LMD May 2012

LivestockDigest

LivestockMAY 15, 2012 • www. aaalivestock . com Volume 54 • No. 5

“The greatest homage we can pay to truth is to use it.”

– JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL

NEWSPAPER

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b y L E E P I T T S

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DigestRiding Herd

by Lee Pitts

Fifty years ago when I was ayoung whippersnapper ingrade school I had mixedemotions about Fridays. I

was overjoyed that it was the endof the week and we’d get a twoday reprieve from the prison wecalled Blanchard School, but Iwas also sad because Fridaysmeant that the ladies who slungthe hash in the school cafeteriaweren’t allowed to feed us anymeat. The Protestant kids likeme dreaded the deceitful beansand rock-hard cornbread we hadto eat on Fridays just because ofthe Catholic kids. It almostcaused an elementary-schoolreligious war.Now there’s another group

trying to make us go meatlessone day of the week. This timeon Mondays. Although they sayit’s for health reasons, not reli-gious ones, the people pushingthe idea are every bit as zealousas the most pious priest ever was.

Don’t Squeeze The SteakAmidst the pink slime (lean,

finely textured beef) and madcow (BSE) uproar, it’s hard totell if consumers are currentlyeating less beef because they arescared of mad cows, or risingbeef prices. In the midst of allthe hoopla there is yet anotherfar more insidious threat to thebeef industry. It goes by the cutesounding name “Meatless Mon-

for the food police that 5.3ounces is 5.3 ounces too much.Meatless Monday was found-

ed in 2003 by a marketing geniusnamed Sid Lerner. He’s the guywho came up with the idea notto “Squeeze the Charmin,” onlynow he doesn’t want you to prodthe pot roast either. Or any othermeat. And don’t for one minutefoster the idea that these peoplejust want you to quit eating meatone day of the week. As they say,

“Some meat may be “less bad,”but no meat is good.”Meatless Monday calls itself a

nonprofit initiative of The Mon-day Campaigns Inc. which isassociated with the Johns Hop-kins School of Public HealthCenter for a Livable Future.Meatless Monday’s goal is “tohelp you reduce your meat con-sumption by 15 percent.” Butthey also don’t mind selling youa tee shirt for $22.99 either!The Meatless Monday cam-

paign really took off in 2009when schools, hospitals andrestaurants began to embracethe concept and it has spreadaround the world to 23 coun-tries, and growing. Those lasttwo words are the scary part!Sid Lerner was on Madison

Avenue for 50 years and he waslooking for something to do inretirement when he was told byhis doctor that his cholesteroland blood pressure were way too

days.” Don’t let the catchy namefool you, the folks pushing theidea want to make vegetarians ofus all.Even though Americans are

eating way less beef than theywere 40 years ago, per-capitaconsumption of all meat hasincreased by eight percent dur-ing that time. We are currentlyconsuming 5.3 ounces of meatper day, which is below currentdietary recommendations. But

Meatless on Mondays“Suppose you were an idiot.

And suppose you were a member of Congress.

But I repeat myself.—MARK TWAIN

continued on page twelve

www.LeePittsbooks.com

BackgroundCheck

We met at high noon,she was dressedcompletely ingreen from her

pilates shoes to her forestgreen sweatband. She worespandex leotards, anAudubon pin and a SierraClub tee shirt with JohnMuir’s face on it. The leo-tards and Muir’s likenesswere distorted by her 250pounds of greenness. I worejeans, boots and a free capfrom an auction market. Itwas obvious that we werefrom different warring tribes.She sneered at me and

drew first as both our handsreached for the door to theice cream novelties in thefrozen food aisle of ourlocal grocery store. I’d seenher around town ever sinceshe and her diminutive hus-band moved from the bigcity to our little town. Iknew her only by reputa-tion. She’d immersed her-self in local politics andspent six nights a weekgoing to meetings, and I bether henpecked husbandsure dreaded that seventhnight when she stayedhome. She was busy savingsalamanders, watchingbirds through binoculars,carrying protest signs andgoing on sit-down strikes.And believe me, she had aconsiderable amount to sitdown!When she took the last

box of Skinny Cow® fudgebars I was in a fightingmood. “That’s a nice teeshirt you have there,” I saidpolitely. “John Muir wasquite a man.”“I’ll say,” she snarled. “He

saved Yosemite from beingdecimated by your kind.”“He was one once, you

know?”“Who?” she asked with a

sour smile and a politicallycorrect accent.“John Muir. The founder

of the Sierra Club was asheepherder when he firstcame to California. He alsoworked in saw mills wherehe stripped the beautifultrees of their branchesbefore ripping the fleshfrom their bodies and turn-ing them into lumber.”“That can’t be true. He

continued on page two

To support the nation’s veterans, seniors and smallbusiness, Wyoming Senator and Congresswomancall for swift passage of Government Litigation Sav-ings Act Government Litigation Savings Act endsmisuse of tax-payer reimbursements, and improvesEAJA for needful users.

The Government Accountability Office(GAO) and Notre Dame Law School pub-lished separate studies on the EqualAccess to Justice Act (EAJA) in early May

that show funds intended for the nation’s veter-ans, seniors and small businesses are flowing toenvironmental groups contrary to Congression-al intent.The Notre Dame law review article provides

a comprehensive history of EAJA, and relies ona broad analysis of court records and public taxreturns to show that millions of dollars are paidout to environmental groups using a socialsafety-net program not designed for them. TheGAO study confirms that while the amount oftax-payer reimbursements to environmentalgroups is likely in the millions, the federal gov-ernment has not kept track.“We have known for some time that the

Equal Access to Justice Act needed attention,but these new reports from respected institu-

Two New Studies Identify Major Flaws in the Equal Access to Justice Act

tions shine a spotlight on the urgency of thematter,” Rep. Lummis (R-WY) said. “Thesetwo studies confirm that EAJA is broken andthe government is not keeping track; it throwsup unnecessary roadblocks to those whodeserve the help, and at the same time is afree-flowing spigot for those the law was notintended to assist. But it can and should befixed as soon as possible. Environmental lawsexist for environmentalists; EAJA is for seniorsand veterans in need.”“It’s time to return EAJA back to its original

intent of helping our nation’s veterans, seniorsand small businesses,” said Barrasso. “For fartoo long, we’ve watched special interest groupsfund their anti-multiple use agenda with Amer-icans’ hard earned taxpayer dollars. These newreports confirm the pressing need for moreaccountability and transparency when it comesto EAJA payments. Americans deserve toknow who their money is going to and howexactly it’s being spent.”H.R. 1996, the Government Litigation Sav-

ings Act, will modernize the Equal Access toJustice Act by improving the process for legalfee reimbursement for veterans, seniors and

continued on page four

Livestock Market Digest May 15, 2012

high. So the still-meat-eating Sid,unluckily for us, chose harassingmeat producers as his retirementproject. If only he’d have takenup golf instead! Sid started hisown nonprofit, hired a fewemployees and used them toraise money from his MadisonAvenue cronies and to sign uphospitals, schools and chefs tohelp spread the word aboutgoing meatless on Mondays. He

recruited two of the biggestnames in eating: Wolfgang Puckand Mario Batali, and, of course,he’s got one the most recognizednames in the universe to sing thepraises of Meatless Monday:Paul McCartney. With the for-mer Beatle on board the ideawent platinum.

Another Casualty of WarWhy Monday, and not

Wednesday, or Saturday? Lernersays he picked Monday to takeadvantage of “the rhythm of theweek. Friday is payday, Saturdayis play day, Sunday is pray day.But Monday? It’s ripe forchange,” says Sid.“Monday is the January of the

week,” according to MeatlessMonday. “The perfect time for afresh start. People are more like-ly to begin exercising, start a dietor quit smoking on Monday thanany other day. Studies suggestwe are more likely to maintainbehaviors begun on Mondaythroughout the week. Thatmakes Monday the perfect dayto make a change for your healthand the health of our planet.”The idea of one day a week

without meat is not as new asyou’d think, and Lerner mayhave gotten his inspiration fromHerbert Hoover. During WorldWar I, Hoover was head of theU.S. Food Administration andhis agency urged all Americansto reduce their consumption ofkey staples to aid the war effort.“Food Will Win the War,” thegovernment proclaimed, and“Meatless Monday” and “Wheat-less Wednesday” became part ofAmerica’s weekly ritual. Meat-free recipe booklets were distrib-uted and vegetarian menusappeared in newspapers, maga-zines and pamphlets.We can only hope that the

current meatless campaign is notas successful as the one duringthe first World War when 10 mil-lion families, 7,000 hotels and425,000 food dealers pledged toobserve national meatless days.According to a 1929 SaturdayEvening Post article in 1917,“New York City hotels savedsome 116 tons of meat over thecourse of just one week. Ameri-cans began to look seriously intothe question of what and howmuch they were eating. Lots of

people discovered for the firsttime that they could eat less andfeel no worse – frequently for thebetter.”It was so successful the go-

meatless campaign was reinvigo-rated under President FranklinRoosevelt during World War II,and Harry Truman asked Ameri-cans to eat less meat and havevoluntary meatless days so thatwar-ravaged Europe might have

some. But it’s one thing to stopeating meat to help our soldierswin a war, it’s quite anotherwhen you use meat as a whip-ping post for all that ails us.

Vegetarian DayBefore you discount the effec-

tiveness of Meatless Mondaysconsider this:

� The Baltimore City PublicSchools were the first schools togo meatless on Mondays. OnMondays 80,000 kids are servedno meat and for dessert they aregiven a healthy dose of propa-ganda on how, “To eat and learnabout healthy, environmentallyfriendly choices.” The school dis-trict says it will buy 120,000 few-er pounds of meat per schoolyear by eliminating it from Mon-day menus. We don’t have to tellyou the impact if several big cityschool districts followed suit anddid the same thing.

� Last year after a boroughpresident proposed that all NewYork City public schools switchto Meatless Monday, severalschools in the Big Apple did justthat.

� Thirty-two U.S. hospitalshave signed on to the BalancedMenu Challenge, a commitmentto reduce meat purchases by 20percent.

� Michigan had a one-day“Meatout” when folks wereencouraged to go meatless.

� As one would expect, theovergrown hippies in San Fran-cisco became the first US city toofficially declare Mondays to be“meat free”, calling it their “Veg-etarian Day”. The Board ofSupervisors encouraged restau-rants, schools and stores to offer“plant-based options”. (Great,now we’re electing politicians totell us what to eat!)

� The Johns Hopkins Hospi-tal launched Meatless Mondayin their cafeteria.

� Chef Mario Batali unveiledMeatless Monday menus in all14 of his restaurants.

� Andrew Freeman & Co.included Meatless Monday intheir 2011 Trend List: 18 up-and-coming ideas that restaura-teurs should be watching, notingthat “Meatless Mondays andvegetable based tasting menus

Since 1916, we’ve been here to help New Mexico’s farmers and ranchers with � nancial tools and services they can rely on. We know that every

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Meatless on Mondays continued from page one

continued on page three

Studies suggest we are more likely to maintain

behaviors begun on Monday throughout the week.

www.farmcreditnm.com

May 15, 2012 “America’s Favorite Livestock Newspaper”

are gaining traction as guestsrealize it’s not all about the meaton the plate.”

� The food and catering firmSodexo announced in January2011 that it would be offeringMeatless Monday materials tomore than 900 hospitals in theirnetwork. This effort was expand-ed in April 2011 when they pro-vided materials to more than2,000 corporate and governmentclient locations in North Ameri-ca, including Toyota, NorthernTrust Bank and the U.S. Depart-ment of the Interior.

� No surprise to beef produc-ers, Oprah Winfrey has been aBIG supporter of Meatless Mon-days by mandating that vegetari-an options would be available inher Harpo Studios cafeteria. Sheasked her studio audiences totake part in the campaign andhosted guests who promoted theidea, including Michael Pollanwho said, “Eat food. Not toomuch. Mostly plants. Even onemeatless day a week, a MeatlessMonday, which is what we do inour household. If everybody inAmerica did that, that would bethe equivalent of taking 20 mil-lion mid-size sedans off theroad.” He also said, “We don’trealize it when we sit down toeat, but that is our most pro-found engagement in the rest ofnature . . . To the extent that wepush meat a little bit to the sideand move vegetables to the cen-ter of our diet, we’re also goingto be a lot healthier.”

� In June of last year Aspen,Colorado became an official“Meatless Monday city” with

over 20 local restaurants, thehospital, elementary school, TheAspen Club & Spa, and TheUniversity of Colorado School ofMedicine participating.

� The AARP began offeringMeatless Monday recipes toAARP’s online community inJune 2009.

� Campus dining halls fromcoast to coast, from the Univer-sity of California at Davis to YaleUniversity have also gotten onboard the Meatless Mondaybandwagon.

� While Meatless Monday isbased in the United States theidea seems to be catching onworldwide. The United Kingdomhas “Meat-free Mondays” whiletheir Ethical Vegetarian Alterna-tive group promotes “VeggieThursday”. Meatless Mondayhas turned into a global move-ment with a wide network of par-ticipating hospitals, schools,worksites and restaurants aroundthe globe.We wondered, has all of this

had any effect on meat con-sumption? According to theAmerican Meat Institute, in aFebruary 2011 survey they foundthat 18 percent of Americanhouseholds were participating inMeatless Mondays!

Who Are These People?Who is behind this meat-free

movement? As you’d expect, it’sthe same old unholy trinity ofvegetarians, animal rightists andenvironmentalists. And in attack-ing meat they are using the sameold mistruths, based on thepremise that if you tell a lie often

enough, it becomes the truth.The Monday Gang claims . . .

