The winter of 2018/19 was a rough one for anyone trying to feed cattle though it.  Rainfall in December through February along with a very poor stockpiling season left most cattle producers short on grass, short on hay and long on mud.  In Early March of 2019 we were contacted by a producer wanting information and recommendations on overseeding or reseeding pastures.  Like most pasture fields theirs had been overgrazed, maybe slightly overstocked through the winter and needed some remediation.  One interesting thing on these pastures was that there was a grass stand on most of the fields- it was short and not providing adequate feed for the cattle but it was there.  After a couple farm visits and meetings with Dr. Teutsch Forage specialist at Princeton, we approached the farmer about possibly trying to subdivide pastures in an effort to give some areas more recovery time using materials provided by the Master Grazer Program.  This would allow pastures to recover and be assessed prior to making reseeding decisions in the fall.   

One field and herd was selected to try.  It was a 120 acre pasture with a little over 100 pairs on it, we split the pasture into 3 sections each with it’s own water source and shade.  The cattle had never been around a polywire before so care was taken to break them into it so that they didn’t run through it the first time we tried to contain them.  After about a week of acclimating them to an electric wire the entire herd was put in one section of the pasture and fed hay until grass growth resumed. The cattle were moved about every 2 weeks depending on grass growth in the next paddock and how much feed was available in their current pasture.  Early indicators were very positive, cows are in good BCS, large percentage of them were cycling when bulls were turned in, we will know later about conception rates but the general consensus with the Veterinarian is that they should do fine.  

We were able to host a cattlemen’s meeting and farm tour at the farm to show off the improvements made and to show that you can train a herd of cattle to respect a single hotwire.   One of the most impressive differences noticed by the producer and her farm crew was the disposition of the cattle.   When we put up the hotwire initially they were flighty for the most part.  They didn’t want to be around you and it showed.  At the time of the Cattlemen’s meeting we had moved the herd 3 times, the owner, farm hands and I had been the only humans in the pasture since beginning this project I was worried when we pulled in with 3 vehicles and about 80 people on wagons just where the cows might go.  To our surprise nearly all crowded around the wagons bawling, apparently they thought it was time to move.  It was neat to see their behavior change, but it was very difficult to hear at the beginning of Dr. Teutsch’s presentation.   

Indications from the producer are that they plan to implement this system on other herds as they feel comfortable with it and modify their hay feeding practices to better match cow needs and spread nutrients through the pasture more evenly.   The real impact on this farm will not be seen until next spring, grass stands are already improving, being able to ration pasture out until calving begins will make a huge difference on cattle condition and should cut out some of the winter feeding issues they faced in the past.