“Many of the infectious diseases of importance, such as West Nile virus or equine encephalomyelitis (sleeping sickness) are transmitted by insects that become active in the spring,” Daly said. “Others are transmitted between horses, and spring and summer activities are more apt to bring horses from different locations into contact with one another.

South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension specialists and South Dakota cattle producers are teaming up to apply research to a generations-old idea that for every cow grazing on rangeland, a ewe can be added and not have a negative impact on forage quality or availability.

Canada is considering imposing sanctions of up to $980 million a year against the U.S. unless it complies with a WTO ruling requiring changes in how it labels meat, according to media reports. Canadian Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz told reporters last Tuesday the country would consider “extensive retaliatory measures” against the U.

Drought conditions in parts of the Plains have improved modestly since the beginning of the year. Some improvement has occurred in South Dakota, Kansas and Oklahoma. Additionally, the latest drought outlook from the Climate Prediction Center continues to push the line for potential drought improvement farther west.

February continued the trend set at the end of 2012 for U.S. beef and pork exports with higher values on lower volumes for beef and a continued slight decline for pork, according to statistics released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).

Monday, April 8, the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing on the reauthorization of the Animal Drug User Fee Act (AD- UFA). The reauthorization of ADUFA is one of the top priorities for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) as set by its members.

Linda Prokopy’s research sheds light on why some communities in Indiana are welcoming of wind turbines while others have rejected them. Indiana residents are overwhelmingly receptive to wind farms in their communities, even in areas that have rejected turbine development, according ...

Grass tetany, or grass staggers, is a nutritional disease that cattle get from grasses high in water content and potassium and low in other nutrients, such as magnesium and calcium. Older cows that have just calved and are in peak lactation are the most susceptible.

In addition to the soil moisture data provided by the Field Connect system, the new sensors provide data on temperature, wind speed, wind direction, humidity, solar radiation, leaf wetness and rainfall. The sensors are installed in customer fields as part of the Field Connect Gateway.

Tuesday’s storm caught many South Dakota cattle producers in the middle of spring calving. The storm’s cold, wet and windy conditions will potentially cause significant losses to their calf crop, says Warren Rusche, South Dakota State University Extension Cow/Calf Field Specialist.