� By going meatless you’ll sig-nificantly reduce your carbonfootprint because “the meatindustry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made green-house gas emissions, far morethan transportation.” We’re alsosupposed to be impressed

because Al Gore has endorsedMeatless Mondays on his Cli-mate Crises blog. (From thelooks of his body lately he needsTwinkie Free Tuesdays a lotmore.) Gore lists Meatless Mon-day as one of the Top 12 ThingsYou Can Do Now for a betterworld.

� The Meatless Mondaycoalition claims that the waterneeds of livestock are far abovethose of vegetables or grains.They proclaim, “An estimated1,800 to 2,500 gallons of watergo into a single pound of beef.Soy tofu produced in Californiarequires 220 gallons of water perpound.” (I didn’t even know theygrew soybeans in California!)

� “And did you know that “Ifwe all stopped eating animalscompletely and shifted to vege-tarian foods, that would save 84billion gallons of gas per week.”(We’d love to see how theyarrived at this number!)Is any of this propaganda

gaining traction and resonatingwith consumers? According to anAP-NBC Universal telephonepoll of 1,006 adults they foundthat 23 percent of those sur-veyed said they would be likelyto make a special effort to giveup meat as a way to protect theenvironment. A tracking studyconducted by FGI research

found that in May of 2011, U.S.awareness of the Meatless Mon-day campaign had reached 50.22percent (up from 30 percent sixmonths previously). Of thoseaware of Meatless Monday,27.47 percent said the campaignhad influenced their decision tocut back on meat.Who is going meatless? If

there is one particular demo-graphic that is going whole hog,so to speak, over the idea, it iswomen. Hollywood soccer momsseem to really like the idea, andfor every male supporter listed byMeatless Monday there appearto be 10 highly visible women.Where school kids are beingforced to dine on vegetarian chiliand grilled cheese sandwiches wehaven’t found any mothers rise inprotest yet. Speaking of protests,one might be tempted to say thatthese are the same women whowent on sit-down strikes to banthe bra in the sixties and thatdidn’t put Maidenform out of

business. But most of thesewomen supporters weren’t evenalive in the sixties. Besides thatwould be taking these womenway too lightly, and if there’s onething we should know by now,never underestimate the powerof a woman.The big fear for ranchers

should be that the vegetarianidea catches on with youngsterswho will carry these habits intoadulthood. The American MeatInstitute says “students are beingserved up an unhealthy dose ofindoctrination.” And John Stos-sel says there is much more atstake here than selling a few t-shirts. “Who becomes a regula-tor except people who want toregulate? Some come fromactivist groups that hate indus-try. Some come from industryand want to convert their gov-ernment job into a higher-payingindustry job. Some just wantattention. They know that say-ing, “X will kill you,” gets moreattention than saying that “X isprobably safe.” Stossel writes that “whenever

someone claims that somechemical — or food ingredient,like fat — is a menace, we areprimed to believe it. That makesit easy for government to leap inand play the role of protector.”This Monday club of veg

heads is the same old cast ofcharacters who simply don’twant other people to enjoy thefiner things in life without theirpermission. If they get away withthis, can Tea-less Tuesdays, NoWhipped Cream on Wednes-days, Tofu Thursdays, FrenchFry Free Fridays and WinelessWeekends be far behind?

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Meatless on Mondays continued from page two

The big fear for ranchers should be that the vegetarian idea catches on with youngsters who will carry

these habits into adulthood.


by ALAN BJERGA,Bloomberg Businessweek

Aproposal to strengthen thetracking of U.S. cattle hasbeen sent to the WhiteHouse for a fast-track

review after a case of [BSE] madcow disease was discovered inCalifornia and spurred calls for amore stringent system.“We have a lot of confidence

in a rule we think will work,”Agriculture Secretary Tom Vil-sack told reporters in Washing-ton. He said he hopes the Officeof Management and Budget willapprove the new animal-identifi-cation plan quickly.Critics including Representa-

tive Rosa DeLauro, Democrat ofConnecticut, have said the dis-covery of the first U.S. case of[BSE] mad cow disease since2006, announced by the govern-ment on April 24, 2012 points tothe need for a more effectivelivestock-tracking system.

A nationwide animal-identifi-cation plan that would allow offi-cials to quickly trace sick live-stock back to their farms of origin— and help identify other infect-ed animals — has been promisedby the USDA since just after thecountry’s first case of bovinespongiform encephalopathy, orBSE, surfaced in late 2003. Thelatest infection was the fourthconfirmed in U.S. herds.A voluntary animal ID plan

was abandoned in 2010 aftersome ranchers refused to partici-pate, citing cost and concernsthat the proposed registry wouldgive competitors proprietaryinformation.The rule Vilsack referred to,

which the USDA proposed inAugust, would require registra-tion and tagging of livestockmoved between states, withguidelines tailored to differentspecies. It would be put in placegradually, applying first to olderanimals in the U.S. cattle herd.

small businesses, and providinggreater certainty on the amountof reimbursements available forthese deserving groups. At thesame time, H.R. 1996 removestax-payer subsidies for litigationfiled outside the boundaries setby the nation’s environmentallaws. The bill is supported by over100 groups representing conser-vationists, sportsmen, outdoorrecreationists, small businessesand farmers and ranchers.Highlights from the GAO and

Notre Dame studies include: · � Intended originally as a cost

saving mechanism, the $125 anhour cap on attorney’s fees is rou-tinely “evaded,” and despite courtinstructions to narrowly interpretEAJA’s language to increase feesfor special factors, EAJA reim-bursements range from $157 toover $500 an hour. Notre DameJournal of Legislation, pgs. 36 – 41.— The Government Litigation

Savings Act corrects this problemby creating a clear hourly rate

applied equally to all legal repre-sentation no matter their area ofexpertise. ·

� The absence of an equitablecap on the net worth of groupseligible to receive EAJA reim-bursement, combined with theabsence of any federal oversightprovides the opening for well-heeled organizations to sue thefederal government repeatedlyover procedural issues outside thebounds of environmental law.Notre Dame Journal of Legisla-tion, pages 41-45.— The Government Litigation

Savings Act corrects this problemby establishing a uniform networth cap of $7 million, and insti-tutes a robust tracking andreporting requirement. ·

� Reviews of open court docu-ments from September of 2009to October of 2010 reveal pay-ments to twenty environmentallitigants that totaled at least $5.8million, while an examination oftax returns from these same

twenty groups showed the aver-age yearly attorneys’ fees totaled$9.1 million. Notre Dame Journalof Legislation, pages 48 – 54.— The Government Litigation

Savings Act corrects this problemby requiring an EAJA applicant toshow a “direct and personal”impact of the government’s actionto receive reimbursement. ·

� After interviewing 75bureaus and agencies within theUnited States Department ofAgriculture and the Departmentof the Interior, the GAO deter-mined that only 10 could provideany data on EAJA reimburse-ments. One of those ten, which ishoused in the Department ofInterior, relied on employeememory to create the data. TheGAO study is clear that the num-ber of cases and awardedamounts the agency could identi-fy are not “comprehensive, orprecise.” Limited Data Availableon USDA and Interior AttorneyFee Claims and Payments, Gov-ernment Accountability Office. ·

� GAO, which relied only onwhat the 10 agencies were able toprovide, still identified $4.4 mil-lion in EAJA payments. Thisnumber does not match courtdocuments, tax returns, and isderived from a much largeramount of legal fees. For exam-ple, the Forest Service identifiedover $16 million in legal fees, butcould only identify the source of$2.3 million.— The Government Litigation

Savings Act corrects both of theseproblems by requiring a robusttracking and reporting require-ment administered by a third par-

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Iwas visiting with Bill in Alabama. He’s a cattle-man, a bit of a philosopher and a constant wor-rier. I mentioned that one of my friends hadsold a set of 520-lb. feeder cattle for $1.99 a

pound! That’s more than a thousand dollars ahead! “I know,” said Bill, “I’ve sold some myself but. . .” then he paused and added, “I’m wondering ifthe price is getting too high?”I cast a skeptical eye,but he was serious. “Whattaya mean?” I asked “Is itpossible that the price will drive people away frombeef and ruin our business?” he said. I immediately thought of that Yogi Berra obser-

vation, “The place is so crowded, nobody goesthere anymore.” Due to the government’s cheap-food policy re-established with each new Farm Bill,and the tremendous advances in productionbrought on by modern ag technology, food priceshave stayed cheap in relation to other essentialcommodities. I compared the number of 500-lb. feeder cattle it

took to buy a new ¾ ton pickup in the last fourdecades. In the 70s it took 22 head, in the 80s it took36 head, in the 90s it took 72, and in the 00s it took79 head. With each passing decade the farmer’sproduct declined in value relative to his costs. Thensuddenly in 2012 the number of feeders it took tobuy a pickup dropped to 64 head! That’s back to themid-80s average. We in agriculture have grown usedto being treated like Cinderella’s stepchild or the

kindly old hick uncle who still has cows, plants a gar-den and drives a real tractor. The consumer believeswe live a simple life, Ma and Pa Kettle, like the sod-busters on the plains that need to be protected bythe hero (a congressman or senator) who shoots thebad guy and runs off with the farmer’s daughter! Itwould be an eye opener for a good portion of con-sumers to spend a day with a Washington feedlotoperator, Illinois corn grower, Georgia seed stockproducer, Utah rancher or an Arkansas cottonfarmer. To see computer projections of average daily gain,

soil testing, laser leveling, vineyard irrigation systems,dairy genetic selections, swine and poultry’s meticu-lous ration calculations and the voluminous scientificresearch being used in all phases of agriculture. Thecorn seed or semen sample that is put to work on ourfarms and ranches every day has as much technologybehind it as a satellite on its way to Mars. But thetrusting consumer doesn’t see all that. They only seeus driving a grain truck out to the mill or taking atrailer load of feeders to the sale. We, in our greasy overalls or well-worn cowboy

hat, are the tip of the technological, tried and trust-ed, diligent, essential iceberg that puts food on theirtable. So if the price of beef, grain, milk and straw-berries are now a little closer to what they are reallyworth, I’m gonna be thankful. Of course, if corn hitsten bucks, I just might start to worry.

Baxter BLACKO N T H E E D G E O F C O M M O N S E N S E

Suspicious of the good cow market

Animal ID Plan Sent to White House Following BSE Find

Two New Studies continued from page one

by KFBB NEWS TEAM

Ahunting group has madea large donation to FishWildlife and Parks to help

manage the wolf population.The Rocky Mountain Elk

Foundation is giving $51,000to the state. That money willgo directly to Wildlife Servic-es, a division of the USDA.They’ll be using the dona-

tion to collar wolves andrespond to deprivation prob-lems. Fish Wildlife and Parkssays it will extend their abilityto respond and do additionalmanagement work.Ron Aasheim, FWP Bureau

Chief says, “We have about$110,000 state dollars that wespend right now. But with allthe activity, that doesn’t lastforever, so this helps a lot. It’sa good partnership, so we’repleased, and we’ll start reapingthe benefits pretty quick.”Ron says anytime wildlife is

affected in Montana, a lotresponse from the public fol-lows, and the wolf manage-ment has brought it to a levelnever seen before.In May, they’ll start the sea-

son setting process for nextyear. That’ll be followed bypublic input and a final deci-sion by the commission in June.

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Donates $51K to Control Wolves

ty, disallowing any agency frommaking the decision that a pay-ment of tax-payer dollars is “toosmall” to track, or “not needed.”Light was first shed on this

issue when Cheyenne, Wyomingattorney Karen Budd-Falen didthe ground breaking research touncover just how bad the abuse ofpublic tax dollars really. Shelearned that literally tens of mil-lions of dollars have been funneledto environment groups via EAJA,

other fee shifting statutes andsweetheart settlement deals withso-called environmental groups.The Western Legacy Alliance tookup the cause leading to the intro-duction of legislation in Congressand numerous national mediareports. The GAO report confirmsMs. Budd-Falen’s research andexpands on what the anti naturalresource groups are costing Amer-icans in real need.

