Beef Cattle

Learning Objectives

What are the U.S. farm cash recipients and their percent?

1. Crops: 54%

2. Livestock and products, excluding beef: 28%

3. Beef of total agriculture: 18%

Are beef cattle raised all across the U.S.?

YES

What is the total number of beef cattle in the U.S.?

30,330 cows

What are the top 5 states for beef cattle population?

1. Texas

2. Oklahoma

3. Missouri

4. Nebraska

5. South Dakota

What percent of U.S. cows do the top 10 states make up?

57.9% (17,783 cows)

3 Categories of Beef Breeds

1. Maternal

2. Terminal

3. Composite

What are maternal beef cattle? Give examples

moderately sized and recognized for ability to have healthy calves

• Ex. angus, hereford, shorthorn, red angus

What are terminal beef cattle? Give examples

animals that are larger in size and used for meat purposes

• Ex. charolais, limousin, simmental

What are composite beef cattle? Give examples

crossbred of different breeds

• Ex. SimAngus, Braford, Beefmaster

What are the top 3 pure breeds?

1. Angus

2. Hereford

3. Limousin

Why are different cows found throughout the US?

Because of…

• terrain

• feed accessibility

• environment

What are the 4 Structures of the Beef Industry

1. Cow-calf

2. Seedstock

3. Stocker Calf

4. Feedlots

What is the cow-calf segment?

The first stage in the beef production process, where cows are bred and produce calves for sale or further feeding

What is backgrounding?

operation that receives stressed calves and improves their health

• takes place after cow-calf and before stocker)

What type of animals does the seedstock segment deal with?

higher end genetic animals

What does the Seedstock segment do?

• pedigrees registered with breed association

• sells yearling bulls for breeding commercial beef cow herds

What type of animals does the stocker calf segment deal with?

Weaned/growing animals

What is the stocker calf segment?

uses grazed forages to grow weaned calves by 200-300 pounds

What is the feedlot?

Where animals are at the feedlot, adding last compositions of fat

What is so special about feedlots?

They are located in parts where there isn’s any ventilation, roofs, buildings

• located in climate where shelter is not needed for winter conditions

In a commercial beef cow business, what takes place during March and April?

many herds calve

In a commercial beef cow business, what takes place during April or May?

Cow-calf pairs begin grazing

In a commercial beef cow business, what takes place after the cow-calf pairs begin grazing?

Bulls are released for 60-90 day breeding season

In a commercial beef cow business, what takes place during Sept, Oct, or Nov

Weaning

In a commercial beef cow business, what takes place during Nov-Dec

Grazing season is completed

In a commercial beef cow business, what takes place during Dec. - March?

feed cows inexpensive to maintain body condition; provide natural or constructed shelter from bad weather

What are some corn co-products?

• High-fructose corn syrup

• Ethanol production

What is Acidosis?

A metabolic disorder where the metabolism of the animal is overloaded with acid

• Lactic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid

What causes acidosis?

An abrupt upshift in intake of fermentable energy

Give some examples of this abrupt upshift

• switching from whole corn to ground corn

• switching from pasture to corn silage

What are some Acidosis Acute Issues?

• Laminitis, founder (sore feet)

• Listlessness, diarrhea

What are some Acidosis Chronic/Subacute Issues?

• sporadic feed intake

• excessive hoof growth; loss of agility

What are some long term effects of Acidosis?

Rumenitis

In the U.S. Dairy herd, what percent of pregnancies are due to AI?

~90% of pregnancies

In the U.S. beef herd, what percent of pregnancies are due to AI?

10%

List some bull semen companies

• ABS Global

• Alta Genetics

• Genex

• Select Sires

What is body condition scoring?

looking at amount of composition cows have, ultimately amount of body fat

What is the relationship between BCS and body fat?

As BCS goes up, so does amount of body fat

What are some challenges to beef cattle health?

• Calf diarrhea (scours)

• Bovine respiratory disease (BRD)

• Blackleg

• Bloat

What challenge has the largest economic impact to the cattle industry?

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD)

What is blackleg?

A non-contagious bacterial disease where the necrotic muscle appears black and dry, with tiny gas bubbles just visible in the tissue

• Can be fatal within 12-24 hours

What causes blackleg?

• dirty injection sites

• bacteria in soil ingested by cattle when grazing

Is total meat consumption increasing or decreasing?

Increasing

Is red meat consumption increasing or decreasing?

Decreasing

Is white meat consumption increasing or decreasing?

Increasing

Is egg consumption increasing or decreasing?

Increasing

What part of the cow is the most expensive cut of meat?

Loin

What are some factors influencing the beef industry?

• consumption

• exports/globalization

• technology

• animal traceability

• food safety

• environmental concerns

• organic and natural production

• biofuel production

• industry structure