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In this episode, Will Winter, DVM shares practical and philosophical insights into the evolving world of pregnancy testing in livestock. From the tactile art of rectal palpation to modern ultrasound and blood tests, he breaks down the risks, benefits, and deeper implications of each method.

The episode explores both the technical and regenerative aspects of pregnancy testing, advocating for systems that prioritize herd health, reduce stress, and ultimately lead to more profitable and sustainable outcomes.

Dr. Winter encourages graziers to go beyond diagnostics and consider building a herd so fertile and healthy that pregnancy testing becomes unnecessary altogether.

Rectal Palpation: Still the most common method—cheap and fast but not without stress, skill requirements, and risk to the fetus.

Ultrasound Technology: Offers enhanced accuracy and fetal age estimation, but demands greater expertise and costs more per test.

Blood Testing: A simple, minimally invasive method that’s low-cost and doesn’t require a chute—but with a slight tradeoff in turnaround time.

Holistic Reproduction Strategy: For elite herds with exceptional health and fertility, testing may become irrelevant.

Foundations of Herd Health: Nutrition, genetics, clean environments, and freedom from chemical inputs are key to a fertile, high-performing herd.

Evaluate your current pregnancy testing methods for cost, stress on animals, and diagnostic reliability.

Begin building toward a no-test-needed herd by improving nutrition, genetics, and immunity.

Consider integrating blood testing into your operation if chute stress is a concern or labor is limited.

Don’t overlook rectal palpation’s diagnostic power for anatomical or fertility issues—even in “open” cows.

Start thinking about pregnancy testing not just as a tool—but as a reflection of your overall herd management success.

📌 For more insights and resources, check out https://www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital/profile for our latest specials, live events, and regenerative education tools.

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

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>>>

In this episode, Dr. Jordan Thomas shares a mindset shift that many commercial cattle producers need to hear: Your livestock are investments—live stock—and should be managed accordingly. Instead of relying on intuition or tradition to pick replacement heifers, Jordan invites you to think like an investor.

He compares typical selection practices to underperforming actively managed mutual funds and offers a compelling case for developing more heifers at lower cost, to allow your best performers to reveal themselves through early conception—your true return on investment.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

Livestock as Living Investments: Why your cows should be viewed like stocks in a portfolio.

The Problem with “Picking Winners”: Why relying on your eye and instinct often leads to underperformance.

Cost-Effective Development: The benefits of developing a large proportion of heifer calves rather than trying to predict success.

Economic Returns Over Aesthetics: Trading bragging rights for better bottom lines.

Passive vs. Active Management: Drawing parallels between heifer selection and modern investment strategies like index funds.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Think of replacement heifers as part of a long-term investment strategy.

Consider developing a broader group of heifers with lower-cost inputs.

Focus on early conception as the most reliable indicator of profitability.

Avoid locking yourself into keeping underperformers just to hit quota.

Be willing to market later-conceiving heifers creatively—don’t treat them as losses.

📌 Contact:
Jordan Thomas, Ph.D.
Beef Cow-Calf Extension Specialist, University of Missouri
📧 [email protected]
📞 573-882-1804

📌 For more insights and resources, check out https://www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital/profile

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

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>>>

In this episode of Regenerative Wisdom, grazing expert Jim Gerrish continues his exploration of strategies for year-round grazing. Building on last month’s focus on aligning breeding stock with winter grazing capacity, Jim now turns to the timing of calving and lambing—and why syncing birth cycles with your forage supply is often more effective than following the mantra of "calving in sync with nature."

Jim discusses:

The biological and economic demands of peak lactation

Why winter calving can be a costly mistake in most operations

How modified forage systems (like endophyte-infected tall fescue or cool-season annuals) change the logic of calving season

Real-world examples where fall or winter birthing makes sense—and where it doesn’t

This is a must-listen for anyone looking to lower feed costs, improve livestock performance, and extend their grazing season through smarter timing and forage management.

🔑 Key Topics Covered:

Calving vs. “calving in sync with nature”

Nutritional demands of lactation and forage quality

Tall fescue as a tool for winter grazing

Financial risks of out-of-sync birthing

Climate, forage type, and grazing skill as limiting factors

When fall and winter calving can make economic sense

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Match birthing seasons to periods of optimal forage growth—not just tradition.

