It has been a busy week since I have made a post on here. Since returning from my trip to the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles touring a few feedyards I have been playing catch up. I really do not recommend skipping an entire week of classes the week before four tests are scheduled. I sort of wish I had just stayed at the feedyard.
I hope you had a chance to read about my Feedyard Tour where I interviewed with JBS Five Rivers. If not, you are missing out! The day after that tour, I traveled to Texhoma, Oklahoma to visit a family operation that has been buying cattle from my family’s cattle auction. The family has 3 ranch locations in the area and an 8,000 head capacity feedyard. A family operation is much different from a corporate run out fit, like JBS Five Rivers, but both have a common goal – to take care of the cattle in our possession, keep them healthy, and provide a safe, quality beef product for a global population. I think it is something we all have in common, that and a love for the daily tasks that come with cattle operations. It is something special that we in the cattle industry have the opportunity to do what we love on a daily basis, not many can say that.
Well if you are wondering, yes I did accept a job offer from JBS Five Rivers. At the end of May I will be moving to Dalhart, Texas to work as a Management Trainee in the cattle department at Coronado Feeders. Making a career decision was not easy. It is something many college graduates struggle with after a four-year investment. The Ranch Management program at TCU is very attractive, but I have a great opportunity to gain invaluable experience with the world’s largest cattle feeding operation. How can I pass that up?
So ya’ll had better stay tuned in because I will be giving you an inside look at life in a cattle feedyard in the Texas Panhandle. So how did you get your start in the cattle industry? Was it a way of life while growing up, your first job out of school, or does life’s road still have a few turns ahead? Share your story with my by email (rjlgoodman@hotmail.com), on Facebook, or Twitter. –ARranchhand
CattleFact: As of January 1, 2010, the US had 11,008,000 cattle on feed, down 2% from 2009. 2,680,000 of those were in Texas feedlots. The USDA, NASS defines Cattle on feed as “animals being fed a ration of grain, silage, hay and/or protein supplement for slaughter market that are expected to produce a carcass that will grade select or better. It excludes cattle being “backgrounded only” for later sale as feeders or later placement in another feedlot.”
Ryan Goodman works in grassroots advocacy as a communications consultant with beef cattle farmers and ranchers across the United States. He is a proud alumnus of Oklahoma State University, with studies focusing on cattle reproduction and nutrition. Ryan's experience in the beef industry range from family farms and ranches in several states to large feedlots and non-profit policy organizations.
Ryan is an avid trail and ultrarunner, proudly showing how beef can be an important part of a healthy diet and active lifestyle. Find Ryan on social media as @BeefRunner.
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