Texas A&M’s Beef Cattle Short Course tackles markets, herd management Aug. 4-6

High calf prices, unpredictable weather and a new threat will headline the general session of the 71st annual Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course on Aug. 4-6 in Bryan-College Station. Beyond the traditional market and weather forecasts, experts will discuss the New World screwworm.

Hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Department of Animal Science, the event is expected to attract 1,800 to 2,000 people, said Jason Cleere, Ph.D., conference coordinator and AgriLife Extension statewide beef cattle specialist in the Department of Animal Science, Bryan-College Station.

Both in-person and virtual attendance are offered. The cost is $300 for in-person attendance, $160 for virtual registration and $150 for youth. A $40 fee will be charged for late registration after July 29. Register online, contact 979-314-8507 or email [email protected] for more information.

Weather and markets are always a concern

“Prices are good now, but the question is for how long,” Cleere said.

Randy Blach, CEO of CattleFax, will provide insights on where the high prices are coming from and how they are affecting consumer demand. From a consumer’s point of view, how long will they sustain that demand and at what price? This all plays into the rebuilding of cow herds across the industry, Cleere said.

The “Long-Range Weather Planning” presentation will feature Colorado meteorologist Brian Bledsoe. Each year, ranchers hear from Bledsoe on weather expectations and use that information to help make future management decisions, Cleere said.

New World screwworm is an emerging topic

“The hot topic this year is screwworms,” Cleere said. “We don’t need to panic; it’s not the end of the world if we get these infestations. But as producers, we need to be prepared for a change in how we do business. So, we are going to address that at the Beef Cattle Short Course in several ways.”

T. R. Lansford, DVM, deputy executive director with the Texas Animal Health Commission, will provide an overview of what the pest is, how it was previously addressed and what the response will be here in Texas if it does arrive.

“I also decided to put together a panel that will talk about the past, current and future,” Cleere said.

The panel will consist of:

• Jim McAdams, rancher and past National Cattlemen’s Beef Association president, who dealt with screwworms in the 70s.
• Joe Paschal, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension livestock specialist emeritus and ranching and genetics consultant, will present the perspective on how screwworms are being dealt with in South America – how ranchers are responding.
• Ron Gill, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension livestock specialist and professor in the Department of Animal Science, Chico, will address the future.

“Cattle production today is not the same as it was 50 years ago,” Cleere said. “There are more small landowners and absentee owners and even large ranches that operate with a lot less labor. How do we, as we are operating now, respond to that and think about changing our practices?”

Additionally, he said, New World screwworms will be covered in more depth in the health session and internal and external parasite sessions, along with the many other issues being addressed. AgriLife Extension has a fact sheet to keep producers informed.

Making the most of good prices

“We will continue to discuss the record-high calf prices in our breakout sessions,” Cleere said. “A lot of times, we are trying to reduce expenses and cut costs, but now we need to think about maximizing production. Our nutrition session will talk about getting the right nutrition to our cows so that we get more pounds produced and take advantage of our record prices.”

He said the chute-side demonstration will also discuss ways to capitalize on these high prices. Specifically, he said, they will target programs like implants that can return additional dollars in the range of $30 to $60 per animal if an additional 10 to 20 pounds is realized – for the price of $1.25 per implant.

“We have been in this controlling-costs mode for so long – and we have to still do that – but we have to think about ways we can take advantage of that added value at this time,” Cleere said. “We have to look at the value of some of the practices that we use to increase the pounds – really low-cost technologies like implants and controlling internal and external parasites.”