Twin Forks Vet Clinic Inc.

DEW Drop Angus

2010-01-25T11:59:00.002-07:00

DEW Drop Angus (Formerly Wilson Bros. Angus) will be selling 80 hd. on February 27th at 1:00 at the Duane Wilson Ranch north of Parks, NE.
Selling will be...

15 coming 2yr. old bulls
5 Registered Bred Heifers
30 Commercial Bred Heifers
10 Registered Yearling Heifers
20 Commercial Yearling Heifers

Blood Lines include New Standard, Focus, B/R Destination, Fist Full of Dollars, and WB Directive.

For a catalog call or email Duane or Colleen Wilson at
308.423.2191
Cell 308.883.0938
308.883.0939
email: dewdropangus.gmail.com

First Live Calf Born at Wray

2010-01-19T12:54:00.001-07:00

On January 17, 2010 Stuart Blecha of Wray, CO was the proud owner of the first live calf born at Twin Forks Veterinary Clinic 2010. Dr. Justin Gdanitz delivered a bull calf weighing in at 86# born at 3:45pm. Stuart received as a gift from Twin Forks a bucket with a drenching bottle, clostrix, calf scale tape, hat, gloves, tag removal knife, odor candle, odor eliminating spray, candy bar, powerade drink, and a calving record book. We would like to wish Stuart the best of luck during this calving season.

Corn Molds/Feed Testing

2009-12-04T10:42:00.002-07:00

Many producers have noted ear mold during corn harvest. The problem is, we had a wet, cool summer that delayed maturation. We had severe hail in the area that stopped or at least slowed down corn development. We have also had above average moisture this fall and as a result some of the corn moisture has been over 20% and has been showing signs of superficial mold.

There are many different fungi that can develop mold on corn, some ears can show a variety of fungi on them. Some of these fungi such as Fusarium, can produce mycotoxins. The current recommendation from UNL is the dry the corn to less than 15%moisture quickly prior to storage. There is potential for the mold to cause significant damage to stored corn if it is not dried down significantly. Mycotoxins can develop in stored corn if it is not dried down as well.

If you are noticing significant amounts of corn mold it may be advisable to have the corn tested for mycotoxins prior to feeding it. It may also be advisable to have corn tested from cornstalk fields prior to grazing if there was a lot of ear droppage this year.

There are several resources on the internet that can provide answers to your questions about corn mold....
http://cropwatch.unl.edu/web/cropwatch/archive?articleID=1904835

http://csuplantdiagnosticclinic.blogspot.com

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/cropnews/2009/1030robertsonmunkvold.htm

We would also recommend that you test cornstalks for nitrate if the corn was stressed for moisture or recieved hail damage.

If you have any questions, or would like us to assist you with collecting and sending samples, feel free to stop in or give us a call!!

Grazing Hail Damaged Cornstalks

2009-10-21T10:31:00.001-06:00

As found at http://beef.unl.edu

Beef Cattle Production

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: A lot of corn on the ground in a hailed field. How much area at a time should you feed to thin cows to clean up the field? Is there a bloat supplement to curb eating?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A: Anytime more than about eight bushels of grain per acre are left in the field after harvest, cattle grazing the stalks risk getting acidosis and founder. Both diseases are caused by excessive grain intake, which increases rumen acid production. This can cause severe foot and hoof problems, including lameness. While smut is not a health problem, some grain may contain other molds that can produce mycotoxins. Vomitoxin and fumonisin rarely cause problems for beef cattle at typical contamination levels and aflatoxin rarely occurs in risky concentrations in Nebraska grain crops. Still, if there are reasons to suspect much mycotoxin may be present, an assay of the grain would provide useful safety information. Estimate the amount of corn down in a field. An 8-inch ear of corn contains about one-half pound of corn grain so it takes 112, 8-inch ears to equal 1 bushel (1 bushel = 56 pounds). Thus, by counting the number of ears, the amount of corn can be estimated. For corn planted in 30 inch rows, count the number of ears in three different 100 foot furrow strips and divide by two to give an approximate number of bushels per acre. Small ears and broken ears should be counted as half ears, while very large ears could be counted as an ear and a half. Any amount beyond 8 bushels per acre will require a well-planned grazing strategy.

