Livestock scales are an excellent investment for ranchers and farmers, allowing them to improve efficiency and productivity while minimizing the time, cost and effort of weighing cattle. Look at some of the reasons why cattle scales are so popular in the livestock farming sector:

Accuracy – It’s crucial for your weighing equipment to yield accurate results, since it will be used at every stage of production and output, and hence affect your profits. Livestock scales can help you ensure that you receive consistent and highly accurate measurements, especially if they are properly calibrated and maintained.

Durability – Since livestock scales need to handle heavy loads on a daily basis, as well as harsh cattle country environments, they are designed to be extremely durable. Unlike scales designed for other industries with controlled environments, they can take the stress of multiple large loads as well as conditions like dust, rain, animal waste, etc.

Performance evaluation – The use of livestock scales allows you to measure cattle weights at different stages of life. This data in turn can be analyzed to evaluate feedlots, gain and related factors like adjusted weaning and yearling weights, as well as average daily gain (ADG) and weight per day of age (WDA).

Feed or medicine calculation – Livestock scales play a huge role in ensuring that your herd is getting the optimum diet and medication (such as antibiotics and deworming), which are based on the animal’s weight. If the dose or feed is too high or too low, you could end up with poor performance or even lose animals, which will affect your bottom line.

Ease of use – Livestock scales normally feature flat wood or concrete decks that allow for easy loading and unloading of animals, but also include other user-friendly features. For instance, advancements in technology have led to the inclusion of memory components in many scales, which reduces the need for separate equipment to collect weight data.

Customization – Many kinds of livestock scales can be custom built to suit your requirements and may include accessories like gates, load bars, digital weight indicators, etc. These can help streamline your weighing processes even further, as well as reduce your time and labor investment.

 
An electric fence circuit is made on a larger scale. The energizer fence terminal (positive) is connected to the insulated fence wires, and the energizer earth terminal (negative) is connected to galvanized metal stakes driven into the ground.

The same 'circuit completion' (second diagram above) is necessary before the animal gets a shock. An animal standing on the ground and touching the electrified wires (shown right) will complete the circuit like the closed switch in the second diagram above.

For example, a bird sitting on the wire will not receive a shock (shown left). It is not touching the ground so the circuit is not completed.  A person wearing insulated footwear will only receive a small shock because all the current cannot pass through the insulated soles.

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Dry, sandy or pumice soil is a poor conductor of electric current, so it is a good idea to add an ground (negative) wire into the fence. The animal must touch both a hot wire and ground wire to feel an effective shock.

Choosing the Right Energizer (Fence Charger)

Once you have decided what type of electric fence you want for your property, you will need an energizer also known as a fence charger to power it.  The ​correct energizer size for your property is determined by the type of animal to be fenced, distance of fence to be powered and the number of wires in the fence.

There are two types of energizers:

• Mains powered - these are energizer units which are plugged into a mains power supply.
• Battery/Solar powered - these are energizer units which can be left out in your paddock and require a battery to run them. Two batteries can be rotated on a regular basis or a solar panel can be an effective means of continuously charging your battery.

Electric current (AMPS) only flows when a circuit is completed between a positive and negative terminal.

In this diagram the current cannot flow from the positive terminal to the negative terminal because the switch is open.

In this second diagram, the switch is now closed, allowing the current to flow from the positive terminal through the light bulb (lighting the bulb) to the negative terminal.
 

Steps to Good Grounding

Grounding is perhaps the most neglected component of many fence systems. We recommend three ground rods, 6’ deep and spaced 10’ apart are the minimum recommendation. Never attach copper to steel. Electrolysis can occur and result in corrosion which weakens shocking power. Use galvanized ground wire and grounding rods to avoid this problem.
 
Consider that most energizers use galvanized or stainless steel terminals – not copper. Think of your ground system as an antenna that gathers electricity in order to deliver the shock to the animal. Modern satellite receivers can tune in to more television channels than the “rabbit ear” antennas of the past. A hose clamp holding a piece of copper wire to a rusty t-post has been the weakest link of many electric fence systems.​​

Will the electric netting work for free range poultry?

Yes, in most cases as long as the birds are clipped wing or are a non-flying species like Cornish. The netting will also act as a predator deterrent. It doesn’t take much of an energizer to contain a chicken, but a mid-range charger is needed if there is also a predator issue.​​

Fencing costs are one of the most expensive aspects of livestock grazing. The type of fence constructed greatly impacts the cost per foot, total cost, and annual ownership cost.  In addition, the shape of the paddocks affects the amount of materials needed and labor required for construction of the fence.

This publication compares the costs of building a 1/4-mile (1,320 feet) straight perimeter fence with four different types of permanent fencing plus temporary interior fencing. These are: woven wire, barbed wire, high-tensile non-electric, high-tensile electrified, and temporary interior fencing. 

The type of fencing selected varies by personal choice and the species of livestock to be confined.  In general all configurations shown can be used with cattle, woven wire and high-tensile electrified can be used with sheep, and woven wire can be used with hogs.

The list of materials needed for each type of fencing is from Fencing Costs for Nebraska (see references at the end of the article).  Costs were adjusted to 2005 prices provided by a number of Iowa retailers, although prices may vary.  Labor was figured at $13.60 per hour, the average fence building labor charge reported in the 2005 Iowa Custom Rate Survey, FM-1698.  Gates have not been included in the estimates.

A set of Tru-Test livestock scales is an investment and you want to be sure to purchase the components to fit your needs and budget.

This season is a great time to add a set of scales to your ranch or upgrade your existing setup. 

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The energizer must deliver sufficient shock in proportion to the requirements placed on it. The power output should be selected based on the following calculations. Location of electric fence energizer (access to A/C power), type of animals, length of the above-ground or underground electric fence, number for strands of wire, conductivity of wire, vegetation present on the fence and soil conditions for grounding.

There are 3 components to a Tru-Test scale system – A high quality Tru-Test cattle and livestock scale system will help you collect and analyze data, making your farm and ranch business better at making livestock management and business decisions.

Scale Indicators 
Its the brains of a livestock weighing system. The indicator receives the weight from the load bars and displays it on screen. Some trutest models also store weights and animal IDs.

Load Bars
Load bars do the heavy work. When an animal steps into the chute or on the platform, they lock on to the weight, even as the animal is moving.

Weighing Platforms
Platforms are used in portable installations and are durable to support the weight of an animal but light enough to be easily moved.

Sustainable agriculture is a philosophy or an adopted attitude usually characterized by the intention to farm holistically, support and enhance communities and the local environment, and maintain continuous improvement and equity. In practice, it employs diverse farming practices that balance three main factors interchangeably without compromising the others: economic viability, environmental soundness and social responsibility. Sustainable farming is about longevity. It attempts to achieve the best possible agricultural result over the longest period of time.

Key Concepts

• Balance — maintaining an equilibrium between inputs and outputs surrounding economic conditions, environmental factors, and social consciousness.

• Continuous Improvement — providing crop yields while decreasing inputs necessary for future harvests, striving for zero soil loss and setting annual goals for improving quality.

• Diversity — fostering strength and resiliency through differentiation. Physical: various types of farms & locations Human: different races, ethnicities, and background of farmers Biodiversity: crop and livestock varieties Market: range of venues for sale and products

• Equity — providing workers with fair treatment and a healthy environment. Livestock are also treated humanely and raised in natural environments.

• Conservation — ensuring that resources such as land, water and soil taken from the land are put back into the ecosystem and available for future generations. Composting, for example, enhances soil quality by adding organic matter to the soil after an agricultural process has removed soil nutrients.