Our ongoing journal about our efforts to bond a livestock guardian dog pup with cattle. Funded by the Rustici Rangeland and Cattle Endowment.

After spending about a week with a handful of rams in Auburn, we scheduled an afternoon to set up a bonding pen at Likely Land and Livestock in Modoc County last week. The pup (named Sam by the ranch!), rode in a crate in the back seat of the pickup. He was unhappy about the crate for about the first 4 miles; after that he slept for most of the 5-hour drive! We stopped twice to stretch our legs and get a drink – which meant he got his first lessons on a leash. He did great! And once we arrived, we tethered him to a fence post while we set up our equipment – lesson number 2 was also a success!

The ranch provided seven small calves for the bonding process. The calves are in a small irrigated pasture grazing and being hand-fed grain. Size-wise, they aren't much larger than the rams that Sam had been with. To make sure Sam stays with the calves, we cut the pasture in half using electro-net fencing (including along the perimeter fence) – the initial bonding pen is about one acre in size. We also built a small 8' x 8' escape pen from wire panels where he can go if he feels threatened by the calves. Upon completing the fencing and pen, we fed Sam and made sure that he saw the calves (and vice versa). And then we left them for the night!

When Rachael Stucke, a UCCE intern, showed up the next morning to feed him, Sam was sleeping in the middle of the calves – a great sign! We still have a long road ahead, but the first steps have all been positive!

During this initial phase, we'll will observe Sam on a regular basis from a distance for evidence of prey drive, submissive behavior towards livestock, and a calm temperament. While some things like chasing stock can be corrected if dealt with sternly and immediately, other things like dominant behavior towards livestock is more difficult to change in a pup. Pups tend to be easily excited when humans are with them, but when observed from a distance he should slowly approach livestock and remain calm unless he is alerted to a predator or unknown animal at their location. The livestock should remain calm, as well.

Specifically, we'll watch for evidence of the following behaviors:

• Prey Drive: this includes stalking behavior, as well as chasing or biting the livestock. If any of us do observe this behavior, we'll correct it by saying “NO” in a gruff voice. As Sam matures, he should not exhibit these behaviors at all.
• Submissive Behavior: Sam will likely be curious but somewhat cautious at first around the cattle. Appropriate submissive behaviors include avoiding eye contact with the cattle, walking (rather than running) when approaching cattle, dropping to the ground or rolling over when near cattle, lowering the head and tail, licking at the mouths of the cattle, and choosing to sleep next to the cattle.
• Calm Temperament: We think we've selected a pup with a calm temperament, but we will to be sure he's not overly aggressive, fearful, shy, or clingy; he should also not be overly excited to see people. We'll watch for him to walk off by himself after greeting us or being fed.

If the cattle are being too rough with him, we will try different cattle. Similarly, if Sam starts being too rough, older cattle may help teach the pup to be submissive and respectful.

After our initial set-up day, Rachael observed that Sam seems to want to be with the calves when there are not people around. He will follow people in his pen, and he will whine briefly when people leave (which are normal behaviors). She also noted that the calves seem to be comfortable around Sam. She did observe some play behavior, which provoked the calves to lunge gently. Sam responded by trotting way from the calves or showing submissive behavior.

Going forward, the ranch will do most of the observation and virtually all of the early care and training. Several times a week, someone will spend 5-10 minutes socializing Sam to humans. They'll rub their hands all over the dog, especially his feet, and place their fingers inside his mouth to check tooth development. They'll also check ears for ticks and infections and brush him if possible.

After the first month, they'll begin teaching basic commands. Sam should know his name and come when he's called (or at least not run off!). He should also know the meaning of “No!” Critically, we'll always make sure any and all positive reinforcement (praise, etc.) is done in an area with livestock!

They'll also continue the leash and tether training I started on our trip to Likely. Leash training should start out slowly (maybe 2-3 minutes at a time) until Sam will walk without pulling away from his handler. Tether training is important in case he ever gets caught in a snare. Tethering is also useful when working cattle or doing other activities where the dog might get in the way.

