The South Dakota Grassland Coalition has produced a series of videos for livestock producers across the region. The 25-video series features ranchers from across South Dakota who have discovered the benefits of matching calving to their ranch resources. The videos offer personal from nearly 30 individuals about the challenges and benefits of shifting calving dates to fit with natural cycles.
The men and women interviewed discuss the opportunities for improved livestock health and profitability as well as a more enjoyable and reduced stress family life.
The primary video topics include: When & Where to Calve;
Managing the Herd; Assessing Ranch Resources; Finance,
Profit & Marketing; and People, Relationships & Quality of
Life.
The Calving Alternative videos will be released over a five
week period. Each weekly release will contain 4-6 videos
associated with the five main topics (see sidebar). Viewing
the videos is free, and they can be accessed by visiting the
SD Grassland Coalitions webpage Calving Alternative Videos
(https://www.sdgrass.org/calving-considerations/) or you
can go the Coalitions You Tube Channel SDGC You Tube
(https://bit.ly/3bke3v6).
Jim Faulstich is a Highmore, SD area rancher and Board
Member of the SD Grassland Coalition. It was at Faulstich’s
urging that the Board initially pursued this project, but it did
not take long for all to realize there was a need to encourage
livestock producers to take a hard look at their financial and
natural resources related to calving seasons.
Faulstich offered the following when asked about
the end result of the video project, “For anyone considering changing their calving season, the SD Grassland Coalition series of calving timing videos should really offer a wealth of information
and answer most questions about the transition. Plus, the real value is that it offers a large listof experienced producers that the listeners can call on for additional questions, guidance, and
mentoring.”
In total, the video series offers over 5 hours of in depth testimony, with individual videos ranging from 3 to 25 minutes, depending on the topic.
The first 5 videos will be released on Thursday, February 18, and weekly on Thursdays for the next month, the remainder of the videos will be posted. In addition to the videos, the Coalition will also be hosting ‘Tuesday Night Live’ zoom meetings featuring those who appear in the calving series.
These open public sessions will allow livestock producers to ask questions to the participants. The first of the ‘Tuesday Night Live’ calving discussions will be held Tuesday February 23rd at 7 pm (CST). To join the live session, go to this link.