Tag Archives: animals

by | May 4, 2013

Management Intensive Grazing: Day 1 Trial

Management Intensive Grazing
Day 1 Trial

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Red Poll Cattle in a smaller paddock

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Our Red Poll Cow and its calf. Both in a management intensive grazing trial.

Today was our first trial with the cows in our management intensive grazing system.  It started with a run to the local agriculture supply store for supplies.  I had researched typical supplies, which we will cover in another post.  I purchased 20 plastic step in posts that have slots to place numerous wires.  I also purchased 10 step in pigtail posts to try out.  The pigtail posts only have one setting for the wires located at a height of 39 inches. I also purchased an inexpensive polywire, which contained 4 wires within it to conduct the current.

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Red Poll Steer grazing on the edge of the management intensive grazing system paddock.

So I started by placing the posts in our upper field.  This created a cow lane that would keep the cows out of the upper field.  It also forced them to head back to the back field through the our upper gate.  Before I opened the gate to let the cows out, I created a small paddock on the top of our hill.  I then let the cows out and watched them.  The calves and the cows came running out of the barn and were kicking their heels.  It is as if they were to say “freedom!”  I watched them for about 15 minutes and they hardly even tested the fence.

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Heifer 2134 in our management intensive grazing system.

I am still working out the details of the paddocks and how big that the area should be to support the weight of the animals that we are grazing on the paddock.  I have to say, that I am pleased with our first trial run!

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by | March 2, 2013

The Importance of Water for Animals

The Importance of Water for Animals

Brick Barn

Brick Barn (Photo Credit: Cindy)

With the continued drought-like conditions around the United States, how are the animals being affected?  What is the true importance of water for animals, both in the wild and those that have been domesticated?

Water is essential for many, many reasons.  It has been said that a person or animal can potentially live for weeks without food, but only days without water.  That should stress the importance of water.  I will try to talk about the importance of water for plants in another post, but this post will focus upon the importance of water for animals.

English: Indifferent cows Two cow having had a...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I will admit that I noted this first hand one Sunday afternoon by mistake.  We left on a Friday to go camping.  On that Friday, I was repairing the upper floor of the barn, patching some holes and weak spots in the floor.  I was sweeping the area and noted an updraft from one of the “trap doors” that are on our floor.  These “trapdoors” serve the purpose of pitching hay or straw down to the lower level.  I proceeded to go around to the South side of the lower portion of the barn and closed the sliding doors.  This eliminated the up draft.  It actually created a downdraft, pulling the dust and chaff down the hole rather than blowing it up and into my face.

So, we left for the campground, returning for a brief period of time the next day on our way to a birthday party.  On both occasions, I meant to go open up the barn so that the cows could get to the waterers, yet I forgot in the rush to get to our next destination.  When we returned home on Sunday afternoon, the cows were in the field bellowing.  Each cow appeared to be “sunken in” and emaciated.  They even appeared to stagger as they made their way to the barn.  I opened the barn doors to a virtual stampede of cattle beating a path to the waterer.  The two cows that are more dominant, pushed their way to the openings in the head catches to drink from the water source.  Keep in mind that at this point, the cattle were still rather skittish when it comes to contact with people.  The two cows gulped and gulped until the waterer was empty and unable to refill fast enough for them to get satisfied.  The third cow, being less dominant in the herd, was even trying to puch her way to the water source.  Witnessing this, I proceeded to grab a 5 gallon bucket and fill it with water from the garden hose.  I hauled three full buckets to the barn for the third cow to drink.  She drank readily, ignoring the fact that I was right at her head holding the bucket.  The three cows likely drank 20 gallons each before heading back out of the barn.  I watched as their sides literally expanded to the point of protuding out like a finished steer.

English: Thirsty work for cows A hot morning a...

English: Thirsty work for cows A hot morning and the cattle are trying to get as much shade and water as they can. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So what I learned, was a reinforcement of what we all inherently know:  Water is a vital part of life.  It has been said that a human can go for 2 or 3 weeks with no food, yet can only go 3-4 days without water.  According to Oklahoma State University, water constitutes 60 to 70 percent of the body of livestock. Water is necessary for maintaining body fluids.  Water is contained both within the cells of the body (intracellular) and outside of the body’s cells (extracellular fluid).  The body uses water for many functions, including: thermoregulation, digestion, ion balance, waste elimination (including toxins), nutrient digestion and nutrient transport among many other functions.

Water intake comes in the form of drinking and eating.  Water is lost via several body processes.  These include respirations, urine, feces, sweating, saliva and evaporation.  The rate that water is lost is determined by ambient air temperature, activity, and body homeostasis.

