Merial is the sponsor of the media room at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference once again. Here’s our sponsors at the media reception last night at the Buffalo Exchange.
The man behind a lot of microphones here has been Van Ricketts. Van is involved with the fed cattle business. I spoke to him about two main things they’d like producers to know about right now, calf pre-conditioning and parasite control.
As the beef industry faces record high grain costs, two things are likely to happen: calves will stay on grass longer than usual and feedyard managers will be even more choosey about which calves fill their pens. “The MERIAL SUREHEALTH Calf Preconditioning Program is an ideal option for producers looking to add value and marketability to their calves,” says Dr. Van Ricketts, Director of Corporate Accounts, Merial. “Not only is it a program recognized by buyers throughout the country, but it also has a proven health protocol backed by Merial’s 21-day Limited Health Warranty.”
According to a recent study from Iowa State University, one place producers cannot afford to cut is in their parasite control program. The study concluded that parasite control is the most economically important practice in beef production.
At the cow/calf level, the study showed that dewormers affect weaning rates and weights more than any other technology a producer can employ. Cow/calf producers who used parasite control saw an advantage of 23% in weaning rates and 4% in weaning weights. Parasite control was almost six times more important to a cow/calf producer’s breakeven cost than growth-promoting implants (the second-most economically significant choice). Eliminating parasite control practices would negatively affect breakeven selling prices by 34%, which would mean an added cost of $165 per head.
Listen to my interview with Van here: cisc-08-ricketts.mp3