1. Chapter 13 : Range Livestock Production 1. Economics of range livestock production a. Product demand b. Prairie versus desert ranches c. Ranch size d. Comparative financial returns e. Cattle price cycles 2. Range Livestock management a. Reproduction b. Crossbreeding c. Animal selection 3. Common use grazing 4. Drought management 5. Poisonous plant problems a. Types of poisonous plants b. Preventing livestock poisoning

4. Components of Sound Western Ranching 1. Grazing Management a. Stocking b. Grazing system c. Drought plan 2. Ranch Capitalization a. Water b. Fence c. Corrals d. Roads e. Other 3. Livestock Management a. Livestock selection b. Breeding program c. Healthcare d. Supplemental feeding e. Poisonous plants 4. Brush Management a. Grazing b. Fire c. Herbicide d. Mechanical e. Biological

5. Components of Sound Western Ranching cont. 5. Government Assistance a. Drought relief b. Technical assistance c. Vegetation management d. Conservation 6. Government Regulations a. Endangered species b. Clean air c. Clean water d. Land use e. Penalties f. Incentives

6. Components of Sound Western Ranching cont. 7. Product Demand a. Livestock b. Wildlife c. Recreation d. Plants e. Ecosystem services f. Other 8. Monitoring Programs a. Rain fall b. Forage production c. Trend in ecological condition d. Livestock productivity e. Financial returns f. Riparian health g. Soil health h. Wildlife populations i. Grazing use

7. Components of Sound Western Ranching cont. 9. Risk Management Programs a. Climate b. Biological c. Political d. Financial e. Other 10. Integration and Management.

8. Types of risk confronting western ranchers 1. Climatic 2. Biological 3. Financial 4. Political

11. Desert versus Prairie ranches; Large versus small Prairie (eastern) ranches are more profitable due to lower production costs per animal unit. 1. Lower land requirement per animal unit. 2. Forage is green for a longer period during the year. 3. Drought is less of a problem. 4. Intensive land management 5. Less government regulation on private land prairie ranches. Large vs small ranchers Larger ranchers are more profitable due to economy of scale. (Ranch economics handout)

12. Drought Management Principles 1. Drought is inevitable. Develop a forage reserve for drought (stock at 65-75% of capacity). 2. Maintain one quarter of the livestock herd as a readily marketable class of livestock. 3. Monitor monthly precipitation across the ranch. 4. Sell livestock quickly when drought conditions become apparent. 5. Always have a good handle on ranch forage resources. 6. Don’t rely on government feed programs. 7. Keep constant check on livestock water supplies.

13. Drought Management Principles cont. 8. Completely de-stock any pasture if stubble heights drop below 1 inch on short grasses, 4.5 inches on mid grasses and 8 inches on tall grasses. 9. Restock pastures after they receive one growing season of deferment and average or above average rainfall. 10. Don’t try to feed your way out of drought. Try to retain one quarter of grazing capacity in drought. 11. Store silage, hay and other feeds when plentiful and inexpensive. 12. Keep livestock well distributed across ranch during drought.

19. Table 13. Forage Production (lbs/acre) on Moderately and Conservatively Stocked Pastures in Drought Compared to 6-years average on the Chihuahuan Desert Rangeland Research Center. Drought 6 year Drought year years Average as percent Grazing intensity 1994 & 1995 1993-1998 of Average Moderate (40-45% use) 44 194 23% Conservative (30-35% use) 89 273 33% Source Molinar 1999, Molinar et al, 2002.

20. Table 12. Forage Production (lbs/acre) on Heavily and Moderately Stocked Pastures in Drought Compared to 10-years Average on the Fort Stanton Experimental Range in New Mexico. Drought 10 years Drought year Years Average as percent Grazing intensity 1974 (1970-1979) of average Heavy (50-55% use)10360717% Moderate (40-45% use)23574032% Source: Pieper et al. 1991, Holechek, 1994.

23. Common Use Grazing  Advantages 1.Complementarity due to differences in forage plant and terrain preferences 2.Maintaining a desired balance between forage species 3.Providing stability in grazing land ecosystems 4.Providing diversity of income and more uniform cash flow 5.Aiding in the control of internal parasites (i.e. for sheep when cattle are present)  Limitations 1.Increased facility costs, such as fencing, watering, and handling facilities. 2.Reduced scale of enterprise resulting in reduced technological efficiency 3.Conflicts in labor needs 4.Need for increased management skills and knowledge 5.Greater predator problems (adding sheep or goats to cattle).

24. Common Use Grazing cont.  Advantages 6. Developing mutually beneficial interrelationships between animal species 7. Maximizing yield of animal products through greater biological efficiency 8. Sheep utilization of forage affected by cattle feces  Limitations 6. Marketing made more complex 7. Antisocial behavior between animal species in limited situations 8. Differential suitability of climates to different animal species 9. Required proper stocking ratios between animal species

25. Range Livestock Management Principles 1. Heterosis (hybrid vigor) can substantially increase livestock productivity if cross-breds are used. 2. Control of breeding is critical. a. High level of nutrition after calving is essential b. Cow/bull ratio and pasture size must insure all cows have the opportunity to get pregnant (1 bull to 20 cows considered optimal). 3. Non-breeding animals must be identified and removed from the herd. 4. Calf crops should be at least 80% and lamb crop 100% 5. Separate first calf heifers from cows during calving – first heifers need extra care.

