B4—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 17,1980
Hormones keep
COLUMBIA, Mo. Some
day high producing dairy
cows may receive a dose of
“anti-stress” hormones
before a heat wave or other
stressful situation to keep
their milk production from
suffering or to aid in
recovery from the stressful
event.
This is what University of
Missouri-Columbia animal
scientists hope to prove from
research they are con
ducting for a three-year
study of heat stress on dairy
cows.
According to Harold
Johnson and Mary Bober of
UMC’s dairy husbandry
department, this research is
taking a two-pronged ap
proach. The first is a short
ranged reduction m heat
stress artificially. This
means using fans, shade and
shelters.
The longer range ap
proach is the study of hor
mones and how they affect
Leave
wildlife alone
HARRISBURG - The
Pennsylvania State Game
Commission is renewing its
annual plea to persons
sympathetic to wildlife to
leave wild youngsters m
their natural habitat
They ask that people avoid
encouraging or enticing
wildlife to congregate in
areas where the creatures
become troublesome.
With many young birds
and animals in the field and
forest at this time of the
year, persons finding the
tiny creatures may in
nocently believe the animals
have been deserted or or
phaned This is not usually
the case
The parents, frightened by
the approach of humans,
cows cool
stress resistance and how
stress affects them.
Johnson said that heat
stress can significantly
reduce a dairy cow’s milk
production.
“When the temperature
stays above 90 degrees in the
day with high humidity and
above 70 at night you begin
to see production losses.
“Your high producing
cows are affected most.
“A cow that is producmg
60 to 70 pounds a day may
lose 5 to 10 percent of her
production capabilities in a
heatwave.”
Johnson and his colleagues
have found that cows lose
certain hormones associated
with milk production when
exposed to heat stress while
other stress hormones in
crease.
They hope to discover
whether it will be possible to
replace the hormone losses
and decrease the hormone
gams so the cow can be
restored to its thermal norm
which is about 70 degrees
young
have taken cover a short
distance away. They will
return to take care of their
offspring as soon as they are
alone.
Of equal concern are
animals fed or otherwise
attracted to particular
locations, usually to be
viewed by humans. Special
problems are created by
those who feed bears, in
ducing the cute, cuddly
creatures to come to or
remain in a certain area.
Later, these animals
become a nuisance, con
stantly showing up for
handouts, upsetting garbage
cans, roaming through
towns, climbing trees, or
frightening residents ,
This should help dairy
farmers reduce production
losses caused by stress.
A cow may not recover its
normal production for
several weeks after being
exposed to heat stress.
UMC researchers have
found that five hormones in
cattle are sensitive to heat
and stress. These are
triiodothyronine (known as
T-3), thyroxine (T-4),
prolactin from the pancreas,
growth hormone from the
pituitary gland and insulin.
“What we don’t know is if
body heat affects lactation
or if body heat affects the
hormones which affect
lactation. This basic in
formation is essential for
implementation of
corrective anti-stress
practices.”
Johnson said that heat is
being used as a “control
stress” during research but
a long-range goal is to apply
discoveries m this area to
other stresses, such as those
Trusts save slooo’s
(Continued from Page B 3)
was put in trust for the
children.
The wife survived her
husband for five years.
When she died, the farm was
sold for $400,000.
This amount, said Byler,
went entirely to the children.
“Not one penny of
inheritance tax was paid on
the $400,000 because the
parents had a properly
written will. Since the farm
was in trust, it was shielded
from the estate taxes. The
only problem was the widow
had to deal with the trustee,
who was looking after her
financially, for five years. ”
Byler cautioned against
naming a child as the trustee
in order to save the trustee
fees charged by a bank or
attorney. He said not only is
it nsky, because a child
might turn against a parent
caused by transportation,
fear and poor management.
This is the second year of
the study the dairy
husbandry department is
working on in cooperation
with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and UMC’s
department of agricultural
engineering.
New White Utility
Tractors pack
value into every
dollar of your
investment.
The new White 43 hp 2-45
and 60 hp 2-62 utility trac-
tors give you wet disc
brakes, 4-cyllnder diesel
engines, tilt steering wheel
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all as value-packed,
standard features.
since paying for their well
being would make the
inheritance smaller, but
because it puts the child in a
tough spot.
The Lancaster attorney
also explained the surviving
spouse cannot be the trustee,
although they can be one of a
panel of three trustees. “The
surviving spouse cannot vote
at all when it comes to
making payments to
themself, and as one of a
panel of three trustees, they
can be outvoted.”
One question that always
pops up when discussing
trusts and estate plans is
how are the values of the
farms decided. Since most of
the worth of a farm estate is
tied up in the land, who
decides how much it is really
worth in order to suc
cessfully plan an estate?
According to Richard
Dennison, of the Penn
sylvania Farmers’
Association’s legal services,
the land appraised on an
agricultural value provided
it has been farmed by the
decedent or a lineal
descendent of the decedent
for 5 of the 8 previous years
before death, and that it will
oe farmed for 15 years by
lineal decendents. ”
If the farm is sold or
farmed by someone other
than a son, grandson, father,
grandfather, then the
government tacks on a
back tax which would have'
to be satisified for a clear
title.
“If you use family farm
appraisal, you’ll have to
have two appraisals: highest
and best use and family
farm appraisal,” said
Dennison. “There will be a
15 year lien against the
property on the highest and
best use tax, but the estate
will only pay the tax based
on family farm use. The
highest and best use dif
ference will be the lien
recorded at the courthouse.”
Estate planning is not an
easy task at best, and there
are millions of rules and
regulations that come to
play at a time when most
people are not in the frame ,
of mind for straight thinking.
But, said Ford, with
functional planning, it’s
possible to have your cake
and eat it too. With a trust asd
a tool, you can get income to"
the people you want to have
income, and can minimize
inheritance taxes, too.
In next week’s issue of
Lancaster Farming we will
study the estate settlement
procedure and what makes a
good executor.