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Extension Report
Baldwin County Extension Office
302A Byrne Street
Bay Minette, AL 36507
Ken Kelly
Regional Extension Agent
Animal Science
July 22, 2008
Around Our Area
The Alabama Regional Equine Information Network (REIN) program is designed to meet the needs of horse owners, horse professionals, and horse industry personnel in the state of Alabama. The REIN training program will utilize distance learning technology to simulcast classes from the Auburn University Campus to multiple sites around the state. One site will be offered at the Gulf Coast Research and Extension Center in Fairhope. The program is similar in structure to the Master Cattle Producer program that the Alabama Cooperative Extension System has offered for several years in Alabama. The REIN program will meet on Tuesday and Thursday nights from September 2 through September 18 and September 30 through October 9, with classes beginning at 6:00 p.m.
Alabama REIN is a comprehensive 30 hour course presenting all aspects of equine production, management and care. Topics and speakers for REIN include:
- Welcome and certification standards – Dr. Cindy McCall
- National Animal ID plan for horses – Dr. Tony Frazier, Dr. Terry Slaten
- Conformation: why is it important? – Dr. Cindy McCall
- Horse nutrition: nutrient needs and sources, feeding performance horses, feeding breeding horses and foals, alternative feeds for drought – Dr. Betsy Wagner
- Growing forage crops for horses: species, traits, and adaption, pasture management – Dr. Don Ball
- Equine behavior and training: effects on management, how horse learn, dealing with abnormal behavior – Dr. Cindy McCall
- Equine reproduction: basic physiology, breeding the mare, basic stallion management, neonatal foal care – Dr. Soren Rodning
- Equine exercise physiology: basic fitness concepts, getting horses fit, feeding strategies for peak performance, reducing heat loads to working horses – Dr. Kari Turner
- Herd health management: protecting against common diseases, “new” parasite control practices – Dr. David Pugh
- Basic horse genetics for the owner and breeder: color genetics, selection techniques – Dr. Cindy McCall & Dr. Lisa Kriese-Anderson
- Forage pest management: poisonous plants, reducing fire ants and other insect pests, weed control – Dr. Darrell Rankins, Dr. Kathy Flanders, Mr. Henry Dorough, Dr. John Everest
- Composting and handling manure – Dr. Frank Owsley
- Maintaining safe equine facilities – Dr. Cindy McCall
For more information about the REIN program, visit the Animal Science and Forages team website at www.aces.edu/animalforage , or contact Ken Kelley at (251)238-0373 or kellewi@auburn.edu .
Anthony Wiggins and I, along with representatives from Dow Pasture and Rangeland Chemicals have put out demonstration plots at various farms throughout the Southwestern Alabama region. Most of the weed control products that we commonly use in pastures were used in this demonstration. One plot is at Randall Hastings’ farm located just north of Bay Minette. We will have a field day there to allow producers the opportunity to view how the different pasture and rangeland chemicals did on the weeds in the pasture. This will take place on Monday, August 4th between 4:00 and 7:00 p.m. There is also a fence row demonstration that shows how various chemicals work on some of the woody stuff we see on fence rows. Mail outs will be sent in Baldwin County. If you would like to receive information on animal science and forages meetings and events, call the Baldwin County Extension office at 937-7176 or 943-5611/928-0860, ext. 2222 to get on the mailing list. You can also contact Ken Kelley at (251)238-0373 or kellewi@auburn.edu to get on the mailing list or to get more information about where this demonstration spot is located.
I’ve seen and heard about some armyworms in the area, so be aware of your bermudagrass pastures and hayfields. There is a very helpful publication available on the ACES website entitled “Management of fall armyworm in pastures and hayfields”. This publication can be downloaded by going to http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1019/. You can also download the Alabama Pest Management Handbook for a more complete listing of insecticides that are labeled for use on various forage insects. This handbook can be downloaded from the internet by going to http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-0500-A/VOL1-2008/forage.pdf. If you would like to ask me a question about this or other topics, contact me by calling (251)238-0373 or emailing kellewi@auburn.edu .
Email address: kellewi@aces.edu
Phone number: 937-7176 or 943-5611, 928-0860, ext. 2222
Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work in agriculture and home economics, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, and other related acts, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M University and Auburn University) offers educational programs, materials, and equal opportunity employment to all people without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, veteran status, or disability.
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