Use stockpiled forage strategically, especially in fescue-dominant systems.

Avoid chasing higher weaning weights at the cost of higher winter feed bills.

Evaluate your climate and management capacity before shifting calving seasons.

📚 Resources Mentioned:

Jim Gerrish’s Website – American GrazingLands

SGF Bookshelf: Find Jim’s books at stockmangrassfarmer.digital

📌 For more insights and resources, check out https://www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital/profile

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

Get instant access to 100+ hours of expert-led grazing courses with SGF TV—all for our lowest monthly price ever! New titles added, price stays the same, cancel anytime.

📲 Tap the link to start streaming now!

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>>>

In this episode, Joel Salatin joins Becky Szarzynski of Ember Cattle Company for a powerful conversation recorded at SGF’s 2024 Gathering at Polyface. They explore the state of small family farms in today’s economic and cultural climate—and why Joel believes local farms are more viable now than ever.

Together, they dig into the pressures of inflation and global uncertainty, the rise of wellness-driven consumers, and how farmers can thrive by building deeper local relationships, collaborating with neighbors, and leveraging modern tech tools to access markets.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

The Viability of Small Family Farms: Despite rising input costs, Joel explains why improved logistics and local demand keep small farms competitive.

Shifting Societal Norms: A look at how public mistrust in big systems is opening doors for alternative health and food movements.

Local vs. Global Food Systems: Why focusing on your local foodshed is not only sustainable—but strategic.

Community & Collaboration: Joel and Becky highlight the value of sharing labor, tools, and knowledge among neighboring farms.

Using Tech to Build Local Resilience: From communication to marketing, technology is reshaping what's possible for small-scale operations.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Build authentic relationships with your customers and local community.

Welcome and integrate newcomers in your area to expand your customer base.

Explore resource-sharing partnerships with nearby farms and ranches.

Use digital tools to connect with markets and tell your farm’s story.

📌 For more insights and resources, check out https://www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital/profile

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

Get instant access to 100+ hours of expert-led grazing courses with SGF TV—all for our lowest monthly price ever! New titles added, price stays the same, cancel anytime.

📲 Tap the link to start streaming now!

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>>>

In this episode of Insights from the Pasture, full-time grazier Abram Bowerman shares a refreshing and practical look at how to build resilient forage systems using the species already on your land. Rather than fight weeds or chase monocultures, Abram invites graziers to embrace the “organized chaos” of nature and manage with the seasons.

He explains how each plant—whether it’s a common grass, overlooked forb, or wild-growing shrub—has its own nutritional window and role to play in your year-round forage chain. With a mindset of stewardship, patience, and multi-species grazing, you can unlock hidden nutrition and reduce your dependence on inputs.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

The Forage Chain Concept: Think of a pasture as a linked system where each plant community supports the others across the seasons.

Seasonal Plant Successions: From dock and dandelion in spring to cedar and rosehips in winter, each phase has its ideal forages.

The Role of “Weeds”: Many so-called weeds offer high-value nutrition—if grazed at the right time by the right species.

Mineral Access Through Diversity: Each plant has a different mineral profile, allowing livestock to self-balance through selective grazing.

Livestock-Led Diversity: True species diversification happens through livestock impact, not just seeding.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Manage your pastures to encourage diverse plant life—don’t mow or spray what livestock might one day eat.

Match your grazing rotation to the optimal growth phase of each forage species.

Use multi-species grazing to better utilize available forages and reduce weed pressure naturally.

Adjust paddock sizes and rotations dynamically to take advantage of changing seasonal nutrition.

Let livestock teach you what’s palatable and nutritious—what they mob today may be gold tomorrow.

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

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>>>

🎙️ Episode Title: Silvopasture Strategies with Greg Brann

In this episode, Greg Brann shares how he integrates trees into his pasture-based livestock operation in Adolphus, Kentucky. The episode explores the practice of silvopasture—a regenerative approach that blends trees, forage, and livestock to enhance productivity and ecological balance.