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In late March Dow Agro-Sciences introducedSENDERO™ herbicide asthe new standard in mesquite

control to enhance long-termproductivity of southwesternrangelands. SENDERO is thefirst new mesquite herbicide toreach the market since the com-pany released RECLAIM® her-bicide in 1987.For 25 years, RECLAIM her-

bicide tank-mixed with REME-DY® herbicide (later REMEDYULTRA herbicide) has been thepredominant mesquite treatmentused on millions of acres. Com-pany officials now expectSENDERO to replace the tankmix as the treatment of choice.Like the original standard,SENDERO is labeled for aerial,ground broadcast and foliar indi-vidual plant treatments.“There’s no question that

SENDERO is now the bestmesquite treatment available,”said Dave Owens, Range andPasture portfolio marketingleader for Dow AgroSciences.“In trials, it has delivered bothbetter and more consistent con-trol than the previous standard.”In a series of aerial trials,

SENDERO™ herbicide aver-aged more than 10 percentagepoints better control than thetank mix of RECLAIM andREMEDY ULTRA used in thesame trials.[i] The trials werefunded by Dow AgroSciencesand conducted by range special-ists within Texas AgriLife Exten-sion Service.In those aerial trials,

SENDERO averaged 76 percentrootkill two years after treatmentcompared to 64 percent for theRECLAIM/REMEDY ULTRAtank mix.[ii]Perhaps more important,

company officials said, mesquitecontrol with SENDERO wasabout 40 percent more consis-tent than that from the old stan-dard tank mix of RECLAIMplus REMEDY ULTRA.[iii]In addition to mesquite,

SENDERO controls manyspecies of broadleaf weeds andprovides soil residual activity tocontrol many later-emergingbroadleaf species for weeks aftertreatment. Beyond the first sea-son, there is no long-term forbshock from the herbicide. Thatmeans both livestock and wildlifecan benefit from the lastingeffects of mesquite control withSENDERO.SENDERO™ herbicide does

not harm desirable grasses, sonative grass recovery can be asfast as environmental conditionsallow.SENDERO combines two

molecules discovered and devel-oped by Dow AgroSciences foruse on rangeland and pastures:aminopyralid and clopyralid.Aminopyralid is one of the ingre-dients in both GRAZON-NEXT® HL herbicide andCHAPARRAL™ herbicide.Both products have proven effec-tive in weed control and brush

suppression. Clopyralid is thesingle active ingredient inRECLAIM® herbicide.Mesquite control offers sever-

al benefits. It allows cattle moreaccess to grazing land and ranch-ers more access to their cattle.Reducing dense stands of

mesquite improves rangelandhealth and may increase ground-water recharge. When grassesreplace brush on rangeland, sed-iment may be reduced in runoff.Applied in patterns, SENDEROcan create more edge habitat forwildlife.Left untouched, mesquite

cover tends to increase overtime. Range scientists with TexasAgriLife Research documentedthat herbaceous production onclay loam soils declined severely

once mesquite achieved morethan 25 percent canopycover.[iv] Following a high levelof control from mesquite treat-ment, enhanced grass produc-tion can last at least 20 years, theresearchers reported.[v]Success with SENDERO still

depends on proper application,Dow AgroSciences expertsemphasized. Those include tim-ing with carbohydrate movementin the mesquite plant, leaf condi-tion, soil temperature and grow-ing conditions. “Without theproper conditions for mesquiteand weather, even the best her-bicide treatment will provide lessthan satisfactory control,” saidDow AgroSciences field scientistChad Cummings.

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Herbaceous production on clay loam soils declined severely once

mesquite achieved more than 25 percent canopy cover.

The fourth annual meet-ing and field day of theSouth Poll Grass CattleAssociation will be held

on Friday and Saturday, June22 and 23, at Voss Land &Cattle Co. in Linn, Mo.The two-day event will fea-

ture an open forum on farmmanagement practices, theannual South Poll seed stockauction, a pasture walk withnationally-known grazier GregJudy and a talk from Dr.James Horne, the presidentand CEO of the Kerr Centerfor Sustainable Agriculture inPoteau, Okla.Judy, who will speak on

Friday, will go into the basicsof evaluating animal perform-ance on pasture, biologicalmonitoring, diversity of grass-es and what to look for ingrass genetic cattle.Dr. Bruce Shanks, of Lin-

coln University in JeffersonCity, will make a presentationon multi-species grazing,

while writer Ralph Voss willtalk on soil amendments suchas milk, sea salt, molasses,coral calcium and liquid fish.Voss will also give a demon-stration on taking brix read-ings on grass.Saturday will kick off with

a welcome from breedfounder Teddy Gentry. Hewill explain the genetic historyof the South Poll breed whichis a four-way cross includingHereford, Angus, Senepoland Barzona breeds of cattle.Dr. Horne will make a

presentation on the sustain-ability of the overall agricul-tural system.Gentry says he hopes to

have 25 of the finest bulls,cows and heifers the breed hasto offer to be sold at the cow-boy auction Saturday at 1 p.m.After the auction Judy will

lead a pasture walk.Gentry says the field day

Fourth annual South Poll field day to be held in Missouri

continued on page six


dairy industry has steadily devel-oped into a substantial exportingnation since the turn of the 21stcentury.This occurrence not only

causes us to keep a keen eye ondomestic trends, but our focusnow needs to include supply anddemand trends abroad. Globaldemand is strong, particularly indeveloping nations such as Chi-na or in Southeast Asia, butglobal milk production is strongtoo. Milk production in NewZealand, Australia and evenArgentina has reportedly grownrapidly this year.If global demand is not able

to cope with the growth frommultiple key dairy exportingnations such as these, then itmay limit the continuation ofsolid growth in U.S. dairyexports and therefore pressureour domestic commodity inven-tory levels.The factors mentioned to this

point speak to the top line valueof milk on dairy producers’ milkchecks, which is an importantpiece of on-farm profitability. Anequally important factor is thecost of milk production, particu-larly feed costs.Global demand and failure to

meet trend line yield for grainsduring the past few years havepositioned U.S. feed stocks nearhistorical lows and driven feedcosts to high levels. If the valueof corn, forages and protein con-tinue to remain high during thebalance of 2012, this will causesevere financial pressure for U.S.dairy producers.The dynamics of livestock

production have shifted mostlyat the hand of extreme price andmargin volatility. This dynamicincrease in volatility absolutelycalls for the dairy industry tochange, especially in regard todairy policy.In order for U.S. dairy pro-

ducers to remain competitive inthe global marketplace and tosustain profitable margins forfuture generations, real changemust occur quickly as the statusquo will not be sufficient. Thedairy industry’s most viableopportunity for a timely solutionis the Dairy Security Act.

Michael Lichte is director of dairy marketing forDairy Farmers of America, Inc., anational dairymarketing cooperative that serves and isowned by nearly 15,000 members in 48 states.

by MICHAEL LICHTE

All livestock industries dealwith the impact of every-day commodity markets.Dairy is no different,

except that the timing of thedairy commodity cycle appearsto differ from other major live-stock sectors.During the past 15 years, the

dairy cycle has repeated everythree years, which would mean

that after experiencing modest togood returns during the past 18-24 months, the dairy industryshould anticipate bearish marketpressures.This type of downturn has not

happened since 2009, which wasthe worst financial year for U.S.dairy producers in a genera-tion.While current signs suggestthat financial pressure will not beas severe as that felt during 2009,the pressures will be significant.

Across different groups ofcommodity economists, a com-mon phrase is used . . . “highprices create low prices.” 2010and 2011 were years in whichmost U.S. dairy producers wereable to achieve modest profits.These profits fueled growth in

the national dairy herd, which incombination with a mild winterthroughout much of the UnitedStates, has led to an explosion ofU.S. milk production. Thisgrowth is exceeding our steadyupward trend in U.S. dairy con-sumption and is creating animbalance in supply and demandfundamentals.The U.S. Department of Agri-

culture reported that U.S. milkproduction in February, afterbeing adjusted for leap year, was4.3 percent higher than the prioryear (the 10-year annual averagegrowth rate is 1.6 percent). Feb-ruary’s growth rate was not seenas an outlier, as it followed stronggrowth in January of 3.5 percent.Growth at the magnitude

experienced during the first twomonths of 2012 points to the factthat the United States is produc-ing more than what is beingdemanded by consumers.Thequickest form of curtailingextreme growth in milk produc-tion is to reduce the milking herd.Reports of strong cull cow val-

ues throughout different regionsof the country may provide anatural signal for dairy producersto divert marginal-producingcows out of the milking stringand obtain the beef value, whichwould assist in limiting the cur-rent strong growth patterns.

Even though consumption ofdairy products as a beverage isstagnant at best, there are posi-tive consumption trends occur-ring, specifically in the yogurtand cheese categories. As aresult, less uncommitted inven-tory of cheese is being held forfuture sales, which is a positivesign for price rebounds to occurduring the upcoming summerand into fall.

The same cannot be said forbutter and nonfat dry milk(NFDM), which, along withcheese, are major components indetermining the value of milk.Traditional commodity milk

marketing logic would suggestthat butter and NFDM manu-facturing is an outlet of lastresort for the U.S. milk supply.Butter and NFDM production islow during periods of decliningU.S. milk production, but inperiods of U.S. milk productiongrowth, butter and NFDM pro-duction is high.With U.S. milk production

growing substantially, it is easyto rationalize that butter andNFDM production growth rateshave been or are expected toexceed double digits on a per-centage basis in the near term.The current expectation is for

the commodity values of butterand NFDM to weaken in thenear term, but strengthen intothe fall as the winter holidaysapproach; however, this forecastmay not hold true if there is aprolonged period where U.S.milk production grows at highlevels or if global milk-producingcountries in the Southern Hemi-sphere have strong milk produc-tion growth in the fall.While we are dealing with an

oversupply of milk at home, it isimportant to note that the U.S.

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will be an opportunity to learnabout progressive grazingmethods and some of thenewest information on soilamendments. He says the $6plus corn market has putsmall and efficient grass cat-tle, like the South Poll, moreand more in demand.“Tender beef off grass,

especially when we look atprofit per acre, is what ourbreed is all about,” he said.Preregistration for the two-

day event will be needed, witha $50 per person fee beingcharged by the association for

entrance to all the activities.Youngsters 16 and under willbe admitted free. Anyone reg-istering after June 15 will becharged $85.A free lunch will be served

on Friday and Saturday with afree wiener roast beingoffered Friday evening afterthe tour of the Voss farm.Registration may be sent to

the South Poll Association,c/o Jerry Voss, P.O. Box 109,Linn, Mo., 65051. Call Vossat 573/694-1681 for moreinformation or visit our web-site at: www.southpoll.com

South Poll Field Day continued from page five

Dairy Market Outlook Signals Need for Policy Change

There are positive

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Throughout the state of NewMexico there are many out-standing youth, ages 12-20,who could pursue the

opportunity to become the nextspokespersons for the New Mex-ico beef industry by competingin the New Mexico Beef Ambas-sador Program Contest to beheld June 24, 2012 in conjunc-tion with the New Mexico CattleGrowers’ Summer Conference atthe Inn of the Mountain Gods inRuidoso. Senior and junior agestate winners will then be eligibleto compete in the National BeefAmbassador Program (NBAP)Contest slated for September28-30, 2012 in Sacramento, Cal-ifornia.The National Beef Ambassa-

dor Program is managed by theAmerican National Cattle-Women, Inc. and funded, inpart, by America’s Beef ProducerCheck-Off Program through theCattleman’s Beef Board. TheNBAP strives to assist youth ineducating consumers and stu-dents about beef nutrition, foodsafety and stewardship practicesof the beef industry. The statelevel contest is directly spon-sored by the New Mexico Cow-Belle organization, with addi-tional support from the NewMexico Beef Council, the NewMexico Cattle Growers’, localCowBelle women, within thestate, and New Mexico ranchers.Senior age contestants must

be 17, but not over 20 years ofage by September 1, 2012. Dur-ing the state contest, a panel ofjudges will critique a 5- to 8-minute speech presented by thecontestant. The speech must befactually based on data providedfrom the “Beef: From Pasture toPlate” website: www.beef-frompasturetoplate.org or on abeef industry topic that is devel-oped through personal research.

The state contest will also includea brief written response to a pub-lished news article regarding thebeef industry, as well as partici-pation in a mock media interviewand a consumer promotion activ-ity. The national contest does notinclude the speech presentation,but requires that three beef relat-ed lessons be presented to youthbefore the national contest dead-line.The junior level contest is

open to youth between the agesof 12 and 16 and consists of a 5-8 minute speech, as in the seniorcontest, along with participationin the mock media interview andconsumer promotion categories. The senior and junior winners

will receive monogrammedaward jackets and shirts and willbe eligible to participate in anexpense paid trip to compete inthe National Beef Ambassador

Program Contest. The NewMexico senior winner may alsoapply for a $500 college scholar-ship from the New Mexico Cow-Belles upon fulfillment of his orher responsibilities as a NewMexico Beef Ambassador.Each of the top five national

winners will receive a $1,000

award, after national require-ments are completed, along witha total of $5,000 in cash prizesfrom the American NationalCattle Women and other spon-sors. The top three junior divi-sion national winners eachreceive cash prizes. The five per-

son national team will have theopportunity to travel across theU.S. educating consumers,peers, students, and producersabout the beef industry as theyparticipate in state fairs, beefindustry events, and other ven-ues as diverse as the BostonMarathon and the National Har-

bor Food and Wine Festival tomore traditional consumer agri-culture events such as theToday’s Agriculture exhibit, inHarrisburg, Pa., which is billedas the largest indoor consumeragriculture show in the nation. For a complete copy of the

national contest rules and studymaterials go to the National BeefAmbassador website at www.nationalbeefambassador.org. To receive an entry form,

brochure and additional contestinformation contact the NewMexico Beef Ambassador Chair,Shelly Hathorn, at the addressbelow.

ENTRY FORMS ARE DUE JUNE 1, 2012 TO:Shelly Hathorn, NM Beef Ambassador Chair,San Juan County Extension Office, 213A SouthOliver Drive, Aztec, N.M. 87410, 505/334-9496(work) or 575/447-7447 (cell), [email protected]

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500,000 Chickens Lost In Fire At Egg Farm Near Roggen, Coloradofrom CBS DENVER

Investigators don’t know whatstarted an intense fire thatcaused millions of dollars ofdamage to a chicken egg farm

near Roggen in early May.It’s been so hot investigators

haven’t been able to get closeenough to search for clues.Firefighters say about 500,000

chickens died in the fire at theBoulder Valley Poultry farm. Thatequals a loss of about 250,000eggs a day. That’s about half ofthe farm’s total production.The fire damaged three of

nine buildings at the farm.Boulder Valley Poultry farm

provides about one-quarter ofColorado’s egg supply. The farmprovides eggs for King Soopersand Sam’s Clubs, but King Soop-ers said the fire shouldn’t havean impact on supply or price inthe short term.