In general, an animal needs to drink roughly 6-8% (double check that number at some point) of its body weight in water.  For instance, a 1200 pound cow will need to drink about 96 pounds of water.  This is equivalent to 12 gallons of water.  The lack of an adequate amount of water will result in decreases in production and ultimately in declining health.

It is also vital to provide your animals with fresh water.  Many heated water sources that feed barns and paddocks can get clogged with hay.  This hay eventually breaks down and biodegrades in the waterer.  It ends up creating a foul, black type of mold or scum that is not beneficial for animals. and may be toxic and detrimental.  Of course, natural water sources can include chemical run off, which may be problematic.  These chemicals include fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides.

In closing, water is essential for many of the body’s processes.  Without access to unlimited fresh water, animals can decline in overall health.  They also will decline in production as a result.  Though it may seem a burden at times, carrying that fresh water to the various animals is one of the most important chores that a farmer can perform.  It is also important to ensure that all waterers are operating properly, reducing the chances of water freezing over.  Hopefully, this begins to shed a bit of light into the importance of water for animals.

 

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by | January 9, 2013

Small scale farming and Homesteading

One of the things that we strive to different is to make small scale farming profitable and practical.  The chance to raise crops and animals on a small plot of land provides many challenges as well as many opportunities.
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The biggest challenge is the economy of scale.   A tractor is a main piece of equipment in most farms, but the smaller the acreage, the more that tractor costs on a per acre basis.  This means that each acre of land needs to be more profitable just to break even.  Smaller pieces of land limit the number of animals that can graze a particular pasture.  For people interested in small scale farming and raising grass fed beef, this means that intensive grazing must be utilized.  It also means that the pasture and forage must be optimized to grow as much as possible on every square foot that is available for grazing.
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There are many people that have started small scale farming.  Many focus on a niche market or a selective crop that can be raised.  Niche markets come in many different forms.  There is an increasing demand for buying from local farms.  This gives the consumer confidence in the freshness of their products, as well as the satisfaction of knowing that they are supporting a local, small scale farm.  This trend has led to the re-emergence of farm markets across the United States.  We certainly hope that this trend continues as the relationship benefits both the farmer and the consumer.

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by | December 4, 2012

Red Poll Cattle Pictures

Red Poll Cattle Pictures

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Our two bull calves standing with one of our original cows.

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This is a picture of two of our original cows.  The baby on the ground is hours old.  I believe that this was a picture of our second bull calf that was born.  You can see that the mama cow still has afterbirth hanging down and that the cow in the background has a calf behind her (count the back legs).

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One of our 2012 bull calves standing out in the field.

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The calf in the foreground of this picture is one we call Adam.  He is the first born calf to our farm.

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At the upper right is a picture of our first heifer born on Heritage Breeds Farm.  She is nursing on her mom.  The other cow-calf pair in this picture is one of our bull calves.

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Finally, we included a picture of the herd all bunched up.  This is a picture of them in our lower field, which is full of weeds at the moment.  We will begin to tackle the fields at some point, trying to make for the best forages available.

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by | November 9, 2012

Investment Cattle

Investment Cattle

So, it appears that the stock market went down significantly today, the day after the Presidential election.  Do not take that as my thoughts on why, just a fact that today is the day after the election and the market went down by over 2%.  There could be many reasons for this.

  1. Investors could be upset by the bitter partisanship and all of the negativity of this past election
  2. Investors could be scared of potentially two more years of gridlock with a House of Representatives that is controlled by one party, while the Senate and White House are controlled by another.
  3. Some other global event or financial news could have precipitated  a sell off
  4. Investors (think big business and the middle class, upper middle class, and upper class) could be in disagreement of the agenda of the winning candidates.
  5. I am certain that there could be other reasons, as I am no financial guru.

So, what to do if you have money to invest or if you want to try to carve out a place for the future or a future market.  Many will tell you to hang in there with the stock market, as it has a history of continuing to go up if you are in it long enough.  Some will tell you to shift your assets to gold, silver or other commodities.  I, on the other hand, will tell you to shift your assets into land and cattle.  Why?  I am glad that you asked.

Land Investment:  We may discuss the value of land at some point, but let me say that land gives you options.  It gives you flexibility, as well as an asset.

Cattle Investment:  I believe that investing in cattle is a solid move.  While it is true that the overall cattle price has not changed much in a few years, I believe that prices are poised to make a move.  Let me first state that I am discussing merely the brood cow for a cow-calf operation.  While there is some to be said for beef production, I will not focus there as far as cattle investment dollars.

