Soil 4213 Precision Agriculture

1. Precision Ranching Soil 4213Precision Agriculture Derek Shephard

2. Need For Precision Ranching • 60,000 farms and ranches in Oklahoma with approximately 5.5million • head of cattle • Oklahoma ranks 5th nationally • #1 farm and ranch commodity • Only 1 of 9 states where cattle out number people Bottom line is cattle are important for Oklahoma and with that dependency comes a need for precision

3. Need For Precision Ranching Cont. Cattle numbers increasing http://www.noble.org/ag/Livestock/KnowledgeIsKey/

4. Need For Precision Ranching cont. Overall size and number of producers declining http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~epados/ag101/beef/bwhole.htm

5. Need for Precision Ranching cont. Cattle prices going up in past years http://www.nass.usda.gov/tx/zprcbeef.htm

6. We Do Need Wheat After All Wheat represents the backbone of ranching in Oklahoma • Wheat is grown in all 77 counties • Approximately 6 million acres of Oklahoma’s farmable land is in wheat • Oklahoma’s #2 farm and ranch commodity • 60% of wheat is grazed • 120 days on wheat * 2lbs gain/per day = $240 per head • If cattle are pulled off by March 1 or better yet at first hollow stem wheat can still exceed 30 bushels an acre

7. Compare and Contrast • Wheat Subsidies in Oklahoma • $1,602,700,214 1995-2004 (63,090 recipients) • Livestock subsidies (keep in mind this is all livestock) • $190,831,735 1995-2004 (44,871 recipients) That is a difference of 1,411,868,479 that separates wheat and cattle subsidies. That is over 8 times more money that is being allowed to wheat producers. (Keep in mind that cattle producers and wheat producers are often one and the same.) http://www.ewg.org/farm/region.php?fips=40000

8. Ranching of the Past • Past advances and downfalls Downfalls Overgrazing and improper cultivation techniques led to the Bust Bowl. Advances Barb Wire made it possible for ranchers to graze their own land and establish homesteads.

9. Ranching of the Future With the scare of BSE and other forms of cattle born diseases the need for an identification system to tell where cattle have been is rapidly becoming a necessity.

10. Future cont • Software that combines different elements and displays need to know • data. This makes it easier for record keeping. (Cattlemax) http://www.cattlemax.com/guided-tour.asp • GPS location devices ( these maybe rolled into one with an ID System)

11. Future continued With the growing demand on land the need for better farming practices is a must. This deals with not only better fertilizer application methods but any element that deals with gain/per day.

12. Ways to Achieve Precision Ranching • Medication Programs • Starting Programs • Grazing Practices/ Crop usage • Marketing Properly

13. Medication Program • Limiting Death Loss (In Oklahoma the average death loss for • long haul cattle is 5%). • Being aware of new vaccinations available. • Consulting with a Veterinary • Treating cattle at early stages of illness. • Proper Diagnoses

14. Needed Vaccinations Treatments to cattle before release on pasture ( Many of these treatments are combined into 1 shot) • Clostridium chauvoei - Blackleg • Clostridium septicum- Malignant edema • Clostridium perfringens- Enterotoxemia(types B, C and D) • Clostridum sordellii- Sudden Death • Clostridium Novyi- Sudden Death • Pasteurella hemolytica- IBR • Pasteurella multtocida- BVD Other Treatments and Procedures • Ivomec • Growth Hormone • Castration • Dehorning • Some type of Id ( Ear Tag and Brand usually)

15. Treatments for Sick Cattle • Nuflor or Baytrol( 1 day or 5 day treatment) combined with Banimine and B-Complex • Gentamicin and Naxell combined with Banimine and B-Complex • Penicillin Treatments • (Newest on market) Draxxon Things to consider when selecting sick cattle • Amount of food consumed(often slow to come to the bunk) • Their appearances early in the morning • The general attitude of animal(head position and demeanor) • Watering eyes and cleaning of nose

16. Starting Program • Some musts when starting new cattle • Separating infected cattle from healthy cattle • Immediate vaccination of sick cattle • Proper Treatment • Feeding ration Key Components • Adequate weight for cattle on weight pasture is 320lbs • Supplements should be given gradually • A good pull man can easily be worth his weight in gold

17. Breed Selection The Type of cattle that are chosen can also effect death loss This is a chart from http://www.beeflinks.com/deathlossnormal.htm that shows the death loss significant in different genders and mixes of cattle.

18. Death Loss by Month Weight of cattle is important

19. Selection of Proper Breeds • Geographical location(Cold/Hot weather tolerance of breed) • Disease tolerance of Breed(Brahma influence often have better • disease tolerance but lag in cold weather tolerance) • Cattle crosses that will offer the best gain/per day(In Oklahoma • arguably the best cross is black baldie)

20. Better Economic Practices • Better Stocking Rates • Overgrazing can destroy farmable land • Stocking rate should be managed temporally(depends on site) • Better Fertilizer Application Methods • Over application of N can lead to illness of cattle and unnecessary • fertilizer bills. • Better Dates Cattle are Pulled off of Wheat • Grazing too long can lead to loss of grain yield(as much as 4 bushels a day)

21. Marketing Cattle Better methods than the local sale barn • Cash Contact Things to consider are price of cattle market and the dependency of company cattle are being contracted. If the market is going up it may not be beneficial to contract cattle. If the company that cattle are contracted with goes bankrupt the contract may not be honored. However when a contract is figured properly it can insure a profit. • Hedging • This requires a closer watch on the cattle market. A broker • almost has to be used to keep up with the ever changing • market. The producer must have the necessary funds to cover • margin calls.

22. Work Cited http://www.noble.org/ag/Livestock/KnowledgeIsKey/ http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~epados/ag101/beef/bwhole.htm http://www.nass.usda.gov/tx/zprcbeef.htm http://www.ewg.org/farm/region.php?fips=40000 http://www.cattlemax.com/guided-tour.asp http://www.beeflinks.com/deathlossnormal.htm (Vet Consultant Wayne Sizelove)

23. Any Questions?