New Mexico Youth Beef Ambassador Contest

The program strives to assist youth in educating consumers and students about beef nutrition, food

safety and stewardship practices of the beef industry.

www.swihart-sales.com


The Red Angus Associationof America (RAAA) was theforerunning breed associa-tion to create and imple-

ment Total Herd Reporting(THR). This new concept revolu-tionized the fee structure for RedAngus registrations, but moreimportantly, focused the industryon the relationship between com-plete data and the value of subse-quent genetic predictions.Today, THR has become a pil-

lar of the Red Angus breed andhas set the bar for other breedassociations to report ALL proge-ny records into their databases —not just the calves that breeders

think are good enough to register.Red Angus continues to be

the only breed association whereTHR is not an option for itsmembers. They are required toparticipate and report records ontheir whole herd. This commit-ment alone speaks of the dedica-tion and performance mindset ofRed Angus founders, leaders andmembers as they strive to pro-duce the best and most-accurategenetics for commercial cow-calfproducers.The first core policy of the

RAAA, as written by the latebreed founder Waldo Forbes,states,“The goal of the Associa-

tion is to place its faith in objec-tive tests and in-herd compar-isons of factors of economicimportance and known heritabili-ty. By making this policy an inte-gral part of the registration sys-tem, Red Angus breeders canachieve faster progress towardthe ultimate goal of more effi-cient beef production.”

A Concept is BornDiscussion at the first Brain

Trust meeting in 1993 in Denver,Colo., stimulated the need for astrategic plan for the RAAA. Oneof the areas the Strategic Plan-ning Committee addressed wasthe inaccuracy of beef industryEPDs.“The only reason we could

identify for the dramatic shifts inour EPD calculations was biasedprogeny reporting,” said MelvinLeland of Sidney, Mont., whoserved as RAAA president from’92 to ’94. “Breeders weren’treporting all of their progenyand, consequently,EPDs weren’treflecting all of the data.”At that time, the Red Angus

membership was only reporting46 percent of its calf crop basedon the traditional method of pay-ing on a per-calf basis to registerstock.“Breeders were being penal-

ized with a fee to do the rightthing of registering and transfer-ring animals,” continued Leland.RAAA leaders worked for two

years to convince the member-ship that THR was essential tothe success of the Red Angusbreed, but it was a hard sell. “Noone likes ‘mandatory’ things,”said Leland.Jim Leachman of Billings,

Mont., brainstormed the finalsolution to assess a fee to keepcows active on a breeder’s inven-tory with no additional costs toreport their offspring or transferownership. The new registrationconcept was appealing to themembership and, at the 1994Red Angus convention, THRpassed unanimously.

BenefitsThe most important benefit of

THR is a more accurate database

of Red Angus genetics built fromthe records that producers sub-mit on their cowherds. Thatequates directly to more accurateEPDs — the original goal of theconceptual founders of THR.“With complete contemporary

group reporting, we are providedwith comparisons between allanimals which results in reliableEPDs,” explained Larry Keenan,RAAA director of breed improve-ment. “It’s common sense —since EPDs rely on measuredvariation within a contemporarygroup — that THR producesmore reliable EPDs and fastergains in EPD accuracy by ensur-ing the variation in performanceof each calf is counted.”How does this affect the com-

mercial producer who is studyingEPDs at a bull sale? Keenan sitedanother core policy that statesthe RAAA will strive to have thebest objectively described cattlein the industry and to provide thebest service to RAAA members’customers — commercial pro-ducers.“Our responsibility is to pro-

vide commercial producers withthe best prediction of an animal’strue genetic merit,” said Keenan.“So when a producer purchases abull whose EPDs indicate he willbe a calving-ease sire, the bullperforms as expected.”The popularity of genomic

technology has exploded in theseedstock industry in recentyears. But geneticists needed abasis on which to build theirDNA technology when theybegan identifying trait markers.EPDs were the logical choice forthat foundation. As the RedAngus breed moves forward toincorporate 50,000 (50K) SNPmarkers, accurate EPDs aremore important than ever.“Reliable genomic products

are dependent upon reliableEPDs,” said Keenan, whoexplained that geneticists corre-late the 50K DNA SNP informa-tion to existing EPDs to achievemolecular breeding values.“Red Angus stakeholders will

enjoy advanced reliability of theRed Angus-specific 50K productthat is built on Total HerdReporting-based EPDs,” saidKeenan.

ChallengesEven though the RAAA has

practiced Total Herd Reportingfor over a decade, some breedersstill struggle with the conceptthat they can benefit from thisunique breed registry structure ofpaying an annual fee to keep acowon active status.“With THR it’s important that

our members realize the benefitsof reporting on the complete cowinventory as opposed to a selec-tion-based fee structure,” saidKenda Ponder, RAAA director ofmember services. “The breederreports a cow’s productionwhether it’s a live calf, a stillborncalf or one that dies before wean-ing age, as well as a reason codeif the cow doesn’t have a calf.That is all valuable informationwe incorporate into EPDs.”“If a breeder’s ultimate goal is

to provide reliable genetics tocommercial producers, they

should manage their cowherdlike it is a commercial cowherd,”said Keenan. “Therefore, if acow’s producing ability results inher being inactive, she should beculled from the herd. A producermay think they beat the THRfinancial system, but they can’tbeat the genetic evaluation sys-tem, which will reveal a cowsinability to remain productive.”“THR works to your advan-

tage,” said Ponder, who hasdirected the program since 1998.“Don’t try to beat the system —instead, let it work for you.”

The Next Level of THRAs with any successful pro-

gram, growth and change areinevitable, and withthe geneticadvancements the past few years,it is time to raise the bar for THRas well.Currently, breeders are only

required to submit birth andweaning dates and weaningweights, but they are encouragedto submit additional data that isused to formulate importantEPDs. An example is the datacollected when an animal reachesa year of age — yearling weights,scrotal measurements and car-cass ultrasound data.The RAAA encourages pro-

ducers to weigh their cows atweaning time and evaluate theirbody condition scores. This infor-mation is incorporated into theformula for the MaintenanceEnergy (ME) EPD.The Heifer Exposure Report

provides valuable data toward thecalculation of the Heifer Preg-nancy (HPG) EPD. Memberssubmit this simple report at theend of their breeding season toidentify which heifers wereexposed and should be enteringthe producer’s herd in the com-ing year.The HPGand Stayability

(Stay) EPDs rely heavily on year-ly data in order to accurately pre-dict these traits, said Keenan.Once RAAA had a decade’sworth of THR-based data, theStayability EPD was upgradedfrom the old calculation thattreated all data as non-THR data.“Through our Stayability EPD

upgrade, we were able to evalu-ate the impact THR data pro-vides in predicting an animal’sgenetic merit for that trait,” saidKeenan. “In comparing the twoStayability models (evaluated asTHR data vs. non-THR data) wefound significant differences —high-accuracy sires had a rankcorrelation of 0.55. Forty-five outof 100 sires changed rank whenevaluated with the upgradedTHR model. We are now able toprovide commercial producerswith a reliable tool in selectingfor Stayability.”

Additional Benefits of THRThere are additional benefits

included in the RAAA registrythat add value to Red Angus cat-tle for commercial producers.Ponder emphasized that

RAAA does not charge membersto transfer animals within 60days of the sale in order toencourage breeders to transfer

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Ranchers are taking advan-tage of value-added pro-grams to increase the prof-itability of their calf crop,

and each year more producersare enrolling their Red Angus-influenced calves in the FeederCalf Certification Program(FCCP). For the past three years, the

Red Angus Association of Amer-ica (RAAA) has enrolled over100,000 head of Red Angus-influenced calves in FCCP eachyear — last year exceeding125,000 head. The Association ison track to continue that record-breaking trend this year as pro-gram enrollment and tag saleshave exceeded first quartergrowth with the enrollment of78,000 Red Angus-sired calves.Enrollment in the FCCP pro-

gram entitles producers to tagtheir Red Angus-influencedcalves with the yellow tag, satis-fying USDA age, source andgenetic verification requirementsfor all four major packing plants

— Cargill, Tyson, JBS and U.S.Premium Beef.“Traceability to age, source

and genetics continues to beimportant for cattle markets,”said Myron Edelman, RAAAdirector of added-value pro-grams. “The feeder and fed-cattlemarkets are still strong. Howev-er, cattle that have age andsource verification maximize rev-enue for all classifications of cat-tle, making them the most prof-itable." The FCCP is the beef indus-

try’s oldest USDA-verifiedgenetic, age and source program,originating 19 years ago.“Since 1993, the FCCP ‘Yel-

low Tag’ has been adding valueto Red Angus customers’ calvesand granting access to brandedproduct lines for Red Angus fedcattle,” said Clint Berry, RAAAcommercial marketing director.“By verifying Red Angus blood-lines, producers are providing amore consistent end-productthan cattle selected on a simple

hair coat color.”The USDA age and source

verification also adds marketingoptions to FCCP-tagged cattle,making them eligible for U.S.export markets.“Experience pays off,” added

Berry. “We are working on twodecades of adding value to RedAngus-sired cattle and we’velearned that to be successful, aprogram must be user-friendlyand inexpensive.”Red Angus producers do not

have to pay an enrollment fee forFCCP. The only cost is the tagitself. “We focus our efforts on

keeping the program as simple aspossible,” said Berry, “and assist-ing our commercial cattlemen inachieving the highest possiblevalue for their Red Anguscalves.” The FCCP "Yellow Tag" is

available in two options. First, asthe traditional visual tag at only99-cents each, or as a combina-tion visual and RFID tag for $3each.Calves must have at least one

registered Red Angus parent andranchers need to answer a fewcalving and breeding manage-ment questions. Producers canenroll their calves at any time inthe FCCP program as long theyare tagged before they leave theranch of origin.Producers can call the RAAA

office at 940/387-3502 to enrolltheir calves in FCCP, makingthem eligible to purchase theRed Angus “Yellow Tags.” Theenrollment process is simple andeasy, taking less than 15 min-utes. For additional informationon Red Angus marketing pro-grams, visit RedAngus.org.

LAUREN & MEL SHUMAN • 707/777-3695P.O. Box 185, Bridgeville, CA 95526

SHUMAN REDANGUS

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The Southwest Red Angus Association, formed inDecember, 2011 by a group of Red Angus seedstockproducers, is working to represent and promote south-western Red Angus producers and their interests.

Led by President Tim Head, Quality Genetics RedAngus, Van Horn, Texas; Vice President Micaela McGib-bon, Santa Rita Ranch, Green Valley, Ariz.; andSecretary/Treasurer Will Crockett, Crocket Ranch, Loving-ton, New Mexico, the new association is committed to thesuccess of members and of cattle ranching as a business. “It is the intent of the association to provide animals with

exceptional genetic traits that through heterosis enhance thequality and value of the herds of commercial cattlemen,”Head said. “While still new and small, we have already beenable to assist some of our members sell their Red Angusseedstock. We are looking forward to continuing andincreasing the prior successes of our efforts.”Interest, participation and membership are welcomed in

the Southwest Red Angus Association. Members must ownregistered Red Angus cattle, and should send a $50 checkfor annual membership dues to the Southwest Red AngusAssociation, P.O. Box 1380, Van Horn, TX 79855. “Join us,contribute to the future and help select the path on whichwe shall go,” he said.

New Association, New Leadership for Southwestern

Red Angus Producers The FCCP “Yellow Tag”adds marketability to RedAngus-influenced calvesthrough USDA approved

genetic, age and source verifica-tion, and the RAAA offers addi-tional tools to help producersfind a buyer for their cattle.Every Red Angus bull cus-

tomer has access to a variety ofRAAA marketing programs suchas FeederFax, an email-basednotification for Red Angus-siredcalves marketed by video auc-tions, through private treaty salesor at livestock markets. Feeder-Fax is distributed to RAAA’sactive buyer base.The Red Angus Stockyards, a

web-based listing on RedAn-gus.org, has marketed nearly100,000 head of replacementfemales, Red Angus bulls and/orRed Angus-influenced cattle.In addition, RAAA sponsors

several of the major video auc-tions, including organizing spe-cial sections featuring RedAngus cattle throughout the

Ranchers add value, marketing options with Red Angus programs

those animals into the new own-er’s name. “It is imperative thatbulls are transferred to their newowners,” she said. When mem-bers sell and transfer ownershipof their bulls, those commercialproducers become eligible toenroll their calves in the FeederCalf Certification Program(FCCP) and tag them with theRed Angus “Yellow Tag.”Enrollment in FCCP certifies

that the calf wearing the yellowtag is genetic, age and source ver-ified with the USDA. It opens upmarketing opportunities andincreases profitability for thatproducer — both forfeeder calvesentering a feedlot and for heiferssold as replacement females.If Red Angus bulls are not

transferred, the RAAA cannotverify those commercial produc-ers own the bulls and thereforethey cannot enroll their calvesinto the FCCP. “Our largestcompetitor isn’t another breed —it’s non-registered and non-trans-ferred bulls,” said Ponder.The RAAA also mails a com-

plimentary one-year subscriptionto the American Red Angus maga-zine to producers who have hadan animal transferred to them.This expanded mailing increasesreadership to Red Angus cus-tomers — those producers usingRed Angus genetics.“THR is about far more than

reporting birth and weaningweights,” said Ponder. “Theintegrity of the Red Angus breedis built on the honesty of thebreeders and the reliability of thecattle they raise. Red Angus lead-ership set the bar high when theyimplemented THR. Today’sbreeders are challenged to con-tinue that tradition, ensuringthey are producing the best pos-sible genetics and that our stake-holders have confidence in RedAngus cattle all the way downthe chain.”

