Applied Reproductive Management for Cattle (Rio Arriba County)

1. Ensure all county and tribal extensional personnel in the specialists’ serving area have the necessary practical skills, tools, and understanding of applied management systems for beef cattle to effectively communicate the subject matter to Southwest beef producers within their service area.
a.Accomplished during the 2006-07 reporting period: Through formalized agent-training sessions, specialist has begun to transfer information to county agents.

1. Improve the applied, practical skills and continued learning of 3% of statewide beef producers in applied reproductive management through hands-on instructional workshops to a level of comfort that learned skills can be implemented on Southwest beef cattle operations.
a. Accomplished during the 2006-07 reporting period: Specialist has had minimal to no accomplishment on this objective.
2. Improve in-herd data collection and management skills of beef producers participating in program area to assist in critical management decisions and measure cost-effectiveness of techniques and procedures implemented as a result of outreach efforts in the program area.
a. Accomplished during the 2006-07 reporting period: Specialist has focused and incorporated economics of implementing management strategies in outreach materials and programming efforts.

Accomplished during 2006-07 reporting period: Specialist has established formal programming with 36% of county agricultural and/or 4-H agents in this program area.

For the past five years the agent has participated in evaluation of the winter range carrying capacity at the Presbyterian own Ghost Ranch property of 22,000 acres. Kurt Gazia a self proclaimed range scientist, Ghost Ranch Lands Manager and previous grazing lessees, have participated in assessing potential grazing opportunity for the winter. Ghost Ranch has helped surrounding area ranchers with winter grazing for many years. The winter grazing has assisted producers with feeding less or no harvested hay. The implications of having enough feed during critical periods of gestation in a beef cow herd are profound. Nutrition is especially important during the third trimester of pregnancy. Most of the cattle at Ghost Ranch either calve on the place or are taken out while very pregnant. Forge supply and nutrition play a critical role in the mother cow’s ability to calve and re-breed. It is essential that adequate forage and sometimes supplement be available for the producer to be sustainable. By evaluation the available forge and demand the Ghost Ranch Manager can better assess practical numbers of animals that may graze at Ghost Ranch during the winter Months.
In addition, the agent has been very involved with the issues surrounding the wild horses on the Jarita Mesa Allotment. The United States Forest Service wrote an Environmental Assessment that indicated that they would manage the wild horse population on the Jarita Mesa Alloment between 20 and 70 head. Twenty in drought years and 70 during better forage conditions. The estimated count by a private contractor indicated that there were approximately 170 head. The issues came to a head when the USFS directed grazing permittees to remove and or reduce the number of cattle on the allotment. The USFS had no choice since there were no funds to remove the federally protected animals. After several months of argument between permettees and USFS appeals and congressional involvement were there funds found. Funds were made available through the Bureau of Interior, Bureau of Land Management. These horses after captured were held at the Rural Event Center where Extension Service is housed. Several meeting were held at the Extension Office to address the issue. NMSU Range Improvement Task Force was also involved the in early discussions. After many a meetings key site range monitoring locations were set up. These sites have been visited twice since initial set up. Data is being collected and analyzed. Enclosure range cages have also been set up in strategic places for an additional analysis being done for NMSU Range Department that is looking at Kentucky Blue Grass stubble height guidelines set by the USFS Region 3. Sites on the Gila, Santa Fe, Carson and Sacramento National Forest are being analyzed for Kentucky Blue Grass response potential to site specific stubble height averages. The hypothesis is that Kentucky Blue Grass and indicator specie is very dependent on specific site requirement in order to attain the stubble height requirement set by the USFS.