Intersection of Innovative, Intriguing, and Insanity

Garth Ruff, Beef Cattle Field Specialist, Ohio State University Extension (originally published in The Ohio Cattleman)

Consider spending some of the additional income dollars on improved genetics.

January through March is what we in Extension call “Meeting Season.” While in most cases I am teaching at the meetings I attend, I often learn several things about beef production from producers and other speakers that often fall into one of three categories: Innovative, Intriguing, or Insanity.

Let’s start with the innovative. Farmers are some of the most innovative people I know when it comes to creative solutions to a given problem. As they say, “necessity is the mother of Invention.” Cattle handling facilities are some of the first things that come to mind in this area, functional handmade solutions to a common issue. Discussions about whole herd management, logistics, trial and error, I really enjoy these conversations.

Intriguing – These are the things that I go back to the office and take a deeper look at. These are often statements made from other presentations at meetings that are often cutting-edge precision technology, advancements in genetics, risk management, and farm economics. These are the most Continue reading

Growth performance, carcass traits, and feeder calf value of beef × Holstein and Holstein feedlot steers

M. Pimentel-Concepción, J. R. Jaborek, J. P. Schweihofer, A. J. Garmyn, M.-G.-S. McKendree, B. J. Bradford, A. Hentschl, and D. D. Buskirk

Applied Animal Science 2024 40:56–68
https://doi.org/10.15232/aas.2023-02454

Holstein cattle are a dairy breed that represents approximately 23% of the US fed beef supply from surplus heifer and bull calves. Dairy-type cattle, especially Holstein steers, typically produce USDA Choice or better carcasses and provide a year-round supply of beef. However, dairy-type cattle can have reduced feed efficiency, muscling, and dressing percent compared with beef-type cattle. Compared with beef-type steers, dairy-type carcasses receive greater discounts due to their reduced red meat yield, and the decision of a major US packer to stop buying Holstein fed steers further decreased their value.

Recently, the use of beef sires to breed dairy dams of low genetic merit for milk production has increased substantially in the United States with the aim to increase calf value and overall economic return. From 2017 to 2023, US beef semen sales increased by almost 6.5 million units, whereas Holstein semen sales decreased by around 6.3 million units. These data support the observation that increased beef semen sales are largely attributed to the greater use of beef sires to breed dairy females.  This study was to compare Continue reading

Buying Feeders? How “Histophilus somni” or “Somnus” is Changing the Game

– Dr. Michelle Arnold, UK Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory

Most KY-born calves leave the farm and enter marketing channels, usually through auction markets, into stocker and backgrounding operations. Not surprisingly, late fall and winter are difficult seasons to keep feeder calves alive in KY due to major health challenges. Weather is just one of many risk factors that play a role in Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) or “Shipping Fever” development. Most auction market calves are sold as “high risk calves”, meaning they are lightweight (≤ 500#), young (estimated 6-8 months), unweaned (or abruptly weaned on the trailer on the way to the yards), unknown health history, never or poorly vaccinated and most are trace mineral (copper and selenium) deficient. At the auction barn, they are mixed or “commingled” with similar weight calves from multiple farms then sold, allowing respiratory “bugs” to spread prior to delivery to the stocker/backgrounder facility or feedlot. After arrival and a brief rest period, these calves are usually processed through the chute and receive multiple vaccines, deworming, are implanted and the bulls are castrated. These calves will typically break with respiratory disease within the first 2 weeks after arrival and require at least one antibiotic treatment. It is estimated that 60-70% of calves marketed through sale barns are considered at high risk for disease.

Over the last few years, the bacterium Histophilus somni (formerly known as Haemophilus somnus) has emerged as the major bacterial pathogen responsible for the rapid development of disease and death in feeder operations. While Mannheimia haemolytica, often referred to as “Pasteurella”, has traditionally been the most important bacterial species in “shipping fever” bronchopneumonia, Histophilus somni (HS) can cause similar disease symptoms but is proving very difficult to Continue reading

Winter Beef School Webinars to Focus on Meeting Local Demand

This series begins on the 18th.

The Ohio State University Extension Beef Team will be hosting its annual winter webinar series in 2024 on the third Thursday of each month, January to April. This year’s series will take a deeper dive into production practices and factors that impact quality and profitability when it comes to producing beef to be marketed directly to consumers.

The session topics and speakers are as follows Continue reading

Free RFID tags are still available

Ohio cattlemen can request free, white 840 tags.

In further support of their effort to transition to 840 radio frequency identification (RFID) tags for official identification for cattle and bison throughout the U.S., the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is making 840 RFID tags available free to cattlemen and veterinarians. In Ohio, both the Ohio Cattlemen’s Association and the Ohio Department of Agriculture have been approved to distribute these free tags while they last.

