On top of dealing with harsh winter weather in feeding cows, cattle farmers must guard against too much nitrate in poor-quality hay. “Just from cases we’ve confirmed, I know of 150 cows dying in the last month,” says Tim Evans, head toxicologist at the University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. High nitrate, mostly concentrated in […]
Winter feeding of forage to beef herds doesn’t rank high as a favored job for herd owners. But there’s a bright side to feeding fescue, whether in hay or grass. Fescue toxins are down. “This is the best fescue will be, now until pastures green up again,” says Craig Roberts, University of Missouri Extension forage […]
A Mercer County native has won the Agriculture Educator Lifetime Achievement Award at the Missouri Livestock Symposium. University of Missouri Extension writer Duane Dailey of Columbia received the award, which honors an educator making significant contributions to agriculture in northeastern Missouri. Dailey says he “taught through the media” for 57 years and writes science stories […]
Horse owners will learn about health care as well as behavior and tack tips at the Missouri Livestock Symposium November 30 and December 1, 2018. Internationally recognized horse trainer Julie Goodnight of Poncha Springs, Colorado, headlines the Equine section this year with three talks aimed at making better and safer horse owners. Her topics include, […]
Replacement heifers to upgrade cow-calf herds will be offered in six Show-Me-Select sales this fall. Also, owners can restock cow herds culled in the drought. With strength in beef demand and rains growing pastures, herd owners can rebuild. Dry weather’s impact on forages had farmers concerned. “Optimism of cow-calf herd owners should return,” says David […]
Oscar Mensa, a long-time rancher from Milan, Missouri, will be honored at the 2018 Missouri Livestock Symposium on Friday, November 30, 2018, when he will be inducted into the Missouri Livestock Symposium’s Livestock Person of the Year Hall of Fame. Mensa is the 16th person to be selected for this honor. Those selected have made […]
Test baled cornstalks for nitrate levels and feed them to cattle with caution, says University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist Gene Schmitz. MU Extension agronomists across the state report high nitrate levels caused by this summer’s drought. County MU Extension centers offer nitrate testing. Before feeding cornstalk bales, it is important to know nitrate levels […]
Eric Bailey has hit the ground running since he joined the University of Missouri last year as an assistant professor in the Division of Animal Sciences and a state beef Extension specialist. Bailey has been a regular at the Agricultural Research Centers’ field days since he came to MU in June 2017, speaking and engaging […]
Harley Naumann, an assistant professor in the Division of Plant Sciences, has a research and teaching appointment in forage physiology. His research focuses on understanding the critical physiological components of warm- and cool-season forages that lead to improved forage-livestock production systems. Naumann has been working with a unique forage since he arrived at Mizzou in […]
In the 2018 drought forages for cow herds are short. Without rain, pastures didn’t grow and stored hay for winter feeding fell short. But feed options are at hand that were not available before. This drought has more feed grains available at possibly lower prices, says Scott Brown, University of Missouri beef economist. Missourians hard hit […]
Seeding winter annual small grain offers fall grazing for beef cow herds short on grass and hay. “Lots of calls are coming in,” said Craig Roberts, University of Missouri Extension forage specialist. He offers encouraging words and cautions. Interest grew as some local USDA Farm Service Agency offices offer added drought disaster assistance. Drilling wheat, […]
Martin Prairie Farms near Humansville treats dairy cows like guests. The family-owned dairy farm north of Humansville in Hickory County dedicates itself to top-of-the-line herd nutrition and care, says University of Missouri Extension dairy specialist Reagan Bluel. Freddie and Mary Martin, son David, and David’s spouse, Alana, own and operate the nearly 3,000-acre farm. Almost […]
