Editor's Note: Larry Yager,
Adams County Extension wrote
the following information for
sheep producers.
As most of you know, lamb
prices dropped to the high 30s
about two years ago. At that time
your Pennsylvania Sheep and
Lamb Marketing Program decided
something had to be done as lamb
producers just could not survive at
those prices. The Board approved
a Plan of Action to address this
challenge. John Shoemaker of
Allensville was appointed to over
see this project
The first item in the plan was to
investigate the potential of a
producer-owned cooperative for
improving returns to sheep pro
ducers. A random survey of Pen
89|2 FINANCING m mi/
AS LOW AS Tttjfytl
BALE CHOPPING MADE EASY
• Reduce feeding waste and Increase
palatability.
• Do the job fast with a tractor-powered Patz®
Big-Bale Chopper.
• Models for 4-foot to 6-foot diameter round
bales or several rectangular bales.
• Patented horizontal chopping method requires
less horsepower.
• A spinning rotor with knives chops as the tub
rotates.
• Easy start of chopper knives with freewheeling
lifting disk.
• Two side-discharge ports.
• Optional high vertical-discharge chute.
• Optional flexible hose for restricting access
and mulching.
Mixing T.M.R. the Way You Want
Open-Top Mixers
• Four notched augers mix fast-even square-baled dry alfalfa
in limited amounts.
• Self-aligning auger bearings mounted outside. Flanged auger
tubes for easy removal.
• Planetary gear reducer and roller chain reduction power the
augers. Roller chains operate in sealed oil bath.
• On trailer and truck models, the discharge door and discharge
augers are controlled hydraulically.
• 8 sizes from 190 to 575 cubic feet
Tumble Mixers
• Tumble mixing plus a central spiral circulator moving ingredients to the
back of the drum while filling moves ingredients forward
• No internal bearings.
• Low maintenance-- only 3 grease fittings.
• 4 sizes from 135 to 290 cubic feet.
Affordable Financing From Patz
Financial Services
“36 Years of Financing
Fanners Needs”
All Mixers Manufactured By Patz
814-M9-4027
BALLY
LOMOACRE
ELSCTR|C
2194«^*1
BEDFORD- \
BENCfS FARM EQUIP.
8144234801
BELLEFONTE
LUCAS BARN EQ.
814*383-2806
BELLEVILLE
MILLER-LAKE Inc.
717-935-2335
Premium Lamb Prices In Niche Markets
nsylvania sheep producers was
conducted to determine the pro
duction practices, number of
lambs sold and interest in being
involved in a lamb marketing ven
ture. The results of this survey
showed sufficient interest to pro
ceed with a study to identify pre
mium marketing opportunities.
Lynda Brushed, a consultant in
“Niche Marketing” and who did
the research for Yankee Shepherd
Lamb Cooperative in New Eng
land, was hired to assist the steer
ing committee with this study.
Funding was a joint effort of the
Sheep and Lamb Marketing Prog
ram, Federal-State Market
Improvement Program and Penn
State.
The steering committee is
| SEE YOUR NEAREST PATZ DEALER j
cldar°crest
EQUIPMENT
717-270-6600
MECHANICSBURG
JOHN JONES
717-766-8582
MIPFLINTPWN
ZUG FARM &
DAIRY EQUIPMENT
717-463-2606
ORANGEVILLE
FRANKLIN D. HESS
FARM EQUIPMENT
717-925-6939
Patz
Trailer-mounted auger mixers
QUARRYVILLE
UNICORN FARM
SERVICE
James E. Landis
717-786-4158
SHIPPENSBURG
WITHER EQUIPMENT
SERVICE
717-532-6139
SOMERSET
GROVE EQUIP. SALES
Mark Knepper
Cliff Lynn
814-445-6306
focusing on two premium markets
that provide an outlet for 60-80
pound, unfinished lambs and 1004-
pounders under a “Natural” lamb
label. The protocol has been deve
loped and is awaiting USDA
approval for the label.
So, are you interested in getting
the most for your lambs and being
a part of a cooperative solution to
lamb marketing? If you are, then
you should attend the statewide
organizational meeting for Green
Valley Lamb to be held in Room
324 ASI Building on the Penn
State College of Agriculture cam
pus on May 21. 1994 starting at
10:00 a.m. Please register soon
with Lora Zimmerman in the
Cooperative and Business Prog-
J .
