Most Progressive Cattleman readers do not use ultrasound to detect pregnancy.

It’s safe to say most ranchers didn’t get into the cattle business because they are passionate about crunching numbers. Rather, one would wager it had more to do with raising livestock and being stewards of the land.

Have you ever heard someone suggest they got robbed … at the sale barn? Everyone has encountered this at some point. The sellers felt their cattle didn’t bring market value. Could they be right, or were the sellers missing something? Most often it’s the disease known as barn blindness.

While it’s important to get cows bred and get a live calf each year, it’s vital bulls selected to represent 50 percent of the genetics of the next calf crop are progressing toward your herd goals – especially in times of tight margins in the cow-calf segment.

Calving season, perhaps the most important time of year, is upon us. Being prepared with a solid plan will improve our chances for success. In the West, cold weather, low-quality forage conditions and changing cow nutrient requirements can make calving season difficult.

With winter calving wrapping up and spring calving approaching, now is a good time to evaluate your cow herd for breeding potential this spring and summer. Cow body condition at or just prior to calving has the greatest impact on herd pregnancy rates and reproductive performance.

The USDA released a report in December 2017 detailing death loss, both predator and nonpredator, on cattle operations in 2015. The report was a cooperative effort between the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

In the novel Anne of Green Gables, the heroine proclaims her favorite month of the year by saying, “I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” While October is not my favorite month, I understand Anne’s partiality for a specific month. I love June.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) today kicked off a media campaign aimed at spotlighting and correcting a recent court decision that will require livestock producers to comply with laws that are only meant to apply to highly toxic Superfund sites.

In the rolling wooded hills of Starr, South Carolina, sits Weems Creek Cattle Company’s 2,400 acres – home to 365 head of mama cows.