CALF_News_June_July_2018

21 CALF News • June | July 2018 • www.calfnews.net We Bring Information and Management Together! For more information email sales@turnkeynet.com , or call (800) 999-0049. Turnkey Computer Systems, LLC . 6117 Amarillo Blvd. West . Amarillo, Texas 79106 . Phone: (806) 372-1200 www.turnkeynet.com T he Turnkey Visual Management System is a decision support and analysis tool for feedyard management. INTRODUCING THE VISUAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FROM TURNKEY • Decision Support • Buyer Analysis • Vet/Feed Statistics • Customer Management • Customized Data Views • Multi-Yard Comparison • Customized Data Alerts • Scheduled Reporting seven-way until it’s re-vac time. A white wormer is also used to manage parasites, along with a pour-on for grubs, lice and flies. I like the pour-on because it’s one less needle the cattle face.” The straightening-out process is enhanced by a ration geared toward get- ting calves to the bunk and keeping them there. Brown counts on his nutritionist, Liz Domby with Cargill in Amarillo, to help manage the rations. Dry-rolled corn is the primary feed, along with Sweet Bran®, distiller’s grains, alfalfa and other high-quality forage such as sorghum- sudangrass or red top cane. Cotton burrs are added for roughage. “We like to include Sweet Bran in our ration,” Brown says.“Sweet Bran with a vitamin package helps straighten out calves and adds to the finishing process down the road. Also, our Micro Machine adds flexibility to our rations for all the different classes of cattle that we feed. “We used to put up silage but found that distiller’s grains and Sweet Bran could compete with silage in mixing a productive ration. With our remote Continued on page 23  location, these supplements are priced competitive with silage. Plus, I don’t have to store them for long periods of time.” Don’t get cocky Brown never rests on his laurels after a set of calves face few health problems. “Don’t ever think you’re good at straight- ening out calves,” he says,“because the next load will make you look stupid. That’s the risk in high risk cattle.” Getting them sold at the right weight and right time can be another humbling experience. That’s where Brown’s ability to market calves as feeders or finish them out can help. “When we place those three-weights, we can either take them to 700 to 800 pounds and sell them as feeder cattle or keep them another 150 or more days to finish them at 1,350 to 1,400 [pounds],” he says.“It depends on the market.” Managing the markets involves a lot of hedging, which can be just as stressful as wondering if a load of stressed-out calves will make it through the winter.“I have about 20 different sets of cattle that Dry-rolled corn supplemented with Sweet Bran or distiller’s grain keeps cattle at the bunk. are hedged in separate programs,” Brown points out.“For example, when I bought some cattle out of eastern Oklahoma in early May, I hedged them before they were put on the truck.” He used October 2018 Feeder Cattle futures to set a floor. He hedged them at