What are the key points to note in beef cattle farming? Explained clearly in one article

Beef cattle are cattle breeds raised specifically for meat production. The ones we are more familiar with include Simmental cattle and Limousin cattle. Cattle of this type have very full bodies, a high meat yield, and meat that is chewy and delicious, making them very popular with consumers. As people's living standards improve, the economic benefits of beef cattle also keep rising. Below, let us take a look together at what are the key points to note in beef cattle farming?

1. Breed selection

First, you need to understand beef cattle breeds, and the beef cattle breed should be a good one. What breed is suitable for farming in our local area, and which breed of beef cattle grows fast.

2. Choosing forage

Everyone should know that cattle and sheep are herbivores. I believe every region has green grass (once it gets old, they will not eat it) as well as some discarded crops, such as corn stalks, soybean stalks, sweet potato vines… and so on.

If local resources are not enough, then we can plant forage grass. We can plant chicory and Rumex for spring, summer, and autumn, and plant ryegrass in winter. Actually, almost many grasses are suitable for them to eat. The most common is ryegrass: plant it once, and then just cut it in rotation all year round, like chives. Another more common one is alfalfa, which is very nutritious, but it is gone in winter. However, in autumn and summer you can harvest more, dry it, and store it so they can still eat it in winter. 6. Green grass, or hay 7. From March to November, they can eat king grass; from November to March of the following year, they can eat ryegrass

3. Farm construction

1. Terrain: open and neat, ideally square or rectangular, avoiding long narrow shapes and multiple corners

2. Topography: the ground of the barn should be higher than the surrounding area, with good ventilation and lighting, and good drainage. The barn should be guaranteed to be warm in winter and cool in summer, and protected from rain and snow.

3. Water source: there must be an adequate water source that meets hygiene requirements, easy to access, ensuring water for production, daily life, and people and livestock. The water quality should be good and contain no toxic substances, ensuring the safety and health of the beef cattle and workers.

4. Soil: sandy loam soil is the most ideal, sandy soil is fairly suitable, and clay soil is the least suitable. Sandy loam soil is soft, with strong pressure resistance and water permeability, low moisture absorption and thermal conductivity, and weak capillary action. Rainwater and urine do not easily accumulate, and after rain there is no hard crust, which is conducive to the cleanliness, hygiene, and dryness of the cattle barn and exercise yard, and helps beef cattle prevent hoof diseases and other diseases.

5. Social conditions: it should be convenient for epidemic prevention, 500 m downwind from village residential areas, 500 m from major traffic routes (roads, railways), and more than 1500 m from chemical plants, livestock product processing plants, and so on. Transportation and power supply should be convenient, and surrounding feed resources, especially roughage resources, should be abundant. Also, try to avoid having beef cattle farms of the same scale nearby, meet veterinary hygiene and environmental hygiene requirements, and have no sources of infection nearby. There should be no endemic diseases of humans or livestock.

4. Disinfection

1. Strictly raise animals in isolation, and prevent personnel carrying pathogens or contaminated feed, vehicles, and so on from entering the production area. People entering the cattle farm from outside need ultraviolet disinfection for 5 minutes.

2. Outsiders and vehicles are prohibited from entering the cattle farm. Those who really need to enter may do so only after strict disinfection and registration.

3. Regularly clean and disinfect mats and disinfection pools, and the disinfectants used should be alternated.