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"Childproofing" Your Yard or Farmstead |
| Parents strive to make their homes as safe as possible for children, but children can face life-threatening dangers literally 'in their own backyards.' Yards, garages, work areas, barns, etc. may present situations which would not endanger an adult, but can be deadly to a child. These situations occur not only on farms but also in cities and suburbs and on acreages. |
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Agricultural Building and Equipment Plan List |
| The University of Tennessee Extension maintains a file of nearly 300 building and equipment plans. Over 110 of our plans are now available in electronic format for download; the rest must be mailed. So please include your mailing address with your request. |
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Animal Waste Lagoon Water Quality Study |
| Anaerobic lagoons are used to collect, treat, and store waste at many concentrated animal operations (CAOs) in Kansas. Lagoons contain nutrients, salts, and other soluble chemicals that, in many cases, are eventually applied to crops as fertilizer. While waste is stored and treated in the lagoons, seepage losses from the sides and bottom of the containment could potentially affect soil and ground water quality. The longterm goal is to determine the best management practices for siting, building, and operating lagoons to adequately protect ground water resources near CAOs. This report summarizes current research findings in these areas. However, new issues continue to arise as more data
becomes available. Thus, this report documents the state of an ongoing project, and certain topics will require additional research before firm conclusions can be reached. |
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Beef cattle behavior, handling and facilities design |
| This book contains the best corral layouts Dr. Grandin has developed during the last fifteen years. Many of these designs have been constructed on ranches and feedlots all over the U.S. and Canada. There are layouts for both small and large operations. For ranchers on a tight budget, there are economical designs which provide good sorting capabilities. A lack of pens and alleys for sorting is a major problem in some corral systems. Most of the designs have curved lanes, and round holding pens to facilitate handling. The two articles in this book explain the principles of cattle behavior and how it relates to corral design. In the back of the book there are details for gates, loading ramp, V chute and round crowd pen. |
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Building and Facility Plans |
| These building and facility plans were developed over many years by engineers at Land Grant universities. They provide conceptual information that is excellent for planning purposes. An abbreviated description of each plan is provided in each category listing of plans. |
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Buying a Packaged Farm Building |
| Package buildings are available in a variety of sizes and shapes, and they contain features that reflect both the needs of their intended use and the choice of their designer. Their purchase can be compared to that of a tractor or an automobile -- there are high-price models, economy units and usually a variety of optional accessories that add to the cost.
This guide outlines some of the options and decisions you will have to make when shopping for and purchasing a package-type farm building. |
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Cattle Handling Facilities: Planning, Components, and Layouts |
| Cattle handling facilities are used to confine cattle safely and efficiently for close observation and to perform routine health and management procedures. Adequate facilities are an essential part of an efficient cattle operation for any producer. |
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Conducting Farm Safety Inspections |
| The most important responsibility of any farm oner or manager is to ensure the safety and health of his or her employees and family members. Not only is it the right thing to do, but a safe farm protects the farm owner or manager by limiting the likelihood of costly accidents. Safe farms protect co-workers, children, other family members, and animals from accidental injuries that can destroy a livelihood and devastate a family. Most farm accidents are completely preventable. The smart farm owner or manager takes a proactive approach to farm safety by conducting regularly scheduled and thorough inspections of the entire farmstead. |
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Construction of High Tensile Wire Fences |
| High-tensile fencing uses smooth 12-1/2 gauge wire with a yield strength of 200,000 pounds per square inch, or a strength of 1,600 pounds for each wire. Conventional fencing wire normally has a yield strength of less than 60,000 pounds per square inch. |
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Dr. Temple Grandin's Web Page |
| A webpage that provides links to articles authored by Dr. Temple Grandin. Dr. Grandin has researched livestock behaviour during handling and transport, humane slaughter, the design of facilities and restraining systems. |
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Economics of Farm Storage Buildings |
