In 2017, in an effort to support my own continuing education, I attended the first mineral nutrition for beef cows program. The very first program was an all day meeting hosted by Adele Harty of SDSU Extension at the Cottonwood Range and Livestock Field Station. The day was packed with an abundance of information. Subsequently,...Read More

Recently, I have consulted with packgoat hobbyist and livestock producers to interpret their livestock water suitability report. Because water is a vital nutrient, understanding these reports is very important to make good decisions. Water plays an important role and many biological functions including transportation of essential nutrients to body tissues and cells, lubricant for the...Read More

It’s that time of year, when most Americans start dreaming of turkey, potatoes, gravy and stuffing. Before there are any drumsticks on our plates however, turkey producers must focus on feeding turkeys for holiday feasts. To maximize production efficiency nutrient requirements must be met. Energy Energy comes from carbohydrates and fat in the feed. It...Read More

I receive many phone calls about interpreting a feed report. The interpretation depends on the reason for testing. Some reports help formulate an animals diet. Other reports determine hay quality for buying and selling. At Ward Laboratories, INC. , we provide the Ward Guide to help producers interpret agricultural testing reports. Here are my tips...Read More

As spring continues to progress into summer, many livestock growers will move herds onto lush green pastures, and toss out a mineral supplement. But what happens if that supplement doesn’t provide balanced mineral nutrition to those animals? The first major concern is magnesium deficiency referred to as ‘Grass Tetany’. However, that isn’t the only mineral...Read More

Nutritional deficiency in poultry, is an common issue when I consult with people raising chickens in their backyard.  With the rise in popularity of raising backyard, “City Chickens”, I have received phone calls from owners with nutritionally deficient chickens in June and July. They are wondering what is happening to their birds. Additionally, how can...Read More

Baby calves are hitting the ground, and lush, green pastures ready for grazing, and grass tetany potentially.  Cattlemen know there’s a danger in those beautiful, green spring grasslands. A nutritional disorder known as Grass Tetany, Grass Staggers or Hypomagnesaemia.  Grass Tetany is a deficiency of magnesium that causes them to stagger, look alert and become...Read More

Circulating Video Against “Kibble” The link above is to a video that has been circulating the internet.  It captured my attention as it uses scare tactics to keep pet owners from feeding a balanced pet food (aka kibble) as the main source of nutrition.   I feed my fur baby (Angel pictured above) dry dog food...Read More

Grazing cover crops can be a cost-effective way to achieve multiple productions goals.  Cover crops can provide ground cover to prevent erosion, improve soil health over time, and provide nutrition to beef cattle.  However, cover crops are not a fool proof feed.  Turning cattle out onto cover crops to graze without proper feed tests can...Read More