beef

Information on Irish Dexter beef

Summer Heat Podcast- How It Affects Our Dexters and Other Livestock

Summer heat this seems endless. We hope that this podcast will help you recognize and help your Dexters deal with this heat. 

This podcast is brought to you by Irish Dexter Cattlemen, whose purpose is to promote the Irish Dexter breed by guiding farmers, ranchers, and homesteaders on how to become more sustainable. You can access all our podcasts of interviews with other farmers and ranchers and discussions on typical subject matters by becoming a member. This includes our entry level membership of $20 per year. Podcasts are stored in our relational multimedia database system and are searchable by topic by members. Members also gain access to a vast array of valuable articles on topics to assist you with your farm, ranch, or homestead. For anyone looking to take it to the next level, Irish Dexter Cattlemen provides breeder, services, and affiliate memberships that include an online branding dashboard where you can tell your story and develop your brand. Thank you for listening to this Irish Dexter Cattlemen podcast.

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Summer Heat Podcast- How It Affects Our Dexters and Other Livestock Read More »

Podcasts

Do you know how to do a tail stick to get blood for Pregnancy and Tenet Beef testing?

Here is a video that Nancy Bowers, Lonestar Ranch did on blood testing one her Dexters. This the same technique that you will need for testing for Tenet beef tenderness, except you will need much less….lol.

I have sent in 7 tenet tenderness tests to see if our Dexters have this genetic trait. Unlike other testing this is not done on scale and there is no comparison to other breeds. It’s either there or not there.
I truly believe that the tenderness of the beef is correlated to milk and that is sooo important in our dual purpose breed. We are working with them to prove this theory!

I have included what the cards look like, the paperwork that is needed…note it is very little. You can pay on line or send in a check. It is better for the lab if you pay with a check, so that they don’t loose the processing fee, but they are very accommodating.

Do you know how to do a tail stick to get blood for Pregnancy and Tenet Beef testing? Read More »

General Selling

Welcome to Spring:

By Shelley Hatfield/Whippoorwill Pines Farm

Spring is a beautiful time of the year!!  All the new babies, flowers popping their heads up showing off their colors, everyone itching to get their hands in the dirt!! But that also brings some problems if you have cows.  Here are a few things that I have found that make spring not so great.

First thing, with the crazy swings in the weather temps, you need to watch your cows for pneumonia.  This is a hard thing to notice but if  you keep watch you can start learning the signs.  One of the signs is lower head, their sides are “thumping” (meaning catching their breath), not alot of energy.  I had a steer go down and die the next day.  He had eaten the night before and looked fine.  But he was gone the next morning.  I asked the vet if I was doing something wrong.  She told me that it really doesn’t matter, it’s the big swings in the weather.  They have shelter, water and food. 

Keeping watch is one thing, but there is also a vaccine that you can give them once or twice a year to help with that.  It is a BRD vaccine.  Check with your vet to see if that is something that you want to give your cattle.  

We have talked about the mud before, but we will mention it again.  Make sure that your cattle don’t have to stand in the mud all the time.  That is something that can keep them from staying warm in the spring weather.  Make sure that they have a dry place to lay down.  

I’m not an expert, but I have learned some things along the way.  Some of those things I have learned the hard way….lol  These are just some things that I have learned on this journey of raising cattle. 

Welcome to Spring: Read More »

Beef

Getting Dexters is like eating chips, you can’t just have one!!! Written By Shelley Hatfield Whippoorwill Pines Farm

I kinda want to go back to the beginning.  We are getting several new Dexter owners and several people asking questions.  So I will post some articles on getting started.   These articles aren’t necessarily directed to Dexter cattle in particular, but the basics are the same.  
 First of all, you do need to decide what you are wanting to do with your Dexters.  Since they are a dual purpose breed,  you need to decide the most important thing you are wanting out of these cattle.  I’m not saying this has to be forever, but you do need to decide what your main goal is for raising these cattle.  Then you can go from there later on.  Secondly, you need to decide what your property will hold.  This is VERY important.  In this you need to decide which direction your farm is going,  grass fed, mostly grass fed with some grain, or grain fed.  It may seem overwhelming at first, but just take one thing at a time.  You can change your mind as you go and see what works for your farm and what doesn’t.  Don’t get overwhelmed!! 
 Next a good water source will be needed.  Either by running lines, running hoses, putting in automatic waterers.  Cows need a good grass source and good clean water.  Some people let their cows use their ponds.  That is fine as long as the pond doesn’t have a run off.  Cows can also damage a pond by pushing in the dirt as they stand in it and filling it back up.  Unless you have a deep pond.  
 Another thing that I have found to be very important is to have ample equipment for holding them.  You need a good chute.  It doesn’t always have to be a fancy set up.  If you can afford one that is great, but you need a good head chute. You can make an alley way to it with panels or fencing.  A good head chute is vital to being able to inspect or service your cattle.  
 A good mentor is very very helpful!!!  Find someone who has raised cattle, particularly Dexters and learn everything you can from them.  Our website will be very helpful in that area.  You can find other Dexter owners.  We also have lots of information that is helpful, in several different areas.  

Getting Dexters is like eating chips, you can’t just have one!!! Written By Shelley Hatfield Whippoorwill Pines Farm Read More »

Beef
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