HAGERSTOWN. MD
TRI-STATE PATZ SALES, INC.
FARM AUTOMATION 414-897-2251
301-416-7340
/i\
/sAFETY'A
yn»noieodf>i J
KENNEDYVILLE. MD
PINDER SERVICE CO.
410*778*0799
WHITEFQRD. MD
ENFIELD EQUIP.
410*838*0480
6«W Spans*
ram office in 206 Armsby Build- numbers for reserving your l«nb
in ?.’ *“*• PA 16802 or barbeque. There will be a $lO
call 814-863-0644. She needs the registration fee.
Scholarship Available
DEFOREST, Wis. Anted- Livestock Exposition Junior
can Breeders Service (ABS) Awards Banquet held in Louisvil
encourages Jersey youth to apply ,e * K® ntu cky.
for the ABS-sponsored Morris B. y ,®? r ’. s essa y to P ic is >
Ewing/ABS scholarship. Con- ™ l5 llke, y »be the biggest
ducted in conjunction with the challenge Jcrs ey breeders will
American Jersey Cattle Club, the * ace ® e near uturc ' ai *d how
essay contest is open to all Jersey * ey challenge?”
youth who plan to continue with Essay applications should be
post-secondary education. sent f° Gayle Starkey at the
The winning student will AmeriMn Jersey Cattle Club,
receive a $5OO scholarship to be r 486 Main Street » Reynolds
presented in November at the Ohio 43068.
North American International , |{j® a PPEcation deadline is July
1, 1994.
Penn State
Researcher Revises
Holstein
Stationary auger mixers
Truck-mounted auger mixers
Tumble mixers
DISTRICT
MANAGERS: ■
Agri Bee Inc.
James Bilski, Pres.
814*696*9447
Fax 814*696*2606
James Smith
717-485*9585
Uncmir farming, Srtuntoy, my 7, 1994-A39
Measurement
Standards
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre Co.) A
researchers in Penn State’s College of Agri
cultural Sciences has revised growth stan
dards used to estimate the weight of Holstein
calves and heifers from heart girth
measurements.
Dr. Jud Heinrichs, associate professor of
dairy science, has developed new, more
accurate growth charts for height and weight
of heifers at a given age from two to 24
months. “The new standards are helping
dairy producers chart animal growth, provide
balanced diets and determine when heifers
should breed,” he said.
Using data about Holstein weight and
growth collected from across the United
States, Heinrichs developed a new equation
that makes girth measurement a more accu
rate estimate of weight and growth. Hein
richs already has revised growth charts for
Ayrshire, Brown Swiss. Guernsey, Jersey
and Milking Shorthorn cattle.
Farmers use these growth charts to com
pare their animals to a breed average for
weight and height Weight and growth usual
ly are estimated by measuring an animal’s
heart girth.
“Girth-measuring tapes are marked in
inches on one side, with each inch correlated
for the average weight of that breed on the
other side.” Heinrichs said.
Heinrichs recently evaluated heart girth
tapes for Holsteins and found serious prob
lems. “The Hosltein standards were based on
a 1936 U.S Department of Agriculture study
of a single herd,” he said.
“I analyzed more recent data that mea
sured cows and calves using both tapes and
scales. The tapes consistently made animals
seem heavier than they really were.”
Inaccuracy is a problem because body
weights of animals are used to make various
management decisions, such as ration
balancing. "The average milk cow’s produc
tive life last only a few years, so a dairy far
mer replaces about 30 percent of the herd
each year," he said. “Replacing culled cows
with superior heifers improves the herd, but
getting good heifers takes good nutrition.”
Genetic improvement in the Holstein
breed over the decades may have altered the
1936 correlations between girth and weight,
Heinrichs said. “But many tapes don’t even
match each other. If you pick a girth mea
surement and compare the weights given by
two different tapes, they may differ by up to
40 pounds for a single inch measurement of
heart girth.”
Exclusive rights to the new standards
developed by Heinrichs have been purchased
by the Cobum Company, Inc., the nation’s
leading manufacturer of girth tapes. Heart
girth tapes based on the revised standards
should soon reach the market.