A warm summer day is often a most desirable time on the ranch, especially when a “leisure” trip to check the pastures and cow-calf pairs is on the day’s agenda. But this relaxing trip quickly turns stressful when the first calf we encounter is teary-eyed, followed by another and another.

Boise, Idaho, played host to the Beef Improvement Federation’s (BIF) annual research symposium and convention June 1-4. Per event organizers and attendees, the event was a rousing success, with more than 400 attendees gathered to mingle and discuss the latest innovations in beef cattle genetics.

It is not uncommon to hear family members or employees complain about being micromanaged. Though the intentions of management are to ensure quality, timely and efficient production, their techniques for accomplishing this may leave employees feeling unappreciated, dissatisfied and inadequate.

For many cattle operations, "winging it" has worked remarkably well for decades. The founder knew what needed to be done, family members lived nearby, and decisions happened naturally throughout the day. Information was shared in the pickup, at the feedbunk or around the kitchen table.

For ranchers, a fire moving through pasture can feel like total loss – fences down, damaged infrastructure, forage gone and livestock stressed or injured. However, rangeland is resilient, and with a sound recovery plan, most operations can rebuild.

In drought years, grass that once sustained a herd through the grazing season stops growing early, reducing overall biomass production, and water resources begin to tighten. For livestock producers, this period becomes a balancing act between meeting immediate cattle needs and protecting the long-term productivity of the land.

Most cattle producers first think about feed, forage and mineral supplementation when evaluating herd performance or troubleshooting challenges. Water quality often doesn’t even make the list.

The rumen is a complex and dynamic organ that converts fibrous forages, starch-rich cereal grains and other feed ingredients, including ethanol byproducts, into high-quality microbial protein and energy-dense volatile fatty acids that support maintenance and growth of the animal.