Exam revision questions Flashcards
Which region (North or South) is likely to have a beef enterprise with their caving commencing in November each year
Northern Australia (Winter rainfall)
Which region (North or south) is likely to have Bos indicus type cattle?
Northern Australia (better heat adapted breed)
Which region (North or south) is likely to find a beef enterprise calving cattle in August?
Southern Australia (Spring calving is ideal as pasture is lush)
What is the PRIMARY driver of management calendar scheduling on a self replacing beef farm?
Joining date (bulls added to cows)
Critical mating weight for beef cattle is achieved when the average animals in the group reach what percentage of their adult weight?
60-65%
The optimal position for vaccination of beef cattle is:
High on the neck to avoid traces in carcass
The fat score of a beef animal is measured at:
Rump and rib
If a steer was 500kg live weight and a fat score 3 which market are they most likely to be destined for if they are being sent to an abattoir
Supermarket
The most common Bos indicus type cattle you are likely to find in Australia are
Brahman
Brangus cow (Brahman x angus) is likely to be ____ in colour with/without horns
Black in colour without horns
Which part of Australia do most live cattle exports originate from?
North - Live cattle export occurs out of Darwin Port (north, sheep live export mainly from
Fremantle (west)
An Australian beef cow in a condition score half way through the scoring system (not thin and not fat) would be in condition score:
3
If a farmer wants to transition beef castle from grass to a predominantly grain ration approximately how long should this take?
4 weeks
If a non-lactating beef cow is grazing green, improved pasture how many centimeters tall should it be to ensure she is maintaining her weight?
3cm
Which of the following castration methods would be most appropriate and common for a four month old calf?
knife castration with emasculator
If you join a Hereford cow to a black Angus bull the progeny will be
Black with a white face
Compared to the USA, how does Australia compare with respect to the percentage of the national cattle herd based on dairy and beef genetics and what percentage of beef is exported?
Australia has higher % beef exported, similar beef cattle % of total national herd
In what state of Australia would you find the most beef cattle and what type of beef cattle are they most likely to be?
Queensland, Bos Indicus
A standard dressing percentage for 2 year old steer carcasses at an abattoir is likely to be:
50-55%
Dressing percentage (also known as yield) = (carcass weight/ live weight)x100
“Dressing percentage of premium animals is mostly 50-55% whereas animals in lighter condition such as cull cows that have a low muscle score are likely to be under 50%.” - in Lecture “Management Procedures on a Beef Farm”
Which region (North or south) is likely to have Merino sheep enterprise with lambing in June?
South west Australia (sheep wheat zone)
Which of the following is a critical measure to ensure optimal weaner survival in a Merino sheep enterprise?
Weaner body weight and growth rate
Vermont Merino is bred for
skin wrinkles therefore greater fibre yield per animal
The general trend in Australian sheep flock for the past 20 years is:
Increased lamb turnoff,
Decreased flock size
Which sheep are you most likely to find a small metal ear tag
stud merino ram
Rank the export value ($) of beef, lamb, mutton and goat meat to Australia
- beef
- lamb
- mutton
- goat
If we want lambing in a prime lamb enterprise to occur in March the rams should be put in the ewe paddock in
october (Gestation period of sheep: 152 days (5 months))
Which of the following procedures best matches those commonly conducted at lamb marking in a self-replacing Merino enterprise in Victoria
Ear tagging, vaccination, castration, tail docking, mulesing
A sheep enterprise is concerned about blowfly (Lucilia cuprina). In what season is risk greatest when they are likely to need to commence using preventive therapy to slow covert strike?
spring
When would you recommend checking Faecal Egg Count in sheep and cattle enterprises?
In sheep, weaners and animals that are more than 12 months of age. In cattle, animals less than 12 months old.
What is the average time after birth that a Merino lamb would have its tail docked presuming the flock has a five week joining period?
5 weeks
What produce does Saxon Merino sheep known for
Fine wool
Which animal of a sheep farm is likely to be the last one sold from a farm during a drought (ie the one a farm manager will most want to retain)?
2 yo merino ewe
Crutching is a common procedure conducted in sheep enterprises. When is this procedure commonly conducted and why?
Crutching is conducted post weaning and the purpose is to remove ‘dags’, which are clumps of wool stained with faeces and urine
Late winter/spring
Ewes or wethers grow more wool?
wehers
A property lambs 200 ewes once a year. Assume all ewes produce 1 lamb per year (1:1 male:female) which all survive. Rams are purchased from a nearby stud. If the property wants to replace 25% of the ewes per year, how many male (wether) and female (ewe) lambs will be available to sell?
50 ewes and 100 wethers
In an autumn-lambing Merino flock, the rams are put in with the ewes for 5 weeks
from November 1st. When will the last lambs be born?
Early/mid may
Typical lactation for an Australian dairy cow is
300 days
If a Victorian dairy farmer is selling a bobby calf which of the following is likely to be
sold as a bobby calf?
6 days old male Fresian calf
What percentage of mature bodyweight should a dairy heifer be when she calves for the first time?
85%
How frequently are adult dairy cattle (4-8 year old) wormed for internal roundworm parasites?
Only if problem identified
Which of the following answers best reflects how much colostrum should be given to a Friesian dairy calf after birth?