Total Herd Reportingcontinued from page eight

Association offers tools to market Red Angus cattlesummer video sale season.For ranchers looking to mar-

ket their calves in a more tradi-tional manner, each fall and win-ter, RAAA staff helps organizeRed Angus Feeder Calf Salesheld in livestock markets spreadacross the U.S.

“All of these marketingoptions give producers theopportunity to add value to theircalf crop and, along with the useof the FCCP ‘Yellow Tag,’ cansecure Red Angus bull cus-tomers’ continued success,” saidBerry.

Total Herd Reporting focuses on the relationship between completeherd data and the value of subsequent genetic predictions.


The above statement madeby Obama’s head BorderPatrol agent set off afirestorm of controversy and

anger from everyone except thoseencamped in the midst of theradical left and guaranteed Mr.Anguilar a permanent seat at thecurrent administration’s roundtable that has been graced withthe likes of Tony Rezko, JamesMeeks, Sam Graham-Felsen, VanJones and others. Given the U. S.Border Patrol’s already tenebrousmission statement, coming fromcontroversial characters likeAguilar, Napotitano and even thePresident himself, one can’t helpbut question what is the truecourse of action we are pursuingon the Mexican border. In thenext paragraphs I will leave innu-endo and commentary behindand stick to documented facts.You and your imagination can dothe rest.Since February 21, 2012 until

today, April 20, 2012, in a 12-milestretch at the international bound-ary starting at Naco, Arizona andgoing west to the San Pedro Riverthere have been no less than 10drive-through loads of narcoticsbreaching the new steel fence thatis 13 feet high. This same fence isthe one that many thought wouldbe a cure-all solution to our cur-rent smuggling problem.One of the first drive-throughs

traversed the bottom of amesquite infested wash wherewhole crews of Mexican outlawsfelled trees and bridged arroyoscreating a road through thewilderness north to highway 92some 3 miles distant. By drive-

through I mean Mexican Cartelagents cutting truck size holes inthe metal barrier facilitating thepassing of whole truck loads ofdope headed north to partsunknown.The last three of these ten

loads of narcotics, which average1,000 to 1,500 pounds per load,passed through a freshly cut holeon Sunday night April 15, 2012.All ten loads negotiated the sup-posed sealed border within onemile of each other and all wereless than one half mile from aBorder Patrol camera that is ontop of a tower 85 feet in the air.At that distance these camerascosting in the hundreds of thou-sands of dollars to install andmaintain can easily read a licenseplate on a car or see the expres-sion on a man’s face.All ten of these truck loads of

dope passed through a cattleranch owned by a family who hasmade their living raising cattle onthis same property going back tothe late 1800s. At the east end ofthe ranch lies the border town ofNaco whose main industry is theNaco Border Patrol Stationwhich boasts somewhere in thevicinity of 400 agents. The ranchowners long ago cooperated withthe Border Patrol and welcomedthe instillation of four of thesemega expensive ultra high techcameras which are supposedlymonitored 24/7 at the Naco Bor-der Patrol station a short distanceaway.When questioned by the

rancher the Border Patrol’sexcuse for this breach of securitywas that “no agents were avail-

able to respond.” The fact is thatthey had all been sent to thenorthern boundaries, whereverthat is, of Aguilar’s imaginaryThird Kingdom.Within a few days Border

Patrol agents in Naco will be mov-ing into a newly constructed sta-tion that cost the American tax-payer, including Third Kingdomresidents, 42 million dollars tobuild. Among other importantamenities it will include an indoorshooting range with a 14 milliondollar price tag. According to arecent article in the Arizona Com-mercial Real Estate online news-paper the new station has beenbuilt to “Anti-Terrorist Force Pro-tection standards.” Oh really?Since 1992 there have been on

this one cattle ranch, where theaforementioned dope passed, noless than 500 thousand illegalaliens apprehended. By their ownadmission the Border Patrolcatches no more than 20 percentthat cross the border. Since Oba-ma became president they appre-hend fewer than that. You can’thave low numbers if you catchlarge quantities. That meansupward of two and a half millionpeople have traversed this onefamily’s property. Whether youlive within the confines of a gatedcommunity in Scotsdale or on anIllinois corn farm you should beable to relate. Imagine having twoand a half million people tromp-ing through your corn field unin-vited. For good measure throw ina few dozen $60,000 Ford Raptorpick-ups with Border Patrolinsignia on the doors crashingabout your property piloted byagents in green uniforms whohaving a high level of testosteroneand a low level of respect for youand your corn destroying every-thing in their path.Why should border ranchers

who grow calves instead of cornhave to continually hump up andtake it while Middle America sitsidly by and does nothing? I amnot Paul Revere but I have a mes-sage for you: the Mexican Cartelsare not coming, they are here,aided by ambiguous ideology andtotal distain for constitutional lawcoming from leftist bureaucratswho have a corrupt axe to grind.The cartels move through a virtu-al open door. It astounds me thatthe National Cattleman’s BeefAssociation, which is supposed tobe cattle ranching’s biggest andmost powerful lobby, hasn’t comeforth with more support for theirconstituents who live in closeproximity to the border.In Frederick Bastiat’s book

The Law he states and I quote,“to say that the aim of the law isto cause justice to reign is to usean expression which is not rigor-ously exact. It ought to be said,the aim of law is to prevent injus-tice from reigning. In fact, it isnot justice which has an existenceof its own, it is injustice. The oneresults from the absence from theother.” The Department of Jus-tice and the Department ofHomeland Security are in thebusiness of creating unjust poli-cies financed by taxpayer dollars,

a good example being thederailed and ill-advised Fast andFurious program. David Aguilar’sself-proclaimed concept of a thirdcountry, which is wholeheartedlysupported by the Department ofHomeland Security is not onlycompletely devoid of justice it is agross violation of the constitutionitself. Because of this odysseyinto a hinterland of undefinedproportions Border Patrol agentsare allowed, even ordered, toabandon the line in the dirt, asAguilar calls it, and take their dogand pony show north to partsunknown leaving gaping andbleeding holes which they try tohide with gesticulations of fatigueand cries for more funding andequipment: if we just had a betterhelicopter, or perhaps another 14million dollar shooting range.Recently Arizona State Sena-

tor Sylvia Allen introduced legis-lation proposing a volunteer mili-tia trained by law enforcementand deployed to aid in the patrolof the border itself. She hasreceived very little support andmuch criticism. The truth is theonly time in history the Mexicanborder has been sealed is whenthe Minutemen peacefully andlawfully sat down and occupiedthe border itself in 2007; rightthere on the ground within armsreach of the line in the dirt thatAguilar says doesn’t exist. TheU.S. Border Patrol did, do, andalways will hate the Minutemenand others like them. Theyaccomplished what the BorderPatrol claimed couldn’t be done.Aguilar and his union-protectedBrownshirts aren’t programmedfor success. Personally I applaudSenator Allen for thinking outsidethe box that bureaucrats andgangster politicians have us allincarcerated in.On February 24, 2012 I

attended, along with numerousCochise County ranchers, a meet-ing at the stupendously opulentTucson Sector Office Complex

and Headquarters. This multi-cathedral-like edifice which costuntold millions to construct iscompletely devoid of any signs ofeconomic recession; taxpayer dol-lars literally grow on the shrubsoutside and ooze out of the finerywithin. Tucson Sector Chief RickBarlow was in attendance alongwith the chiefs from the Douglas,Willcox, Naco, Sonoita, andNogales stations. Two govern-ment attorneys were in atten-dance representing the BorderPatrol’s interests. The ArizonaCattlegrowers’ Association waspresent in support of the rancherswho were allowed to speak andvoice certain grievances.A certain Cochise County

rancher (not myself) related to allpresent at this meeting that theywere well acquainted with DavidAguilar who was at one time theTucson Sector Chief. This indi-vidual went on to say that he(Aguilar) was a most dishonestand corrupt individual (theirwords not mine) and the BorderPatrol had taken a visible turn forthe worse under his leadership. Inwonder I observed this communi-cation and couldn’t help butnotice the lack of denial. TheTucson Sector top brass alongwith attorneys who no doubtwere experts in constitutional lawsat in silence with no visibleexpression of anger or insult, butinstead bore a melancholy coun-tenance, not unlike one drinkingvinegar.Ten truck loads of marijuana

coming undisturbed out of Mexi-co upon reaching Phoenix, Den-ver or your hometown wouldhave a street value of 10 to 15million dollars. Could there besomething fishy going on here?Oh, but wait! I promised to stickto the facts, the facts, the facts,the facts . . . You supply theimagination.

— ED ASHURSTApache, Ariz., April 20, 2012

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The Perils of a Taxpayer in a Foreign Land“The border is not a fence or a line in the dirt . . . it is a third country that joins Mexico and the United States.”

— Quote by David Aguilar, Chief Border Patrol Agent under the Obama-Napolitano regime.

Thirty members of Con-gress from 16 differentstates signed a letter inlate April asking Agricul-

ture Secretary Tom Vilsack toprovide them with the stepsUSDA plans to take to set therecord straight about the safetyof lean finely textured beef(LFTB).“We agree with you that

consumers should always havethe ability to exercise choice inthe marketplace . . . However,in the current environment oframpant and intentional mis-characterization and misinfor-mation, it is incumbent on allof us to ensure consumers areable to make choices that arebased on facts, rather thanemotion and hysteria,” the let-ter stated.The legislators pointed to

job losses and the possibility ofconsumers paying more for

their ground beef.“We have been watching

with great concern as this cam-paign of misinformation hasunfolded and have been partic-ularly concerned about the lossof jobs that’s resulted from it.No company should be forcedto close its doors due to asmear campaign by a fewoverzealous individuals in themedia. LFTB is a safe productand should be promoted assuch,” the legislators wrote. Vilsack appeared with Iowa

Gov. Terry Brandstad onMarch 29 at a news conferencewhere he called the productsafe, healthy and affordable,but defended USDA’s decisionto give school lunch programsthe option to choose groundbeef without LFTB. He saidthat decision reflected USDA’sdual role of ensuring safe foodand to serve customers.

Congressmen lean on Vilsack to set record straight on LFTB

by RITA JANE GABBETT, meatingplace.com

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The issue of “humane” careand treatment of horses hasbecome extremely volatilein New Mexico and across

the nation in recent weeks.Unfortunately, the problem isn’tnearly so recent. The issue hasbeen in the national spotlightlong enough that the Govern-ment Accounting Office (GAO)has had time to do an in-depthstudy, identifying the problemsand pointing out challenges forthe U.S. Department of Agricul-ture as well as horse owners andlovers.What are the options and the

alternatives for unwanted andferal horses? Where does thefunding come from?The focus should be on the

quality of life for horses and theassurance for a humane end oflife. Reality is that regardless oftheir use and the emotions tiedto them. Horses, like all animals,have limited lifetimes.New Mexico currently has

only nine (9) certified horse res-cue operations. There may beothers taking in unwanted hors-es, but only these nine are certi-fied by the New Mexico Live-stock Board who is charged withthe responsibility of humaneoversight of horses and otherlivestock in the state.(http://www.nmlbonline.com/index.php?id=23 )These rescue operations are

not government funded andoperate largely on donations.Not only are these facilities notwell distributed around the state,but capacity is limited. The idealcapacity for the entire group ofcertified rescues is 257 head —those facilities are currentlyholding 266 horses.Immediately prior to a sale,

