COW FEED EFFICIENCY UNKNOWNS INCLUDING UTILIZATION OF RANGE FORAGES

Olsen Ranches is a family-owned diversified operation located in western Nebraska near Harrisburg. The Olsens have a commercial and registered cow herd that markets harvest ready animals as well as replacement females and bulls. Custom services include custom individual feed intake data collection with a GrowSafe system, custom feeding, and custom AI work. The farm enterprise crops include wheat, corn, barley, peas, annual forages, and alfalfa on both dry land and irrigated farm ground. In 2010, Olsens installed a GrowSafe system on the ranch to measure feed intake of steers that are part of the American Hereford Association’s National Reference Sire Program as well as bulls and heifers from Olsens’ registered program along with custom data collection for other producers seeking intake data on bulls, heifers, or steers