OFFICIAL PUBLICATION of the HEARTLAND LIMOUSIN ASSOCIATION • NOV/DEC 2017
Prevention Means Profit in Matters of Herd Health Still proud to be an American!
NEWS Back In Time..........................3, 16 Covering Ground.........................4 Fullblood Limousin Alliance......26 Heartland Calendar......................3 Heartland Highlights....... 12 & 13 Junior Beat.................................10 On The Road Again.....................6 Recipe of the Month....................7 Sale Reports......................... 27-30
STATE NEWS Iowa News............................ 8 & 9 Kansas News.................... 14 & 15 Minnesota News.............. 16 & 17 Missouri News..................... 18-20 Nebraska News................. 21 & 22 South Dakota News......... 23 & 24 Wisconsin News.........................25
ADVERTISERS B Bar Cattle.................................5 Cedar Creek Ranch....................19 Bosch Farms...............................18 Boyer’s Harvest Barn..................26 DebV...................................... IFC Edwards Limousin.....................21 Fullblood Limousin Alliance........7
News release written by Melanie Barkley, Penn State Extension Livestock Educator
D
o you remember the old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?” The livestock industry practices this on a regular basis in order to keep animals healthy. Livestock producers prefer to prevent sickness rather than treat sickness. Treating sick animals is not only expensive, it can also be very time consuming. Here are some common techniques producers use to keep their animals healthy and avoid having to treat them.
Good Nutrition Just like human nutrition—eating a healthy diet and maybe also taking a daily vitamin and mineral supplement— livestock producers balance rations for their animals to ensure a healthy diet. To do this, producers test feeds and then match amounts of nutrients from the feeds to the animals’ nutrient requirements. In addition to the feeds, producers provide trace mineral mixtures formulated with salt to adjust for nutrient deficiencies from the feeds. Why is nutrition so important? Growth rates, reproductive efficiency and especially immune system function all rely on good nutrition for best performance. Good mineral nutrition also boosts an animal’s response to vaccinations, a primary method to protect animals from disease.
Facilities I can’t stress enough the importance of a clean and dry environment with
good ventilation. Animals are well adapted to handle cold temperatures when they are well fed and have a good hair coat. Good ventilation can result in good air quality. This is why livestock producers keep barns cleaned out and well bedded during the winter months. Cleanliness is the key.
Vaccinations Choose vaccines based on prior experience with disease on the farm as well as the likelihood of exposure to diseases. Read product labels and handle vaccinations properly. Simple procedures to follow include proper storage temperature, vaccinating clean and dry animals, injecting with clean needles, and injecting with the correct method. Also, check expiration dates and discard expired products. Only healthy animals get vaccinated so that the immune system best utilizes
Glendenning J Bar J Ranch........17 Graven Land & Cattle Co..........17 LIMI-Gene................................13 Linhart Limousin.................... IBC Peterson Limousin......................24 Peterson’s L7 Bar Limousin........15 Red Revival III Sale....................11 Symens Brothers.........................28 Treftz Limousin..........................20 Vaughn Farms............................25
Time-Dated Material
Volume 25 • Issue 5
Wulf Cattle........................... OBC
Heartland Limousin Association • 23244 Gopher Drive • East Bethel, MN 55005
Vorthmann Limousin.............. IFC
the vaccine. Producers should also vaccinate at least two weeks prior to a stressful event such as weaning, transporting, or castrating.
Biosecurity One way animal diseases arrive on a farm is through contact with other animals that may or may not appear sick. Producers who exhibit their animals at various shows will house these animals separate from the main herd once those animals return home from the show. This quarantine period should last three to four weeks before those animals can be mixed with the rest of the herd. Animal disease can also arrive on a farm through indirect contact. This occurs when producers visit other farms, transport animals to a sale barn, or even visit a county fair. Once the producer arrives back at the home farm, they should change their clothing and shoes to avoid exposing their own animals to bacteria and viruses that could be carried home on their clothing or footwear. Prevention programs are not fool proof. Livestock operations can still develop sick animals on occasion. However, the goal is to minimize the risk of animals getting sick so that the need for treatment is less likely. Farmers observe animals on a daily basis so they can identify very quickly when problems arise. Sick animals are moved to a location away from the main herd and treated as necessary.