Livestock Production Livestock Production Cattle ranching and farming

Livestock Production

Livestock Production • • • Cattle ranching and farming Dairy farming Hog and pig farming Sheep and goat farming Poultry and egg production Animal aquaculture

Cattle Ranching and Farming • Two types of livestock cattle: beef and dairy • Beef cattle are raised for meat • Dairy cattle are raised for milk

Beef Cattle Production • There are 3 main systems of beef cattle production in the U. S. : – Cow-calf production – Stocker operations – Feedlot production

Cow-Calf Production • Breeding cows with bulls (either naturally or through artificial insemination) to produce a calf crop (calves which are then sold to market) – Involves commercial and purebred breeders

Cow-Calf Production • Commercial producers raise steers and heifers that are sold at weaning, destined to become slaughter animals • Purebred breeders raise calves destined to become part of breeding herds or bulls from which semen can be collected for artificial insemination

Stocker Operations • Stocker operations utilize available forages or roughages to grow cattle from weaning until weight-ready for entrance into a feedlot

Feedlot Production • Feedlot production involves feeding cattle highly concentrated rations in a large confinement facility. • When cattle are deemed market ready, they are sold to a meat processor for conversion into consumer product. • There are commercial feeders and farmerfeeder producers

Feedlot Production • Commercial feeders are generally quite large, and owned by corporations – Capacities of up to 40, 000 to 100, 000 head of cattle • Farmer-feeder productions have capacities of less than 1, 000 head, and make up about 30% of the feedlot cattle in the U. S.

Feedlot Production

Management Practices • There are many management practices that U. S. cattlemen use to improve their cattle's value: – Identification – Castration – Dehorning – Implanting – VAC vaccination

Identification • Cattle identification should provide individual, permanent identity, and information about each animal – Tattoo and ear tag – Hot or fire branding – Freeze branding – Electronic ear tags

Castrating Bull Calves • Castration is removing the testicles from bulls. • Why? – Steers are more docile in temperament and less restless, fatten quicker, and can be mixed with females in pasture or lots. – Castration eliminates the possibility of inferior bulls breeding with the cows.

Dehorning • Dehorning is the process of removing the horns from cattle. • Why? – Dehorned cattle sell for higher prices because the packer knows it will require less carcass trimming. – Dehorning reduces injury to men and horses when working the cattle. – Dehorned cattle require less shed and feeding space.

Dehorning Cattle

Implanting • Implanting cattle is the process of placing a pellet of steroid hormones into the ear of young calves to accentuate growth potential. • Why? – Increases weaning weight

Value Added Calf Vaccination Program • Stress caused by weaning, transportation, and changes in environment lower a calf’s resistance to disease. • Vaccination programs are designed to get calves ready to enter the marketing and production channels after they leave a ranch.

Diseases Brucellosis (bangs disease): Caused by a bacteria -No treatment Hemorrhagic septicemia (shipping fever): caused by stress, virus, infection, or bacteria. -Can be treated with antibiotics or a vaccine

Diseases Keratoconjunctivitis (pink eye): caused by a bacteria -can be treated with antibiotics Foot rot (sore foot): caused by bacteria and damp hooves -can be treated with bluestone solution

Diseases Tuberculosis (TB): caused by a bacterium -No treatment Bovine Papillomatosis (warts): caused by a virus -can be treated by toothpaste, wart pinching, twisting close to the base

Importance of the Beef Industry • Each day, 75 million people eat beef in the U. S. – 1 steer can provide 540 servings of beef, potentially impacting 540 consumers • Every dollar of cattle sales generates another $5 -$6 in economic activity • Cattle production provides the most jobs in agriculture – Provides 1 million direct jobs and 2 million related positions

Dairy Farming • Dairy farming is the long term production of milk – usually from dairy cows

Breeds of Dairy Cows Ayrshire • Hardy cows, good grazers, good udders Brown Swiss • Oldest dairy breed, late maturing

Breeds of Dairy Cows Guernsey • Frail cows, highest calf mortality rate Holstein • Top producer, most popular dairy cow in U. S. , poorest grazer, lowest fat solids

Breeds of Dairy Cows Jersey • Smallest cow, richest milk, popular due to heat resistance, highest fat solids Milking Shorthorn • Late maturing, less than. 25% of this breed is in U. S.

Milk Production • A dairy cow will produce between 6, 000 and 35, 000 pounds of milk per year – Depends on breed, breeding, nutrition, etc… • Bovine somatotropin is a growth hormone given to cows to increase milk yield. • A top individual cow with 2 x daily milking produced 18. 8 gallons of milk per day (59, 300 lbs per yr)! • A top individual cow with 3 x daily milking produced 19. 2 gallons of milk per day (60, 380 lbs per yr)!