The RFID tags can be used in breeding and market cattle. There are both white “840” button tags and orange “840” calfhood vaccination (OCV) button tags available. All RFID tags are low frequency tags. Veterinarians may receive both white and orange tags, while cattle producers may only receive the white 840 tags.

A Premises Identification Number (PIN) is required to order the free RFID tags. To obtain a PIN, scan the Continue reading

BEEF 509 to be held Feb. 23 and 24 in New Format

Back by popular demand in 2024.

The 2024 edition of BEEF 509 will be held on the campus of Ohio State University on February 23 and 24 and will feature a new format with only one session. Click here for details and the schedule.

BEEF 509 is an educational program sponsored by the beef checkoff and the Ohio Beef Council (OBC) in partnership with the Ohio State University Department of Animal Sciences and OSU Extension. Registration is $175 per person with the beef council covering all additional program expenses. A maximum of 30 program spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis. The program will be held at the OSU Animal Sciences Building located at 2029 Fyffe Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210. The registration deadline is January 3, 2024.

Click here to register. For more information contact Luke McKee at lmckee@ohiobeef.org

Safe and effective use of cattle steroid ear implants

Jerad Jaborek, Michigan State University Extension

Steroidal ear implants are a growth promoting technology administered subcutaneously in the back of the middle one-third of the ear to increase growth, feed efficiency and carcass leanness of beef cattle.

As of July 1, 2023, label claims on cattle steroid implant products were updated by their respective manufacturing companies to meet a request from the FDA to provide clarification on reimplanting use within a production phase. There are currently 25 approved implants for use in beef production in the U.S.

Three main types of hormones are used in cattle ear implants: androgens, estrogens and progestins. Estrogens consist either of the naturally occurring estradiol-17β, a synthetic version called estradiol benzoate or an estrogen-like compound called zeranol. Estrogens can be used either alone or in combination with the naturally occurring progestin, progesterone, or a synthetic version of testosterone, trenbolone acetate. Implants vary in potency and are commonly classified as low-, medium- or high-potency implants depending on their active ingredients and the concentration of their active ingredients (Table 1). Less potent implants usually . . .

Continue reading Safe and effective use of cattle steroid ear implants

A valid veterinarian-client-patient relationship is key to successful cattle health

Jerad Jaborek, Michigan State University Extension

Photo by R. Anson Eaglin, USDA, Public Domain.

By now, you have heard of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary Medicine’s (FDA-CVM) change of purchasing medically important over-the-counter antimicrobials for animals to now requiring a veterinary prescription as of June 11, 2023. This is one of many regulatory changes implemented regarding administering antimicrobials to food producing animals over the last decade due to the growing concerns of metaphylactic treatment of food-producing animals and antimicrobial resistance. As part of FDA-CVM’s 2012/2013 release of guidance for industry (GFI) #209, “The Judicious Use of Medically Important Antimicrobial Drugs in Food-Producing Animals,” the FDA-CVM aimed to:

  1. Limit medically important antimicrobial drugs to uses in food-producing animals that are considered necessary for assuring animal health.
  2. Limit medically important antimicrobial drugs to uses in food-producing animals that include veterinary oversight or consultation.

This led to the . . .

Continue reading A valid veterinarian-client-patient relationship is key to successful cattle health

A whole herd beef cattle health management update with Dr. Justin Kieffer

Many health challenges on the farm can be avoided with a proper herd health management program. During the third session of the 2022 Virtual Beef School held on Monday, March 21st Dr. Justin Kieffer, Clinical Veterinarian for the Department of Animal Sciences at OSU, offered a beef herd health management update. Included in his presentation were vaccination protocols for both cows and calves, discussion on how to best implement a vaccination program, and an overview of emerging beef herd health issues including pink eye, anaplasmosis, and antimicrobial use. Embedded below you can listen in as OSU Extension Beef Field Specialist Garth Ruff introduces Dr. Kieffer and his presentation, in its entirety.

Demand for CHOICE Beef Strengthens

– Dr. Andrew Griffith, Assistant Professor, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Tennessee

Could PRIME become the standard grade of beef in the future?

The Choice Select spread has received little attention in this column, but it deserves a few comments as production of Choice grade beef dominates the production side and demand for Choice beef has strengthened over the past decade. From a historical perspective, the Choice Select spread the first decade of this century rarely exceeded $15 per hundredweight with occasions of reaching $20. This was fairly typical until 2017 and since then the Choice Select spread has regularly exceeded $25.

What is unique about this price relationship is that as Choice beef supply has increased so has the demand for Choice beef. One would typically think the spread between Choice and Select grade beef would narrow Continue reading