Grazing Effects on a Ranching Operation & Wildlife
#bfrdpwy #aginternship #RightRisk
Some of the major points that I have learned through my internship, and my own research, is that proper grazing practices not only benefit your pastures and your herd, but local wildlife as well. In a Ranching in the West seminar this spring, I learned how elk benefit from cattle rotationally grazing through valleys on national forest. This summer I saw that benefit first hand as the deer and elk in the area wanted to feed in areas that cattle had grazed already.
One concept, or idea, that I would challenge is choosing grazing practices that are limited in water in the later summer, forcing you to rely on pumps and wells. Pumps and wells can break down and require the whole herd to be moved just to get to water. This happened a few times this summer and took days away from haying during crucial points in the season. I believe this could have been avoided if those pastures were utilized earlier in the year.
The questions that I still have mainly revolve around specific forage species and invasive species, and how best to manage them. Such as, what is the best way to be able to limit cheatgrass? As well as, how can you implement grazing to be able to use it before livestock won’t feed on it after a certain point in the year?
I plan to use what I have learned about grazing practices to better understand rangeland and ranch management from the cattle and grazing perspective. Especially how a highly intensive, high impact, short duration grazing practice can really benefit the range especially after years of poor management.
Submitted by: Colby Barker
Edits by: GrowinG Internship Team
