14 minute read
Water quality and availability discussed as considerations for producers
Hosts of the Kansas State University (KSU)Beef Cattle Institute (BCI) Cattle Chat podcast Brad White, Dustin Pendell and Phillip Lancaster discussed several current events and topics related to livestock production in the latest episode, including water quality and access for young calves.
It’s no surprise that water is necessary for animal health and well-being in any production. While most might greatly consider the quantity of water available, the BCI team of experts offers other factors to consider when providing water sources for livestock.
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The importance of water quality
“I was listening to a PhD student’s research proposal looking at the impacts of water quality and heat and cold stress on a carcass,” explains Dr. Pendell. “It’s more clear the impact that heat and cold stress have on carcass quality. But, when he said, ‘water quality,’ this kind of jumped out at me.”
The Cattle Chat team says, “There has been a little bit of research from a nutritional standpoint. We don’t have a whole lot of knowledge on water other than to make sure it’s available in adequate quantities and test it for any contaminants.”
Referring to a study looking at cow/calf pairs drinking well water compared to water from ponds and streams, the team shared weaning weights on calves drinking well water were 20 or 30 pounds heavier than calves drinking out of ponds and streams.
“This is an impressive difference,” notes the team of experts. “We don’t think about it on both sides; both cows and the calves, but calves have to drink water, too.”
Water and calf development
Producers with calves born earlier in the spring may wonder how much water the calves need or when they need to have water access.
The team of Extension experts says calves should have open access and ad libitum access to water.
“We want to make sure they have access to clean fresh water, and calves that are still nursing the cow need the same access to water, even though they are consuming milk,” they add.
The reason behind this lies in calves’ digestive system and development.
“Because when that calf suckles, it causes a reflex reaction which allows milk to bypass the rumen and go to the true stomach in the small intestine,” explains the BCI team. “In the rumen, the high-quality milk protein would actually be downgraded to a lower quality microbial protein.”
Calves can avoid this by allowing milk to bypass the rumen.
“But, then the problem starts when the calf starts to eat solid food, some grass and things like that, and they don’t have any water or liquid going into the rumen,” says the team of experts.
“The liquid is important because it helps the rumen contractions mix forage and feed better, and this mixing is what allows microbes in the rumen to come in contact with feed particles and attach to those feed particles to start the digestion process.”
It is important to consider when calves will start digesting forages.
“Depending on how much milk cows are producing, calves are going to start nibbling on grass and eating grass at around a month of age and this is only going to increase.”
Additionally, producers should consider calves’ need for water by understanding a cow’s milk production.
The team notes, lactation curves typically peak at about 60 days after calving. At this point, the team notes, “Milk production starts to decline, the calf starts to consume more and more grass and it starts to rely more on the digestion of grass for its nutrient requirements.”
Considerations for water facilities
Water access continues to be a primary concern for producers.
“Think about if we are watering out of manmade structures: We need to make sure calves are able to access water in the summertime,” explains the team of experts, noting that winter usually comes with water access issues.
“Overall, we really do water a disservice as a nutrient,” says the team of experts. “We spend a lot of time talking about other nutrients and feed ingredients. From a veterinarian’s perspective, water might be the most important nutrient and we give it the least amount of consideration.”
The Cattle Chat team mentions, “If producers tie it into some of our previous discussions where we have talked about rotating pastures or being sure to leave adequate forage, one of the big limiting factors is access to water.”
“There has to be enough water at each of those areas. It’s easy to say, ‘well they can drink out of the pond, or they can drink out of that area for a little bit,’ but the water quality bleeds through into everything.”
The BCI Cattle Chat team leaves listeners with five tips for maintaining good water on their operation in their checklist for the week: Maintain good footing around the water facilities, the facilities should be designed for young calves, monitor water for potential toxins, avoid contamination and provide adequate quantities of water.
Chaney Peterson is a corresponding writer for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
LOGAN continued from page 1
(DVM) from Colorado State University in 1975. At this time, he returned home to Riverton to practice veterinary medicine with Doug McLean, opening his own practice in 1981.