Southwest Livestock Auctionhouses up to 300 head of horses.Prior to the current investiga-tion, Southwest routinely heldfour sales per month.The cost of maintaining a

horse varies with the age, sizeand condition of animal, but careand feeding just one emaciatedhorse, which is the conditionmost horses are in when rescued,can easily run from $800 to$1,000 per month, according toone rescue owner. Hay alone,which must be supplementedwith grain, vitamins, and miner-als as well as routine health care,presently runs at $300 permonth and up. Maintaining ahealthy horse costs a minimumof $150 per month.Sadly, rescues are finding that

when they do rehabilitate ahorse, there are no permanenthomes available for them. Addi-tionally horses that cannot berehabilitated then must be dis-posed of by the rescue.New Mexico, including tribal

lands, is home to literally tens ofthousands of feral or unwantedhorses. Because of the droughtand current economic conditionsthe problem is growing literally

by the moment. Families whowere once able to maintain hors-es for enjoyment are now havingto choose between caring fortheir families or their animals. ACoggins Test, which is requiredto transport a horse costs $35per head. Farrier or horse-shoe-ing expenses can run from $40 to$120 per month per head forregularly maintained horses, plusmilage. Horses that have beenneglected can be exponentiallyhigher.According to a 2005 survey by

the New Mexico Horse Council,nearly 100,000 New Mexicansare involved in the equine indus-try. Within that group 72 percentof New Mexico horse ownershave an annual householdincome of $75,000 or less. Thereport also states that 76 percentof these owners are 30 to 60years of age with only 13 percentunder the age of 30. When horses can no longer be

cared for, the options for disposi-tion are limited and cost prohibi-tive. While landfills have theoption of accepting animal car-casses, few choose to and theycome with strict requirementsincluding an appointment tobring the carcass, a veterinarycertificate indicating that theanimal did not succumb to aninfectious disease, and paymentof special charges for heavyequipment and operators. Thesecosts can easily add up to $300per horse carcass. That is addedto the cost of euthanasia, whichif done by a licensed veterinariancosts $150 and up. Then the ani-mal must be transported fromits’ location to the landfill, whichcan cost from $180 to $220.On-sight burial requires heavy

equipment and a permit thePublic Regulatory Commission,with unknown impacts to waterquality.Selling unwanted or feral

horses presents an entirely differ-ent set of problems. Accordingto the GAO report, the price ofhorses has dropped dramaticallysince 2007 because there is littlesalvage value due to limitedoptions for marketing. Manyauction markets will not evenaccept horses and most of thosewho do will accept only thosethat are in healthy condition.The markets that do accept hors-es in lesser condition find thatthey soon are the recipients ofnumerous horses that are left,often in the dead of night whichplaces a greater burden on limit-ed Livestock Board resources.Horses that go through auc-

tion markets that are not pur-chased as working or pleasurehorses are destined for slaughterplants in Mexico. Those animalsare loaded onto trailers averaging30 head or more and trucked tothe Mexico border. There theyare unloaded and put on anothertruck to cross the internationalborder. They are unloaded andput on yet another truck to travel

up to 17 hours into the interior ofMexico for slaughter. Once theanimals cross into Mexico, theyare not subject to any US over-sight and many of these plantsare not subject to inspections.Mexico will not accept intact

studs (males) or pregnant mares.Feral or unwanted studs must becastrated, which if done by a vet-erinarian, can cost $300 perhead. If not done by a veterinari-an, there are sanitary and recov-ery time issues. Mares are oftenallowed to foal, with the off-spring left behind when shipped.Numerous unwanted horses

are merely hauled to an openspace — including private, feder-al, tribal or state lands. Therethey are either turned loose tofend for themselves or perhaps

shot on-sight. These horses creategrave concern for livestock own-ers and managers due to thepotential for disease transmission.Individual reports are that horsesare routinely abandoned on triballands near Albuquerque leavingthe tribes to deal with disposal.Because of New Mexico’s

border with Mexico, the state isrecipient of unwanted horsesfrom the entire nation. This com-pounds the number of horses indistress that New Mexico ishome to.There are numerous other

facets to the current unwantedor feral horse problem that willrequire more in-depth considera-tion. Under the current droughtwith little water and forage avail-able horses are doing an incredi-ble amount of resource damage.Horse hooves have an entirelydifferent impact on the groundthe travel than cloven hoofedanimals, compacting the soilrather than breaking it. Horsesare also in competition with oth-

er domestic livestock and wildifefor scare resources. On the subject of animal cru-

elty investigations, New Mexicostatistics follow the results foundby the GAO. The New MexicoLivestock Board reports the fol-lowing animal cruelty investiga-tions from 2004 to present. Thevast majority of these were hors-es. Not all of the investigationswere founded, but required timeand resources none the less.

2004 – 53 2005 – 382006 – 56 2007 – 412008 – 117 2009 – 1282010 – 90 July 2011 to

Mar 2012 – 91

The Board changed over tofiscal year statistics in 2011, sothis number is skewed becausethe first 6 months of 2011 arenot reported. The estimated cal-endar year number for 2011would be well over 100.

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Farm Credit Bank of Texas Reports Solid Earnings and Asset Growth

Farm Credit Bank of Texas (FCBT), awholesale funding bank, reported anincrease in loan volume during the firstquarter of 2012.

The bank’s gross loan portfolio totaled $10.6billion at March 31, 2012, up 3.3 percent sinceDec. 31, 2011. This growth was attributed pri-marily to increases in the bank’s participationsloan portfolio, offset by a decrease in the bank’sdirect loans to its affiliated lending cooperatives.The quality of the loan portfolio also

improved, with 93.8 percent of total loans clas-sified as acceptable or other assets especiallymentioned at March 31, 2012, compared with91.2 percent at Dec. 31, 2011. Nonaccrual loanvolume decreased 13.1 percent during the quar-ter to $89.2 million at March 31, 2012.FCBT net income for the first three months

of 2012 was $34.2 million, a decrease of 18.1

percent from the same period of 2011. Thedecrease was mainly attributable to a decreasein net interest income, due primarily to conces-sion expenses on debt that was called andreplaced with lower-cost debt, and to anincrease in provision for credit losses.“Farm Credit Bank of Texas is pleased to

report solid earnings and growth in our loanportfolio during this sluggish period for thefinancial sector,” said Larry Doyle, FCBT chiefexecutive officer.“Although many farmers and ranchers are

still feeling the impact of last year’s drought aswell as higher operating costs this year, agricul-ture remains a bright spot in the nation’s econ-omy,” added FCBT Board Chairman JimmyDodson. Shareholders’ equity totaled $1.2 billion at

March 31, 2012, an increase of 2.8 percent.

Equine Welfare: What IS Humane?PERSPECTIVE FROM THE NEW MEXICO CATTLE GROWERS’ ASSOCIATION AND NEW MEXICO FARM & LIVESTOCK BUREAU

continued on page twelve

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Avid readers of mystery andWestern lore have longenjoyed the ventures ofKevin Kerney in modern

day New Mexico which providea tremendous view of the land-scapes and the issues that West-erners face today through hiseyes. Hard Country goes back intime to begin the story of howKerney’s family came to ranch inthe Land of Enchantment.The story vividly captures the

hardships and challenges of JohnKerney becoming a father andwidower and losing a brotherand nephew all in the same day.The epic that follows trails Ker-ney as he abandons his strug-gling West Texas ranch to find

the killers. That journey takeshim to the far corners of theNew Mexico Territory in the late1800s and leads to settlement inthe vast lands west of the Sacra-mento Mountains. That region ishome not only to the MescaleroApache Tribe, but to many ofthe legends that shaped NewMexico as it gained entry intothe Union. Michael McGarrityskillfully weaves all of that intoHard Country. The depth ofreality in both geography andhistory demonstrate the carewhich McGarrity has taken toresearch all facets of the timesand area greatly adds to theenjoyment of the bookAlong the way to avenging his

brother’s family, Kerney lost andthen found his son, developedlife-long friendships and foundeda ranch that would carry genera-tions forward. Hard Countryexceeds those Western historynovels that preceed it. Not onlyis it a tale of the West, but thestory explores the tri-culture,personal character and relation-ships that built the West, rangingfrom single parenthood anddivided homes to living with thevagaries of Mother Nature.Hard Country leaves the

reader anxious for more abouthow Emma Kerney, John’sdaughter-in-law, who sufferedher own trials and tribulationsbefore marrying into the family.Emma and her sons hold thereins of the Kerney ranch andfuture as the as the first of thetrilogy concludes in the early1900s. It is a book that is hard toput down and definitely worthreading.

TO SUPPORT THESE CAUSES AND MORE, JOIN US!

I am/our organization is committed to protecting the open spaces, private property, private businesses & ensuring theresponsible use of public lands. Please list me/my organization as a member of the Western Legacy Alliance.

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What They are Saying About Us…• The $206,098,920 Endangered Species Act Settlement Agreements — Is all that paperwork worth it?

• Leveling the Playing Field: Support for the Grazing Improvement Act of 2011

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Working to Protect the Rich Tapestry of the West

saved Yosemite.”“You may not want to believe

it but I assure you it’s true. I justfinished reading a book aboutMuir. He was an accomplishedman and besides founding theSierra Club he invented a wood-en alarm clock that would tipyou out of bed at the desiredhour. But where he really madehis money was as a rancher. Youknow, just like me.”She turned scarlet, which did

not go well with her green outfit,and tried to evade me but I fol-lowed her to paper products. I didmy best impression of a chainsawbefore saying, “Muir was quite acapitalist, you know? He actuallyinvented another machine thatmade 2,500 broom handles a day.But I’m sure you know all thisbecause you have his face embla-zoned across your body. Justimagine, John Muir made hismoney herding cows so he couldone day start the Sierra Club.”Again, she wheeled her cart

away and I didn't run into heragain until she tried to run intome. Literally. She was in petfoods buying bird seed for herfeathered friends. “I’m sure youknow that John James Audubon’sfamily in America owned a leadmine where they mined lead for

bullets?” (Here I did my greatimpression of a Thompsonmachine gun!) Then I really laidit on: “Audubon was quite ahunter and fisherman too?”“No, he painted birds, he did-

n’t sh-sh-shoot them,” she ragedat me.“Before he painted them he

shot them from the sky. You did-n’t think he got such great detailby observing them through alooking glass, did you? He wasalso a taxidermist and created hisown nature museum of a varietyof dead animals that he killed.”By now I was only talking to

myself as my greenie friend lefther loaded cart in the store andran outside. Too bad too becauseI also wanted to tell her that AlGore, the father of Global Warm-ing and the man who said gassycows caused it, was the son of acattle breeder himself, and thatBruce Babbitt, the man who triedto run ranchers out of business,came from one of the great ranch-ing families in America. But I gotthe impression she really didn’twant to hear any more about herGods of Green. So I took thefudge bars from her abandonedcart and rushed them home to myfreezer before they began to melt.Global warming, you know?

Riding Herd CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE

Equine Welfare continued from page eleven

Since the USDA stoppedinspection at horse slaughterplans in the U.S. in 2007, NewMexico’s cruelty investigationshave doubled on an annual.Because of the varied nature

of these investigations, it isimpossible to provide a cost tothe Livestock Board and theranchers in New Mexico whofund the Board through inspec-tions and mill levys even thoughthe investigations are on behalfof all New Mexicans.That GAO report entitled

HORSE WELFARE: ActionNeeded to Address UnintendedConsequences from Cessation ofDomestic Slaughter was pub-lished in June 2011 and can belocated at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11228.pdf . In briefhere is the object of the reportand findings on cruelty.Since fiscal year 2006, Con-

gress has annually prohibited theuse of federal funds to inspecthorses destined for food, effec-tively prohibiting domesticslaughter. The U.S. Departmentof Agriculture (USDA) isresponsible for overseeing thewelfare of horses transported forslaughter.In 2007, Congress directed

GAO to examine horse welfaresince cessation of domesticslaughter. GAO examined (1)the effect on the U.S. horse mar-ket, if any, since cessation; (2)any impact of these marketchanges on horse welfare and onstates, local governments, tribes,and animal welfare organizations;and (3) challenges, if any, toUSDA’s oversight of the trans-port and welfare of U.S. horsesexported for slaughter. GAO

analyzed horse price and ship-ping data, and interviewed offi-cials from USDA, state and localgovernments, tribes, the livestockindustry, and animal welfareorganizations, and reviewed doc-uments they provided.”GAO found that since

domestic horse slaughter ceasedin 2007, the slaughter horse mar-ket has shifted to Canada andMexico. From 2006 through2010, U.S. horse exports forslaughter increased by 148 and660 percent to Canada andMexico, respectively. As a result,nearly the same number of U.S.horses was transported to Cana-da and Mexico for slaughter in2010 — nearly 138,000 — as wasslaughtered before domesticslaughter ceased in the U.S.Comprehensive, national data

are lacking, but state, local gov-ernment, and animal welfareorganizations report a rise ininvestigations for horse neglectand more abandoned horsessince 2007. For example, Col-orado data showed that investi-gations for horse neglect andabuse increased more than 60percent from 975 in 2005 to1,588 in 2009. Also, California,Texas, and Florida reported morehorses abandoned on private orstate land since 2007. Thesechanges have strained resources,according to state data and offi-cials that GAO interviewed.USDA faces three broad chal-

lenges in overseeing the welfareof horses during transport toslaughter. First, among othermanagement challenges, the cur-rent transport regulation onlyapplies to horses transporteddirectly to slaughtering facilities.

Book Review By Caren Cowan

Hard Country BY MICHAEL MCGARRITY • ISBN number: 978-0-525-95246-6

ON SALE MAY 10, 2012

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by MIRANDA REIMAN

Right now, it’s hard to imag-ine how future tools willchange the beef cowherd.

Today, heifer developmentcosts are high and getting higheras ranch profit goals demandefficiency while consumers wantquality.DNA technology is one of the

emerging solutions for beef pro-duction, in line with the role ithas played in agronomy.“It takes so much time to

develop a herd of cattle — a life-time, honestly — that’s designedto be feed-efficient or have high

reproduction,” says Cody Jor-gensen, of Jorgensen Land andCattle, Ideal, So.Dak. “The moreknowledge you have about DNAto help you make the right deci-sion, the better.”His family has DNA-tested

standout Angus bulls and donorcows for years, but he plans tostep it up a notch this fall.“It’s going to be a tremendous

tool to add, along with the quan-titative genetic research that wedo,” Jorgensen says. Andalthough the registered cattleworld will be quicker to use thetool, he says the new lower-densi-ty, lower-cost tests “could impactcommercial cattle heavily.”

