Texas stocker cattle program set June 22

The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service’s 12th annual Central Texas Stocker Cattle Program for McLennan County will be held June 22 in West.

A beef cattle stands in a pasture surrounded by high grass. It is red and white and stands behind a barbed fence, mountains rise in the background.
The 12th annual Central Texas Stocker Cattle Program will feature the opportunity to earn Beef Quality Assurance Certification. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension photo by Dr. Bruce Carpenter)

The event will be at the West Auction Barn, 20645 N. Interstate 35 Frontage Road.

The cost is $10 and onsite registration will begin at 7:30 a.m. The program will be held from 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Breakfast and a steak lunch are included.  

An RSVP before June 17 is requested by contacting the AgriLife Extension office in McLennan County at 254-757-5180 or emailing candace.chapman@ag.tamu.edu.

“The program is unique this year as we are offering producers the opportunity to receive Beef Quality Assurance Certification for satisfactorily completing the day’s activities,” said Shane McLellan, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for McLennan County.

McLellan said the event is presented thanks to the hard work of the region’s AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agents and multiple AgriLife Extension county committees.

Beef cattle topics and speakers

The speakers assembled by the planning committees consist of AgriLife Extension experts and Texas beef industry leaders. Speakers and topics will include:

  • Update on Texas Beef Council Organizations and Activities — Jason Bagley, Texas Beef Council, Austin, and Tyler Schuster, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, Fort Worth.
  • Freezer Beef — Jade Cooper, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension meat specialist, Bryan-College Station.
  • How to Improve Profitability and Beef Carcass Integrity, including a necropsy demonstration — Jeff Sarchet, DVM, Zoetis Animal Health beef technical services senior veterinarian, Dallas.
  • Low-Stress Handling of Livestock and Demonstration — Ron Gill, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension beef cattle specialist, Bryan-College Station.
  • Veterinarian Feed Directive and the Future Use of Antibiotics — Jason Swain, Zoetis Animal Health livestock production specialist, Dallas.
  • Transportation and Proper Hauling of Cattle — Brian Uptmore, West Auction auctioneer and rancher, West.
  • Beef Quality Assurance Wrap Up — Gill.