Air February 2, 2005

Thank you Jerry, and good morning everyone. Happy Groundhog day to one and all. For those of you hoping for a quick end to winter - my predication is don't get your hopes up too high!!

February seems to be when many cow-calf producers get seriously into their calving season. And if so, I may be preaching to the choir, but let's spend a couple minutes talking about being ready. You know that I'm a big believer in planning ahead. You know the list of equipment that you should have on hand so I won't waste time listing it now, but do you have it all together, new supplies laid in, all equipment clean and ready to go? Do you have a supply of ear tags so you can ID that calf on the spot? This is going to become even more important as the years go on. Have you reviewed problems that you had last year and figured out how to avoid, reduce or otherwise deal with those problems? Have you double checked to make sure that all the cows and heifers are where you think they are and grouped to minimize running around? If a case of scours breaks out, do you have an alternate clean pasture to move un-calved females to as well as an alternate pasture to move pairs to? See, a lot of this is just planning ahead IN CASE. I had a vet tell me once that the most important calf in your herd is that first one that dies. Get it in to see why it died and so the vets can intervene quickly in case of a problem. The quicker they intervene, the fewer calves you should lose. It would probably be a good idea to sit down and spend a little time with your vet to make sure that you are ready for the season ahead. And if the vet recommends that you try to help those cows less and call him sooner, there's probably a reason for that and may be because he's tired of getting there while the tractor is still idling close by and he gets to deal with the damage. Know your limits is what I'm trying to say. Sure, it costs a little money to get the vet out there, but have you checked the value of cows and heifers lately? A vet call is cheap! And finally go over the plans with your family or employees. Make sure everyone knows what's going to happen when, and when to intervene, and when to call for help. And make sure that someone knows when you go out to make those 3 a.m. checks so you aren't laying out in some pasture some where for hours injured and unable to get help. It's going to be a hectic season, don't make it any more stressful!

This is Chuck Otte, Geary County Extension Agent, with Ag Outlook 2005.

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