ASC-262: Increasing Calories in Your Horse’s Diet and Other Tips

Fernanda Camargo | Oct. 14, 2024 (New)

Not all horses are made the same. With hundreds of different breeds and uses, a lot of caring horse owners may become overwhelmed and not fully understand the different demands of each individual horse, resulting in some horses with sub-optimal body condition scoring. If you have a horse that needs to gain weight, here are some practical tips that will help you achieve your goal.

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ASC-266: Reproduction in the Bull

Les Anderson, Darrh Bullock, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin | Oct. 11, 2024 (New)

The fertility of the herd bull is essential to a successful cow-calf operation. In many respects, it is more of a concern than the fertility of a single cow. Sub-fertile bulls create lower calving rates and can be responsible for poor herd-weaning weights: For every heat cycle a female fails to conceive, there is a corresponding decrease in calf weaning weight from 25 to 45 pounds because of a younger calf being weaned. It does not take long to realize that poor fertility or infertility of a bull can be extremely expensive to the cow-calf producer.

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ASC-265: Estrus Synchronization Protocols for Beef Females

Les Anderson, Darrh Bullock, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin | Oct. 11, 2024 (New)

Artificial insemination (AI) can be an effective tool for beef producers to use to make faster genetic progress in the herd. Unlike the dairy industry where cattle are handled multiple times a day, incorporation of AI can be difficult because beef cattle are not handled often or easily. Decades ago, scientists began developing methods to control the expression of estrus to decrease the amount of labor and time required for AI. An understanding of estrus synchronization protocols can be beneficial to producers considering using AI in their genetic program.

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ASC-264: Artificial Insemination in Beef Cattle

Les Anderson, Darrh Bullock, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin | Jul. 19, 2024 (New)

Successful artificial insemination (AI) breeding programs depend on adequate facilities, good herd health programs, sound nutritional management, using experienced and well-trained technicians, high fertility semen, and the ability to observe or synchronize a fertile estrus. Most problems and(or) failures in AI programs are associated with poor nutritional development in replacement heifers, inadequate body condition of cows at and after calving, failure to identify or control estrus in females, and/or failure to breed them at the proper time. Rarely is infertility the result of poor-quality semen or technician error.

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ASC-263: Converting from Year-round to Controlled Calving

Les Anderson, Darrh Bullock, Ben Crites, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin | Jul. 19, 2024 (New)

In the United States more than half (55%) of all beef cow-calf operations do not have a defined calving season. Typically, in these operations, bulls are not removed from the herd and remain with the cows the entire year. This "uncontrolled breeding" results in cows calving over several months or, in some cases, cows calving every month. Calving year-round presents many challenges in herd management and decreases productivity. In some cases, producers have an off-the-farm job and limited time can be left to dedicate to the cowherd. In these scenarios, it is crucial to maximize time and labor efficiency.

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4HO-1FSO: Kentucky 4-H: Thriving in Healthy Living

Rachel Guidugli, Deana Reed | May. 8, 2024 (New)

Positive youth development in 4-H doesn't just happen, the 4-H Thriving Model is used to predict the way that 4-H has its positive impact on youth development. This worksheet focuses on the developmental context and youth thriving portions of the 4-H Thriving Model. This resource is intended for agents and volunteers to use when intentionally designing programs to promote high quality positive youth development experiences in Healthy Living.

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4AA-2SO: So You Want to Be a Vet? Start Preparing in High School!

Fernanda Camargo, Ann Lead, Colette Tebeau | Apr. 29, 2024 (New)

Many kids dream about becoming a veterinarian when they grow up. Those who continue to pursue this career at the start of high school can complete some preparatory classes and activities to make this dream become a reality.

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ASC-261: Going Green: Ten Fundamentals of Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Beef Systems

David Harmon, Jeff Lehmkuhler | Feb. 13, 2024 (New)

Global warming has become a key focus of all agricultural sectors during the late 2010s and early 2020s. Discussion on identifying and increasing adoption of sustainable practices, shifting from gasoline to electric automotive engines, and producing alternative sources of energy continually permeate the airwaves. These various proposals are accompanied with new terminology and concepts that may not be fully defined for the audience. As a livestock producer, it is important to know and understand how new legislation for limiting greenhouse gas emissions in the agricultural sector could be directed toward the farm gate.

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ASC-258: Minerals Matter for Beef Cattle

Michelle Arnold, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin | Nov. 20, 2023 (New)

Minerals are an essential nutrient for beef cattle. If minerals are not consumed in the diet, deficiencies can occur. At the same time, overconsumption of certain minerals can result in toxicity. Providing the proper balance of each mineral without overconsumption is necessary for optimal performance, as minerals are essential for supporting growth, reproduction, lactation, and health.

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ASC-260: Controlling Reproduction in Female Yaks

Les Anderson, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Mary McCarty, Katherine VanValin | Oct. 26, 2023 (New)

The yak (bos grunniens) is a member of the bovine family and plays a vital role in the life of the people of the Himalayan region (China, Mongolia, India, Nepal, etc). The Himalayas is an especially harsh region with long, cold winters and sparse vegetation for most of the year. As with all bovine, nutrient availability, both quality and quantity of available foodstuffs, and current status of body reserves or degree of fat stored in the body dictate the ability of the cow to conceive during a breeding season. Even though conception rate (probability of conception at a single estrus event), is high (70+%), pregnancy rate (probability of conception at the end of a breeding season) is typically only 40%-60% in their natural environments because a high proportion of female yaks fail to have an estrus during the breeding window. Understanding the major factor reducing pregnancy rate is important to creating and implementing management protocols to improve the reproductive ability of female yaks.