Management

Don’t Let Drought (Un)shock the System

Amber Friedrichsen, Managing Editor, Hay and Forage Grower
(Previously published in Hay & Forage Grower: November 5, 2024)

Drought can take an obvious toll on forage supplies, stand condition, and water resources, but the effect it has on electric fences may be less apparent. Less apparent, that is, until livestock escape a pasture because the fence didn’t hold a charge strong enough to deter them.

Dean Kreager, an agriculture and natural resources educator with Ohio State University Extension, says there are fencing issues specific to drought that can cause havoc in grazing systems if left unattended. These problems primarily stem from weak grounding rods and loose fence posts.

Weak connections
Although wet conditions can lead to electrical faults when forage and weeds overtake fences and reduce the electrical charge, Kreager states these faults are less of a concern in dry conditions since stressed forage isn’t usually as tall. Instead, electric fences may malfunction during drought because ground rods are less effective in dry soil. Some moisture is necessary to maintain a strong electric circuit. Continue reading Don’t Let Drought (Un)shock the System →

Don’t Guess Hay Quality — Test It!

Tom Bechman, Midwest Crops Editor
(Previously published in Wisconsin Agriculturalist: October 16, 2024)

(Image Source: Hay and Forage Grower)

Pulling forage samples is not an option in Nick Minton’s eyes. It is essential.

“It is where everything begins for feeding livestock,” says Minton, a Purdue animal scientist and director of the Indiana Bull Evaluation Program, based at the Feldun-Purdue Ag Center near Bedford, Ind.

“If you don’t test forages, you don’t have any guidelines for building your ration,” he explains. “You could feed for a month and then judge performance based on if [your livestock] were maintaining body condition or getting thin, but that is backward, in my judgment.

“Forages are a big part of the ration for beef bulls in our testing program, and I want to feed a balanced ration from the beginning. That means I must test feed ingredients for nutrient content, including forages.”

How to sample hay
Achieving a reliable forage test starts with sampling correctly, Minton says. Here are his five basic steps for preparing and evaluating accurate samples: Continue reading Don’t Guess Hay Quality — Test It! →

Management of Sheep and Goats Through Drought

David Brown, Livestock Field Specialist, University of Missouri Extension
(Previously published online with the University of Missouri Extension: June, 2024)

The extended period of drought has led to feed and water shortages for livestock. Sheep and goats may have difficulty meeting their nutritional needs, which can lead to weight loss as body reserves are depleted. During this period, most of the animals are predisposed to diseases and some die, leading to great economic loss for producers. It is therefore important to prepare animals for strategies that will help them cope and maintain body condition.

During the drought period, the demand for forage and/or water can be greater than the supply. The producer is then faced with a decision to either increase the supply of forage by purchasing hay or other feedstuffs, or to reduce forage demand by reducing the number of animals that depend on the forage. This is a tough decision to make.

Management strategies consideration during drought

Selling — There has been discussion for producers to Continue reading Management of Sheep and Goats Through Drought →

Stave Off Waterbelly in Sheep and Goats

South Dakota State University Extension
(Previously published online with: DakotaFarmer, FarmProgress: October 9, 2024)

Tips can help prevent disease that blocks urinary tract in male ruminants.

Male sheep and goats can be afflicted with waterbelly, which can lead to major production losses. Also called urolithiasis or urinary calculi, waterbelly can affect wethers feeding on a high-concentrate ration.

The disease is caused by small stones forming in the bladder that later block the urethra. The stones cause reduced urine flow, hunched backs and abdominal discomfort. Young wethers are more prone to the condition. The inability for the animal to urinate will cause the bladder to distend or rupture, hence the name, waterbelly.

To guard against the disease in your flocks, know the symptoms, forms of waterbelly and ways to prevent it. With

Continue reading Stave Off Waterbelly in Sheep and Goats →

More Rain Doesn’t Fix Drought Pastures

Mindy Ward, Editor, Missouri Ruralist
(Previously published online with FarmProgress, Missouri Ruralist: July 16, 2024)

(Image Source: Drovers via Bryce Baldridge)

Although this article is geared towards the drought conditions experienced in Missouri this past summer, Mindy Ward provides our Eastern readers with 4 key tips on how to manage your drought stressed pastures after finally receiving some much needed fall moisture.

