In descending order, by date published.
11/20/2023 (new)
Authors: Michelle Arnold, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin
Minerals are an essential nutrient for beef cattle. If minerals are not consumed in the diet, deficiencies can occur. At the same time, overconsumption of certain minerals can result in toxicity. Providing the proper balance of each mineral without overconsumption is necessary for optimal performance, as minerals are essential for supporting growth, reproduction, lactation, and health.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences, Veterinary Science
Series: Animal Science (ASC series)
Size: 1.25 mb
Pages: 5
10/26/2023 (new)
Authors: Les Anderson, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Mary McCarty, Katherine VanValin
The yak (Bos grunniens) is a unique domestic animal. These animals were developed in the extreme environment of the Himalayas, where food resources can be extremely limiting. The yak provides food (meat and milk), fiber (hair), and are beasts of burden (used for pack, transportation, plowing, etc.) for the local populations. The number of yaks in the world is limited, creating a need to understand and control reproduction in the yak to improve genetic diversity.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences
Series: Animal Science (ASC series)
Size: 2.60 mb
Pages: 3
10/26/2023 (new)
Authors: Les Anderson, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Mary McCarty, Katherine VanValin
The yak (bos grunniens) is a member of the bovine family and plays a vital role in the life of the people of the Himalayan region (China, Mongolia, India, Nepal, etc). The Himalayas is an especially harsh region with long, cold winters and sparse vegetation for most of the year. As with all bovine, nutrient availability, both quality and quantity of available foodstuffs, and current status of body reserves or degree of fat stored in the body dictate the ability of the cow to conceive during a breeding season. Even though conception rate (probability of conception at a single estrus event), is high (70+%), pregnancy rate (probability of conception at the end of a breeding season) is typically only 40%-60% in their natural environments because a high proportion of female yaks fail to have an estrus during the breeding window. Understanding the major factor reducing pregnancy rate is important to creating and implementing management protocols to improve the reproductive ability of female yaks.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences
Series: Animal Science (ASC series)
Size: 2.21 mb
Pages: 4
7/18/2022 (new)
Authors: Les Anderson, Darrh Bullock, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin
Beef cattle have defined requirements for vitamins. In some instances, vitamin supplementation may be necessary to avoid deficiencies. Vitamins are classified into two categories: water-soluble and fat-soluble. Water-soluble vitamins include the B vitamins, such as riboflavin, thiamin, and niacin, as well as vitamin C. Fat-soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E, and K. Supplementation for beef cattle generally focuses on vitamins A and E. This is because the rumen microbes synthesize the water-soluble vitamins and vitamin K in sufficient quantities to avoid deficiencies. Vitamin D requirements can often be met by exposure to the sun and would therefore only be of concern for cattle in confinement housing.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences
Series: Animal Science (ASC series)
Size: 795 kb
Pages: 2
7/18/2022 (new)
Authors: Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin
Among the variety of supplementation options currently available for beef cattle operations, a mineral can be one of the most challenging to select. Mineral tags contain important information regarding the contents of a mineral supplement and are regulated by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). Understanding the information on a mineral tag will aid in the comparison of multiple products and help to ensure the selected mineral product will meet the needs of specific animals.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences
Series: Animal Science (ASC series)
Size: 217 kb
Pages: 4
3/24/2021 (new)
Authors: Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin
Various factors such as delayed planting, early frost, drought or suppressed market prices may lead one to consider feeding soybeans to cattle. Soybeans can be fed to beef cattle as an energy and protein source. Depending upon the stage of development, soybeans will have varying degrees of feed value and a feed test for nutrient content is recommended.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences
Series: Animal Science (ASC series)
Size: 308 kb
Pages: 3
3/23/2021 (major revision)
Authors: Les Anderson, Michelle Arnold, Darrh Bullock, Kenny Burdine, Roy Burris, Ben Crites, Jimmy Henning, Steve Higgins, Steve Isaacs, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Lee Moser, Gregg Rentfrow, Kylie Schmidt, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Lee Townsend, Katherine VanValin, Paul Vijayakumar
Kentucky is ideally suited for cattle production. The main feed for cattle is a renewable resource Kentucky has in abundance--forages. The majority of the state's terrain favors cattle production over row crops. Kentucky farms cover 14 million acres, with approximately half of that occupied by forage grasses and legumes. Our natural resources and climate permit the growth of most cool-season and warm-season species. Water is readily available in all areas of the state, and we have a relatively long growing season.
Departments: Agricultural Economics, Animal and Food Sciences, Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, Entomology, Plant and Soil Sciences, Veterinary Science
Series: Interdepartmental (ID series)
Size: 4.50 mb
Pages: 164
2/10/2021 (new)
Authors: Jimmy Henning, Ray Smith, Chris Teutsch, Katherine VanValin
Although soybeans are commonly grown as a grain crop, they can be grazed or harvested as either a hay or silage crop. This most commonly occurs when the grain potential of the soybean crop has been reduced by drought, hail damage, or early frost. A realistic forage yield expectation for drought stressed soybeans would be 1.5 to 2.0 tons of dry matter per acre. The objective of this article is to provide practical tips for successfully, grazing, conserving and feeding drought stressed soybeans.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences, Plant and Soil Sciences
Series: Agronomy (AGR series)
Size: 380 kb
Pages: 3
12/2/2020 (new)
Authors: Carrie Knott, Chris Teutsch, Katherine VanValin
Once wheat and other small grains adapt to cooler weather in the fall, they are relatively tolerant of cold temperatures and freeze injury. Frost injury in the spring normally occurs when February and March are unusually warm and small grains initiate growth earlier than normal or from an unusually late frost event. Freezing temperatures during sensitive growth stages can significantly impact grain yield. In some cases, the impact on yield can be moderate to severe.
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences, Plant and Soil Sciences
Series: Interdepartmental (ID series)
Size: 429 kb
Pages: 4
9/29/2020 (new)
Authors: Donna Amaral-Phillips, Greg Halich, Chad Lee, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin
Kentucky is in the upper transition zone which allows for the growth of warm- and cool-season forages. Corn, a warm season grass, grows well in the state and may be harvested for either grain or silage. Corn harvested as silage can be an economical alternative for beef cattle. Implementing sound management strategies and determining the nutrient content to balance rations will allow for successful feeding of corn silage to beef cattle.
Departments: Agricultural Economics, Animal and Food Sciences, Plant and Soil Sciences
Series: Interdepartmental (ID series)
Size: 690 kb
Pages: 4
7/2/2020 (new)
Authors: Les Anderson, Darrh Bullock, Darrell Johnson, Kevin Laurent, Jeff Lehmkuhler, Katherine VanValin
Kentucky has several bourbon distilleries and one fuel ethanol plant. The spent grains from the production of ethanol is utilized as a protein source in livestock feed. Shutdowns for fuel ethanol plants may also occur as a result of unfavorable profit margins when crude oil prices are low. Most distilleries and fuel ethanol plants will have a scheduled maintenance shutdown each year. During a shutdown, availability of distillers grains and other coproducts from these plants may be limited or unavailable. So, the question is what else can I feed in place of distillers grains?
Departments: Animal and Food Sciences, Regulatory Services
Series: Interdepartmental (ID series)
Size: 300 kb
Pages: 2