Greg outlines the benefits of silvopasture, including increased forage through browse, timber value, improved livestock comfort, and better manure distribution. He emphasizes the need for intentional design, proper shade management, and species selection to make silvopasture work long-term.

Through practical examples, Greg breaks down the steps to get started and the tools needed to protect young trees, manage multi-species herds, and maintain healthy forage growth under partial canopy.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

What is Silvopasture?

Purposeful integration of trees and grazing

Ideal shade: 20–35%, or 4–11 mature trees per acre

Benefits of Silvopasture:

Extra forage (1,000–2,000 lbs/acre) from browse

Shade and comfort for animals

Improved soil health and grazing uniformity

Long-term timber value

How to Implement:

Thin existing woodlots or plant new trees (fence-line rows preferred)

Maintain at least 50% light penetration for forage

Protect trees until they reach 15 feet tall

Animal Considerations:

Multi-species options (sheep, goats, cattle)

Sheep cause the least tree damage

Livestock may be managed together or in rotation

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Start with a Clear Plan:

Define silvopasture goals and choose tree/forage species accordingly

Protect Your Investment:

Use tree tubes, offset fencing, or electric barriers to protect young trees

Manage the System:

Prune trees before limbs hit 2-inch diameter

Rotate animals frequently to avoid compaction

Choose Smart Forage:

Opt for shade-tolerant species like orchardgrass, fescue, eastern gamagrass, and Virginia wild rye

📌 For more insights and resources, be sure to visit us here for our latest specials and exclusive offers: https://www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital

👉 Tune in with your favorite podcast app to The Stockman Grassfarmer Podcast and discover how silvopasture can increase your farm’s resilience, productivity, and profitability—starting with the trees around you.

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

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>>>

🎙️ Episode Title: Better Fencing, Better Water, Better Grazing by Greg Brann

In this episode, grazing consultant and experienced farmer Greg Brann breaks down two of the most essential elements of a successful grazing system: water access and fence infrastructure. With over 700 acres of managed pasture and decades of NRCS and consulting experience, Greg shares practical strategies for improving animal performance through better planning and design.

This episode highlights the power of proper water distribution and fencing as tools for both productivity and ecological stewardship—offering direct, real-world insights that graziers can put to use immediately.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

Water as the Limiting Factor: Why clean, accessible water is one of the greatest performance enhancers in your system.

Strategic Water Point Placement: Tips for using maps, elevation, and cross fencing to reduce trailing and increase animal distribution.

Smart Fence Design: How to structure permanent and temporary fencing for ease of rotation and multi-species setups.

Charger & Grounding Essentials: Avoid common mistakes and learn how to test and tune your electric fence for reliability.

Stream Protection & Livestock Access: When and how to provide alternative water sources without harming sensitive water systems.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Use aerial maps to identify ideal water point locations and minimize livestock trailing.

Invest in a high-quality charger with remote capability—especially if you manage 50+ acres.

Install fences that match your management goals (e.g., single wire for trained cattle, multi-wire for mixed species).

Rotate and clean troughs frequently—livestock perform better when water is fresh.

Incorporate vegetative buffers and limit stream access to protect water quality and reduce erosion.

📌 For more insights and resources, be sure to visit us here for our latest specials and exclusive offers:
👉 https://www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital

and 

https://gregbrann.com/

 🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

Get instant access to 100+ hours of expert-led grazing courses with SGF TV—all for our lowest monthly price ever! New titles added, price stays the same, cancel anytime.

📲 Tap the link to start streaming now!

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>>>

Better Grazing With the Three Rules of Adaptive Stewardship

by Dr. Allen Williams

In this episode, Dr. Allen Williams shares a powerful framework for improving land health, livestock performance, and long-term profitability: the Three Rules of Adaptive Stewardship. Drawing on years of experience and observation, Allen outlines how compounding effects, ecological diversity, and planned disruptions work together to create regenerative momentum on your farm.

Dr. Williams explains how each decision influences cascading biological outcomes, why diversity is critical at every level of your ecosystem, and how rigid systems sabotage your ability to respond to nature’s feedback.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

The Rule of Compounding: How every management decision triggers either positive or negative cascading effects—and how observation sharpens intuition.

