Herd Quitter™ Blog
Tighten Your Belt and Plan Ahead
We have not seen a true bottom of a cattle cycle since 1996. That was 20 years ago. While most cattlemen whined and complained about the low prices, a few took advantage of the situation. There have always been more opportunities to advance in a down market than...
2 Cents on Beefmaster
I guess it is time for me to share my two cent’s worth… Growing up in the 1960s, Tom Lasater was my mentor and hero. He had an ad every month on the inside cover of the Western Livestock Journal – where he shared his philosophies, as well as pictures of his cattle....
Six Types of Prayer
Prayer is a very important part of a Christian’s life. I’ve been told that there are over 650 different prayers recorded in the Bible. Although there may be many different types of prayer, I am only going to discuss six types in today’s SDD. It would be easy to spend...
Q and A on Fly Resistance
Question: “In regards to fly resistance… since flies are attracted to testosterone, how do you ensure that in selecting for fly resistance in your bulls you are not inadvertently selecting low testosterone bulls?” Answer: Good question. Several things come to mind. 1)...
Q and A – Fly Resistance and Testosterone
Q and A – By Kit Pharo Kit@PharoCattle.com Question: “In regards to fly resistance… since flies are attracted to testosterone, how do you ensure that in selecting for fly resistance in your bulls you are not inadvertently selecting low testosterone bulls?” Answer:...
Bull Workdays Summer 2016
Bull Workdays – We will be working our bulls in late August in preparation for our three fall bull sales — and YOU ARE INVITED to join us. We will have one bull workday in Ohio on Saturday, August 20th. We have considered having a Herd Quitter meeting Friday night. We...
Why do we use weaning weights?
Charlie, You brought up important points. I would like to respond to two. "Why do we use weaning weights?" We sell calves by the pound and that is when most producers sell their calves. When universities decided that since we sell pounds, the more the better, in...
Fly Control
The hottest topic within the beef industry right now is fly control. When confronted with a problem, most producers are quick to spend an inordinate amount of time, energy and money treating the symptoms – while they totally ignore the problem. Folks, if we never work...
Words of Wisdom from Johann Zietsman
Cattle have a dual role: They need to efficiently convert grass into beef and they need to improve the range on which they graze. Neither of these roles are currently being fulfilled. Large frame cattle are genetically handicapped. They require “high-octane” feed....
The Enablers
I have been led to believe that several enablers receive our weekly emails. What is an enabler? The term “enabler” is most often used to describe people who allow loved ones to behave in ways that are destructive. For example, an enabling wife of an alcoholic will...