AEN-101: Stream Crossings for Cattle

Carmen Agouridis, Steve Higgins, Sarah Wightman | July 13, 2011 (New)

This publication provides livestock producers with instructions on how to install a stream crossing that provides animal and vehicular access across streams. This best management practice (BMP) is intended for use with exclusion fencing that restricts cattle access to the stream. Implementation of a stream crossing with exclusion fencing will improve water quality, reducing nutrient, sediment, pathogen, and organic matter loads to streams.

AEN-105: Pasture Feeding, Streamside Grazing, and the Kentucky Agriculture Water Quality Plan

Carmen Agouridis, Steve Higgins, Sarah Wightman | July 13, 2011 (New)

Kentucky's abundant forage makes it well suited for grazing livestock, but the pasturing and pasture feeding of livestock need to be managed. Allowing cattle to behave as they would naturally can lead to overgrazing, congregation in sensitive areas, buildup of mud, loss of vegetation, compaction of soils, and erosion.

AEN-104: How to Close an Abandoned Well

Steve Higgins, Sarah Wightman | July 7, 2011 (New)

Abandoned wells are often the only structures remaining after an old house or barn has been removed. If left unmanaged in agricultural areas, these abandoned wells can pose a serious threat to livestock and human safety because of the large surface openings they often have.

AEN-100: Building a Grade Stabilization Structure to Control Erosion

Steve Higgins, Donald Stamper, Sarah Wightman | June 15, 2011 (New)

Gully erosion creates large eroded channels that become problematic for many farms. Gullies form in natural drainage swales when vegetation in the swale is lost through overgrazing or tillage practices. They cause valuable soil to erode, and they form large channels that drain runoff into streams. This runoff can carry sediment, nutrients, and pathogens that can degrade the water quality.

ID-187: Woodland Winter Feeding of Cattle: Water Quality Best Management Practices

Steve Higgins, Jeff Stringer, Sarah Wightman | May 5, 2011 (New)

Cattle maintain their body temperature in winter by burning more calories, which requires them to consume more feed. Livestock producers use wooded areas to provide protection for cattle from wind and low temperatures. That protection enables the cattle to conserve energy and eat less. Using wooded areas for winter feeding makes practical sense, but producers need to consider several environmental issues when planning for it.

AEN-98: Alternative Water Source: Developing Springs for Livestock

Steve Higgins, Donald Stamper, Sarah Wightman | May 5, 2011 (New)

Water supply is a key component in livestock production. One option producers have when providing water is to develop an existing spring, which occurs when groundwater running along an impervious rock layer hits a fracture and discharges on the surface.

AEN-99: Shade Options for Grazing Cattle

Carmen Agouridis, Steve Higgins, Sarah Wightman | March 29, 2011 (New)

Shade is a must for pasture-based grazing systems. It curtails heat stress, which is detrimental to cattle and causes a decrease in milk production, feed intake, weight gains, and fertility.

ID-171: Using Dry Lots to Conserve Pastures and Reduce Pollution Potential

Roberta Dwyer, Steve Higgins | February 16, 2011 (Reprinted)

ID-175: Riparian Buffers: A Livestock Best Management Practice for Protecting Water Quality

Carmen Agouridis, Amanda Gumbert, Steve Higgins | September 22, 2009 (New)

In Kentucky, cattle on pastures are often watered by streams. Although this practice solves water requirements for cattle, providing livestock free access to streams and riparian areas can lead to a contaminated water supply and damaged ecosystems. A better solution is to implement riparian buffers with limited access points to streams or provide alternative water sources. This practice can protect water quality, increase herd production, and provide other landowner benefits. The purpose of this publication is to explain the role of riparian areas and how they can benefit the livestock producer, the herd, and the environment.

ID-176: Using Soil Cement on Horse and Livestock Farms

Spencer Guinn, Steve Higgins, Donald Stamper | August 3, 2009 (New)

Most farmers in Kentucky can identify with a myriad of problems associated with mud forming around high traffic areas, including areas around horse and cattle waterers, feed bunks, round bale feeders, walk paths and gate entrances. Mud is usually a result of animals congregating in and around these areas, but increased traffic can enhance the problem. In many cases, finding solutions to mud problems on farms is not the issue--the issue is determining how to make solutions economical.