The Rule of Diversity: Why diverse ecosystems outperform monocultures in plant health, animal wellness, and soil vitality.

The Rule of Disruption: How to use planned disruptions—like changing stock density, paddock layout, or grazing rotation—to prevent biological stagnation.

11 Practical Disruption Strategies: Real-world tools for unlocking soil memory, activating microbial populations, and restoring resilience.

The Role of Keen Observation: How to read animal behavior, soil structure, insect life, and plant response to guide better adaptive decisions.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Develop your observation skills—use all five senses to evaluate grazing outcomes.

Rotate stock density, direction, or rest periods to avoid predictable patterns.

Encourage plant and soil diversity by allowing “weeds” and forbs to thrive.

Experiment with bale grazing or prescribed burns as purposeful disruptions.

Remember: Adaptive grazing is a mindset—not a rigid system or recipe.

📌 For more insights from Dr. Allen Williams, check out his books and courses in the SGF store

👉 Tune in with your favorite podcast app to Regenerative Wisdom from the Stockman Grassfarmer and discover how small changes can create big results for your grazing operation.

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

Get instant access to 100+ hours of expert-led grazing courses with SGF TV—all for our lowest monthly price ever! New titles added, price stays the same, cancel anytime.

📲 Tap the link to start streaming now!

www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital/sgfv-podcast

>>>

How to Inflation Proof Your Farm with Greg Judy

In this episode of Regenerative Wisdom, brought to you by The Stockman Grass Farmer Podcast, Greg Judy shares practical, field-tested strategies for protecting your farm from rising costs. With inflation driving up input prices, Greg explains how regenerative grazing can minimize expenses, eliminate the need for commercial fertilizers, and improve your farm’s long-term profitability.

🔑 Key Takeaways:
✔️ Why regenerative grazing is the ultimate inflation-proof strategy
✔️ How to eliminate dependence on commercial fertilizers and save thousands
✔️ The power of legumes and proper grazing management for natural soil fertility
✔️ The impact of rotational grazing on pasture health and livestock performance
✔️ Why continuous grazing is a costly mistake—and how to fix it today

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Start integrating legumes like clover to naturally fix nitrogen in your soil.

Implement a rotational grazing system to improve pasture productivity.

Train your livestock to electric fencing for better grazing control.

Reduce reliance on external inputs and maximize your farm’s solar energy collection.

Educate yourself—attend a grazing school or learn from experienced graziers.

📚 Resources & Links:

Find Greg Judy’s books here: SGF's bookstore

Visit Greg’s website: GreenPasturesFarm.net

Learn more from The Stockman Grass Farmer: SGF's Website

Join SGF’s live events, access our monthly magazine, and explore our video resources

🎧 Listen & Subscribe:
Search The Stockman Grass Farmer Podcast on your favorite podcatcher or follow the link in our bio. Be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode!

📢 Enjoyed this episode?
Leave us a review and share it with your fellow graziers—let’s spread the word about profitable, sustainable farming! 🚜🌱

🎥 Unlock Exclusive Grazing Education – Anytime, Anywhere!

Get instant access to 100+ hours of expert-led grazing courses with SGF TV—all for our lowest monthly price ever! New titles added, price stays the same, cancel anytime.

📲 Tap the link to start streaming now!

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>>>

🎙️ Episode Title: Is There Enough Acreage to Finish All of America’s Cattle on Pasture?

This episode of Regenerative Wisdom, brought to you by The Stockman Grassfarmer, challenges a long-held belief in the cattle industry—do we really lack the land to finish all our beef on pasture? Jim Gerrish takes a deep dive into land use, debunking the myth that feedlots are a necessity. By analyzing cropland, Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) land, and high-elevation irrigated pastures, he lays out a compelling case for a fully pasture-finished beef industry.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

🌱 Actionable Insights:

✅ Reevaluate land use—many acres are underutilized and could be converted to productive pasture.
✅ Consider CRP land—proper management could significantly boost finishing capacity.
✅ Explore high-elevation finishing—cooler climates and better forage quality improve weight gain.

 📌 For more insights and resources, visit us here: www.stockmangrassfarmer.digital/profile