Policies to reduce globalwarming may be doingmore harm than good topublic health in both devel-

oping and industrialised countries.This is the conclusion of a newreport published by the GlobalWarming Policy Foundation.In his report, Dr. Indur Gok-

lany, a leading expert on humanhealth and climate change,shows that

� Global warming does notcurrently rank among the toppublic health threats;

� The contribution of much-publicized ‘Extreme WeatherEvents’ to global mortality isnegligible and declining;

� Poverty is a much largerpublic health threat than globalwarming;

� Present climate policies arealready adding to death and dis-ease; and

� Focused adaptation to cli-mate change and/or economicdevelopment would provide greaterhealth benefits at lower costs thanclimate mitigation policies.The report warns that exag-

gerating the impact of globalwarming on human health seri-ously risks misdirecting theworld’s priorities and resourcesin combating poverty andimproving public health.“Climate policies that hinder

or slow down economic develop-ment or increase the price ofenergy and food threaten to aug-ment poverty and, as a result,increase net death and disease,”Dr Goklany said.The increase in biofuel pro-

duction between 2004 and 2010,for example, is estimated to haveincreased the population inabsolute poverty in the develop-ing world by over 35 million,leading to about 200,000 addi-tional deaths in 2010 alone.“Focused adaptation designed

to reduce vulnerability morebroadly to today’s urgent healthproblems would deliver greaterreductions in deaths at a lowercost than climate mitigation poli-cies,” Dr Goklany added.

A full copy of the report is available at:http://thegwpf.org/ images/stories/gwpf-reports/goklany-public_health.pdf.

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By far the most common response to providingair quality control has been command-and-control regulations where the governmentdecides what actions shall be taken by individ-

uals and organizations to meet the environmentalobjective and enforces them with its police powers,says Gary D. Libecap of the Hoover Institution.There are several fundamental problems with this

approach that limit its effectiveness and exacerbateits negative impacts.Regulators do not have the information required

to set a cap on the right amount of air pollution, andthis lends itself to inefficient regulatory actions.Furthermore, because regulators do not have the

correct information, they typically mandate uniformtechnologies or performance standards for all partiesthat inhibit flexibility and retard market forces’adaptability.Finally, because the ultimate decision usually lies

with an agency expert, it is susceptible to manipulationby those with a vested interest and political inroads.An alternative form of environmental regulation

that maximizes flexibility for market participants is acap-and-trade system that allows strong propertyrights on issued permits.The way this works is that, in the case of air pollu-

New Report: Global Warming PoliciesMight Be Bad For Your Health

DNA: an arriving tool for beef cattle“Data is a power,” he says.

“You get a lot of cost and timeand energy stuck into a bredfemale, and every day that it maybe in the wrong group, it’s veryexpensive. If a guy knew early ina calf’s life if it had the abilitieswe want, it would definitelyimprove the costs of raisingreplacement heifers.”Larry Kuehn, geneticist at the

USDA, Agricultural ResearchService, Meat Animal ResearchCenter in Clay Center, Neb.,says DNA is the best forecastingtool available right now foryoung calves.“It basically helps you skip

time,” he says. “You’re trying to

increase your accuracy earlier.It’s potentially cheaper to pay fora test to increase accuracy whena bull is born, for example, ver-sus waiting for it to be ultra-sounded itself, and especiallywaiting for it to be progeny-test-ed.”The technology has gotten

better and cheaper in the lastfive years, says Bill Bowman,American Angus AssociationCOO and president of AngusGenetics Inc. “With some of thevery early DNA tests, we wereusing individual genes or individ-ual markers and in many casesthey didn’t account for verymuch of the genetic variations.”Researchers streamlined the

process when they began lookingat changes in the DNA sequence— or “snips” (from single-nucleotide polymorphisms,SNPs) — and how they impactspecific traits. That’s when the50K tests were born, looking at50,000 of these snips.Scientists hope that even

higher-density tests and genome

continued on page fourteention, the total annual amount of allowable emissionsis set by a regulator.The regulator subsequently issues permits to firms

in the market that they can trade in to allow a givenamount of emissions.This is the limit of the agency’s participation in

the regulation — the market will then adapt as firmsseek to reduce their emissions levels.The total number of allowable emission shares

can be reduced each year until the desired cap orpollution objective is met.Crucially, firms can trade permits, allowing those

with high pollution control costs to buy shares fromothers that have lower control costs.By placing the ball in the court of the firms and

providing them ample flexibility in meeting emissionsstandards, the incentive to protect the environmentis internalized into the firm’s decision making.Regulation through this mechanism captures the

inherent creativity and innovativeness of the marketto meet emissions goals: firms that can create new,emissions-reducing technologies will be rewarded,while those with little interest in that endeavor cansimply pay for additional permits.

Source: Gary D. Libecap, "The Pollution Solution," Hoover Institution,April 23, 2012.

The Pollution Solution

sequencing will allow them tofind “functional mutations,” thespecific points of differentiationfrom one animal to another.That will be important in tryingto apply DNA tests acrossbreeds, Kuehn says. The accuracy of the high-den-

sity tests improves confidence inmore basic, less-expensive onesthat draw on a reduced numberof snips. An example is Gene-Max®, from Certified AngusBeef LLC, that evaluates gainand grade potential in commer-cial Angus cattle. Today, DNA works especially

well in predicting carcass traits.“The genetic correlations

derived at AGI suggest that 30percent to 40 percent of the vari-ation within a given carcass EPDis explained by available genomictests,” Kuehn says, adding thatthere are other profit-relatedtraits of interest as well. Repro-duction, longevity and animal

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Farms & Ranches

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DAVID P. DEANRanch: 432/426-3779 • Mob.: 432/634-0441

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Missouri Land Sales� 675 Ac. Grass Runway, Land your own plane: Major Price Reduction. 3-br, 2ba home down 1 mile private land. New 40x42 shop,40x60 livestock barn, over 450 ac. in grass. (Owner runs over 150cow/calves, 2 springs, 20 ponds, 2 lakes, consisting of 3.5 and 2 ac. Bothstocked with fish. Excellent fencing. A must farm to see. MSL #1112191

� NEW LISTING, 327 ACRES: Cattle/horse ranch. Over 225 acres ingrass. 3/4 mile State Hwy. frontage. Live water, 60x80 multi-functionbarn. 2-bedroom, 1-bath rock home. Priced to sell at $1,620 per acre. MLS #1204641

� 483 Ac., Hunter Mania: Nature at her best. Don’t miss out on this one. Live water (two creeks). 70+ acresopen in bottom hayfields and upland grazing. Lots of timber (marketable and young) for the best hunting andfishing (Table Rock, Taney Como and Bull Shoals Lake) Really cute 3-bd., 1-ba stone home. Secluded yes, buteasy access to Forsyth-Branson, Ozark and Springfield. Property joins National Forest. MLS#1108090

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972/287-4548 • 214/676-69731-800/671-4548

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• 735 acres Paris, Texas, excellent pasture,paved road frontage, huge lake, mansionhome. $2,750,000.

• 274 acres in the shadow of Dallas. Secludedlakes, trees, excellent grass. Hunting & fishing,dream home sites. $3,550/ac. Can add 300more acres, only 30 miles out of Dallas.

• 1,700-acre classic NE TX cattle & huntingranch. $2,750/ac. Some mineral production.

• 256 Acre Texas Jewel – Deep sandy soil, high-rolling hills, scattered good quality trees, & ex-cellent improved grasses. Water line on 2 sidesrd., frontage on 2 sides, fenced into 5 pastures,5 spring fed tanks and lakes, deer, hogs &ducks. Near Tyler & Athens. Price $1,920,000.Make us an offer!

• 146 horse, hunting cattle ranch N. ofClarksville, TX. Red River Co. nice brick home,2 barns, pipe fences, good deer, hogs, ducks,hunting. PRICE REDUCED to $375,000.

• 535 ac. Limestone, Fallas, & Robertson coun-ties, fronts on Hwy. 14 and has rail frontagewater line, to ranch, fenced into 5 pastures, 2sets, cattle pens, loamy soil, good quality trees,hogs, and deer hunting. Priced reduced to$1,750 per ac.

• 10 Wooded Acres with a 6-bedroom, 3.5 bathand a 2-car garage and shop for $199,000.

• 134 acres Wortham, Texas, $1,750/ac. Hunt-ing and cattle. Fronts FM Hwy.

Ben G. Scott & Krystal M. Nelson, Brokers1301 Front St., Dimmitt, TX 790271-800/933-9698 day/night

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ATTENTION LAND OWNERS: We have sold ranches and other related properties in the Southwestern United States since 1966. We advertise extensively and need your listings (especially larger ranches). See our websites and please give us a call to discuss the listing of your property.

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· 6,520 Deeded Acres · 14,988 State Lease Acres· 8,640 BLM Acres · 650 Animal Units Year Long· 1/ 2 sand country, 1/ 2 hard country· Good water; windmills & submergible tanks· Extensive pipeline system· Modest improvements for living quarters

UNITED COUNTRY VISTA NUEVA, INC.Charles Bennett • 575/356-5616www.vista-nueva.com

JU-Ranch 30,148 Acres

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Associated Professionals, Inc.1205 West Pierce Street, Carlsbad, NM 88220

Business 575/885-9722 • Cellular: 575/706-4533Fax: 575/885-1358 • Email: [email protected]

Jake Marbach,Broker

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Coletta Ray • 575/799-9600 • [email protected] Ashford Dr., Clovis, NM 88101

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320 acres approx 10 miles northof Clovis, N.M. 2 irrigation wells

with no pumps. Wells are not guaranteed, but the wells are registered with the state

engineer. Leased until December 31, 2012. $178,000.

Call Coletta 575-799-9600.

Arroyo Sanchez Ranch: Villanueva, N.M.: ±2,000 acres has 160 deeded acresand a huge New Mexico state grazing lease. Partially fenced, several good dirttanks, one pipeline drinker and good pasture grasses. Price is $398,750.

Sombrero Ranch, Trujillo, N.M.: 1,442 deeded acres has 2 pastures on Hwy. 84S of Trujillo. Perimeter fenced, 3 good cold water wells, 2 dirt tanks and springsin the coolie. This has been a successful 30 cow/calf operation for many years.$445 per acre.

Apache Mesa Ranch Parcels, Las Vegas, N.M.: 120 acres and one 64 acre viewparcel located on Apache Mesa Rimrock are priced $140,000 and $79,000. 120acre parcel is perimeter fenced and has two good tanks.

Ledoux, N.M.: 65-acre dry land terraced farm is perimeter fenced, has overheadelectric on site. Past crops are winter wheat, spring oats, alfalfa, barley and feedgrasses. ~7 acres is sub-irrigated. Located 1/2-mile north of Ledoux. Great viewsand easy access. Price is $270,000

Ribera, N.M.: 77 tall pine covered acres has 50 gpm and 10 gpm water wells, drillpipe fence, good CR access, gated. Close to National Forest. Priced at $374,900

Apache Springs, N.M.: Moon Dance Ranch 140 acre parcel has good access,overhead electric on site. Located off Hwy. 84 SW of Las Vegas. Great views ofApache Mesa! Price is $119,900.

Wind Farm potential on an 1,100-acre parcel coming soon . . .

KEN AHLER REAL ESTATE CO., INC.1435 S. St. Francis Drive, Suite 210, Santa Fe, NM 87505Ofc.: 505/989-7573 • Toll Free: 888/989-7573 • Mobile: 505/490-0220Email: [email protected] • Website: www.SantaFeLand.com

Selling New

Mexico

RICHARD RANDALSQualifying Broker

TOM SIDWELL Associate Broker

We may not be the biggest, the fanciest or the oldest but we are reliable and have the tools.

O: 575/461-4426 • C: 575/403-7138 • F: 575/461-8422 • E: [email protected] • 615 West Rt. 66, Tucumcari, NM 88401

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4,408± Deeded acres with 328± State Lease. Ranch is located 21 miles west of Tucumcari, N.M. Well-improved ranch, 2,000 sq. ft. home, 2 sets

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health top the wish list.“Just a few percentage

changes in fertility would have amuch higher impact in whole-system profitability than most ofthese carcass measures we’retalking about,” he says.The Angus breed is working

on measuring longevity and sur-vivability currently.“Once you get data and ways

to measure traits like that, then aDNA test is soon to follow,”Bowman says.Jorgensen dreams of a system

similar to what has shaped thecrop side of their business.“If we could genetically select

for all the things that challengeus — if that’s the fescue grass orthe elevation — if we couldunderstand DNA that couldhandle that type of environmentor that was resistant to respirato-ry disease — just imagine that. Itwould be a game changer.” E. coli resistance. Fertility.

Ability to handle “hot” rations.

Tests for these traits are all onthe horizon.“Any places we can increase

efficiency by selling one morecalf, because we have one morefertile female,” Kuehn says, “orhave one more calf sold forslaughter because he made itthrough the feedlot without res-piratory disease, or fewer food-borne pathogens are advanta-geous — those sorts of changesare a boon for the industry interms of perception and environ-mental footprint.”Jorgensen has been pulling

DNA samples for their files,“just in case” they want to ana-lyze them. “It’s not like the poultry or

swine business where they cando 2.4 turns per year,” he says.“You just can’t make that muchprogress in a year’s time. It’s crit-ical to know whether those cattlewill do it or not.”It matters to individual ranch-

ers and to those further downthe beef production chain.“Meat demand is not going

down, especially worldwide,Kuehn says. “It’ll take focus ifwe’re going to keep beef compet-itive to other protein sources.”

