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Census of Agriculture Cattle Insights
The "2017 Census of Agriculture" is a valuable source for insights related to cattle operations at the state level. There were 13,928 operations across South Dakota with cattle in 2017, and the total inventory was 3,988,183 head.
Beef Quality Assurance
South Dakota producers have the option to receive beef quality assurance (BQA) certification.
SDSU Extension offering livestock water testing across state
June 18, 2025
South Dakota State University Extension is encouraging producers to take advantage of its free, on-site livestock water testing services across the state.
Livestock Risk Protection for Cattle
Price rallies, general price volatility and concern that prices may move lower could lead producers to insure livestock prices. Livestock Risk Protection is an insurance program that covers the single-peril or risk of lower prices on fed cattle and feeder cattle.
Cattle Market Update
During this episode of Cattle HQ, we visited with Matt Diersen, SDSU Extension Risk/Business Management Specialist about the most recent cattle on feed report that was released in the middle of February.
Online Eastern South Dakota Water Conference set for Oct. 20
December 29, 2021
The theme for this year’s conference is “Ground Truth – Water Resource Management and Remote Sensing.”
Cattle Behavior
Working cattle is an essential part of management. However, it can be stressful for the livestock and humans involved. The more we learn and understand about cattle behavior, the less stress these handling events will cause.
A Disaster-Ready Strategy for Cattle Operations
Cattle producers can minimize risk and maximize resilience. Having a written emergency action plan and routine exercise of the plan helps ensure animal welfare and business continuity.
Basis for Lighter-Weight Feeder Cattle
With higher overall price levels, the price differences across cattle of different weights have also increased. As a result, producers may want to revisit some pricing rules reflected in price slides and in basis levels for lighter-weight feeder cattle.
Water Usage Increased by Dietary Phytase Incorporation in Growing and Finishing Swine
Total water usage is an important consideration in sustainable pork production. Recent research at the SDSU investigated water usage of growing and finishing pigs fed diets without or with phytase included in the diet.