One strategy for using high-grain cornstalk fields is to minimize availability of grain to susceptible animals. A good way to do this is to first graze yearling cattle, calves, or cull cows destined for slaughter, then follow with cows. Another alternative is to graze only a few hours per day. You also could strip graze the field to force cows to consume some husks and leaves along with the ears of corn. A final strategy might be to feed some grain or ear-corn seven to ten days before cattle are turned out to help them adapt to a high-grain field.

One factor influencing the success of these stalk grazing strategies is the experience level of the cattle grazing the field. Old cows with previous experience in cornstalk fields can pick up amazingly high amounts of corn in a short period of time, as can experienced yearling cattle. If they have not been conditioned to eating a high grain diet, some of the previously listed strategies may fail. Thus, inexperienced calves may have the least risk of founder or acidosis in high-grain cornstalk fields because they must first learn how to find corn. As a result, their grain intake safely increases gradually.

Bloat is usually not a concern with cows grazing residue with excess corn.

In hailed damaged corn fields, nitrates could be a concern. The nitrates are usually confined to the stalk and in-particular the lower 6 to 8 inches of the stalk. In a stalk field grazing situation, cattle commonly select the stalk last to eat, after the corn, husk and leaves are eaten. Our experience is that as long as cattle can select corn, husks, and leaves, more than 50% of their diet will be these three items. My recommendation would be to fill pregnant cows up with forage (hay) before turning the into this stalk field and do not graze it so long or hard that you force cows to eat the stalks.

October 16th, 2009
Dr. Rick Rasby, Professor of Animal Science
Animal Science, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, Lincoln, NE

Large Animal Newsletter Now Available!!

2009-10-21T10:13:00.006-06:00

Our latest Large Animal Newsletter is available by clicking the following link!!

Twin Forks Clinic Large Animal Newsletter, September 30th 2009

2009-09-23T08:40:00.000-06:00

Cattle Handling Facilities

2009-09-03T11:54:00.002-06:00

Cattle Handling Facilities
Justin Gdanitz DVM
08/2009

People will often ask which cattle handling facilities work best. Granted, some brand names, by design, work better than others but by no means is there one type or design that fits every operation.

Some very basic thoughts should be considered when designing any facility. Not our own thoughts, but cattle preferences. Cattle preferences can prove any facility a success or failure when put to work.

· Cattle are herd animals and enjoy moving in groups. Small crowded facilities or narrow gates and alleyways will prove hard to move animals through much less moving them through without injury.
· Cattle enjoy seeing where they are going. Dark barns, solid sided alleys, and shadows all work against this desire.
· Cattle are more likely to continue down a path of their choosing. When cattle are forced into an alley they are more likely to back out vs. continuing forward.
· Cattle want to go back the direction they came when feeling crowded or entrapped.
· Cattle enjoy following others. If they see one enter and exit an alley or chute ahead of them they are more likely to do the same.
· Cattle prefer to go around something they see pressure from. This is also true in their response to our movements along an alley (if they can see us to respond). Moving opposite the flow of cattle in the alley will encourage their forward movement in an attempt to move past the pressure applied by the handler. (Benefit of being seen vs. felt.)

Many people are now familiar with the Bud Williams concept of cattle handling and the “Bud Box” which is his design for cattle handling pens. Bud’s handling techniques and facilities capitalize on the afore-mentioned points to allow easier movement of cattle, more efficient handling, and less stress for both cattle and handler. Daniels alleyways prove to complement the Bud Box and Bud Williams handling techniques.

When utilizing these facilities it is good to remember key things.
· Sometimes less is more…. less noise, less pushing, less prodding, and less hot-shots. More reliance on cattle instinctive behavior. More reliance on well designed facilities. More enjoyment when working cattle.
· More is not always better….if the crowd tub or bud box works well when 1/3 or ½ full, it does not mean that filling it fuller will work better or faster. (A bud box or crowd tub should not be filled with more animals than can fit down the alley.)

Remember that cattle need clear and concise directions. Through our handling and facilities, we need to give them that.

Links for more on low stress cattle handling and “Bud Box’ use:
§ NDSU Bud Box demonstrational video: www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/carringt/ or BreanneIlse@ndsu.edu and Vern.Anderson@ndsu.edu
§ Daniels Manufacturing Bud Box demonstration DVD: http://www.danielsmfg.com/
§ National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Low-Stress Cattle Handling Video: http://store.beefusa.org/Low-Stress)-Cattle-Handling-DVD-P194C12.aspx
§ Low-Stress Cattle Handling DVD preview: www.cattlelearningcenter.com/docs/LowStressCattleHandling.wmv
§ Bud Williams Stockmanship Website: http://www.stockmanship.com/

Bud Box dimension recommendations:
Rectangular crowd pen should be built 14 feet wide and 30 feet long for loading a truck, or 20 feet long when loading a squeeze chute. These dimensions encourage the people working the facility to work it correctly. The closing gate in the crowd pen should be solid but sides open.
· Cattle are moved into Bud Box and solid gate is closed behind them.
· Pressure is applied from side of Bud Box in which you desire cattle to flow.