DNA: an arriving tool continued from page thirteen

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www.vista-nueva.com

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British environmentalexpert James Lovelocknow admits he was an“alarmist” regarding global

warming — and says Al Gorewas too.Lovelock previously worked for

NASA and became a guru to theenvironmental movement with his“Gaia” theory of the Earth as asingle organism. In 2007 Timemagazine named Lovelock one ofits “Heroes of the Environment,”and he won the Geological Socie-ty of London’s Wollaston Medalin 2006 for his writings on theGaia theory.That year he wrote an article

in a British newspaper asserting

that “before this century is overbillions of us will die and the fewbreeding pairs of people that sur-vive will be in the Arctic wherethe climate remains tolerable.”But in an interview this week

with MSNBC, Lovelock said abook he is now writing willreflect his new opinion that glob-al warming has not occurred ashe had expected.“The problem is we don’t

know what the climate is doing,”he said. “We thought we knew20 years ago. That led to somealarmist books — mine included— because it looked clear-cut,but it hasn’t happened.“The climate is doing its usual

tricks. There’s nothing muchreally happening yet. We weresupposed to be halfway toward afrying world now.“The world has not warmed

up very much since the millenni-um. Twelve years is a reasonabletime. [The temperature] hasstayed almost constant, whereasit should have been rising. Car-bon dioxide is rising, no questionabout that.“We will have global warming,

but it’s been deferred a bit.”MSNBC reported: “He point-

ed to Gore’s An InconvenientTruth and Tim Flannery’s TheWeather Makers as other exam-ples of ‘alarmist’ forecasts of thefuture.”Lovelock also declared in the

interview that “as an independ-ent and a loner,” he did not mindsaying, “All right, I made a mis-take,” adding that university orgovernment scientists might fearthat admission of such a mistakecould jeopardize their funding.In response to Lovelock’s

interview, the Climate Depotwebsite stated: “MSNBC, per-haps the most unlikely of newssources, reports on what may beseen as the official end of themanmade global warming fearmovement.”

RED ANGUS

angus

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CLAY SCHUSTER • [email protected]/773-6051 Home • 541/980-7464 Cell

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g•u•i•d•eTo list your herd, call CAREN COWAN

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BLACK-TAILED PRAIRIEDOG PROBLEMS? Don’t risk having to do itover again with ineffectiveproducts. Rozol Prairie Dog Bait is a restricted-usepesticide approved for useby state certified applicatorson blacktailed prairie dogs

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Facing rising gas prices,American auto consumersare increasingly flocking tohybrids and plug-in cars as

a means to escape the financialpain. However, studies incorpo-rating mileage performance andcosts associated with differentmodels suggest that many ofthese options do not yield suffi-cient savings to justify theupfront price premium, says theNew York Times.Consumer patterns in car use

and reasonable expectations offuture gas prices suggest stronglythat many of these models wouldhave to be driven for many yearsbefore purchasers would breakeven.

� The average consumerdrives a new vehicle for six years.

� Yet if gas cost $4 a gallon,TrueCar data estimates that thepayback period for a hybrid FordFusion over the conventionalFusion would be eight and a halfyears.

� Similarly, a buyer whochose the plug-in Nissan Leafinstead of a conventional NissanVersa would need to drive it foralmost nine years at today’s gasprices in order to eclipse the$10,000 difference in price.

� For many models, gaswould have to approach $8 a gal-lon before they could be expect-ed to pay off in the six-year aver-age window.

The reality of these disap-pointing statistics likely explainsmany of the mixed results thatthe new fleet of vehicles has seenin the market.

� Though hybrid sales havesurged more than 60 percent thisyear, they still account for lessthan 3 percent of the total market.

� Plug-in cars represent aminuscule fraction of sales, andGeneral Motors even halted pro-duction of the Chevrolet Volt inresponse to less demand than itexpected.

� The Lundberg Survey, whichtracks fuel prices, said in Marchthat gas prices would need toreach $12.50 a gallon and $8.53 agallon for the plug-in Volt andLeaf, respectively, to make sensepurely on financial terms.Still, market analysts are

quick to point out two importantcaveats.First, the starkness of the fig-

ures involved is not a perfect sci-ence — gas prices may vary sub-stantially in the near future orconsumer driving habits mayexceed assumed levels.Second, demand for plug-ins

and hybrids is not determinedentirely by financial sense, assome consumers accept the pricepremium in the name of benefit-ting the environment.

Source: Nick Bunkley, “Payoff for Efficient CarsTakes Years,” New York Times, April 4, 2012.

Payoff for efficient cars takes years

Climate change alarmist recants: ‘I made a mistake’

Aforest and range field trip is planned for Tuesday, June26, 2012 to coincide with summer meetings of the NewMexico Cattle Growers and the New Mexico Associationof Conservation Districts. The tour leaves from the front

entrance of the Inn of the Mountain Gods near Ruidoso at 1p.m. and returns by 5 p.m. Led by Dan Abercrombie of theMescalero Apache Department of Resource Management, thetrip will feature forest thinning projects and watershed manage-ment plans. Groundwater well and solar pump systems will alsobe included. This tour is part of an initiative for regional rangeresource management tours sponsored by the New Mexico sec-tion of the Society for Range Management and the the NewMexico Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative to look at range-land improvement projects around the state. For more detailsand information contact Dan Abercrombie (dan@ mescalero-drmp.net) or Tony Benson ([email protected])

June 26 Mescalero Reservation Range and Forest Field Trip

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It’s official, the MesalandsCommunity College Men’sRodeo Team clinched theGrand Canyon Regional

Championship title, for the sec-ond consecutive year, at therodeo at New Mexico State Uni-versity (NMSU) in Las Cruces,NM last weekend. The Women’sTeam also had their best year, fin-ishing second in the region with3,801.50 points. The Men’s Teamrecently broke their own NationalIntercollegiate Rodeo Association(NIRA) record this season, byearning 1,357.5 points in Crown-point, the most points earned at asingle rodeo. The Men’s Teamhas done it again and set anothernational record for the mostpoints earned during a single sea-son, with a total of 9,707.5 pointsearned this season.“We beat the record close to

1,000 points. The national officeis still auditing the points, butgoing into the last rodeo we onlyneeded 7.5 points to beat thenational record,” C.J. Aragon,Intercollegiate Rodeo Coach atMesalands said.Last year was the first time in

the program’s history, that theCollege won a regional champi-onship title, ending NMSU’seight-year winning streak. Win-ning the regional title two-yearsin a row demonstrates howremarkable the Mesalands RodeoTeam has performed andimproved over the years.“It’s pretty nice to be able to

defend our Team title. Manypeople might have thought wewere just lucky last year, but afterwinning two years in a row in apretty convincing fashion, it legit-imizes our Team and our rank-ings as the current number oneteam in the nation,” Aragon said.In Las Cruces, the Men’s

Team finished in first place with1,025 points and brought homefour individual championshiptitles. The Women’s Team tooksecond place with 480 points andwon one championship title.Freshmen Macy Fuller, from

Clarkston Wash., has led theMesalands Women’s Team thisseason.Fuller took the championship

title in the team roping, headingfor fellow teammate Daniel

Munoz-Boezi from Chihuahua,Mexico. Fuller also finished sec-ond in the Women’s All-Around,and fifth in the barrel racing. Asthe top female rodeo recruit lastyear, Fuller has performed asexpected this season.Fuller finished first in the

region in the Women’s All-Around, second in goat tying,third in breakaway roping, fourthin the team roping (header),event and eighth in barrel racing.“It’s difficult because I ride

four horses and I have six horseshere that I have to keep in shape.It’s especially hard to focus whenyour mind is racing around aboutteam roping, breakaway, goattying, and then turn around andget on a barrel horse. You justhave to stay focused,” Fuller said.“I feel pretty good about my per-formance this spring. In the fall Ididn’t really have any points inany events, so I had to makethose up this semester. This yearhas been a great experience.”Nationally, Fuller is currently

ranked first in the Women’s All-Around, 10th in goat tying, and20th in the breakaway event.

Sophomore Fran Marchandof Omak, WA has consistentlyperformed well this season. Lastweekend Marchand won twoindividual championship titles,the Men’s All-Around and thebareback riding title. He also fin-ished fourth in the saddle broncriding.Marchand finished the season

first in the region in the Men’sAll-Around and first in the bullriding and took third in barebackriding and saddle bronc riding.He is also currently leading thenation in the Men’s All-Around,fifth in bull riding, 10th in saddlebronc riding, and 15th in thenation in bareback riding.Freshman Jordan Minor of

Navasota, Texas also shined thisseason finishing first in theregion in the tie down roping.Minor is currently ranked 15th inthe nation in tie down roping.Other individual regional year-

end standings include:Christian Stremler, 2nd Sad-

dle Bronc Riding; Ty Nuffer, 4thSaddle Bronc Riding; ChaseMassengill, 2nd Steer Wrestling,4th place in Men’s All-Around,8th place in Tie Down Roping,12th place in Team RopingHeader; Austin Woods, 5th placein Steer Wrestling, 9th place in

Men’s All-Around, 9th place inTeam Roping (Header); CodyHeffernan, 4th in Bull Riding;Adriano Long, 7th place in BullRiding; Kody Decker, 10th placein Bull Riding; James Hayes,12th place in Bull Riding; JesusGonzalez, 13th place in Bull Rid-ing; KC Peterson, 5th place inBareback Riding; Kit Pettigrew,2nd place in Tie Down Roping;Hayden Moore, 3rd place SteerWrestling; Tyler McCormick, 6thplace in Steer Wrestling; LaneWilson, 7th place in SteerWrestling; Cody Lensman, 10thplace in Steer Wrestling; TylerVirden, 11th place in SteerWrestling; James Ellet, 12thplace in Steer Wrestling; ChazKananen, 7th place in TeamRoping Header (Header); DanielMunoz-Baeza, 4th place in TeamRoping (Heeler); Daniel Robert-son, 7th place in Team Roping(Heeler); Dillon Archuleta, 13thplace in Team Roping (Heeler);Shelby Rita, 3rd place in BarrelRacing; Bailey Bates, 4th place inBreakaway Roping; Emily Wool-bright; 8th place in BreakawayRoping; Meghan Fewins, 14thplace in Breakaway Roping; Kel-bee Cheeney, 12th place in GoatTying.

News With A View &A Whole Lot More . . .

THE most effective advertising medium in ranching today!

To plan your advertising, contact Caren Cowan at:[email protected] or 505/243-9515, ext. 21

On the web at www.nmagriculture.org

Deliver your message NOW in the

Livestock Market Digest!

If you have livestock, a product or service that stockmen and their families need, they will find outabout it quickly if you advertise in the Digest. Digest

readers know value when they see it and they respondrapidly to a good offer.

Before you plan your advertising budget, think hardabout how to stretch your dollars and where they are spentthe most efficiently. Are you paying more to reach fewerqualified potential customers than you would receive in the Digest? The Digest’s circulation is concentrated in themost important livestock producing states: Nebraska,Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Idaho, California,Oregon, Washington and Texas.

The Digest caters to the most active readers in thelivestock world — who ARE the buyers and sellers oflivestock, the ones who show up and speak up. It is the ONLY place to get Lee Pitts’ perspective on the world and how we are going to thrive into the future.

by ROD BOYCE, newsminer.com

Ranking Republican U.S. Senator LisaMurkowski, Alaska, led the her party invoting against allowing President Obama’snominee for assistant secretary of the Inte-

rior Department to proceed to the full Senate fora confirmation vote in late April.The nomination of Marcilynn Burke as assis-

tant secretary for lands and minerals was in frontof the Senate Energy and Natural ResourcesCommittee. Burke has been serving in that posi-tion in an acting capacity, pending confirmation.Murkowski said she objected to the Burke’s

past association with Defenders of Wildlife, anational organization that has filed lawsuits overAlaska wildlife issues. Murkowski also objects toBurke’s effort to consolidate the Bureau of LandManagement and the Office of Surface MiningReclamation and Enforcement, agencies of theInterior Department.“I have concerns about Ms. Burke’s nomina-

tion from a number of standpoints, including herrole in the proposed OSM-BLM consolidationand her involvement in litigation interfering inthe wildlife management decisions of Alaska,”Murkowski said in a news release. “These con-cerns, and others, have caused me to oppose hernomination.”“The official reason given for the consolida-

tion has been administrative efficiency but afterfive months of repeatedly asking for estimates onthe costs and savings, we have still received noth-ing,” Murkowski said. “Given the generally insuf-ficient level of communication about the consol-idation, I have serious concerns about howforthcoming and collaborative Ms. Burke wouldbe if confirmed.”The energy committee approved forwarding

the nomination, with all Republicans in opposi-tion. The nomination goes to the full Senate,where Republicans may again try to block confir-mation.

May 2012

15-16 – Indian Livestock Days, Rt 66 Casino west ofAlbuquerque18-19 – Navajo Equine Days, Window Rock, AZ21-24 – ANCW 2012 Joint Region V & VI Meeting,Kohala Coast, HI

June 2012

3-8 – N.M. Youth Ranch Management Camp, Valles Caldera National Preserve21-23 – Texas Cattle Feeders Association SummerConference, Mescalero, NM24-26 – Mid-Year Meeting New Mexico CattleGrowers’ Assn; New Mexico Wool Growers, Inc.; New Mexico CowBelles; New Mexico Farm &Livestock Bureau, Mescalero, N.M.

July 2012

13-14 – HMI Cows & Quail Workshop, Van Horn, TX17-19 – Arizona Cattle Growers’ Convention, Prescott, AZ

September 2012

13-23 – New Mexico State Fair, Albuquerque, NM

November 2012

30 – Horses For Heroes Cowboy Christmas, Santa Fe, NM

December 2012

6-9 – Joint Stockmen’s Convention, Albuquerque, NM

February 2013

16 – Bradley 3 Ranch Bull Sale, Estelline, TX

Mesalands Rodeo Team smashes another nationalrecord and brings home the regional championship

Republicans voteagainst Obama’s nominee for assistantsecretary of the Interior Department

DIGESTEvents

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LMD May 2012

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