Protecting both livestock and producers with a common sense approach placed Jim on many working groups and regulatory boards. According to nominators, Jim played a key role in the development of current Wyoming Brucellosis Designated Surveillance Area regulations to increase trust in the sale of Wyoming cattle. He also worked to revise language in the Code of Federal Regulations pertaining to brucellosis eradication and control.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinarian Morgan Hennessey says, “Jim has established working relationships with producers in Wyoming to ensure control of brucellosis within a designated surveillance area around the Greater Yellowstone Area, and these relationships have ensured the testing and management for brucellosis have occurred using a common sense approach in the best interest of Wyoming cattle producers.”
Jim’s long list of service includes activity and leadership positions within the U.S. Animal Health Association (USAHA), the American Veterinary Medical Association, Wyoming Veterinary Medical Association, the Wyoming Livestock Board, American Sheep Industry Association, USDA APHIS National Animal Health Surveillance System Steering Committee, Wyoming Wool Growers Association and Western States Livestock Health Association.
“As a veterinarian in private practice and in administrative leadership capacities, Jim has made livestock management issues and concerns manageable and comprehensible and can always be found providing resolutions to ongoing developments,” notes Mark Eisele. “Jim is well respected and admired by veterinarians and livestock practitioners locally, statewide, around the Intermountain West and nationally. His dedication is unlike any other in veterinary medicine and animal welfare that I have seen.”
Livestock promotion and passion for agriculture
In addition to serving in many positions to enhance animal health, Jim has shown his dedication to the promotion of livestock, especially sheep, for many years. Nominators share through raising his own livestock, and pursuing similar adventures with his daughters, Jim has supported 4-H and FFA tirelessly.
Betsy Milek, Jim’s daughter, shares, “He would diligently and pateintly work with us and our 4-H friends to prepare us to fit and show our sheep at the fair. He also served on the Fremont County 4-H Council, and has always been willing to help the 4-H kids in any way possible, from writing out health certificates or doctoring animals to giving animal health lectures or being a narrator for the annual 4-H Fashion Revue.”
Wyoming Livestock Board Director Steve True shares, “Jim has given his career to the livestock industry, not only of Wyoming, but the nation as a whole. He has been an exemplary representative of Wyoming at events, conferences, conventions and in the dirt and mud of corrals.”
Eisele adds, “Jim’s experience, knowledge and humble way of explaining issues to agricultural producers, the general public and outside industry is the best that Wyomingites could have ever asked for. Jim is proving he will always have the Wyoming animal and livestock industry health at heart.”
Jim says, “I have been privileged and blessed to have been allowed to work with the Wyoming livestock industry all of my veterinary career, for 27 years in veterinary practice and since 1998 working for the Wyoming Livestock Board in regulatory veterinary medicine. I have a great deal of respect, admiration and affection for livestock producers and the animals they raise. I have many friends in the industry and I look forward to continuing to work with them in some capacity, even after retirement.”
Dr. Jim Logan, alongside Keith and Linda Hamilton, will be inducted into the Wyoming Ag Hall of Fame Aug. 18, 5 p.m. at Riverside Park in Douglas.
Averi Hales is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net. “We spend a lot of time talking about other nutrients and feed ingredients. From a veterinarian’s perspective, water might be the most important nutrient and we give it the least amount of consideration.” – KSU Beef Cattle Institute Cattle Chat Team
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It’s the Pitts by Lee Pitts
Purse Turtles
I think there wouldn’t be near as many gangs, kids killing kids or troubled teenagers today if more urban kids had pets.
My best friend in high school didn’t speak a word of French, knew no calculus and didn’t play on the football team, and neither did I. I think I had the potential to be a rebellious bad boy, but I had a wonderful dog who loved me unconditionally and got me through my difficult teenage years.
I had other pets, too; steers, lambs, pigs, cows, ducks, rabbits, chickens and heaven forbid, even a cat. Our house was filled with pets as we always had
Visit leepittsbooks.org for more from Lee Pitts.
a canary or a parakeet, and the goldfish bowl always had one or two residents, even though we had a hard time keeping the goldfish because we lived in earthquake country and they kept sloshing out of the bowl.
We also had several of those very small turtles that lived in a plastic dish with a palm tree sticking out of it. The tiny turtles didn’t last very long, but they were way more social than the big turtle we had that I saw twice in 10 years.