Milk Production • The average dairy cow in the U. S. today produces more than 2 x the milk of a dairy cow in 1955 • Why? – Advances in management of dairy cattle herds – Advances in nutrition – Advances in genetics

Management Practices • • Feed and feeding Free stall barn Feed lanes Calf hutches Milking procedures Milking machines Milking parlors Milk storage

Feed and Feeding • Most milking herds are fed a mixture, called a Total Mixed Ration, or TMR • TMR are based on least cost formulation • Ingredients: corn silage, whole cottonseed, cottonseed meal, wet brewers grain, grain concentrates, and fat (as an energy booster) • Advantage of TMR: cows can’t sort the ingredients when eating, so each bite is wellbalanced.

Free stall Barn • Freestyle barns have individual stalls bedded with sand • Provide: – Individual cow comfort and prevent other cows from stepping on udders – Cool, shady bedding in the summer, with enough ventilation to keep the cow cool

Free stall Barn

Feed Lanes • Headgates lock to allow for palpation or b. ST injections • Provide: shade to prodect feed from sunshine and rain, a place for TMR to be fed to cows, a cool place for cows (misters are often run on timers when temperatures are high) • Feed lanes are scraped at least once a day to allow for fresh feed

Feed Lanes

Calf Hutches • When a calf is removed from a heifer after birth, they are often placed in calf hutches. • Hutches prevent calf-to-calf contact and reduce the spread of disease • Hutches allow for full supervision of feeding behavior and nutrient intake • Calves are kept in hutches until they eat 4 lbs of grain per day

Calf Hutches

Milking Procedures 1. Cows washed automatically in wash rack and allowed to drip dry 2. Pre-dip udder with a 1% iodine-based spray 3. Teats wiped dry with individual paper towel 4. Each teat stripped of 2 -3 squirts of milk to check for mastitis or other abnormalities 5. Milker attached to teats and will detach when >. 5 lb/min is flowing 6. Check udder for ‘milk-out’ 7. Dip teats with an iodine-based dip with a polymer barrier included 8. Cow exits parlor

Mechanics of the Milking Machine • Milk comes out of the cow with the help of a vacuum – The vacuum is the source of pulsation on the teats • MILKING: – Vacuum is applied to the exterior of the teat, and opens the teat canal so that milk is removed – Periodic air is admitted into the space between the liner and shell to allow for pulsation, which causes a resting stage.

Milking Parlors There are 3 main types of milking parlors: • Herringbone parlor • Parallel parlor • Rotary parlor

Herringbone Parlor • Cows stand next to each other, facing away from the pit at 45 degree angles • Milkers milk the cows from the side, and have better visual contact with the cow’s udder during milking • Makes for a longer pit, more time to load and unload, and longer distances for milkers to walk

Parallel Parlor • Cows stand at 90 degree angles to the pit and are milked from the rear • Cows stand closer together so milkers have shorter distances to walk between cows • Some milkers have trouble reaching the front teats, and a cow’s tail can get in the way

Rotary Parlor • The platform on which the cows stand moves in a circle while the milkers stand in one location • Cows move very quickly so a task must be performed within 10 -12 seconds with no break between cows

Milk Storage • One day of milk (2 milkings) is stored on the farm for daily pickup • Milk is cooled and held in bulk tank • Milk is picked up by refrigerator truck – To be accepted by truck, milk must taste and smell fresh, and be 38 degrees or less • Each day, a sample of milk is taken and tested for somatic cells, bacteria, and antibodies

Diseases Mastitis: an inflammation of the udder main cause: bacterial infection *the #1 money loser for dairy farmers! Ketosis: low blood sugar main cause: weakening in metabolism of volatile fatty acids carbohydrates and Milk Fever: aka parturient paresis; low blood calcium and muscle weakness main cause: occurs at or near calving; may cause calving problems or even death -probability of occurrence increases with cow’s age; rare in first calf heifers

Calf Diseases Calf Scours: diarrhea, weakness, dehydration, rough coat main cause: E. coli, some viruses, stress Pneumonia: respiratory disease resulting from other diseases, parasites, poor nutrition, or severe weather have stressed the calf.

Dairy Importance The diary industry is important in the U. S. : • Dairy cattle are the most efficient domestic livestock in production of protein and energy • Dairy cattle provide a versatile food source: – Liquid milk, cheese, yogurt, frozen desserts (ice cream!) • Consumption of dairy products provides: – 22% of U. S. protein consumed – 76% of U. S. calcium consumed