Tracking devices tell us everything from the number of steps we take to the amount of calories we consume to the hours of restful sleep we get at night. That data provides valuable information to those who are seeking it.
While the collection mechanisms are different, tracking data on cattle after they leave the ranch can offer beneficial information to cow-calf producers, said the experts at the Kansas State University Beef Cattle Institute on a recent Cattle Chat podcast.
“One of the best ways to get performance information on the calves after they leave the ranch is to retain ownership of them through the finishing phase,” Phillip Lancaster, beef cattle nutritionist, said in a news release.
Lancaster explains that with this system, the beef producer assumes the expenses through cattle feeding, and the cattle are managed as a separate group than others in the feedyard. Producers can learn the rate of gain and feed efficiency of the cattle that are managed that way.
He said electronic identification via an ear tag allows cattle to be tracked through the finishing phase and provides carcass information post-harvest.
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