Scientific Rancher
Guest post by Clemson Montana Summer Program student Brandi Wold
The ranchers, livestock, and the producers all have concerns with what’s going on in animal production. Whether it’s vet visits, meeting the cattle’s weight quota, or if there is enough forage to eat at any given time. In particular, ranchers and producers need to take extra precautions when winter is around the corner, making sure the herds have enough to eat as well as making sure the pregnant cows won’t abort the unborn calves by eating too many pine needles. They need to make sure everything is working like clockwork before and after heifers are about to calve. Water intake and additional supplements are just a few things ranchers need to think about before and after the calf hits the ground. After the cow has calved, water intake becomes very important. Water helps milk production and the additional supplements help the mother have the energy to produce the milk and eventually the fetus of a new calf when she becomes pregnant again in a few weeks. I think the livestock themselves also have concern for their well being. Granted, cows do not have a sense of self and can’t totally control where they are being led to, but I do believe they know what’s going on around them and they learn from that.
Natural changes occur dramatically from year to year due to a lack or surplus of water, weather, and fire. There are only 3 inches of precipitation on average in a given year, and some places can get more than half the amount of precipitation in 3 weeks. All that water in that short amount of time can be both good and bad. It is bad because the soil is so dry and compact that it has the potential to flood. On the other hand, that amount of water is good for the plants and they will go through a growth spurt. However, the negative side to this growth spurt is that the animals will consume it all and if the rancher, depending on the local climate the ranch is, doesn’t think ahead and use this growth to their advantage, they could go through a food shortage the next year. That food shortage could also be due to a detrimental fire that spreads 20 miles in just a few hours. On top of the water and fire dilemmas, winter is another conflict concern for the health of the animal. If the animal doesn’t have the food reserves for the winter, it will die or find another source of energy which could be detrimental to its health.
Science plays an important role in managing animal health. From the quality of the water the animal consumes, to exactly what forage the cows are eating, to the study of the micro-organisms and protozoa in the rumen that break down the forage. It is thought that there are more organisms in the rumen than there are people on the planet. Researchers believe they have only seen and know about 3,000 different species. When it comes to water quality, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) could mean life or death in a matter of minutes to a herd if the water isn’t tested prior to drinking. From a ranching perspective, there is a tedious “numbers game” of figuring out the exact percentages of nutrients the cattle herds need in their diet. A study that occurs rather frequently is figuring out forage quality and preference in cattle. They begin with a fistulated cow and remove everything in the rumen. They take the forage that was inside the rumen and fill between 1-3 55-gallon cans. They even go as far as sponging the inside of the rumen to remove all the liquids. Then they let the cow go feed in a pasture for 30-45 minutes. Once the time is up they repeat the evacuation of the new forage in the rumen and refill the rumen with the forage that was first removed. The goal is that once the secondary forage is collected and sorted, they can see what the cow prefers on an empty stomach, and figure out the quality of that forage.
The ranchers, livestock, and the producers all have concerns with what’s going on in animal production. Whether it’s vet visits, meeting the cattle’s weight quota, or if there is enough forage to eat at any given time. In particular, ranchers and producers need to take extra precautions when winter is around the corner, making sure the herds have enough to eat as well as making sure the pregnant cows won’t abort the unborn calves by eating too many pine needles. They need to make sure everything is working like clockwork before and after heifers are about to calve. Water intake and additional supplements are just a few things ranchers need to think about before and after the calf hits the ground. After the cow has calved, water intake becomes very important. Water helps milk production and the additional supplements help the mother have the energy to produce the milk and eventually the fetus of a new calf when she becomes pregnant again in a few weeks. I think the livestock themselves also have concern for their well being. Granted, cows do not have a sense of self and can’t totally control where they are being led to, but I do believe they know what’s going on around them and they learn from that.
Science plays an important role in managing animal health. From the quality of the water the animal consumes, to exactly what forage the cows are eating, to the study of the micro-organisms and protozoa in the rumen that break down the forage. It is thought that there are more organisms in the rumen than there are people on the planet. Researchers believe they have only seen and know about 3,000 different species. When it comes to water quality, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) could mean life or death in a matter of minutes to a herd if the water isn’t tested prior to drinking. From a ranching perspective, there is a tedious “numbers game” of figuring out the exact percentages of nutrients the cattle herds need in their diet. A study that occurs rather frequently is figuring out forage quality and preference in cattle. They begin with a fistulated cow and remove everything in the rumen. They take the forage that was inside the rumen and fill between 1-3 55-gallon cans. They even go as far as sponging the inside of the rumen to remove all the liquids. Then they let the cow go feed in a pasture for 30-45 minutes. Once the time is up they repeat the evacuation of the new forage in the rumen and refill the rumen with the forage that was first removed. The goal is that once the secondary forage is collected and sorted, they can see what the cow prefers on an empty stomach, and figure out the quality of that forage.
