Governor of Idaho.) The court held Idaho’s ag-gag law, which created a new crime, “interference with agricultural production,” to be unconstitutional primarily on First 46 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

Amendment grounds in that the law was enacted with the discriminatory purpose of silencing animal rights activists who conduct undercover investigations in the agricultural industry. Under the Idaho law, like those in other states, a journalist or animal rights investigator could be convicted for not disclosing his media or political affiliations when requesting a tour of an industrial feedlot, or applying for employment at a farm. And an employee could be convicted for videotaping animal abuse or life-threatening safety violations at an agricultural facility without first obtaining the owner’s permission. These laws are thought to stifle public debate about abusive practices that undercover investigations sometimes reveal. Supporters of the laws claim they are needed to protect members of the livestock and agriculture industries from “extreme activists who want to contrive issues simply to bring in the donations.” One legislator in Idaho said that “The most extreme conduct that we see threatening Idaho dairymen and other farmers occurs under the cover of false identities and purposes. Extremist groups implement vigilante tactics to deploy self-appointed socalled investigators who masquerade

as employees to infiltrate farms in the hope of discovering and recording what they believe to be animal abuse.” The judge’s ruling overturning the Idaho law stated that the law seeks to limit and punish those who speak out on topics relating to the agricultural industry, “striking at the heart of important First Amendment values. The effect of the statute will be to suppress speech by undercover investigators and whistleblowers concerning topics of great public importance. Indeed, private party media investigations, such as investigative features on 60 Minutes, are a common form of politically salient speech.” The court added: “Prohibiting undercover investigators or whistleblowers from recording an agricultural facility’s operations inevitably suppresses a key type of speech because it limits the information that might later be published or broadcast.” The court held that existing laws against trespass, fraud, theft, and defamation are adequate to protect livestock facilities “without infringing on free speech rights.” This ruling is a very important First Amendment case, and is likely to end up in the Supreme Court.

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 47

SERVICES Lakin Oakley Auctioneer

7081 Highway 82 West DeKalb, Texas 75559 903/667-3251 Home 903/277-9610 Mobile

F R O N T L I N E F R O beef N T producer L I N E FYes,RI want O beef Nto receive T producer L my I NFREE E Yes, I want to receive subscription to my the FREE beef producer subscription to the Frontline Beef Producer! Yes, I want to receive my FREE Frontline Beef Producer! Mail mysubscription subscription to:to the Mail my subscription to: Name Frontline Beef Producer! Name Mail my subscription to: Add: Add: Name

Add: City City State Zip State Zip City Country Country State Zipand send to: Detach form Detach form and send to: IBBA, 5750 Epsilon Country IBBA, 5750 Epsilon San Antonio, Texas 78249 Detach form and send to: SanFax: Antonio, 78249 (210) Texas 696-8718 IBBA, 5750 Epsilon Fax: (210) 696-8718 lindsey@int-brangus.org San Antonio, Texas 78249 lindsey@int-brangus.org Fax: (210) 696-8718 Or simply lindsey@int-brangus.org Or scan simply this QR scanwith this your QR code Or simply code with your smartphone scan this QR smartphone code with your smartphone 48 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

To place your ad in the 2016 SPRING FRONTLINE BEEF PRODUCER contact: Melanie at 979.255.3343 or Kyle at 254.371.9388

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 49

CALENDAR SEPTEMBER 2015

NOVEMBER 2015

Space Deadline for October Brangus Journal

Thomas & Sons “Cadillac of Brangus Sale” :: Madison, MO

The Branch Ranch Bull & Female Sale :: Mansfield, LA

Southeast Regional Junior Brangus Show :: Lake City, FL

Space Deadline for December Brangus Journal

Southeast Brangus Breeders Showcase Sale :: Lake City, FL

Hill Country Brangus Breeders Sale :: San Angelo, TX

Western National Brangus Show :: Oklahoma City, OK

Blackwater Cattle Company Sale :: Lake Park, GA

Oklahoma Brangus Breeders Sale :: McAlester, OK

OCTOBER 2015 9

Space Deadline for November Brangus Journal

CX Advantage Sale :: Weimar, TX

Brinks Brangus at Westall Ranch Annual Production Sale :: Arabela, NM

Cattle Country Replacement Female Sale :: Brighton, FL

Big D Ranch Annual Brangus/Ultrablack Bull Plus Commercial Female Sale :: Center Ridge, AR

Little Creek Farms and Friends - W.E.T. Farms and Sabal Ridge 8th Annual Bull Sale :: Okeechobee, FL

