The Beef Bonanza. Thursday, April 6:00 pm Concord United Methodist Church 8066 Old Linville Rd, Marion. just shooting the bull

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1 The Beef Bonanza just shooting the bull McDowell county center Spring 2017 Issue Inside This Issue Cattlemens Meeting Announcement 1 Spring Pastures and Grass Tetany 2-3 Chesnee Market Report 4 Cattlemen s Association Meeting Sponsored by Carolina Farm Credit WNC Market Report 5 Contact Us NC COOPERATIVE EXTENSION McDowell Center County Administration Building, Room East Court Street Marion, NC Phone: Fax: Distributed in furtherance of the acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T State University commit themselves to positive action to secure equal opportunity regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, religion, sex, age, veteran status or disability. In addition, the two Universities welcome all persons without regard to sexual orientation. North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating. Thursday, April 6:00 pm Concord United Methodist Church 8066 Old Linville Rd, Marion Please RSVP by calling or Jane or Adam by Thursday, April 13. Your RSVP will help with meal preparation and will also enter your name for door prizes! McDowell Cattlemen s Association Membership DUES & DRIVE $20 per year (payable in January each year) New Members are always WELCOME!

2 Spring 2017 Issue: Page 2 Spring Pastures and Grass Tetany Let's not lie, we all get a little excited when spring comes rolling around. Temperatures are rising and our pastures start to green up and grow. There is something that you need to be thinking about before you turn your cows and calves out on these lush green pastures. When grass starts growing rapidly, they have high water content; this dilutes the amount of nutrients that are in the forage. The diluted nutrients make it almost impossible for your livestock to eat enough forages to meet their nutrient requirements. It occurs mostly during the spring, but can occur in the fall and winter months as well. The biggest issue with high moisture, diluted nutrient grass is a condition called grass tetany, which is a metabolic disorder when livestock is deficient in magnesium (Mg). Cows that are in early lactation or cows that are older are more susceptible to get this than livestock with their first or second progeny. Grass tetany has occurred on orchardgrass, perennial ryegrass, timothy, tall fescue, crested wheatgrass, bromegrass, Kentucky bluegrass, annual ryegrass and small grain (wheat, oats, barley, triticale and rye) pastures. It also can occur when animals are fed hay during the winter months that contains low magnesium (good reason to get your hay tested). One of the greatest potentials for grass tetany is when the soil is low in available magnesium and high in potassium and nitrogen. Putting out to much manure or fertilizer can create this mineral imbalance (good reason to do a soil test). Probably the worst thing about grass tetany is the symptoms. In most cases the first sign you will see is a dead animal. If you do notice symptoms, it will probably be a mild case. You might notice that the cow is nervous, she will stop grazing and be uncomfortable, showing unusually signs of alertness, such as staring and keeping their head and ears erect, staggering, or their skin will twitch constantly. If you notice any signs that could be related to grass tetany, you need to call the vet immediately. Written by: Adam Lawing

3 Spring 2017 Issue: Page 3 Like anything else, the best way to avoid this problem is by prevention. The best way thing to do is to feed minerals, but not just any minerals, look for a loose free choice mineral that contains at least 8-12 percent magnesium. Most of the minerals like this will be labeled on the bag High Mag or High Magnesium. It should be pretty obvious but if you have any doubt just look at the tag. Also avoid using mineral or salt blocks. Livestock need to have free choice loose minerals. They simply cannot get enough trace minerals by licking a block. We was having a Cattlemen's Board meeting when someone made the comment that using blocks is like licking a sucker, you really don't get much of the sucker by just licking it. If you have sheep that are running with your cattle or have sheep in general do not what so ever feed cattle minerals to them. Sheep cannot tolerate the amount of copper than cattle or goats can handle and will more than likely die. Alternative methods of prevention would be to use a Magnesium supplement. This can be added to a protein supplement, grain mix or a liquid supplement. Also research has also showed that the risk of grass tetany decreases on pastures that contain over 30% legumes or fed hay that is mixed with some legumes. In conclusion, the take home message that I want you to understand is to utilize what sources are available to you, not only to help increase your production but to also better your herd health. Trying to save a few dollars here and there will not help pay for a dead animal because of a management issue. Minerals are a higher cost, but getting those minerals in your livestock will greatly improve their performance. Animals eat minerals when they need them, so if they eat the first bag in a day or so don't worry. Just keep it free choice and when they get the nutrients they need they will show down and eat as needed. A forage analysis is just $10 dollars a sample (hay as well as grass) and it can tell you exactly nutrients are available and if you need to supplement with other feed sources. Lastly, soil samples are free from April to December, during the peak season they are only $4. Soil samples can save you costs on fertilizer because you will know if you are putting out too much or not enough.

4 Spring 2017 Issue: Page 4 CHESNEE LIVESTOCK MARKET REPORT March 21, 2017 Feeder Steers: Medium and Large lbs (238) (168.22); lbs (275) (168.75); lbs (318) (170.33); lbs (371) (161.08); lbs (418) (158.99); lbs (464) (150.80); lbs (526) (139.60); lbs (582) (135.28); lbs 635) (134.95); lbs (663) (127.32). Small lbs (273) (137.66); lbs (333) (131.50); lbs longhorn x (390) (66.27); lbs longhorn x (463) (57.95). Medium lbs (230) (152.61); lbs (328) (153.78); lbs (383) (149.11). Feeder Heifers: Medium and Large lbs (203) (162.53); lbs (277) (150.80); lbs (319) (144.15); lbs (373) (138.15); lbs (423) (135.03); lbs (475) (130.30); lbs (522) (123.46); lbs (566) (119.80); lbs (624) (117.11). Medium lbs (335) (131.36); lbs (378) (129.58); lbs (455) (117.47); lbs (708) (91.51); lbs (765) (91.00). Feeder Bulls: Medium and Large lbs (418) (153.68); lbs (477) (142.73); lbs (527) (138.93); lbs (568) (138.56); lbs (626) (128.61); lbs (680) (121.96); lbs (733) (112.53). Medium lbs (413) (136.32); lbs (584) (123.97); lbs (630) (113.74); lbs (787) (90.73). Bred Cows: Small 1-2 Middle Aged lbs (820) per head 4-6 months bred (653.05). Cow/Calf Pairs; [10] Medium and Large lbs young to middle age cows with lbs calves per pair. Slaughter Cows: Breaker percent lean lbs (1494) (68.55). Boner percent lean lbs (1170) (68.30). Lean percent lean lbs (740) (61.43); lbs (943) (67.27).

5 Spring 2017 Issue: Page 5 WNC REGIONAL CANTON LIVESTOCK MARKET REPORT March 20, 2017 Feeder Steers Medium and Large Value Added Medium Small Feeder Heifers Medium and Large Medium Small Large Medium Small Feeder Bulls Medium and Large Medium Small Small Slaughter Cows Breaker 70-80% Lean Boner 80-85% Lean Lean 85-90% Lean Slaughter Bulls Yield Grade Cows/Calf Pairs: (7) Medium and Large 1 and lbs middle age cows with lbs calves per pair. Large lbs middle age cows with lbs calves per pair.

6 McDowell County Center 60 E. Court Street Marion, North Carolina Compiled and edited by: Adam Lawing Extension Agent Ag and Natural Resources Administrative support provided by: Jane Dale For accommodations for persons with disabilities, contact the McDowell County Center at , no later than 10 business days before the event.