By Mike Surbrugg

msurbrugg@joplinglobe.com

MOUNT VERNON, Mo. — Forage and animal science researchers are looking for ways cattle producers can blend pasture and cattle genetics to get more pounds of animal gain for less feed.

Two speakers at the University of Missouri Southwest Center’s annual Field Day on Sept. 12 said it is known that some animals put on more weight than others in the same herd. They want to unlock the genetics that cause this trait and breed it into other cattle.

Scientists compare it to those people who eat desserts all day and do not gain weight while others pack on pounds with a lot less food.

Forage agronomist Rob Kallenbach said breeding those genetics into cattle to make more efficient use of forages could lower winter feed costs by 10 to 30 percent when combined with good pasture management.

The study is not tied to any particular cattle breed.

“There is as much or more variation between animals within a breed as there is between breeds,” he said.

On pastures, feed-efficient animals need 15 to 20 percent less forage, he said.

Kallenbach also warned producers not to focus all of their attention on any one trait; feed efficiency, for example, has little value if that cow produces little milk.

University of Missouri beef specialist Monty Kerley said this study should last for several years at both the University of Missouri and at Texas A&M.

At the Southwest Center, it means measuring forage intake and animal gains.

The study started with heifers purchased from the same herd. The animals have been divided into two groups, one that needs more feed to get a pound of gain and the other, which needs less. Both groups look identical but one just needs less food.

The feed bunks that animals use are tied to a scale that continuously records the weight of feed in the bunk.

Mike Surbrugg is The Joplin Globe’s farm editor.