Browse Livestock Stories - Page 2

The digestive tract of a cow is home to a diverse population of bacteria and microbes representing about 2,000 different species. There are good guys. There are bad guys. And there are the guys who can cause trouble if the situation is right.

Managing one farm is a big job; managing a network of four teaching and research farms for the University of Georgia takes a different breed of farmer.

Francis Fluharty joins the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences as the new department head of the Department of Animal and Dairy Science. His career has been devoted to assisting food animal producers through research and educational programs aimed at improving animal health and growth. Fluharty has also worked to improve profitability, as food animal agriculture must be economically-sustainable for farm families.

A two-day Advanced Grazing School, hosted by University of Georgia Cooperative Extension specialists Sept. 19-20, will provide a deeper understanding of grazing systems to those in attendance. 

I am passionate about youth livestock projects. I think youth livestock projects, like showing hogs, cattle, goats, lambs or even horses, are one of the most valuable and rewarding experiences out there for youth today. How many other activities teach the level of responsibility that’s required of someone showing an animal at a livestock show?

In 2017, Georgia row crop farmers will likely devote more acreage to the state’s tried-and-true commodities: cotton and peanuts. This and other agricultural projections for the year were the focus of the 10th annual Georgia Ag Forecast seminar series, held across the state Jan. 18-27.

Facing severe drought and hay shortages, northeast Georgia cattle farmers were as eager as anyone to see 2016 in the rearview mirror.

Carleen Porter, a fourth year Animal Science major spent eight weeks at the University of Perugia Veterinary School in Perugia, Italy, fulfilling the internship requirement for the International Agriculture Certificate. How did you decide on this program? Last spring, I was going to be part of a UGA-sponsored program in Verona for three months. I contacted Amanda Stephens (CAES Associate Director of Student Engagement) about adding on the certificate internship. Amanda was able to work with the UGA veterinary school to secure a veterinary internship at the University of Perugia.

Many Georgia farmers use their fish ponds as water sources for livestock. A pond located in a pasture is a convenient and dependable source of water for stock, but letting cattle have free access to a pond is not the best decision for the animals, the pond or the fish that live there.

The devastating virus has yet to impact Georgia’s top agricultural industry, but University of Georgia Cooperative Extension poultry scientist Casey Ritz believes it’s best if Georgia farmers are proactive in dealing with avian influenza.