Teaching Sam to ride in the pick-up truck and stock trailer is also important. Early on, he should learn to ride in the cab of the truck or in a crate. As he grows, he can be taught to ride in the back of a pickup and in a stock trailer.

As with training or bonding with any animal, this won't be a linear process. Some lessons will probably need to be learned several times; other lessons will be solid the first time through. But we're off to a promising start!

Short- and Long-term Stock Water Strategies

On a day that started with a long-overdue rainstorm here in Auburn, I received word that USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack had declared a drought disaster in 50 of California's 58 counties – including Placer, Nevada, Sutter, and Yuba. The announcement doesn't come as a huge surprise for anyone who's been grazing livestock on annual rangelands this winter, but the official designation does come with the possibility of emergency assistance through the Farm Service Agency (click here for a directory of local FSA offices).

While ranch drought management is fundamentally about creating flexibility to balance demand (that is, the number mouths we have grazing) with supply (the amount of grass we have available), my own experience suggests that drought presents a complicated set of problems. Our forage demand changes with our production calendar – the lactating ewes we're grazing today need more forage than they did back in November. And quantity isn't the only variable that concerns us – lactating ewes also need high quality forage from a nutritional standpoint. Drought can impact both.

Drought impacts, then, are more complicated that below-average rainfall, obviously. Rain and forage production are related, but on our annual rangelands, the timing of the rain is nearly as important as the quantity. We'll likely end up with an inch of rain out of the series of storms we've enjoyed this week – enough to keep our grass growing.

As I was moving sheep this morning, however, I checked the small seasonal creek that runs through several of our winter pastures. It hasn't flowed all winter, and this most recent shot of rain wasn't enough to get it started. Talking to ranchers throughout my four counties,  I would say that the soil profile never really filled enough to get the creeks running – or the stock-ponds filling – anywhere in the foothills. Operations that saved dry feed for the fall couldn't access some of it for lack of stock water. Now that the grass is growing, some ranches still don't have enough stock water to use the forage.

With sheep, we're used to hauling drinking water – even on large scale operations. Most cattle producers don't have the equipment to move water to their livestock, however – the quantities required, and the remoteness of some operations, can make this difficult. I spoke to a water truck operator this morning who said he's starting to get calls from foothill ranchers about hauling stock water – a sure sign that conditions are extremely dry. This particular owner-operator can move 3,400 gallons at a time – and he charges $100 per hour plus the cost of the water (for example, a single load of water delivered to Lincoln would cost around $350).

How long would a load of water last? Obviously, stock water demand depends on air temperature, stage of production, and even hide color. Developing a water budget based on stage of production and air temperature can help provide a more accurate estimate of stock water demand for a specific group of cattle (see the chart below). 

Source: 1996 NRC Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle

Is hauling water worth the expense? If you've saved forage – or if you have spring forage that you can't use for lack of stock water, it's worth putting pencil to paper. Based on the costs outlined above, here's an estimate of the cost of hauling enough water for 100 pairs on springtime annual rangeland in the Lincoln area - it's not cheap!

Assumptions

• Water hauling charges are $100/hour plus the cost of the water
• The haul for this example is from Auburn to Lincoln, with water purchased in Wheatland
• Cattle are grazing springtime annual rangeland
• Average daily high temperatures are 70-80F

From a longer term perspective, developing alternative stock water supplies and storage systems is critical for drought flexibility. The Natural Resources Conservation Service can provide technical assistance and perhaps even cost-share funding to help pay for these types of projects (click here for a directory of local NRCS offices).

If you'd like help looking at stock water options this spring, contact me by email (dmacon@ucanr.edu) or call the office (530/889-7385) to set up an appointment!

Every rancher dreads getting that phone call - "Your cows [sheep, goats, etc.] are out." And anyone who relies on fences to keep livestock contained has probably received that call at some point. Fences fail, gates are left open, somebody forgets to hook up the electric fence energizer. Whenever I get that call, I drop everything else and take care of getting our sheep back where they belong. Getting our livestock guardian dogs (LGDs) back in the sheep paddock can sometimes be more problematic!

