FOT 4040 - Herd Management

Clock Hours: 286

Course Description:
This is an advanced course to the livestock industry covering principles on animal nutrition, feed composition, feeding of farm animals, types, market classes and grades of cattle, swine, sheep, and goats. Students will learn breeding, feeding, management, as well as prevention and control of farm animal disorders.

Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:

Demonstrate an understanding of the practical skills involve in artificial insemination, pregnancy determination and reproductive management.
To give students and overview of current evaluation and grading methods of cattle, swine, sheep, and goats.
Students will gain working knowledge of nutrients and their function in the body.
Students will be able to explain digestion and contrast ruminant and non-ruminant animals.
Students will be able to identify and discuss nutritional deficiencies and toxicities in livestock animals.
Students will identify characteristics and processing of feedstuffs and their feeding value.
Students will be able to formulate simple feed rations based on nutrient requirements for each species.
Gain knowledge of factors that impact animal’s nutrient requirements and feed intake.
Analyze the factors driving input cost and output values.
To describe and compare nutrient utilization across classes of livestock.
Recognize benefits of optimal management of health, well-being, performance and efficiency in livestock production systems.
To learn the proper environmental management practices involved in livestock management.
To be able to set breeding goals relevant to overall breeding objectives.
To identify livestock handling methods and equipment.