Considerations for those interested in raising livestock on pasture

1. Steve Muntz, Firefly Farm Mount Sterling, KY

2. Why Animals?
Quality of life, enjoyment
of animals
Compliment other
existing enterprises

3. Why Animals?
Generate additional
income from the
farm
Under utilized land

4. Why Pasture?
•Most sustainable way of
raising (particularly
ruminant) livestock. You are
a “grass farmer”
•Health and marketing
benefits from pasture raised
animals
•Different species can
compliment each other on
pasture and reduce costs
and/or increase utilization

5. Considerations in Starting Animals on
Pasture
Goals
What do you like?
Resources –
Capital, Land, People,

6. Existing pasture
Markets

7. Pasture Availability by Month
Warm
Season
Cool
Season
J F M A M J J A S O N D
Zone B that includes Little Rock, AR

8. Pasture Quality Factors
•Type of forage –
annual/perennial,
•Type of forage-
Grass/legume/forb
• Stage of growth-
Vegetative, transitional
, reproductive

9. Range of Palatable Species
Narrowest range – grasses, clovers, some
forbs
Broader range including most of the same
species that cows like as well as a greater
range of forbs
Broadest range with a first preference for
brushy species but very adaptable to
grasses, clovers and a variety of forbs

10. Management Time/Ability

11. Breeding Animals or Grow out?

12. Water access for
pastures Shade and
shelter
Fences

13. Animal Transport
Additional Hay and
feed needs

14. Animal Health and
Handling
Compatibility with
other species

15. Predators

16. Predator
Control

17. Suggestions
• Get Help – other
farmers, extension, field
days, SSAWG, etc.
• Get Your Hands Dirty
• Start Small unless you are really
convinced that you are ready to
jump in with the big guns!

18. What’s Next?
Let’s get into it a little more with a game of Animal
Farmville. This is sort of like Farmville on
Facebook but a couple of steps closer to reality.

19. Animal Farmville
 Object of the game: To establish a 2-D pasture-based
livestock farm and walk through the first three years of
development. In the process we hope to learn some of the
important considerations involved in starting such a farm
and in successful management.
 Players: One person serves as the “farm consultant” and
two people or groups of people will be the “farmers”. The
consultant is actually sort of a combination of game
moderator and referee (who can make up rules as he
goes), real estate agent, banker, order buyer, regulator and
feed dealer. We will also need a few “farm hands”.

20. Animal Farmville
 Game Set-up
 Each farmer starts with a 50 acre farm with landscape
established by the consultant.
 Each farmer will be given a little time to do some initial
farm planning and can decide to raise up to three species of
animals during the course of the game.
 Each farmer begins the game with 12 credits and gains or
loses credits based on game actions.
 Each turn is three months long based on a season of the
year (Spring, summer, fall, winter)
 The game begins in the fall

21. Animal Farmville
Playing the Game – during each turn farmers can choose
to do three things from the following list as long as the
conditions on the farm allow them to do so.
Outflow choices Inflow choices
•build fence, corral or waterline (-$1) • help neighbor (+$1)
• purchase equipment or chicken pen • go to SSAWG (+$1)
(-$1) • go to field day (+$1)
• purchase barn (-$2) • market animals (+$3)
• pasture work (-$1) • direct market animals (+$4)
• purchase feed or hay (-$1) • direct market products (+$5)
• purchase animals (-$1) • planning (+$1)
• develop market (-$1)
• develop product (-$1)

22. Animal Farmville
Playing the Game
In addition to these activities, farmer may also breed
animals, remove breeding animals, rotate animals or train
animals to electric fence during any turn.
In between turns, the consultant will comment on the moves
and suggest strategies for upcoming moves. The
consultant may also play a “Farm Factor” card which may
influence the farm(s) in one or more ways. As this is a
rather free flowing game, the consultant will also consider
other expert opinions available to him.
Ending the Game
The game ends at the end of three years