Sheep Industry News April 2022

Pricing for services varied considerably. Sixty percent of survey respondents charge per acre for targeted grazing services, followed by per day (30 percent), and other methods (10 percent). The average low price per acre across all animal species was $650 and the average high price was $1,725. The cost varied by species of livestock used with the highest for goats – which are most often used on smaller jobs – and lowest for wool sheep and cattle. These differences – in part – reflect the difference in

portance of public relations,” and prepare educational handouts. There are many factors that targeted graziers consider when deciding whether or not to accept a targeted grazing job. The following concerns are not uncommon. • The person or organization seeking targeted grazing has unrealistic expectations; • The job requires more re sources than are available; • There is high potential liabil ity exposure; • There are conditions that put

size of jobs and the different classes of animals. Full-time operators charged on average 45 percent more per acre than half-time opera tors, which were 40 percent higher than part-time operators. Prices varied regionally as well with Midwest and East Coast states charg ing the most. Great Plains and Upper Midwest areas charged the least and the Mountain states and West Coast were intermediate. In targeted grazing, there is a learning curve for both graziers and livestock. On average, the number of months it took for live stock to become proficient at targeted grazing is as follows: sheep, three months; goats slightly more than two months; and cattle one and a half months. It is thought that the type of job might influence the proficiency time. Size of flock also impacts proficiency train ing with large and small operators reporting longer training than medium-size flocks. When asked how livestock are kept on projects, almost 80 percent of respondents use electronic fencing. Other responses included permanent fencing, multistrand electrical fence, herders, and panels. The most important health issues that targeted graziers deal with are internal parasites, predation and toxic plants. Although having a contract with the customer is the norm, it varies somewhat. Only 52 percent of respondents use contracts for most projects and 30 percent use contracts only when the consumer requests a contract. The new handbook will have contract samples. About half of the respondents have specific performance criteria for projects with before and after photos being the most common method for monitoring vegetation. We can’t talk about the benefits of targeted grazing without addressing the issue of negative publicity. At least 56 percent of re spondents know of targeted grazing projects that were done poorly and hurt the reputation of the industry. Thus, the impetus for writ ing the second edition of the Targeted Grazing Handbook . The No. 1 response on ways to mitigate negative publicity was to “keep job site and animals in good shape.” Other responses includ ed “talk with people who stop by and are interested in the project,” “engage the press and take interviews,” “train employees in the im

safety of livestock at risk; • Grazing might do more damage because the source of the problem (weeds) hasn’t been addressed; • High level of poisonous plants. Today, we know much more about targeted grazing from both the scientific perspective and from the practical experience of targeted grazing experts. Advancing the industry from a position of both applied science and from that of the user is worth marketing. It will be fun to see how this eco-friendly livestock application will develop in the next 16 years.

Stockquip llc Tony Wutzke 541-760-6280

April 2022 • Sheep Industry News • 15