Over the years, I've come to realize the importance of a well-bonded LGD. Even if our sheep escape, a well-bonded dog will stay with them - and will often come back with the flock when we herd them back to the paddock. But sometimes, a dog will get out of our fences to chase off a predator. Sometimes a dog will simply decide to explore the neighborhood. Sometimes a dog will slip a collar or scoot through a gate when we're moving the sheep.

LGDs can get into trouble when this happens. One of our earlier dogs, Reno, loved chicken dinners - woe to the free-range chickens that might be nearby. He also disliked outdoor cats immensely (and often to their detriment). And so on the occasions that he got out of the sheep paddock, I was often in a hurry to catch him and keep him out of trouble. I'd call to him and follow him around, trying to catch him by the collar. The more I called (often increasingly frantically), the more he'd run away from me. I joked that if he'd had five toes on a front paw, he would have flipped me off!

I discovered, however, almost by accident, that he would generally come back if I ignored him. One afternoon, he escaped and took off across the ranch. I went about fixing fence and checking sheep, and within five minutes, he was back and wanted to be back with his sheep. I've subsequently experienced the same thing with other dogs.

This morning, I got that call - "Your sheep are out." When I arrived, I found most of the sheep grazing in a neighbor's pasture - and spotted Dillon the LGD gallivanting across the far side of the pasture, perhaps a quarter-mile away. I focused on getting the sheep back into their paddock, and before I finished Dillon returned and allowed himself to be herded along with the sheep. A few minutes later, I found several straggler sheep outside another section of fence. As my border collie brought them back, I opened the electronet for them - allowing Dillon to escape again. Once again, I ignored him - and within minutes he walked up to me so I could catch his collar.

This kind of behavior, I think, is related to the bonding process that we use. I want my LGDs to know how to ride in the truck, to accept being walked on a leash or tied out on a chain while we're working sheep. But I most want them to want to be with their sheep in all circumstances. Teaching a livestock guardian dog to come when I call (or other obedience training, for that matter) seems to require a bond with me rather than with the livestock. A dog that sits, stays, and comes when I call, might prefer to be with me rather than with my sheep. Working LGDs are not pets, and so we have to meet them on their terms when we need them to guard livestock. Figuring this out has made catching the occasional wayward dog much less stressful!

In 2018, as the Camp Fire was still burning in Butte County, a number of University of California colleagues, led by Area Dairy Advisor Betsy Karle, sampled irrigated pasture forage, hay, and corn silage from locations throughout Northern California (including several pastures here in Placer and Nevada Counties). Some of these regions had been impacted by ash fall and wildfire smoke; others had not. Our intent was to learn if ash created any potential toxicity or other health problems for livestock. We were especially interested in looking at heavy metal concentrations.

As we once again find ourselves in smoky conditions, I thought it might be helpful to provide an overview of our findings. For the most part, we did not find any concentrations of metals, minerals, or other compounds that should cause concern for livestock producers. Similarly, Tracy Schohr, who is the Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor for Butte, Plumas, and Sierra Counties, looked at water quality during the immediate aftermath of the Camp Fire. Her results were also unremarkable. Read more here.

The take-home message from our forages study (which I think also applies to water quality) is this:

"While more detailed and controlled studies could provide additional information, these results indicate that forages affected by wildfire ash deposition are likely safe for livestock to consume.

"If you have forages that may be affected by ash deposition, evaluate the concentrations of minerals before formulating a ration [or grazing pastures]. If you're exceptionally concerned about toxicity from contamination and cannot dilute with unaffected feed, isolate and test feed for heavy metals and organic compounds."

If you'd like to test your forage or water quality, or have questions about testing results, please feel free to contact me at dmacon@ucanr.edu or (530) 889-7385. I can also provide you with a complete copy of our forage study results.