I believe that investing in heifers and cows is a very solid investment.  This is particularly true if you already have some land to raise them on.  A pregnant brood cow can be purchased for around $1200.  This value is actually at the approximate value of that same cow in beef prices.  The benefit to buying a bred cow is that you have in essence purchased two cows (assuming no death loss).  The calf that is born, should produce a return on your original investment in approximately 18 – 24 months.  The value of the first calf will likely be comparable to the original price that you have paid for the bred heifer or cow.  In the meantime, that cow should produce roughly one calf a year.  So at the 18 month point, you would essentially have $1800 in value between the two calves, let alone the value of the original purchase…

Once the calf reaches market size, there will be some profit (on the surface).  I say it that way as I have not figured in any costs such as feed and land and other potential investment opportunities.  I figure that in the end there is about $300 per calf in profit from birth to slaughter.  This profit can typically be achieved $100 at a time at various stages.  First there is selling the calf after weaning.  Second, the calf can be sold after the transition phase or when ready for the finishing phase (600 pounds of body weight).  Finally, the last stage of gain is at the time of processing, which is around the $1200 pound point.

I feel that ultimate profit can be achieved through grass finishing.  This reduces hard feed costs.  The downside is that it requires more land per cow-calf unit.  When calculating profits, the fact that the land could be rented has to be considered.  I will use our numbers.  We were able to lease our field, pasture, and barn for $210 per month.  This past year, we essentially did our hay on the half.  This eliminated hard feed costs going into this upcoming winter.

Our breakdown to this point is as follows:

  1. $3600 in original purchase of three bred heifers.
  2. $300 for hay during last winter.
  3. $300 in semen costs
  4. 12 months in lost farm rent = $2520
The current profit rate is therefore negative at this time.  Now let’s assume that we are able to sell our cattle at this time next year for $1200 each at finishing (hopefully more with a grass fed program, but I am trying to keep the numbers as close as possible).  We have two bull calves that we can sell, so a total of $2400.  WE also will be retaining the one heifer calf in order to grow the herd.  So the calves will cancel out the first year in lost farm rent.  Next year we should be able to raise 3 more calves, so assuming that we have 2 to sell and one to keep we will be at a point that we are about $4000 in the negative, but we would have 3 cows, one bred heifer and one weanling heifer.  The following year we till get four calves on the ground and have an additional heifer to breed.  It is at this point that we should begin to see a good return on our investment.  As I type I think I will price out our costs and projections in another post, but this should give you an idea of at least one farm’s profits and costs.

 

 

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by | October 25, 2012

Pictures of Chickens

The picture of chickens below is of two of our heritage breeds hens romping through the yard.  We feature the Delaware chicken breed, as they are both fast growing and good layers of large brown eggs.

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Another picture of a chicken below.  This Delaware hen is fairly classic for the breed.  You can note the red comb and wattle.  She also has white feathers with black accents on the neck and tail feathers.

Chicken Picture: A Delaware Hen in the yard

A picture of chickens that features our birds eating some chard and  kale leaves.  In this picture are Black Astralorpes, Delawares, and two Easter Egger chickens

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This was our failed attempt at penning the chickens in.  Here you can note the three Delaware hens on the inside of the fence, with the mixed breed chicken looking in at them

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by | July 10, 2012

Breeding protocol for Beef Cattle

Here is the protocol that we used for breeding these cows during this breeding season.  The first step in any process is heat detection.  If heats can not be observed, a timed breeding protocol has to be used.  Oddly enough, the conception rate is 0% on cows that do not get bred in the first place.  (i.e. no semen = no babies)

So what does a heat look like in cattle?  First of all cows will have a bloody discharge about 24 to 12 hours prior to being ready to breed, then a clear discharge takes over.  The most reliable, or at least easiest, method of heat detection relies upon monitoring from a distance.  The cows should be watched for a half hour or so twice a day.  The cow that is getting ready to breed will tend to jump on the back end of other cows, simulating that which a bull would normally do.  THe cow that gets jumped will either immediately walk away or stand to allow that other cow to ride.  If she stands there, that cow is in heat and the other cow may simply be responding to her hormones and jumping.  Te cow that stands to allow riding behavior is termed in “standing heat.:”  This cow should be bred immediately.  The jumping cow should be monitored, but she may be coming in as well.

Now on to what we did:  The three cows were monitored for a day or two and one was possibly jumping the others.  The day after that (due to needing to get safe facilities in place) all three cows were locked in and palpated.  At that time, we determined that one cow had an ovulation depression.  This means that we missed her.  The other two cows had corpus leteums.  These cows were givin Lutalyse (prostaglandin F2 alpha).   This knocks the CL our of the way to allow heat to kick in.

