Scholarships awarded at Cattlemen’s Dinner Meeting

Heather Ainsley
ECB Publishing, Inc.

As the sun began to set, streaking the sky with the glow of purple and orange clouds, members of the Jefferson County Cattlemen's Association gathered in good spirits for the June 3 Membership Dinner Meeting. As 6:30 p.m. arrived, all were welcomed to enjoy a burger dinner with macaroni casserole after a prayer over the meal that was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. After everyone enjoyed their dinner, winners of the Cattlemen's Association Scholarship were presented. At the membership meeting held last year, a rifle was raffled off to members of the association who attended the meeting, and the proceeds raised were added to the scholarship fund, making this year's scholarship awards possible.
This year, the scholarship was awarded to two students, both of whom intend on furthering their studies towards futures in agriculture. Tripp Joyner and Riley Hayes were welcomed to the front of the room to accept their scholarships, accompanied by much applause from the Cattlemen Association members. Hayes then presented a short presentation about her recent cattle showings, made possible by her sponsorship from the association and support and assistance of several of the members.
This dinner meeting was sponsored by Merck Animal Health, which is a research-driven company headquartered out of New Jersey that is dedicated to developing, manufacturing and marketing a broad range of veterinary medicines, practices and services. They strive to offer solutions toward the prevention, treatment and control of diseases in all major farm and companion animal species.
Josh Churchwell, who serves as Territory Manager for Merck, was welcomed to the front of the room to present a presentation about the importance of proper vetting of cattle. The presentation touched on several important aspects of veterinary benefits, the main being deworming of both cattle and calves.
Deworming, Churchwell stated, was the most effective way to keep pounds of beef on a cow, which in turn, increases profit. The deworming of cattle is not something that cattlemen should wait until they see signs of parasites to do.
“A lot of experienced farmers will be able to look at a cow and say, 'that cow has bottle-jaw, they need to be dewormed,'” said Churchwell, “But bottle-jaw is too late. That cow is already sick.”
He went on to explain that when a cow becomes infested with parasites, those parasites cause damage to the intestines, the organs responsible for nutrient absorption. If you wait until you see physical signs of illness in the animal before undergoing the deworming process, that damage will eventually heal into scar tissue once the parasites are treated. Even after a successful deworming, scar tissue impacts the intestine's ability to absorb nutrients. While cows with bottle jaw do need to be dewormed, it is best to deworm the animal before the animal becomes so heavily stressed and obviously sick. A stressed or sick animal will not have as healthy of an appetite, and will be harder to build weight on.
“When you wait to treat parasites, you leave your livestock open to getting sick. Which also means your vaccines won't be as effective, and that's going to affect your yield.” he continued, “Deworming is a great preventative to keeping your whole herd healthy. Because parasitism is a herd disease.”
The presentation continued to include types of dewormer and their effectiveness based on studies done by Merck, as well as recommended vaccination treatments and when the most effective time-frames are to do both, in regards to the cattle's age and grazing needs. During the presentation, Churchwell gave an estimation of about $45 increase per-head for healthy cows that have been effectively vaccinated and dewormed.
In conclusion if the presentation, he also advised any cattle-owners who use RALGRO or REVALOR implant wheels to save the wheels instead of throwing them away, as they can be turned in, earning money back for the Cattlemen's Association.
A special announcement ended the meeting, where Jefferson Cattlemen's Association President Ben White announced that Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent Danielle Sprague has just begun the transition to her new position with UF/IFAS Extension as a Multi-County Commercial Horticulture Agent, which will bring her from Jefferson County to Gadsden County. Several eyes in the room were misty as Danielle gave Ben a hug and thanked everyone for being a part of her experience in Jefferson County, reminding everyone that she will still be just a phone call away.
The Florida Cattlemen's Association is a statewide, non-profit organization that was established in 1934 with the intention of promoting and protecting the ability of cattlemen members to produce and market their products. Florida's cattle industry is one of the 15 largest in the United States, and is centered more around birthing and raising calves than it is about the actual beef-processing part of the system. The cattle industry supports a vast network of associated businesses, including feed companies, heavy machinery operations, and fertilizer manufacturers, providing not just beef, but countless jobs and business opportunities across Florida.
In addition to farm culture, The Florida Cattlemen's Association is also a strong supporter of Florida's youth, participating and facilitating county fair displays, scholarship contests and working diligently to give back to the communities they serve. Anyone wishing to join the association can go to
https://floridacattlemen.org/join/.