| It is widely accepted that storing farm equipment under a shelter is better than storing it outside and that hay stored in a barn is better than hay stored in the field. But how can we determine just how much a farm storage building is worth? The answer is different for every individual operation, but there are some guidelines that will help you make an intelligent decision about whether or not you can afford a building (or afford not to have one). |
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Employee Hygiene in the Feedyard Setting |
| This video, in English and Spanish, is an overview of proper personal hygiene for workers in feedlots to prevent illness and contamination. An overview of feedlot signage, restrooms, and training to improve hygiene is also included. |
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Farm Fire Prevention and Safety |
| Fire prevention is critical on any farm, but sometimes overlooked until it is too late. The heat and smoke of fire, along with the toxic gases and rapid loss of oxygen, can kill quickly. Without prevention and safe management practices, you put your own life at risk as well as that of family members, employees and animals. Your farm buildings, equipment and livelihood can be wiped out in minutes. Safe management practices can make the difference. |
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Farm Machinery, Building Or Equipment Lease Example |
| This form can provide the owner and renter with a guide for developing an agreement to fit their individual situation. This form is not intended to take the place of legal advice pertaining to contractual relationships between the two parties. Because of the possibility that a lease agreement may be legally considered a partnership under certain conditions, seeking proper legal advice is recommended
when developing such an agreement. |
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Focus on Feedlots |
| Created in 1990 at Kansas State University to provide basic feedlot performance data for steers and heifers, and feed ingredient prices. Each month, closeout data from various Kansas feedlots are summarized to provide average values for days on feed, average daily gain, harvest weight, dry matter feed conversion, cost of gain, and death loss, as well as corn and alfalfa hay prices. |
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Leasing Farm Buildings and Livestock Facilities Fact Sheet |
| Farm buildings and special use livestock facilities many times will outlast their intended use for which they were originally constructed in a farming operation. These buildings represent a valuable capital investment whose remaining value may not ever be utilized by the owner. Other farm operators may desire new or additional buildings or facilities but lack the capital needed to invest in new construction. Both parties could benefit from the development of a leasing arrangement where a lessee can utilize these existing farm buildings and livestock facilities in his or her farming operation. However, before such a mutually beneficial arrangement occurs, the owner and the lessee must agree on rental payments and the use and care of the property. Any lease arrangement should be built on honesty and trust, and should benefit both parties. This fact sheet is intended to explore and consider the factors involved in developing rental agreements for leases for farm buildings and specialized livestock facilities from the view of both the owner's and renter's perspective. |
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Livestock Handling Systems, Cattle Corrals, Stockyards, and Races |
| This section of Grandin.Com contains drawings of cattle corral designs with curved races. Curved cattle chutes are more efficient for handling cattle because they take advantage of the natural behavior of cattle. In the computer aided drawing section there are layout drawings of cattle yard designs for both large and small ranches and feedlots. There are also drawings of a cattle loading ramp for trucks, diagonal stockyard pens for cattle, and detail drawings of a single file race and cattle dip vat. |
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Paddock Design, Fencing, and Water Systems for Controlled Grazing |
| Interest in controlled grazing is increasing throughout the U.S. Controlled grazing systems are economically feasible and more easily managed because of developments in fencing and water technology. This publication covers some of the basics of paddock design and current fencing and water technology. Paddock design needs to be based on landscape, land productivity, water availability, and the number and types of animals in the system. Water systems are more complex and expensive than fencing systems. Producers need to understand all the technology available before going to the expense of establishing a grazing system. A good way to explore the technology is by ordering catalogs from companies that sell fencing and/or water systems. |
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Planning and Building Fences on the Farm |
| Many innovations have occurred in the fencing industry in recent years, giving producers an array of options for fences to confine and protect livestock. Whether used as permanent, periphery boundaries, temporary pasture dividers or to encircle a house, fences need careful planning and
construction for efficient usefulness, long life and low maintenance. |
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Planning Cattle Feedlots |
| Construction of a new feedlot or expansion of an existing feedlot requires adequate planning. The goals of planning