The next day one cow had a mucous discharge.  This is likely due to the lutalyse and not a sign of true heat.  The next day, two of the three cows were jumping one another and in standing heat.  In comes the semen and both were bred.  The conception rate will traditionally be better than 50% when standing heat is observed.  Time will tell as we need to watch them for heat in 21 days.  If no heat is noted, they will get palpated at 35 and 42 days.

 

Until Next time!

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by | July 9, 2012

Red Poll Beef Cattle Breeding Night

Tonight was an exciting night here at Heritage Breeds Farm.  We bred all three of our foundation cows tonight.  The headlock project got completed last week, so we were able to palpate the cows on Friday. One cow was possible jumping the others (showing heat) that day, but we were not able to breed her that day.  All three got palpated on Saturday.  Two of the three were at a good stage to give them Lutalyse (prostaglandin F2 alpha) at that time.  The third cow seemed to be just coming out of heat, but too late to breed her.

After giving Lutalyse, cows will typically show heat in 48 to 72 hours.  This evening, two of the three cows were jumping on the others trying to “ride.”  This is typically a sign of heat.  Some people prefer to breed right away, others to wait about 12 hours to observe for true standing heat.  This is where the cow gets jumped but the other cows and will stand there for the other to mount her.  We elected to breed tonight, as it was better timing and worked out much better than trying to scramble in the morning.

We bred the two that were in heat and check the third.  Sure enough, she had a very good mucous discharge and very good tone, so we bred her as well.

Though we were hoping to go completely hormone free, we had to compromise in order to catch the girls in heat.  At some point, the economics of missing their heat cycles outweighed the slight risk that these hormones pose.  We figured that the calves are not getting the hormones and that the cows were only getting a small amount.  Maybe someday we will go to bull breeding, which will eliminate the need for heat detection.

So the next step will be to observe the cows for heat in 21 days.  We will actually watch them for heat in 18 days, since that sill time up with the possible first heat cycle that was shown at the end of last week.

If not heats are observed, hopefully that means that the cows are pregnant.  That is not a guarantee, though.  At 35 days they will get palpated for early pregnancy check, then confirmed at 42 to 50 days.  WE are considering fetal sexing at day 120 to both confirm pregnancy and satisfy our curiosity.

Any questions and comments are very encouraged and welcomed.

Until Next time

 

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by | June 18, 2012

Fertilizer Trial

Tonight we had a really long soaking rain.  This should be good to jump start the newly mowed hay field.  I am curious as to the return on investment of fertilizers.  Since we are essentially out of funds for the year, I elected to hand spread a 40# bag of fertilizer that I had for the garden.  I kept one bag in reserve, but used the second one.  I began by walking in a straight line due east and hand broadcasting the fertilizer.  In all, I made a rough rectangle from the lilacs to about half way back along side the chicken pen.  I went about 30 paces to the east.  I figure that I covered an area of about 60 x 80 feet or so.  THe hand broadcasting looked something like this:

Fertilizer

Fertilizer (Photo credit: CIFOR)

That is not exactly an even broadcast, nor a true scientific way of spreading the fertilizer, but it worked for now.  I will try to take a picture in a few weeks to see if the yield is noticeably different in these areas.  This hay will likely be fed back to our small herd of Red Poll Cattle.   I did use our organic fertilizer, so no compromise there!

 

Until Next time!

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by | May 5, 2012

Homesteading Series Part 5: Containing animals

A sturdy and well-built post and rail fence

A sturdy and well-built post and rail fence (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here we will specifically discuss fencing.  Fencing plans again depend upon the type of animal that you are trying to contain. I will try to lay this out in an organized fashion starting with types of fences. I will then try to cover fencing for various farm animals. These animals will include cattle, goats, sheep, pigs and horses. I will not attempt to cover chickens at this time ( other than to say clip their wings and make sure your tightly woven fence is tight against the ground).

Types of Fences

There many various ways to classify fencing. The first way to organize it is electrified versus non-electric. Another way is permanent versus temporary. For the purposes of this article, the focus will center around permanent fencing. Systems can be hybrid with permanent and temporary, but the perimeter fencing should be very solid and permanent (in the opinion of this author).

Closeup detail of a safe woven wire fence, sui...

woven wire fence(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are various type of materials that are used to make fencing. Focusing on the modern versions, there are hog paneling, woven wire, barbed wire, high tensile, polywire, vinyl and board fencing. Board

Roll of barbed wire on a farm

Roll of barbed wire on a farm (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

fencing, woven wire, and hog paneling are suitable for non electric systems. Vinyl may be considered here as well, though animals can lean on the vinyl and pop the rails off. I recommend adding one or two strands of high tensile along the top and bottom of vinyl fencing to prevent the animals from pushing the rails out. Barbed wired, high tensile and polywire are typically electrified. These systems can be non electric if enough horizontal wires are placed to make them visible. Most fencing is, after all, mainly a mental barrier and deterrent.

As for fence posts, the options here vary as well. Vinyl fencing utilizes vertical vinyl posts. Board fencing uses wooden posts. For the wire- type fences, posts materials vary from treated wood to cedar to locusts posts. They can also utilize t posts and even some specialized products like kencove posts.

As a side note when planning a fencing project, it is important to draw out the design in many fashions. Talk to other farmers or fence installers about your project.  Describe your setting, animals and goals. Mark out all of the gates that are needed. Gates are needed for entry to the field by the farmer, for equipment and for animals movement.

Cattle:

Cattle may be the easiest animals to contain, as long as they are well fed.  The grass is always greener on the other side, so cattle will test fences if better food is available across the fence.  I like electrified barbed wire or high tensile.  Two to three strands should suffice.  The lower strand should be about 24 inches off of the ground and the upper strand at 36 to 30 inches.  I like a wire in the middle as well.  Wooden fence posts should be placed at no more than 16 feet in order ro have better visibility.  Some places suggest further spacing, but I have found that our fence is great with posts every 16 feet.  Make certain to keep weeds off of the fence, otherwise a short will be created and it won’t take long for the cattle to figure out that the fence is off.  I suggest placing the wires on the outside of the fence posts, so that animals can graze around the base of the fencing.  This gives you more grazing space and less weed wacking.  Other options for cattle include board fence, vinyl and woven wire.  I would add a top strand of barbed wire or electrified high tensile at the tops of the 48 inch woven wire.

Closeup of a smooth wire fence without barbs

Closeup of a smooth wire fence without barbs (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Goats

Goats are more of a challenge due to their inquisitive nature.  Woven wire works very well for goats.  The can be deterred by electric fencing as well, but the fence must be solid and provide an adequate shock to keep them in.  Board fencing and vinyl fencing tend to leave larger gaps that the goats can get through or around.  These gaps can be closed using electric barbed wire or high tensile.

Barbed wire fence in west Texas

Barbed wire fence in west Texas (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Sheep

Sheep are basically like goats in their needs for fencing.  It is not their stubborn nor inquisitive nature that make them hard to fence.  The problem with them lies in the thick wool coat.  This prevents them from perceiving the chock of an electric fence.  Woven wire seems to be the best for sheep, though multiple high tensile strands can works as well.  The strands should be placed at 6, 12, 18, 24, 36, and 48 inches from the ground on up.

Horses

DNA tested homozygous black Arabian Stallion s...

 vinyl fence  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Horses love to lean on fences.  They also like to hang their heads over the fence, looking for food to graze upon.  They can be kept in with just about any fencing system.  Traditional horse people tend to prefer either board fence or vinyl fencing foe aesthetic purposes.  One major advantage to these is the decrease in injury potential.  Barbed wire and high tensile work well with horses, but can cause serious injury if the horse gets a leg tangled up in the strands.  Fence posts should be placed no further apart than 16 feet, as the visibility goes down for a horse after that point.

Pigs

Again, I am going from what I have read, not what I have done.  I have read that pigs can be easily trained to electric fencing.  Their snouts are very sensitive.  In fact, they are very conducive to rotational grazing, but be careful where you leave the gates.  It seems that pigs have a good memory, so much that they are reluctant to cross where an electric strand previously stood. The bottom wire is generally set at 5 or 6 inches and the top wire at 10 or 12 inches.  They will train quickly according to several sources that I discovered.  There are other options as well.  Hog paneling is meant for pigs (hence the name….).  Premier Supplies makes several electric netting options for hogs as well.

http://www.greatamericanegg.com/blog/?p=89

I hope that this article has been helpful.  I know that it just touched the surface of a very complex issue.  This is meant to be something to stimulate thought and provide a basis to start.  Good luck and keep raising your homestead, taking more control of what you eat and what you do.

We recently built a fence, which we had designed.  Our intent was to keep costs low, yet be able to try to contain all of the above animals.  The fence that we elected is 6 strand of high tensile, smooth wire fencing.  We placed three large gates to move animals and equipment in and out of fields.  We also placed two other 4 foot “man gates” in other locations for easier access to the fields.  The strands are laid out at 5 inches, 10 inches, 16 inches, 24 inches, 30 inches, and 48 inches.  We electrified the top strand, the third strand down and the second lowest strand.  We went with this number of strands in order to have a sturdy fence that works even without being electrified.   It seems to be working well, though we only have cattle so far.

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