This year many areas in South Dakota are becoming acquainted with heavy rains and severe weather after years of drought. While we cannot put up a protective bubble for severe weather over our operations (no matter how badly we wish that technology existed sometimes), there are some things to keep in mind when severe weather strikes.
Mud
Cattle producers are no strangers to dealing with mud in pastures, dry lots, and around the operation. It is not only a headache to deal with but also can affect cattle performance. For our cattle in the feedlot, muddy and wet pen conditions can affect cattle performance and health. Hoof health comes of great concern as increased levels of moisture can impact hoof integrity. Bacteria and other infectious microorganisms can take hold and cause illnesses like foot rot or digital dermatitis. When mud depth reaches above 4 inches, we may see decrease performance in our herds as animal’s feed intake dips and energy maintenance costs rise. When we see decreased feed efficiency, we increase our cost of gain for that particular pen of cattle.
You may be asking yourself, I know muddy pen conditions are not good for my cattle but what can we do about muddy conditions in our pens? Providing bedding within the pen will give cattle a place to rest that is dry and comfortable. It is critical to place these in high places, or in areas where there is less mud to prevent making more of a mess within the pen. Additionally, placing these away from concrete aprons edges will be helpful in pen maintenance once things dry up. If you cannot spread the bedding out, placing the whole bales on the ground will be sufficient as cattle will be able to tear apart the bales. If you have concrete aprons in your pens near feed and water sources, keeping those clean and clear will give cattle another opportunity to get out of wet and muddy areas.
Hail and Bruising
Several storms coming through the Dakotas have brought with them tornadoes and large hail. Besides the damage to equipment and buildings, hail can cause injury to livestock. This may lead to external injury such as cuts and scrapes but can also lead to internal injury like bruising. For our cow calf herds, this bruising will heal with time and often is not a point of concern. In the feedlot, the impact of hail bruising depends on how close to market these animals are.
In May and June of 1999, a Texas feedyard experienced two storms that produced hail between 1 ¾ to 3 ¾ inch in diameter. The second storm occurred 16 days after the first storm. Cattle were close to market weight and were sent to the packing plant approximately 1 to 49 days following the first storm. West Texas A&M University worked with this feedyard and collected data on the carcasses. In summary, storms that produced large hail (3 ¾ inch or greater) have the potential to cause severe bruising in cattle in open yards. A point for consideration is that cattle sold within 15 days of these storms may have significant trim loss from bruising caused by hail damage. In this particular study, by day 49 bruising returned to baseline levels.
National Beef Quality Audit
Bruising remains one of the leading causes of carcass trimming at harvest. Even a small bruise, ranging from the size of a quarter to a deck of cards, can result in up to a pound of trim loss. With current cattle prices, reducing trim loss is more important than ever for maximizing carcass value. The 2022 National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA) recorded the highest frequency of carcass bruising to date: 52.3% of carcasses showed bruising. While not all of that is caused by bruising, it is a contributing factor.
While we can’t control the weather, proactive management like improving pen conditions after rain and considering marketing timelines after hail events, can reduce performance losses and protect carcass quality. Bruising costs the industry millions of dollars each year, and we all know every pound saved from trim loss helps the bottom line.