Reference:
Bud Box by Alaina Burt, Beef Magazine, October 2008.

Fall Equine Special

2009-08-25T10:59:00.004-06:00

Latest Large Animal Newsletter Available!!

2009-07-07T10:48:00.001-06:00

The latest newsletter will be mailed today but you can see it now by clicking on this link!!

Twin Forks Clinic Large Animal Newsletter, June 30th 2009

Twin Forks Clinic Fall Trade Show

2009-07-06T09:12:00.000-06:00

Fall Trade Show 2009

Twin Forks Clinic will again be sponsoring the Trade Show. It will give producers the opportunity to discuss herd needs and book the products needed in advance before the busy fall season. It will be held Saturday, August 15th, 2009 in the Exhibit Hall at the Fair Grounds in Benkelman from 10:00 A.M. till 2:00 P.M. MT. Lunch will be served. Sponsors will be available to discuss products specifically. This trade show will be informative and offer you the ability to order some of your products at a cost savings!!

If you will be unable to attend, please feel free to stop in at either clinic between August 10th and August 21st to discuss your fall needs with a veterinarian. Booking specials will apply.

Your sponsors will be:

Twin Forks Clinic
Pfizer Animal Health
Intervet/Schering
Bayer Animal Health
Fort Dodge
Boehringer Ingelheim Newport
AgriLabs

Hope to see You there!

New Large Animal Newsletter Available!!

2009-04-09T09:46:00.006-06:00

Included in this newsletter is the latest data from calving season, tips on getting ready for breeding season, information on our equine packages, and an article on udder scoring cattle. Just copy and paste the following link to your browser, or the title of this post to get the newsletter!!

http://www.twinforksclinic.com/newsletter/2009/march_319.pdf

Upcoming Bull Sales!!

2009-02-23T11:24:00.005-07:00

These are some of the upcoming bull sales from our clients!

2/28/2009 Wilson Brothers Angus

4/2/2009 Kavli Cattle Company Angus

First Live Calf of 2009 at Twin Forks Clinic-Wray

2009-01-27T15:46:00.003-07:00

The Doctors and Staff would like to congratulate Bruce Prentice on the fist live calf born at the Twin Forks Vet Clinic for 2009. Dr. Rodney Auffet delivered a Heifer calf on January 26, 2009 at 6:30 pm weighing in at 85#. Bruce received a cooler full of essentials for the calf and himself. A drenching bottle and Colostrum for the calf, cups for coffee, cap, vest, gloves to keep Bruce warm, Gatorade and trail mix to munch on during the long nights checking his cows.

Passive Immune Status within 24 Hours of Birth and Long-term Health and Performance of Calves

2009-01-27T09:16:00.001-07:00

You have heard the warning: “What happens in Las Vegas, stays in Las Vegas!!!” Perhaps you have not heard: “What happens in the first 24 hours, impacts the rest of a calf’s life”! Veterinary scientists, while with the USDA experiment station at Clay Center, Nebraska monitored health events and growth performance in a population of range beef calves in order to identify associations of production factors with baby calf passive immune status.
Blood samples were collected at 24 hours after calving from 263 crossbred calves to determine the amount of passive maternal immunity that had been obtained from colostrum. Colostrum is the first milk produced by a cow upon giving birth. The baby calves were classified with “Inadequate” or “Adequate” Passive Immune status based on that blood sample at 24 hours of age. Growth performance and health events in the study population were monitored from birth to weaning, and after weaning throughout the feedlot phase.
The lowest levels of passive immunity were observed among calves that were sick or died prior to weaning. Calves with “inadequate” passive immunity had a 5.4 times greater risk of death prior to weaning, 6.4 times greater risk of being sick during the first 28 days of life, and 3.2 times greater risk of being sick any time prior to weaning when compared to calves with “adequate” passive transfer. Based on 24 hour proteins (most of which are antibodies or immunoglobulins) in the blood, the risk of being sick in the feedlot was also three times greater for “Inadequate” compared to “Adequate” calves. Passive immune status was also indirectly associated with growth rates through its effects on calf health. Sickness during the first 28 days of life was associated with a 35 pound lower expected weaning weight. Respiratory disease in the feedlot resulted in a .09 lb lower expected average daily gain.
Thus, passive immunity obtained from colostrum was an important factor determining the health of calves both pre- and post-weaning, and indirectly influenced calf growth rate during the same periods. Therefore, the cow calf producers can help themselves and the future owners of their calves, by properly growing replacement heifers, providing a good health program for cows and heifers, and providing natural or commercial colostrum replacers to calves that do not receive it in adequate quantities on their own. Remember that most of the transfer of antibodies from colostrum to the calf happens in the first 6 hours. The first day sets the stage for the rest of his life. (Source: Wittum and Perino. 1995. Amer. Jour. Of Vet. Research. 56:1149.)
January 25th, 2009
Dr. Glenn Selk, Professor-Animal Reproduction Specialist
Animal Science - Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK

First Live Calf of 2009 at Twin Forks Clinic-Benkelman!!

2009-01-27T09:03:00.005-07:00

For the last few years, the staff at Twin Forks Clinic in Benkelman has had a contest for the first live calf of the year. This year's winner was a bull calf owned by Joe and Mary Birge of Benkelman, out of a 7 year old black white face cow. Weighing 98 pounds, the winner was brought into the world on January 24th, with the assistance of Dr. Rod Auffet. The prize for the first born calf was a bucket containing necessary calving items such as a drench bottle, colostrum replacer, calving book, and of a course a coffee cup, Mountain Dew and a warm vest to help keep the calves caretakers warm and energized.

Change in Office Hours at TFC-Benkelman

2009-01-09T13:08:00.003-07:00

Starting 2/7/2009, Twin Forks Clinic in Benkelman will be open on Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. in preparation for calving season!! Our office hours will revert back to 8:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. on 4/25/2009

The December Large Animal Newsletter is Available!!

2009-01-09T10:30:00.006-07:00

The latest Large Animal Newsletter is available online at:

http://www.twinforksclinic.com/newsletter/2008/December_31.pdf

Included in this newsletter is the preg check summary for 2008, 10 Ways to Save Money on Cow/Calf Nutrition, and an excellent article on preventing and controlling scours

Spring Trade Show

2008-12-22T11:40:00.007-07:00

Twin Forks Clinic
Trade Show

Twin Forks Clinic will be hosting a Spring Veterinary Trade Show. It will give producers the opportunity to learn about new and existing products for the approaching calving and branding seasons. Drug company representatives will be available to discuss products. Twin Forks Veterinarians will be present to aid in matching products and plans to meet your needs. A booking program is available with savings for the producer.

This event will take place at: City of Wray Round House
245 4th Street
Wray, Colorado

Wednesday

January 21, 2009
12:00 PM until 4:00 PM MST
Lunch will be provided.

If you are unable to attend please call or stop by either of our clinics by January 31, 2009 to discuss your spring needs and take advantage of the booking discounts.

Your Sponsors will be:
Twin Forks Clinic

MWI
Ft. Dodge
SolidTech
Bayer
Pfizer
Intervet Schering-Plough
Boehringer Ingelheim
AgriLabs
Merial

Tri-State Cow/Calf Symposium

2008-12-22T09:48:00.005-07:00

Be sure to stop at our booth at the Tri-State Cow/Calf Symposium, Saturday, January 3rd in the Kitzmiller Auditorium at the Wray High School in Wray Colorado! For more information on the Trade Show click on the link below:

http://www.csubeef.com/files/events/cow-calf_symposium_brochure.doc

Happy Holidays!!!

2008-12-22T09:40:00.003-07:00

The Doctors and Staff at Twin Forks Clinic in Benkelman and Wray wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year!!!

Estimating the Amount of Grain Left in the Field

2008-11-21T14:25:00.000-07:00

Estimating the Amount of Grain Left in the Field
Estimating the amount of corn down in a field helps producers determine a grazing strategy. An 8" ear of corn contains about .5 pound of corn grain, therefore 112, 8" ears would equal 1 bushel. By counting the number of ears the amount of corn left can be estimated. If the corn is planted in 30" rows, count the number of ears in three different 100 ft. furrow strips and divide by two to get an approximate number of bushels per acre. Small ears and broken ears should be counted as half ears, while very large ears would count as 1.5.

