September 23, 2003

 

Dakota Feeder Calf Show Set for Oct. 11 in Turtle Lake

The Dakota Feeder Calf Show and trial will be conducted beginning Saturday, Oct. 11 in Turtle Lake.

"It’s important for producers to know how their calves perform through the marketing chain," says Karl Hoppe, livestock specialist at the North Dakota State University Carrington Research Extension Center. "This project will give them information on how their calves perform in the feedyard and what their ultimate carcass value is."

The trial is a way for producers to explore opportunities for retaining ownership of cattle beyond the cow-calf phase of production, Hoppe says. "It’s a low-risk way of learning about these options with three calves instead of 100.

The show and trial are sponsored by the NDSU Extension Service, Turtle Lake Businesses, Fort Dodge Animal Health, Z tags, and the Boehringer Ingleheim animal health company. For more information or to preregister calves, contact Hoppe at (701) 652-2951, Ernie Ward, bank of Turtle Lake, (701) 448-2323, or Pat Carpentier, McLean County Extension, (701) 462-8541, ext. 208. Cattle may be registered the day of the show, but the trial is limited to 170 head.

Cattle will be accepted into the project and shown in Turtle Lake on Oct. 11 at the weighing station and fed to market weight at the NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center feedlot. Data on rate of gain, fed conversion and other characteristics will be gathered during the trial. After calves are marketed, information on carcass weight, meat quality and value will be collected and provided to entrants.

An entry fee of $45 per pen of three cattle will be assessed and $2,500 in awards will be given at the end of the trial.

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Source: Karl Hoppe, (701) 652-2951, khoppe@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu