(Iowa Beef Center) A recent publication listed the top New Year’s resolutions for 2012. As you might guess the most popular ones had to do with pushing away from the table, getting more exercise, getting their lives more organized including budgeting and getting more out of life. By the time you read this you have probably already broken one of them.
The following list is 10 resolutions for your beef operation that you can stick to in preparation for the challenges coming in 2012.
1. Keep better records.
Whether it is a feedlot or a cow calf operation, management of costs in a high cost environment requires knowing what they are and making sound decisions on that basis. Increasingly, good records on environmental management, animal production, animal health and animal care are needed for good stewardship and market access.
2. Attend an educational event.
You never quit learning and the business and technology changes fast. Check the upcoming events on our website for an event near you.
3. Become a better environmental steward.
Do you know where the water goes when it leaves your feedlot or feeding area? Are you a medium CAFO? Learn about the changes in rules and permitting that might affect you. The IMMAG website (www.agronext.iastate.edu/immag/) and the Iowa DNR (www.iowadnr.gov/) are good resources.
4. Develop a health program.
Work with your veterinarian to develop a state of the art health program. Don’t wait until an emergency to give him or her a call.
5. Manage feed storage and handling losses.
The first step in managing feed storage losses, whether it is wet corn co-products, commodities, silage or forages is to measure it. Weigh your feed in and out of storage. You might be surprised how much feed you are losing before the cattle see it.
6. Test your feeds and balance your rations.
Underfeeding reduces productivity and overfeeding increases costs. Send your feeds in for analysis and share the information with your nutritionist. If you balance your rations yourselves, consider the BRANDS program to fine tune and reduce feed costs.
7. Take credit for your manure value.
With increasing value of fertilizer nutrients this is a resource that should be accounted for. This requires testing and applying the manure at agronomic levels.
8. Evaluate your facilities.
Cattle comfort can pay off in better performance, particularly during periods of weather extremes. Efficient handling facilities are makes life easier for both human and bovine.
9. Manage your margins.
Risk management today involves managing the risk of both input costs and market prices. Learn more about the cattle “crush margin” and how to use it for managing volatility and price risk.
10. Get more out of your pastures this summer.
Take a pasture walk or attend a grazing clinic. Forage and grazing management is one way to get more productivity out of fewer available acres.
IBC at Iowa State University serves as the university’s extension and outreach program to cattle producers. Our center comprises a team of faculty and staff from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Veterinary Medicine and Iowa State University Extension. We work together to develop and deliver the latest in research-based information to improve the profitability and vitality of Iowa’s beef industry. Call us at 515-294-BEEF, or e-mail us at beefcenter@iastate.edu
Dan Loy is the interim director for the Iowa Beef Center. This column originally appeared in the Growing Beef e-newsletter
The Alpines are composed of several varieties including the most popular French Alpine and the less numerous British, Rock and Swiss Alpines. They are medium to large in size, with color variations from pure white through shades of fawn, gray, brown, black, red buff, and combinations of these colors in the same animal.
The Golden Guernsey is a rare breed of goat from the Bailiwick of Guernsey on the Channel Islands. They were first brought to Great Britain in 1965 and a sub-breed has evolved known as the British Guernsey. 
The LaMancha is a type of dairy goat noted for its apparent lack of, or much reduced, external ears. The LaMancha breed is medium in size, and is also noted for a generally calm, quiet, and gentle temperament. The LaMancha face is straight, with ears being the distinctive breed characteristic. A Roman nose, that is typically a characteristic of a Nubian goat, is considered a moderate to serious breed defect of the LaMancha goat. 
The Nigerian Dwarf is a miniature goat of West African origin. Their small stature means they do not require as much space as their larger dairy goat counterparts and their gentle and friendly personalities make them good companion pets. They are easy to handle; even small children can be at ease with these little goats. 
The Anglo-Nubian, or simply Nubian in the United States, was developed in Great Britain of native milking stock and goats from the Middle East and North Africa. Its distinguishing characteristics include large, pendulous ears and a "Roman" nose. Due to their Middle-Eastern heritage, Anglo-Nubians can live in very hot climates and have a longer breeding season than other dairy goats. 
The Oberhasli is a breed of dairy goat from the eponymous district of the Canton of Berne (Switzerland). The name loosely translates as 'highlander'. Oberhasli are a standardized color breed, with warm reddish brown accented with a black dorsal stripe, legs, belly, and face. Occasionally a black Oberhasli appears as a result of recessive genes. 
The Saanens are white or light cream in color with white preferred. Spots on the skin are not discriminated against. Small spots of color on the hair are allowable, but not desirable. They are medium to large in size with rugged bone, plenty of vigor yet feminine throughout. The ears should be of medium size and carried erect. A tendency toward a roman nose is discriminated against. 
Sables are Saanens that are not white. They come in many colors and combinations and have been a part of the Saanen heritage for as long as there have been Saanens. The first Sables in the US arrived on the same ship with the first Saanens and have been here ever since. 
The Toggenburg is a breed of goat, named after the region in Switzerland where the breed originated, the Toggenburg valley. Toggenburgs are medium in size, moderate in production, and have relatively low butterfat content (2-3%) in their milk. The color is solid varying from light fawn to dark chocolate with no preference for any shade. They are the oldest known dairy breed of goats. 
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