Here are four things to do to boost plant roots and future growth of fatigued grasses and forbs.

Recent heavy rains may provide relief to Missouri’s two-year drought, but Carson Roberts says one good rain won’t undo the damage to mismanaged pastures.

“Remember, it is not about how much rain you get,” the University of Missouri Extension state forage specialist says. “It’s about how much rain you can keep and access.” Continue reading More Rain Doesn’t Fix Drought Pastures →

Drought and Dust: Preparing for Winter Feed Shortages

Dr. Ted Wiseman, OSU Extension ANR Educator, Perry County

(Image Source: South Dakota State University and Canva)

Planning now will help mitigate some of the challenges ahead.

Depending on where you are in the state, you might be dealing with dry conditions or even severe drought. Here in southeastern Ohio, pastures are parched, and hay production has been disappointing, with very little to show for second or third cuttings.

This year, forage quantity is becoming a significant concern for many producers. Reports indicate that first cuttings yielded only 40-50% of what they should have, particularly in grass forage fields. Second and third cuttings have fared even worse, with some fields producing only 25% of a typical harvest, if anything at all. Many producers have already started feeding hay, raising concerns about whether there will be enough to last through the winter. Given the variable pasture conditions across the state due to ongoing dry spells, it’s crucial to start planning now to be better prepared for the fall and winter. Continue reading Drought and Dust: Preparing for Winter Feed Shortages →

D3 Drought – What Does That Mean?

Christine Gelley, OSU Extension Educator ANR, Noble County

Dry conditions have continued, despite all our best efforts to put in requests for rain. This past week, all of Noble County along with several other SE Ohio counties moved from the classification of D2- Severe Drought to D3- Extreme Drought. What does that mean, exactly, other than that it is really dry?

Well, it means that  a group of experts have evaluated the changing conditions that have resulted from the lack of precipitation to create the United States Drought Monitor Mapping System and determined that parts of Southeast Ohio have sustained drought conditions for so long that the impacts of drought will have an increased impact on the resiliency of the land to bounce back from  drought conditions, to the point that the potential economic damage could be substantial.

The Drought Monitor website explains Continue reading D3 Drought – What Does That Mean? →

Forage Nitrate Toxicity a Major Concern as Drought Worsens

Jason Hartschuh, Dairy Management and Precision Livestock, Field Specialist

(Image Source: University of Missouri Extension)

Weather conditions across Ohio have been challenging this growing season with some areas of the state reaching a D3 drought status. Other areas of the state may not currently be under drought status but are drier than normal and at risk of quickly experiencing a flash drought. These adverse growing conditions can cause unforeseen challenges with forages. We have had multiple reports of high nitrate levels this year in early harvested summer annual forages as producers needed feed.

Plants readily take up nitrates from the soil, even under dry or cool conditions.  Once in the plant, nitrate is converted to nitrite, then ammonia, and finally into amino acids and plant protein. Any environmental stress that significantly slows down plant photosynthesis and metabolism can lead to excessive nitrate levels in the plant because the nitrate uptake from the soil will be faster than its metabolism into plant protein. Such stresses include drought, frost, extended cold weather, cloudy conditions, or hail damage. While Continue reading Forage Nitrate Toxicity a Major Concern as Drought Worsens →

Managing Forage to Finish 2024

Christine Gelley, OSU Extension Educator ANR, Noble County

With the drought conditions we have experienced this summer, many livestock producers and haymakers are concerned about the winter to come and how to stretch resources to next spring when the supply of stored forages will be low. Other than doing the rain dance and hoping for yield salvation on third cutting hay, what else can we do to boost forage availability now and through to the spring?

We can practice good management tactics. Those ones that we should be doing every year, but become more critical during times of stress, like now. We can restrict animals from overgrazing areas that we will need later this fall. We can consider reducing the size of the herd while prices are decent at the sale barn and have fewer mouths to feed through the winter. We can start shopping for supplemental winter feed now, because as supply dwindles and the months turn cold, demand will increase and so will costs.

There is limited time left to plant emergency annual forage crops, but it is an option. If we get Continue reading Managing Forage to Finish 2024 →