cattle feedlots are to: minimize animal and, worker stress during handling, feed cattle in an adequate and efficient
manner, provide well drained cattle space, maintain efficiency and profitability of feeding operations, and protect the surrounding environment. |
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Planning Fencing Systems for Intensive Grazing Management |
| New advances in fencing technology provide the needed "tools" for an intensive grazing system. High tensile fence, brought to this country from New Zealand, offers an alternative to traditional woven and barbed wire for fence construction. Also, temporary electric fencing has recently been improved. Once you have evaluated resources and tools available, you can develop your fencing plan. |
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Planning for a Farm Storage Building |
| A farm storage building is a good investment for many agricultural operations. The building can be used to store hay, machinery, or both. As a result, the value of these commodities will be worth more than if left in the field. However, does the increased value of stored hay or machinery offset the cost of owning a building? The following discussion examines the costs and savings of owning a farm storage building. |
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Proper Operation of Cattle Squeeze Chutes |
| In this YouTube video Temple Grandin explains the behavior principles of restraining cattle in squeeze chutes to reduce stress and improve animal welfare during veterinary procedures. |
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Pumps and Watering Systems for Managed Beef Grazing |
| Water for beef cattle may come from wells, ponds, creeks, springs or public water supplies, although the last of these sources can be too costly for watering a large herd year-round. Wells are a prime source of water at the farmstead. However, cattle on pasture are usually watered from surface sources in Missouri. Keeping the animals from entering the water source will generally maintain higher water quality and result in better livestock production. |
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Selecting and Working With a Farm Building Contractor |
| Two major tasks are involved in the successful completion of a new farm building -- choosing the right building and selecting a good contractor to build it. Most buildings constructed today are "pre-engineered," or package-type, buildings. The purpose of this guide is to review some of the items related to selecting and working with a building contractor. |
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Selection of Alternative Livestock Watering Systems |
| Due to efforts to use improved grazing strategies, such as intensive rotational or paddock grazing, livestock producers need dependable and economically alternative methods of providing water to livestock. In addition, efforts to improve water quality have resulted in a
new emphasis on the establishment of buffer strips and riparian zones along streams. In most cases, the establishment of these zones requires the exclusion of livestock. Livestock producers who rely on streams to provide water for their animals must develop alternative watering systems before they can rotate animals into grazing paddocks that do not adjoin streams or ponds, or before they can implement best management practices that require livestock exclusion from streams. |
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Shade Options for Grazing Cattle |
| Beef herds can also benefit from shade structures to reduce heat stress, thus improving feed efficiency and reproduction. In other situations, the need for shade must be balanced against the tendency for animals to congregate under the shade and thereby reduce feed intake. Includes a report on the Effects of Shade on Body Temperature and Production of Grazing Beef Cows. |
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Solar-Powered Livestock Watering Systems |
| Fencing livestock out of these streams dictates the need for an alternative watering system. In areas where AC electric power is readily available, an AC-powered pump is by far the best choice for pumping water from the stream. More often than not, AC power is not available. Since the stream is generally lower in elevation than the fields bordering the riparian zone, gravity systems are usually not an option. Several alternative pumping systems are available, including ram, sling and solar-powered pumps. While ram and sling pumps require specific conditions to operate (i.e., adequate elevation head or stream velocity), solar pumps can be operated at any sunny location within reasonable elevation limits between the watering tank and water supply. |
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Temporary Fencing for Rotational Grazing |
| Rotational grazing allows forage crops to renew energy reserves, rebuild plant vigor and give long-term maximum production. With a rotational grazing system, larger pastures are subdivided into smaller areas (often referred to as paddocks) with temporary fencing materials, and livestock are moved from one paddock to another on a prearranged schedule based on forage availability, stocking
rate and livestock nutrition needs. The mainstay of a rotational grazing system is flexibility and nothing gives more flexibility than a highly movable temporary fence for subdividing larger pastures. |
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