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A group of people stands outside a livestock trailer

SDSU Extension helps first responders train for crashes involving livestock

April 30, 2025

The first time Brandon Wingert responded to a vehicle accident involving livestock was in 2017 when a livestock trailer with 99 cattle tipped over. They successfully recovered all but four of the cattle, but Wingert, Hanson County’s sheriff and emergency manager, never forgot the incident.

Group of farm employees and managers gathered at a table.

Building and Retaining a Skilled Agricultural Workforce: Challenges and Strategies

Building a strong, motivated workforce is essential to the future of agriculture. A team from SDSU Extension is exploring the challenges and opportunities facing our agricultural community.

Three generations of a family farm gathered in a barn.

Three Parts to a Farm Plan: And you need all three

Farmers and ranchers need to create three plans to efficiently transfer the management and ownership of their operations to the next generation. These include: an estate plan, a transition plan, and a retirement plan.

Woman using a calculator
Jan      Mar 20 - 10

Financial Fireside Chats

SDSU Extension will host a weekly series of six free webinars focused on increasing financial knowledge and improving financial well-being on Tuesdays from January 20 to March 10, 2026, from 12:00-1:00 p.m. CT.

Black angus cow with calf in a well-kept cattle pen.

SDSU Extension to host cow/calf calving camp

December 11, 2025

South Dakota State University Extension is hosting interactive Cow/Calf Calving Camps for cattle producers.

Cow with newborn calf in late-winter pasture.

Preparing for the Calving Season

Calving season is a busy time of year as beef producers prepare themselves for less sleep each night, while spending more time observing cows close to calving. So, what can we do to make calving season less stressful for everyone involved?

Group of meat processing trainees inspecting parts of a beef carcass.

Testing for E. coli in Raw Meat Products: Basic information for meat processors

While the risk of Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) should be taken seriously, the incidence of positive STEC tests can be mitigated by proper animal, carcass, and product handling, as well as robust sanitation policies and practices.

Small group of black cattle grazing a grassland area.
Mar 19

Tools for Managing Cattle Nutrition and Preparing for the Grazing Season Cattle HQ Live

Join SDSU Extension's beef team to gain valuable insights to improve the health, productivity and profitability of your herd. This month we will discuss online tools to help with managing cattle nutrition and preparing for the grazing season.

A group of black heifer calves in a feedlot.
Apr 16

Estrous Synchronization with Natural Service Cattle HQ Live

Join SDSU Extension's beef team to gain valuable insights to improve the health, productivity and profitability of your herd. This month we will cover how estrous synchronization can be an effective and cost-efficient tool to be used with bulls.

Cattle outfitted with virtual fence collars on an open rangeland.
May 21

Virtual Fencing Cattle HQ Live

Join SDSU Extension's beef team to gain valuable insights to improve the health, productivity and profitability of your herd. This month, we will discuss current virtual fence systems on the market, considerations for producers interested in utilizing this technology, and current research being conducted at SDSU with virtual fence.