Doguet’s Diamond D Ranch Sale :: Poteet, TX

Town Creek Farm Sale :: West Point, MS

Brangus National Show of Merit :: Shreveport, LA

Oak Creek Farms Sale :: Chappell Hill, TX

24 30-31 31

6-7

GeneTrust at Chimney Rock Sale :: Concord, AR

20-21

Salacoa Valley Buy the Numbers Female & Bull Sale :: Fairmount, GA

GeneTrust at Cavender’s Neches River Ranch Sale :: Jacksonville, TX

DECEMBER 2015 5

Alabama Brangus Breeders Bull Sale :: Uniontown, AL

Space Deadline for January Brangus Journal

Miller Brangus Sale :: Waynesboro, TN The Oaks and Genetic Partners Proven Performance Sale :: Newnan, GA Yon Family Farms Bull & Female Sale :: Ridge Spring, SC

To get your sale added for 2016, contact IBBA today! For the most current listing of upcoming events visit

gobrangus.com/calendar To place your ad in the 2016 SPRING FRONTLINE BEEF PRODUCER contact: Melanie at 979.255.3343 or Kyle at 254.371.9388 50 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 51

AD INDEX 8G Brangus................................................................................................. 9 Big D Ranch................................................................................................ 8 Blackwater Cattle Company...............................................................21 Brinks Brangus at Westall Ranches, LLC...................................26, 27 Cavender Ranch......................................................................................43 Chimney Rock Cattle Company.................................................10, 11 Circle X Land & Cattle Co................................................................... IFC Cox Excalibur Brangus............................................................................ 3 Doak Lambert..........................................................................................48 DS Farms....................................................................................................49 Elgin Breeding Service..........................................................................48 Farris Ranching Company...................................................................34 GeneTrust....................................................................................10, 11, 43 Hill Country Brangus Breeders Association..................................17 Lack-Morrison Brangus........................................................................38 Lake Majestik Farms..............................................................................49

52 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

Lakin Oakley.............................................................................................48 Miller Brangus..........................................................................................19 Multimin 90................................................................................................ 9 Oak Creek Farms.................................................................................... BC Oklahoma Brangus Breeders Sale....................................................39 Ottmanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Brangus at Valley View Ranch.........................................31 Salacoa Valley Farms...............................................................33, 41, 49 Santa Rosa Ranch................................................................................. IBC Silveus Insurance....................................................................................51 ST Genetics...............................................................................................23 The Branch Ranch.................................................................................... 7 The Oaks Farm.......................................................................................4, 5 Town Creek Farm...................................................................................... 1 Wes Dotson..............................................................................................48 West Coast Brangus Breeders Association...................................... 6

IF YOU LIKE OUR BOYS, YOU WILL LOVE OUR GIRLS! Santa Rosa Ranch •••••••••••••••••• Kent Smith, General Manager (979) 540-8338 | kent@srrbrangus.com Billy McClure, Manager (870) 613-1518 | billy@srrbrangus.com Gerald Sullivan, Owner Kelley Sullivan, Owner Navasota and Crockett, Texas

www.srrbrangus.com

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 53 Crockett & Navasota, Texas • 936-624-2333 • info@srrbrangus.com

O AK C REEK F ARMS Forage Tested Bull Sale

Saturday, October 24, 2015 - 12:30 p.m. Oak Creek Farms Sale Facility, Chappell Hill, Texas

Selling 130 Forage Tested OCF Bulls 60 Brangus l 60 Red Brangus l 5 Angus l 5 Red Angus

Pre-Sale Activities, Friday, October 23, 2015: 6:00 p.m. - Seminar followed by Ribeye Steak Dinner sponsored by Zoetis

Seminar Speakers: Dr. Tommy Perkins, IBBA Executive Vice President & Kevin Milliner, Zoetis Ranch Tours Available Thursday and Friday

VOLUME DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE!

OAK CREEK FARMS FORAGE DEVELOPED LOW MAINTENANCE CATTLE

OCF Bulls on Forage Test for the 2015 Upcoming Sale oakcreekfarms.com- customer’s OCF sired calves achieve 80-90% choice & prime!

Going on twelve years using DNA to identify desirable heritable traits.

54 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

Hotel Accommodations: Comfort Suites, Brenham, TX Special Rate- Oak Creek Farms – 979-421-8100

806- He sells! www.oakcreekfarms.com

OAK CREEK FARMS

info@oakcreekfarms.com

John & Carolyn Kopycinski l Chappell Hill, Texas 979/836-6832

Directions from Houston: Hwy 290 (60 mi west) then 4 mi south on FM 1371

Oak Creek Farms - Celebrating our 48th Anniversary - Breeding Brangus Since 1967