![]() ![]() ![]() Prospective buyers mingle with cattle before the auction during the South Poll Field Day in Copan, Oklahoma. Instead, Judy found success – after nearly going bankrupt in 1999 trying to raise cattle the conventional way – utilizing intensive, grass-based management with cows that had the “grass genetics” to thrive. In Judy’s system, those “common cows”, as he calls them, looked like they had been starved six months after he put them on a grass-only diet. His 300-plus herd is kept together in a dense group, and moved often – Judy moves his cattle twice a day to fresh paddocks – creating a symbiotic relationship between cows and grasslands that soil scientists are finding encourages soil health and rapid grass growth.īut Judy has learned not all cows thrive on grass alone, especially the type of cattle favored by a US ranching industry that has grown largely dependent on feeding cattle grain rations. ![]() Judy raises cattle in a highly–managed, grass-only system that he believes is better for his cows and the environment. “This is the kind of heifer you want,” Judy says. She has a large “barrel” or gut, meaning enough stomach capacity to store large amounts of grass, which she will convert to energy and will keep her in good health, even during the winter with no extra feed. She sports a shiny, slick red hide that flies avoid landing on cows stressed from fly bites – Judy has seen hundreds on a single cow – don’t grow well. She’s got a “big butt”, Judy says, meaning wide hips that will help her easily bear calves when grown. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |