EMancisttr Farming, Saturday, November 5, 1988 Lancaster Farmer Sells Top Dutch Country Calf Sale Steer LEBANON A Lancaster County beef farm consigned the top-grading and top-selling calf to the Dutch Country Calf Sale. Fritz Frey of Quarryville, who has exhi bited Farm Show champions him self, showed a Chianina Angus crossbred steer, an April calf that brought $B6O from buyer Nelson Woolcock of Paxinos, Northum berland County. Frey’s top grading April crossbred steer, another Chianina Angus, brought $685 from Jeff Bomgardner of Annville. The top-grading purebred Angus steer was consigned by Gerry and John Gammel of Womelsdorf. This March 1988 calf sold to Raeu Eberly of New manstown for $560. The top selling Angus steer, also con signed by the Gammels, brought $6OO from Dick Kreider of Lebanon. The champion purebred Polled Hereford steer was consigned by Deitschland Farm of Womelsdorf. This February calf sold to Vernon Miller of Hershey for $5lO. Miller also bought the top-selling purebred Polled Hereford steer from Emilie Miller of Womels dorf. This April calf sold for $520. Miller was high-volume buyer of the sale. Judge Cliff Orley, of Keystone Cattle Service in Lebanon picked a purebred Polled Hereford heifer as the top female of the sale. MAP Miss Jingle, a February daughter of Magador Sculptor 46R, out of a Magnification granddaughter, was consigned by MAP Farm of Womelsdorf. The heifer sold to Nancy Stumhofer of Orwigsburg for $6OO. '■PRV Update, Piglet Diseases Discussed At Swine Meeting BY LISA RISSER ROTHSVILLE (Lancaster) After only 14 months, a Lancaster County hog farm has eliminated pseudorabies (FRV) from its herd. The farm, under the supervision of Dr. Timothy P. Trayer of Denver, conducted a random survey of its breeding swine and all animals tested negative using a pseudorabies-vaccine kit “The farm is still under quarran tine, however,” Trayer told swine producers during a meeting at the fire hall here. “It will be accepted' (by the state) as PRV-frce when there is federal approval on kit test ing. We’re hoping that will be in about 18 months.” The cleanup began shortly after the initial outbreak in August of 1987. Through a vaccination prog- \ ram, PRV-positive breeding ani mals were replaced with vacci nated hogs without disruption to the farmer’s farrow-to-finish operadon. “I didn’t interrupt the animal flow except with the death of piglets at the outbreak of the dis ease and when the young breeding stock at the time of the outbreak came into the herd,” explained Trayer. The success rate of an eradica tion program largely depends on several variables, according to Trayer, including the length of time PRV is in the herd; the num ber of PRV-positive herds in the area; the size of the herd, larger herds arc more troublesome to clean up because of stress factors; and the other diseases that may be in the herd. The Upgrading female at the Dutch Country Calf Sale was a Polled Hereford heifer consigned by MAP Farm of Womelsdorf. Owner Mike Firestlne Is at the halter. The top-selling Polled Hereford heifer was consigned by Susan Smith, Rolling Shade Polled Herefords of East Greenville. This February daughter of RS Outra geous 226 sold for $7lO to Deitschland Farm of Womelsdorf. The top-grading and top-selling Angus heifer was consigned by Kelly Bachman of Annville. This May daughter of Broadway sold to Brian Kreider of Lebanon for $7OO. Twenty-two steers went through the sale' ripg at the Leba non Fairgrounds. Auctioneer Har ry Bachman of Annville called the sale. Steers, representing cross breds, Angus, and Herefords, averaged $540 a head. Five purebred heifers also were County outlook During 1988 there were 65 PRV-positive swine in Pennsylva nia: M of these are in Lancaster County and one is in Montgomery County. “The herd in Montgomery County belongs to animal activists who purchased two hogs from the Lancaster Stockyards,” Trayer reported. With the exception of that single out-of-county herd, PRV has stay ed in the same geographic area. Another positive note is the state’s increased flexibility this past year with PRV-elimination programs. Hot piglet diseases Two hot piglet diseases begin ning to make an appearance in Pennsylvania are Coccidiosis and Clostridium Prefinges Type C. Moving eastward, the diseases were among the topics of conver sation during the swine meeting. The session led off with William Ingalls, D. V.M., a swine extension veterinarian at Ohio State University. * Occurring in piglets aged S days to one-month old, Coccidiosis “was a minor disease a few years ago in Ohio,” said Ingalls. “Now it’s a hot disease.” There has been some incidence in Pennsylvania, with most cases unrelated to the type of swine facil ity it has invaded. The growing fre quency of the disease, however, is reason enough for farmers to become aware of it and what to do about it. Coccidiosis is caused by a para site that gets into the intestinal tract through the mouth. In most cases it is spread when piglets eat the man- offered, averaging $619 each. There were 45 registered buyers. Consignors to the sale also included: Larry Arnold, Womels dorf; Leon Arnold, Lebanon; Har ry Bachman, Annville; Glenn Eberly, Bellefonte; James Huber, Myerstown; E.R. Osterstock, Len hartsville; Salunga Acres, ML Joy; Elmer Stehman, Robesonia; Sus quehannock Farm, Sunbury; and Travis Werley, Shoemakersville. Other buyers were: Dec Otto, Schuylkill Haven; Roxanne Kirst, Fredericksburg; Dick Kreider, Lebanon; Ricky Manwiller, Robe sonia; P.J. Shellenberger, Bird In Hand; Lester Stertzel, Bemville; Amy Eshelman, Sinking Spring; Greg Strieker, Bemville; and Brian Wetzel, Kempton. ure of an infected animal. Soon after exposure, the piglets will develop scours. “The death rate in coccidiosis is high,” reported Ingalls. “Usually all in a litter die. Before death there is dehydration, a loss of condition, and poor feed conversion.” Piglets look like poor-doers. Cleanliness is important “Some of the best money (a producer) can spend is on elevated farrowing crates with a woven wire or similar flooring,” stated Ingalls. Elevated flooring will allow manure from infected animals to be eliminated rather than available to hungry piglets. If elevated flooring isn’t a possibility, Ingalls recommends applying a layer of good straw daily. Because spread of the infected manure many times is caused by walking from pen to pen, Ingalls suggests a separate pair of plastic overboots for each pen. •If a farmer spots a diarrhea out break in baby pigs that doesn’t respond to ordinary measures, he should suspect coccidiosis. Once the disease has been identified, there isn’t much that can be done. Prevention is a farmer’s best course of action. He should first disinfect the building with a solu tion such as lye water, chlorine compounds, or ammonia. 'The next preventative step to take is to use immunity-building drugs in sows. Veterinarians can usle drugs approved for use on cattle. Intestinal disease Clostridium Prefinges Type C is (Turn to Pago E 4) Fritz Frey, at halter, of Twin Oaks Farm In Quarryville, consigned the top-grading and top-selling steer of the Dutch Country Calf Sale. Judge Clifff Orley selected this Chianina-Angus cross calf as sale champion. Beef m Briefs Jl yiftß WRITING A CUSTOM FEEDING CONTRACT With high prices for both feed and cattle, some cattle feeders have opted for custom feeding this year. A frequent question often results on how to write a feeding contract that satisfies both the feeder and the owner. There is no best or universal contract that will work in all situations, but there are a few key elements in one to help keep everybody happy. • NAME THE PEOPLE INVOLVED. This is one point that may be overlooked, but, let’s face it, this is a legal document that should name the parties involved. This designation should include who owns the cattle and who will be feeding and managing them. It also helps to give a detail ed description of the catde includ ing any brands, tattoos, or ear tags.HAVE A BEGINNING AND AN ENDING POINT. There is everything to gain by describing the period of time that the contract is in effect Open-ended contracts do exist; however, they will often put more of the cost on the feeder in certain types of contracts. Both parties should agree when the con tract expires using some reason able expectations of gain and markets. • DETAIL THE FEED COST AND NUTRITION PROG RAM. This does not imply all costs are known before feeding. Instead, the cost of feed can be based on a weekly or monthly summary quote from a market Additionally, the ration composi tion should necessarily change, so some detail should be provided to explain when changes will be made and what the composition of the diet will be. It is essential when high-forage diets are being fed to have frequent analysis made of the forage to determine the ration composition and cost of the feed. •WHO HAS RESPONSI BILITY FOR THE HEALTH PROGRAM AND DEATH LOSS. Dissatisfaction with a cus tom feeder will occur when cattle die. It is essential that all the par ties know what can be expected and who will have the responsibil ity for death losses and when the responsibility is incurred. In gen eral, most feeders will not assume any cost for dead cattle, but con- by John Comerford Penn State Beef Specialist tracts do exist to prevent the com plete disaster. In this case the feeder will assume some responsi bility when losses reach a desig nated point If there is any guaran tee of vaccinations or some other pre-arrival treatment program, it should be spelled out. Some deci sion should be made on handling of the dead cattle including necropsy and disposal costs. • HOW WILL THE WEIGHTS BE MADE. Con tracts that are written on a per unit of gain basis should have a detail ed procedure for taking weights. For example, will there be a pencil shrink, a shrunk weight at the feedlot, a market weight with no shrink, etc.? These weights should certainly be made over scales that have been certified for use in the sale of commodities. •WHAT ARE THE PAY MENTS AND HOW ARE THEY TO BE MADE. The big gest surprise some first-timers have is the cost involved in feed ing their cattle. Most custom feed ers have to meet cash flow requirements like anybody else, so they collect payments to meet that need. The payment schedule usu ally involves a deposit up front, a monthly feed and yardage assess ment, and a closeout bill. Feeders have the responsibility to provide accurate and timely reports on feed intake, veterinary costs, and gains of the cattle while they are still in the lots. This implies a good custom feeder has the means to weigh feed and cattle on a regu lar basis. The yardage cost is a daily per head cost associated with the overhead costs for the lot This generally runs about 25 cents per head daily, but can go as high as 45 cents. Also, some states have sotne unique laws about who pays tht taxes on custom-fed cattle. This, as well as insurance costs, should be detailed in the original contract. For everyone’s protec tion, a clause should be added that details the sale of animals when the bills have not been paid. !• DESCRIBE THE MARK ETING PROGRAM. The man na- in which the cattle are mark eted should be detailed, including what outlets will be used, what will determine the timing of mark eting, what information will be provided to the owner, and how fee owner will be paid.
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