I was inspired to write about turtles because a dear friend recently “adopted” a pet turtle for her cute two-year-old daughter. They went to a “turtle rescue preserve,” where there were over 300 turtles of all sizes and ages that people had dropped off or were
RIVERTON LIVESTOCK AUCTION
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Durbin Creek Ranch - 55 Weigh Cows Scott Schulz - 13 Blk & CharX Yrling Strs 700-900#. High elevation. Flying B Livestock - 9 Corriente Strs & Hfrs 500#. Ready to rope! Randy Perry - 2 Blk Ang 4 Yr old Pairs. Cows have been wormed & poured. Calves have had comp vacc. Fancy!
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discovered in places they shouldn’t be, like sitting atop a fence post where they were placed as a sick practical joke.
My friends paid $85 for their turtle, which they optimistically named Buddy, not really knowing if it was a he or a she. How does one tell?
My friends were immediately drawn to Buddy because of its handicap: Someone had painted Buddy’s shell a bright white, probably so it was easier to find than our turtle. When my friends go to the lake for the weekend, the mother-in-law visits Buddy twice a day to feed it at home a chilled romaine/iceberg lettuce mix.
I was curious about the pet turtle market, so the next time I was in town I visited a pet store and asked the aggressive salesman if he had anything that would make a nice housewarming gift for Buddy. He showed me several padded turtle beds, leashes which looked exactly like the ones they sold for dogs and turtle houses, which seemed redundant. He also suggested “enrichment toys” to foster Buddy’s mental acuity, a pet sounds music CD and a loofah brush and chamomile and lavender body wash with which my friends should massage Buddy religiously twice a day to remove the paint. I understand some of the white on Buddy’s shell has now faded to a dull grey – probably the primer coat.
Has anyone seen these purses in which women haul around their small dogs? The salesman showed me a turtle purse for Buddy and also a backpack to haul him because he walks at a slower pace than most humans. The “bio-accessory” backpack could also be turned around so Buddy could see where he’s going instead of where he’s been.
No doubt you’ve seen “service dogs” and even “service pot-bellied pigs” in the grocery store, and I feel confident in saying you’ll someday soon see “service turtles.”
When I think about it, turtles have many advantages as pets compared to dogs. They don’t bark, a turtle can breathe through its butt – no really – they don’t have to sit next to you in the truck and stick their head out the window and when they get wet and “shake,” they don’t drench anyone in water.
Turtle owners don’t have to constantly throw them slobbery tennis balls because no matter how many times you try, the turtle will not retrieve the ball. They can’t be taught hard tricks like rolling over or sitting, but they are unrivaled at playing dead.
Veterinary bills are less, too, because they won’t pull a muscle trying to jump in and out the truck and they don’t drink out of the toilet like my dog did who suffered several concussions from being hit on the head by falling toilet seats.
Turtles also live a long time and there’s not near the emotional loss when one does die because you probably had no idea where it was anyway.
WY acreage highlights released
Wyoming principal crop planted acreage, which includes acres planted to all major crops and those expected to be cut for all hay, is down 11 percent from 2020 to 1.28 million acres, according to the June 1 Agricultural Survey conducted by the Mountain Regional Field Office of the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Wyoming corn producers planted 85,000 acres of corn this year, of which they intend to harvest 59,000 acres for grain, up from 54,000 acres harvested in 2020. This is an increase of nine percent from last year’s harvested grain acreage, but an 11 percent decrease in planted acreage for all purposes.
Barley planted area, at 79,000 acres, is seven percent more than last year’s acreage. Expected harvested acres, at 64,000 acres, are three percent above 2020.
Winter wheat producers planted 115,000 acres in the fall of 2020 for harvest in 2021, down from 120,000 acres planted for the previous year’s crop. Acreage expected to be harvested for grain is up 5,000 acres from last year to 95,000 acres.
The area to be harvested for hay is expected to decrease 140,000 acres from a year ago to 940,000 acres. If realized, this would be the lowest acreage of all hay harvested since 935,000 acres were harvested in 2012. Alfalfa hay harvested acreage is expected to decrease 160,000 acres to 450,000 acres, and all other hay harvested acreage is expected to increase 20,000 acres to 490,000 acres. If realized, this would be the lowest acreage of alfalfa hay harvested since 450,000 acres were harvested in 2013.
Sugarbeet plantings increased 700 acres from last year to 31,700 acres. The expected harvested area, at 30,800 acres, is unchanged from last year.
Acres planted to dry beans, at 25,000 acres, are down 14 percent from last year. Harvested acres are expected to total 23,000 acres.
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