Tag: Livestock

MOFGAs Contributions to the Maine Livestock Industry

Diane Schivera has been involved for more than 20 years with the livestock industry in Maine. Photo by Gary Dunn By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. MOFGA Organic Livestock Specialist When I began working for MOFGA in 1998, we certified one goat and 27 cow dairies; and five beef, six lamb, two wool, five egg, three broiler and two turkey

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Tree Leaf Fodder for Livestock

A 20-year-old short black poplar that Paul Hand has pollarded in England. Photo by Shana Hanson Two comparable ash trees in September 2016 – one initially pruned in summer 2015 and thriving, the other suffering from drought until it was pruned after the photo was taken. Photo by Shana Hanson Cut fodder is first browsed

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Pasture Management Tips

By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Deciding how to rotate pastures on your farm can be confusing! You have to consider many stable factors, such as soil type and slope of the land, and shifting factors, such as the amount of feed in the field at a given time and the weather. Many resources are available to

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Labeling Livestock Products

A well designed label that meets labeling regulations. By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Labeling of meat and poultry products, including eggs, does not have to be difficult if you follow the directions and the process carefully. Always start with a mock-up of your label for the submittal process. Don’t have it printed until it has been approved. Approval can

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Livestock Meeting Notes 2015

Toki Oshima drawing By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. This is my annual wrap-up of meetings I attended in 2015, beginning with the Northeast Pasture Consortium meeting in Morgantown, W. Virginia.   Using a conservation planning computer tool created in response to concerns expressed last year at the Northeast Pasture Consortium, Peter Kleinman demonstrated effects of grazing

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Ideas from Meetings and Workshops

Beware the Imported Pig! A reminder for those purchasing piglets: Take all precautions to avoid animals with porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED). Signs of PED include severe diarrhea in pigs of all ages, vomiting, and death all pre-weaned piglets. Importing pigs into Maine requires an import permit a health certificate with this mandatory statement: “… Swine

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Getting Your Livestock to the Edible Form

By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Getting your livestock to the butcher or processor is not just a matter of walking them onto a trailer and driving there. There are procedures to do first and best ways to transport in order to produce quality livestock products. Planning and Delivering for Slaughter You need to contact the processor

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Managing Ectoparasites

By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Ectoparasites (parasites that live on the outside of the host) can cause large financial losses to livestock farmers if not managed in a way to reduce populations. Itching and skin irritations cause animals to scratch, rub and bite infested areas. Blood loss, depressed appetite and decreased rate of weight gain are

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Forage Quality

By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Want to save money and feed your animals well at the same time? On most farms the biggest cost for keeping livestock is feed. The quality of the feed can seriously impact the health and production of livestock. For ruminant animals, most if not all of their feed will come from

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Notes from Livestock Meetings

By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. The Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance (NODPA) Field Days, held in Mansfield, Penn., in September, featured talks on innovative ideas, current research and practical strategies for enhancing the health, productivity and profitability of organic dairy farms. Here are some tips from that event. Fodder from Sprouted Grain John Stoltzfus of Be-A-Blessing

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