NorthernNorthern PastoralPastoral RegionRegion Copyright of the Department of Agriculture PO Box 1618, KARRATHA WA 6714 Phone: (08) 9144 2065 Email: [email protected] March 2006 ISSN 1033 5757 Volume 27, No. 1 Contents Where has the rain been falling?....................................................... 2 Message from the Editor ................................................................... 3 Pilbara Poets Page ........................................................................... 4 Pastoral Waterpoint Workbook & Staff Movements........................... 5 Congratulations Peter ....................................................................... 6 The 2006 Cattle Year—How Good?.................................................. 7 Degradation of meat baits by micro-organisms ................................. 9 Vaccinating Cattle—understanding how a vaccine works................ 10 Needles don’t go on vaccine guns any-old-how .............................. 13 Bush Nurse ..................................................................................... 14 Calving difficulty in Beef Heifers...................................................... 15 Feral Pig Control ............................................................................. 16 Are you SunSmart?......................................................................... 17 Beware of dark cutting on dry pasture............................................. 18 Practical biosecurity for poultry owners ........................................... 19 Landcare funding opportunities ....................................................... 21 Of course we haven’t got foot and mouth disease........................... 22 Kimberley rangeland management course ...................................... 23 Kimberley stocktake and Kimberley chemical subsidy..................... 24 Infrastructure upgrade for West Canning artesian bores................. 25 Kimberley ZCA—summary of actions.............................................. 26 New Northern Rangelands Landcare Coordinator........................... 27 Stock squad information release Kimberley Region ........................ 28 Pilbara Mesquite Management Committee update.......................... 29 Why do farmers do what they do?................................................... 31 A travellers tale and Reminder—Roebourne/Port Hedland LCDC... 32 Low Stress Stockhandling Schools................................................. 33 ORD Re-union................................................................................. 34 Attention all cattle producers ........................................................... 35 Northern Rangelands Calendar....................................................... 36 ACTING EDITOR: Hayley Turner Visit http://www.agric.wa.gov.au Page 2 Northern Pastoral Memo March 2006 Where has the rain been falling? Please check the address label on your publication. If it is incorrect or if you would like to be included on our mailing list, let us know!! Disclaimer: This material has been written for Western Australian conditions. Its availability does not imply suitability to other areas, and any interpretation or use is the responsibility of the user. Mention of product or trade names does not imply recommendation, and any omissions are unintentional. Recommendations were current at the time of preparation of the original publication. © Copyright Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Agriculture 2006. http://www.agric.wa.gov.au Page 3 Northern Pastoral Memo March 2006 Message from the Editor By Hayley Turner, Development Officer, Karratha Welcome to the first memo for 2006 with yours truly as the relieving editor. Our well known editor Peter Smith was humbly receiving a North Ausrtalian Beef Research Council Award in Toowoomba during the collation of articles, however he still managed to run his eye over the final version! Congratulations Pete! You can read more about Petes acolades in the following pages. This edition of the memo is as diverse in content as always with articles ranging from chemical subsidies for declared plants to Stock Squad reports and everything in between! Rainfall has also been a hot topic of late and is reflected in the blooming poetic talent amongst pastoralists in the wake of this seasons cyclones. So while it’s too boggy to move far from the homestead, make yourself a cuppa, sit back, relax have a read. We hope you enjoy this edition and as always your comments and contributions to help us do an even better job are always welcome. A special thanks to Sonya Jansen for her continued effort and support with the collation of articles for the memo. http://www.agric.wa.gov.au Page 4 Northern Pastoral Memo March 2006 Pilbara Poets Page By Anon. Gees Doc, there something wrong, My foot it won’t fit in my thong. ‘Cause between my toes there’s extra skin, And on my back there grows a fin. I love the water & splash around, But lack a breath when I run aground. And on my nose I have a scale, But what’s that lump, a growing tail? I have these gills upon my cheek, The sounds are calling along the creek. I’ve come to you, who’ll surely know, To make my symptoms ease or go. “Now, this is how you help the pain, For what you have is too much rain! You need to share & spread it round, And help relieve the thirsty ground.” All across the country eyes were watching to the north where a little low was marching “So when the rain does finally stop, to the west. Clare they called her And the native grass - a weeping crop. this seasons first daughter To see the next you never know, and she was going to be the biggest blow! For dusty plains may be the go.” No here and there for her, no stop and start or where shall I go. With a hop and skip she danced with joy across the ocean alas in her haste she forgot to open her heart to gather the gifts she should bestow. The watching eyes began to wonder as she neared the coast and they came under the influence of her playful dance. Rattling the windows and doors she advanced shedding few tears for those waiting below. But in her wake, hidden from her eye was a pocket of rain along for the ride With a mind of its own to do as it pleased it travelled more easterly and none did it tease And those watchers were left with faces aglow. http://www.agric.wa.gov.au Page 5 Northern Pastoral Memo March 2006 Pastoral Waterpoint Workbook By Francis Bright, Regional Economist, Kununurra It’s been a long time coming but the Waterpoint Workbook will be available from DAWA offices in Derby, Karratha and Kununurra from mid April. A copy is available free to Kimberley and Pilbara pastoral leaseholders. Copies of the Waterpoint Workbook are available for $20. The workbook is tailor made for pastoralists in a tropical environment. It came about as a result of discussions with pastoralists identifying the importance of stock water in the development and running of their cattle enterprises. The workbook can be used two ways. 1. As a general reference. There is discussion on the costs of providing stockwater, things to consider when investing in new waterpoints and the cost of investing in new waterpoints. 2. As a decision support tool. The workbook has 20 exercises on a CD where pastoralists can estimate their own costs of providing stockwater and investing in new waterpoints. The authors, Troy Sinclair (ex Derby DO) and Francis Bright (Kununurra DO) have tried to keep the workbook simple and it is written in layman’s terms. Whilst the book does not make the decisions on stockwater for you, it does provide a logical sequence of exercises to assist you in making decisions about watering your cattle. Even though the workbook was developed with the Kimberley cattle business in mind, the same principles apply in other tropical regions and the temperate rangelands for getting to know the costs of providing stockwater. For your copy, contact Kununurra DO (9166 4000), Karratha (9144 2065), Derby 9191 0333. Staff Movements By Richard Watkins, District Manager, Karratha In the Pilbara Office there have been a few staff changes. x Valerie Shrubb, Development Officer has transferred to Carnarvon to undertake a new role, working with pastoralists evaluating food on offer for livestock. x Rob Parr, Biosecurity Officer is on extended leave till the end of 2006. x Both vacancies will be advertised in the near future. In the Broome Office x Ben Madin, District Veterinary Officer will be on long service leave until around the end of June. x Andrew McAllister, Veterinary Officer, resigned to study medicine at the University of Queensland. http://www.agric.wa.gov.au Page 6 Northern Pastoral Memo March 2006 Congratulations Peter! Mr Peter Smith, a beef development officer currently based at Karratha, has been awarded the North Australian Beef Research Council (NABRC) Communicator/Extension medal awarded to industry experts who develop ways to share information and research with producers to help them improve their profitability and practices. His career with the Queensland Department of Primary Industry (QDPI) spanned 36 years working with beef producers and rural communities in Townsville, Gayndah, Ayr, Swans Lagoon, Richmond and Charters Towers. For the past 4 years, Peter has worked with the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia and cattle producers in the Pilbara region. Peter’s achievements are too numerous to mention but include working with beef producer groups, using property management planning and benchmarking to improve the efficiency and sustainability