26. Range Livestock Management Principles cont. 6. Do not overfeed heifers or cows, this causes dystocia (calving difficulty). 7. Calving should be prior to forage growth so cow and calf can capitalize on the high quality forage. 8. Vaccinate livestock for the diseases in the area. 9. Do not permit an extended breeding season.  Advantages of 65-day breeding season a. Increased weaning weights b. More uniform calves c. Can identify low producing cows

27. Range Livestock Management Principles cont. 10. Do not overgraze Consequences a. Reduced weights b. Smaller calf crops c. Death losses are increased d. Forage resource is destroyed 11. Supplement minerals that are deficient.

28. General Rules to Prevent Livestock Poisoning by Plants  Prevention is the best cure. 1. Do not misuse the range so as to bring about the invasion of new species –may be poisonous. 2. Learn to recognize poisonous plants. 3. Avoid areas where poisonous plants are abundant. 4. Do not force animals to remain on the range after they have utilized the good forage species.

34. General Rules to Prevent Livestock Poisoning by Plants cont. 5. Do not allow animals on the spring range until the good forage species have made sufficient growth to support them. 6. When animals have been on dry feed, or have been deprived of forage they should not be put on ranges containing poisonous species until well fed. 7. Use plenty salt – lack of it may cause the animals to eat plants not normally eaten. 8. Graze with the kind of livestock not poisoned by the plant in question. 9. Poisonous plants may be sometimes eradicated by grubbing or spraying where economical.

40. Basic Information 1. Historically, return on investment for Western ranches has been between 1-3%. 2. The average 250 animal unit ranch in New Mexico is valued between $750,000 and $1,400,000. 3. As ranch size increases, the profitability of ranching tends to increase due to economy of scale. 4. The average medium size in ranch in New Mexico involves about 250 animal unit and has provided the operator with about $26,000 per year in net income in 1989-1992 period.

41. Basic Information cont. 5. Since WWII, real returns from western ranches peaked in 1961 and have since gradually trended downwards with periodic upturns such as 1978-1979 and 1988-1992. 6. Generally sheep ranches give higher returns than cattle ranches. In recent years yearling operations have been more profitable than cow/calf operations. 7. Ranches on arid lands in the west are less profitable than ranches in the great plains and southeastern USA.

42. Basic Information cont. 8. Percentage calf/lamb crop is the major factor influencing the profitability of mother/young ranching operations. 9. Compared to other businesses and investments, ranches are low in profitability. In recent years corporate profits have been around 12%, long term US government bonds (30 years) 7.5%, money market accounts 3-4%, corporate bonds (AAA) 8-10%, junk bonds 12-16%, and stock market returns (S & P) 500) of 18%. In contrast, western ranches have returned around 1-2% in arid lands (deserts) and 3-5% in the Great Plains. Western ranching is considered more risky than any of these other investments.

43. Basic Information cont. 10. Presently the outlook for the 2000’s is for cattle prices to increase due to rising demand. The problem is that ranching costs are increasing. 11. Arid land ranches are inefficient for beef production compared to more humid areas because low, erratic rainfall and rugged terrain require more infrastructure per animal unit than in the wetter areas. Furthermore, intensive management practices are more difficult when animals are scattered over large areas. (Ranch economics handout)

44. Advanced Information 1. Range improvements such as rotation grazing systems, brush control and seeding have seldom been financially effective on western ranches compared to alternative investments (bonds, stocks, money market funds, real estate). In many cases these range improvements have actually lost money for the rancher. Brush control has been a particularly poor investment although exceptions exist (big sagebrush range) because brush often reinvades the area within 5 to 15 years. Recovery of investment usually requires 20 to 30 years of increased forage benefits.

45. Advanced Information cont. 2. Financial benefits of grazing systems and brush control tend to increase as precipitation increases. These investments are most effective in areas with over 20 inches of annual precipitation and relatively flat terrain. 3. Supplemental feed is the major variable cost for western ranches. In New Mexico it varies between $30 and $60 per animal unit depending on year and range type. Research shows this cost should be between $10 and $20/AU on well managed ranged.

46. Advanced Information cont. 4. Based on the research, financial returns are much higher on good condition than poor or fair condition range. This is particularly true in arid areas. The surest way to improve range condition and forage production is with a conservative stocking rate (35% use of forage). 5. Drought has been one of the biggest factors adversely impacting ranchers on western ranges. Conservative stocking has proven to be one of the very best strategies to minimize the adverse impact of drought in ranching monetary returns.

47. Advanced Information cont. 6. Financially, the most sound strategy for arid land ranches is to use a conservative stocking rate (35% use of forage), a continuous or simple deferred rotation grazing scheme, a carefully thought out supplemental feeding program, and intensive breeding program and intensive replacement heifer management program. *7. Percentage calf crop weaned and sold is the major factor regarding cattle ranching profitability on western ranches. Stocking rate has been the most important factor governing calf crop on western ranges. 8. Generally rotation grazing systems have reduced calf/lamb crop and weaning weights compared to season-long or continuous grazing in arid areas. This in turn has reduced monetary returns.