4L within 6 hours of birth
Breeds of dairy cattle on AUS dairy farm
Brown Swiss, Aussie red, Jersey, Fresian holstein
Which of the following ages is the ideal time for a dairy cow to give birth in a temperate Australian dairy production system?
24 months
If a dairy farm was not using artificial insemination, how many bulls should they have to mate per 100 cows?
6 (3 bulls/100 cows if AI is used, 4 bulls/100 cows if herd was sychronised)
What reason best describes why it may be more difficult to match a beef cattle reproduction system with a relatively short grass growing season as compared to a Merino sheep enterprise?
Longer gestation and lactation length of cattle
NLIS year tag colour 2020-222
Purple - 2020
Yellow - 2021
Red - 2022
Blue - 2023
Black - 2024
Which scenario would most likely use paint branding of livestock?
Cattle at saleyard
The term gross margin is defined by?
Income less variable costs
Frame score
overall size of beef cattle = hip height vs age of animal
Older cow will have higher frame score and DSE requireent
Late maturing cow will have higher frame score therefore unlikely to put enough weight for selling
The integration of cropping and livestock enterprises can allow increased production. This can occur due to
Grazing crops during winter and summer
A property in Australia has the temperature as shown on graph. All months of the year receive at least 40mm of rainfall on average with the dominant rainfall from October to March averaging at least 60mm in each of those months. Which of the following months is optimal for joining a self replacing herd of Angus cows on this property?
December
events of a reproductive cycle in the correct order?
Parturition, lactation commences, return to oestrous, joining, gestation
Which of the following seasons has the most consistent pasture growth in SE
Australia (ie most commonly the same amount)?
Winter
Which feed type is harvested earliest in season
Silage
Which of the following pieces of information MUST be printed on a National Livestock Identification Scheme ear tag?
Property ID code
Digestibility of a plant in its late flowering stage is approx
55-60%
Closest % to the likely DM % of a cereal grain that is fed to livestock
90%
What is a trace element
Selenium
An enterprise near Wangaratta in south eastern Australia averages 600mm rainfall per year. Generally the rain starts falling in late April or May and rains reduce by about November in most years. The enterprise manages Merino sheep and cattle. How many 45 kilogram Merino wethers can the enterprise run per hectare in winter? If it is useful the French equation is included below:
FRENCH model: SR = 1.3 * (R -250) /25
18.7
An enterprise near averages 400mm rainfall per year. Generally the rain starts falling in and rains reduce by about November in most years. The enterprise manages Merino sheep and cattle. How many 45 kilogram Merino wethers can the enterprise run per hectare in winter? If it is useful the French equation is included below:
FRENCH model: SR = 1.3 * (R -250) /25
8
Which of the following four feeds is cheaper per MJ?
- Wheat is about $310 per tonne and 13 MJ ME/kgDM at 90% Dry Matter
- Barley $290 a tonne and11.5 MJ ME/kgDM at 90% Dry matter
- Lupins $450 a tonne and 12.5 MJ ME/kgDM at 90% Dry matter
- Silage $300 a tonne and 9 MJ ME/kgDM at 50% Dry matter
Wheat
If 1000 45 kilogram Merino wethers are put into a 10 hectare paddock that has 2 tonnes of dry matter per hectare and the wethers are eating 1 kg of dry matter per animal per day with pasture growing at 50 kgDM/ha per day how long can the mob stay in the paddock for if they should be moved when the paddock is 1500kgDM/ha?
10 days
Amount eaten per day = 1000 kgDM
Amount grown per day = 50 x 10 = 500 kgDM
Loss of pasture = (1000 - 500) / 10 = 50 kgDM / ha / day Amount to be eaten = 2000 - 1500 = 500
Number of days = 500 / 50 = 10 days
In which industry is heat detection (oestrous detection) commonly performed by the farmer?
Dairy cattle
In a spring with much lower than average rainfall a farmer needs to wean prime lambs as soon as possible. If the 5 week joining period lasted until 30th April, what is the earliest weaning can occur?
Early November
A dairy farmer will artificially inseminate (AI) their cows for two cycles as they naturally come into heat. After the end of the AI period they will put bulls in with the cows for two further cycles. They will begin AI on 15th October. What
month will the bulls be removed from the cows?
Jan
A dairy farmer will artificially inseminate (AI) their cows for two cycles as they naturally come into heat. After the end of the AI period they will put bulls in with the cows for two further cycles. They will begin AI on 15th October. What month will the first calves be born?
August
On a property producing prime lambs, the farmer wants to wean when the oldest lambs are 16 weeks old. If joining started on March 25th and lasted 5 weeks, what month would the paddock need to be ready for the weaners?
December
If a fully-grown beef cow weighs approximately 500kg, what is the average weight a group of heifers should be at first joining?
300kg
A sheep farmer puts rams in with the ewes on 20th March. What month will marking take place?
October
A farmer new to raising sheep asks your advice about weaning Merino lambs in a year of average rainfall and feed availability. The first lambs were born on September 2nd after a 5 week joining period. Given that the conversation occurs in early October, what would be appropriate advice in this situation?
Wean the lambs 12 weeks after the start of lambing when the ewe’s milk supply will start to decrease
In Western Australia, which of the following zones occupies the largest area?
Pastoral Area