If the corn is planted in 36" rows, then count the number of ears in three different 100' furrows and divide by 1.66. Any amount beyond 8-10 bushels per acre will require a well planned grazing strategy to ensure that too much grain is not consumed.

Grazing Cornstalks with High Corn Droppage

2008-11-21T11:27:00.003-07:00

Now that the corn has finally dried down and producers are able to get cattle to cornstalks, we have had a few questions on how to manage stalks that have had lots of corn droppage. According to Staff at UNL, there are several strategies you can use when grazing Cornstalk fields with excess grain. These include...

-graze yearling cattle or calves first then follow with older cows

-graze cull cows destined for slaughter first, the follow them with the main herd

-short term graze (only a few hours per day)

-increase the stocking rate to reduce grain intake per animal

-divide the field into strips with power fence using polywire and fiberglass posts, forcing cows to consume some husks and leaves along with the ears of corn, this will reduce founder potential.

You can also fill the cows up with hay or other forages before allowing them to graze cornstalks.

UNL has put together a very good publication on grazing crop residues, you can find it at http://www.twinforksclinic.com/kevin/ec278.pdf Just copy and paste the link in your browser or just click the headline for this post and you will be directed to that publication.

Calculating Grazing Time on Cornstalks

2008-11-21T11:17:00.002-07:00

Now that the corn is finally drying down, most producerers are getting cattle out to stalks.Here is a method of calculating the number of grazing days on a field of cornstalks. According to Dr. Rick Rasby at UNL, crop residue is related to grain yield. With high producing hybrids, there should be about 16 pounds of dry leaf and husk per bushel corn yield per acre.
Therefore, if a field produces 160 bushel/acre, then there should be about 2560 pounds of dry leaf and husk residue per acre. Now some of that residue disappears due to trampling and other factors so figure about 50% utilization, which leaves us with about 1280 pounds of grazable residue per acre.
Now we can convert our pounds of grazable residue to AUMs. An AUM (Animal Unit Month) is the amount of forage that is required to maintain a 1000-pound cow or equivalent for one month. It has been determined, that a 1000-pound cow will consume about 680 pounds of dry matter monthly. Therefore, this particular field will provide 1.88 AUMs/acre. If this field is 125 acres, then there is a total of 235 AUMs available for grazing in this field.
Now let’s assume we are planning on grazing 100 head of gestating cows on this field, we need to calculate the number of days that they can graze this field. Let’s assume the average weight of these cows is 1360. That means that each one of these cows requires 1.36 AUMs per month. Therefore, a total of 136 AUMs is required to feed this herd for a month. This field has 235 AUMs available for grazing so it should last about 1.72 months or 52 days.
Keep in mind that this calculation is just a starting point and is in no way a substitute for actual observation of residue disappearance. This calculation also does not figure in loss in stalk quality due to deteriorating weather conditions or just simply the natural deterioration that occurs over time.
There is also an Excel spreadsheet available for download online at http://agmanagerstools.com. Not only does this spreadsheet calculate the available grazing days using the same equation, but it also takes into account, the cost of the stalks, the cost of transporting the cattle to stalks, and the costs involved with checking the cattle and water. Kevin L. Cawthra, Animal Scientist, Twin Forks Clinic INC

Latest Large Animal Newsletter Available

2008-07-11T16:31:00.004-06:00

The latest Large Animal newsletter will not be mailed until Monday, but you can see it here at www.twinforksclinic.com/newsletter/2008/June_30.pdf

2008 Twin Forks Clinic Trade Show

2008-07-11T16:15:00.001-06:00

Trade Show 2008
Mark your calendars now for Saturday, August 16th. Twin Forks Clinic will once again be having it's trade show. Producers will have the opportunity to talk to various drug reps and book the products that you will need for the weaning, preg checking and calving seasons in the months to come.

It will be held Saturday, August 16th, 2008 at the Benkelman
Community Building at 908 Huron Street from 10:00 A.M. till 2:00 P.M.
MT. Lunch will be served. Sponsors will be available to discuss products specifically. This trade show will be informative and offer you the ability to order some of your products for the fall at a cost savings.

Your sponsors will be:

Twin Forks Clinic
Pfizer
Intervet
Schering-Plough
Norvartis
Fort Dodge
Boehringer Ingelheim
Newport Labs
AgriLabs
Bayer Animal Health

Hope to see you there!!