Applied Reproductive Management for Cattle

2007-2008 Program Year
Range monitoring continues on three different ranges. Ghost Ranch is privately owned by the Presbyterian Church while Cerro Azul and Jarita Mesa are on USFS lands. Over the past few years these ranges have been assessed to manage for forage supply and demand. Since these ranges change from year to year an assessment gives the range managers option on systems to implement for the year. Drought in the past ten years has drastically changed the methods that range managers used in order to manage forage supply and demand.
The Range Improvement Task Force (RITF) has been intricately involved in the Jarita Mesa range analysis since wild horses have been part of the mix of herbivores that graze on land year round. Conflict has existed since the horses have taken advantage of forage resources year round with no management by the USFS. In the past two years approximately 100 out 170 have been removed. Prelimary indications show that range conditions are improving. Additional precipitation has obviously helped.
As for the Ghost Ranch winter range, it was stock heavily with up to 900 head for a short time. Ghost Ranch is on a high intensity, short duration stocking rate. Livestock preformed adequately for the time period that they were on the Ghost Ranch property. As for the Cerro Azul winter grazing allotment it was stocked to capacity. The forage supply met the forage demand of the livestock. 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. Having adequate feed will lead to increased reproductive efficiency.

Impact report 2008

The Jicarilla Extension agent has provided opportunities for Jicarilla Livestock Producers to increase their knowledge in reproductive management and related herd management areas. In 2008 producers have benefited from both cattle management presentations and from one on one instruction from the agent. Information gathered by the agent while attending workshops or researching topics has been disseminated to tribal producers in order to keep them aware of some of the most recent issues facing livestock producers.

Some of the programs shared have been the rez to rail program and emergency preparedness and response (Biosecurity). Presentations held for Jicarilla cattle producers covered marketing cattle, vaccination programs, record keeping, best management practices, agricultural statistics, USDA programs, range management and improvements, New Mexico tuberculosis status and budgeting. Over 100 producers have received instruction by attending these presentations.

Individual instruction has also covered a variety of related topics. Topics covered were herd health management, bred selection, grazing management, prepared pasture management, calving, low stress handling, contracts, reseeding rangeland, weed management, farm loans, premise id and country or origin labeling.

Ninety percent 90% of livestock producing families on the Jicarilla Reservation have benefited from instruction provided by New Mexico State University through the agent in 2008. The Agent has expanded services provided to The Jicarilla Apache Nation, The Southern Ute Nation and Rio Arriba County. This has been done by collaborative efforts involving the Rio Arriba Extension Office, the Southern Ute Agricultural Office, Jicarilla Bureau of Indian Affairs, Upper Chama Soil and Water Conservation District, Weed Buster Program, Farm Service Agency and the Chama Natural Resource Conservation Service.

Tomas Dominguez has signed on to support Applied Reproductive Management for Cattle within Quay 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.