Listen live 
High Plains News
Bottom-line benefits with calm cattle
And the findings could help ranchers' bottom lines.
"Say if (cattle) are at a sale barn and they walk in there fairly calmly and look around, that animal is going to bring more money than the one that comes in there and is running around and maybe hitting the gates," said Rhonda Vann, who led the research of 1,200 cattle in Raymond, Miss.
She also noted that buyers may not have much information when buying bull semen.
"You may use them on 200 cows and you get all these calves out of them and they may have temperament problems," Vann said.
Rick Cline, who owns 150 cattle in northwest Kansas, said his calmer cattle tend not to shy away from the feed bunk and are more trusting of their owner.
"The wilder cattle tend to raise their head and make more distance between you and them, and the calmer cattle if you're out and about with them they don't really seem to mind that you're there," he said.
Vann said the biggest factor relating to cattle behavior is genetics, followed by human interaction and the environment.
Continuing research at Mississippi State will explore the effects of antibiotics on aggressive cattle and direct links in behavior between cattle and humans.
Visit www.HarvestPublicMedia.org for more. © Copyright 2012, hppr
(2011-03-18)
Listen Now:
GARDEN CITY, KAN.
(hppr) -
Calmer cattle tended to get sick less often, gain weight easier and produce a more tender piece of meat, according to a five-year study at Mississippi State University.
null
And the findings could help ranchers' bottom lines.
"Say if (cattle) are at a sale barn and they walk in there fairly calmly and look around, that animal is going to bring more money than the one that comes in there and is running around and maybe hitting the gates," said Rhonda Vann, who led the research of 1,200 cattle in Raymond, Miss.
She also noted that buyers may not have much information when buying bull semen.
"You may use them on 200 cows and you get all these calves out of them and they may have temperament problems," Vann said.
Rick Cline, who owns 150 cattle in northwest Kansas, said his calmer cattle tend not to shy away from the feed bunk and are more trusting of their owner.
"The wilder cattle tend to raise their head and make more distance between you and them, and the calmer cattle if you're out and about with them they don't really seem to mind that you're there," he said.
Vann said the biggest factor relating to cattle behavior is genetics, followed by human interaction and the environment.
Continuing research at Mississippi State will explore the effects of antibiotics on aggressive cattle and direct links in behavior between cattle and humans.
Visit www.HarvestPublicMedia.org for more. © Copyright 2012, hppr
