CENTENNIAL STORIES:
Livestock research in western Nebraska

By Tom Holman, Extension Educator

By 1915, the Scotts Bluff Experimental Substation (now the UNL Panhandle Research and Extension Center) had facilities sufficient to begin dairy, swine, sheep and beef research. True to the land grant mission livestock and related research centered around solving production issues of local producers.

A broad range of research projects has been conducted since the earliest years, all of them addressing producer problems and concerns.

Dairy research published in 1915 involved sire selection for replacement females in local herds. Early in the 1920s the center was instrumental in the development of a six-breed swine composite breed for improvement in carcass quality.

In 1949, sheep-feeding trials were concluded to compare beet tops with traditional expensive pelleted feeds. This resulted in using a cheap byproduct of the sugar industry to reduce lamb feeding costs.

In 1951 winter hardiness of a landmark alfalfa variety, Ranger, was tested at the Research Center. Alfalfa variety tests continued from 1974 to the present, along with weed control. In addition, insect interactions (1976) and fertilizer trials (1977 and 1979) were conducted to improve yields. In 1978, innoculants were tested for their viability in harvesting alfalfa, and in 1982 the effects of nematodes were tested.

In response to the dramatic expansion of cattle feeding in the Panhandle that occurred in 1963, 1968 and again in 1980, primary livestock research investigated implants, supplements and locally grown cheap feeds to improve cattle efficiency and reduce cost of gain in the feeding industry. In 2007 the UNL Panhandle Research Feedlot completed a significant expansion to continue to solve producer problems in a state-of-the-art facility. The cattle segment was and is still the largest agricultural contributor to the economy of the Panhandle.
Implant research to improve weight gain and control diseases began in 1951, and continues to the present with initial testing and profitable use of such industry standards as Bovatec, Rumensin, Ralgro, Synovex and Finaplex on growing and finished cattle.

Feed tests to reduce feed costs and improve weight gains were extensively and routinely conducted on locally grown feeds. These feeds included corn silage, beet pulp, alfalfa silage, corn stalks, wheat straw, high moisture corn, dry beans and ammoniation of many feeds to improve protein digestibility. The first published feed trials occurred in 1973 and continue today.

Beef herd health has been a priority for producers, and products commonly used today were initially tested at the center. These include mineral, vitamin, and enzyme additives, antibiotic, viral and insecticide products injected and added to feeds to improve livestock health and producer income. The first of these improvement tests were conducted in 1973 and are still an important part of the program.

Profitability and sustainability of the range beef cattle industry benefitted from Panhandle Center research. In 1969 the effects of different stocking rates on native pasture were evaluated, which identified bench marks for grazing management in Western Nebraska. Another grazing study completed in 1976 measured the effect of different breeds on Western Nebraska native ranges.

A detailed beef herd evaluation project provided beef producers with a method of quantifying profits in comparison with other herds. Spaying and implant trials on heifers were conducted in 1981 to improve feedlot gains. Recently, in response to the drought of the 1980s and 1990s, early weaning trials were conducted to improve cow health and measure the effects on calves.

 Several pens of cattle at the University of Nebraska Panhandle Research Feedlot near Scottsbluff.