Purebred "Seedstock" - As the name implies, this is the genetic improvement base for the cattle industry.  The Washington County area has many operations that specialize in producing bulls or sires for genetic improvement. The cattle industry has made many changes over the past 50 years.  Cattle type has changed significantly.  Some of this change has been to meet consumer demands for beef while others have changed to produce a more economically efficient animal.  Rate of gain, structural correctness, feed efficiency, beef traits, disposition, etc. are all important traits to depict a trend or change in the future offspring. Some of the seedstock cattle are sold at production sales or bull performance test sales while the majority is still sold by "private treaty." 
Many cow/calf producers have been buying bulls from one seedstock producer in the area for over 50 years.  Seedstock specialist often develop this kind of reputation and continue to transact business with folks repeatedly over the years.  However, they must continue to produce a quality product in order to achieve this kind of reputation. 

Stocker Cattle - Once cattle are weaned from the cow, they typically go to a middle cattleman before the feedlot phase.  Cattle are weaned somewhere between 400 to 500 lbs. typically.  Most growing cattle will not go to a feedlot until they are over 700 lbs.  This middle phase is titled the stocker cattle segment of the industry.  It is during this period that stocker cattle producers will coordinate these calves on to a post weaning phase of their life.  Because they are weaned from the cow, they must survive and gain on grains and forages.  Because the Washington County area is based with wonderful native grassland, many thousands of these stocker cattle end up in this area each year.  Many cattlemen utilize "intensive early stocking" on the native range.  This means that they use two times stocking rates from April 15 to July 15.  The grass will rest until the fall and then they will graze the grass over the winter.  Some still also utilize the season long grazing of the native range.  Fescue and bermuda are also utilized for stocker cattle in this area.  Fescue has worked very well for stockers in the fall as well as the early spring.   

Feedlot - The last phase of the cattle industry that I will discuss is the feedlot sector.  The only major commercial feedlot in NE Oklahoma is the Neill Feedlot at Welch, Oklahoma. Local producers do not finish their own cattle anymore but instead send them to feedlot specialist.  The majority of the local cattle are finished in West Texas, West Kansas, or the Panhandle region of Oklahoma.  The cattle gain efficiently in these regions, plus the feedstuff's and slaughter plants are located in this same region.  Most cattle are sent to slaughter at approximately 1100 to 1300 lbs. and the fat cover is typically at .3 or .5 inches.  This is a very efficient part of the cattle industry.  The cost of gains and the feed efficiency ratio is monitored.  The cattle are mainly confined in lots so they can be observed for health problems, low gains, etc.  

Summary - All of these sectors of the cattle industry are important.  Inefficiency in any one sector will affect the profitability in the others.  Some of the problems may exist from natural disasters or markets while others may be able to be improved upon through management strategies.  If you need more information on nutrition, reproduction, breeding/genetics, etc., then please call the Washington County OSU Cooperative Extension Service at 918/534-2216. 

  Randy L. Pirtle, County Extension Director