Are you ready for another HOT summer? Did you lose livestock and production to the heat last summer? The summer of 2023 reached record-setting temps, and signs point to an even hotter 2024. As farmers prepare for the upcoming grazing season, safeguarding livestock and eliminating loss of production and profit is a top priority.
For those without natural shade in their paddocks, a Shade Haven mobile shade system is a crucial tool. Marshfield, Missouri-based farmer, Matt Arthur purchased a Shade Haven SH600 in June 2022. After grazing with a Shade Haven through two of the hottest summers on record, Arthur praises this grazing tool’s impact on both cattle and pasture health.
Arthur practices management intensive grazing with 19 head of South Poll cows on his 50-acre farm. “I leave the Shade Haven in one spot for no more than 24 hours,” he explained. “When I return to that paddock later in the season, there are big round circles of green grass wherever the Shade Haven was. It is remarkable.”
While he purchased the Shade Haven to prevent heat stress in his cattle, improving pasture heath, especially during prolonged heat and drought, was a welcomed benefit. The cattle love the Shade Haven and Arthur uses that to his advantage. “I use it to make them go to where I want them to go. So, I get more even utilization of the paddock.”
A third benefit of using the Shade Haven is improved conception rates. Arthur typically puts his bull in with the cows from July 4 to August 15 – some of the hottest days of summer. “Since we breed that time of the year, the Shade Haven really helps with our conception rate.”
Beat the heat in 2024
For graziers like Arthur, who invest substantial time and resources in setting up and implementing management intensive grazing operations, providing shade for their livestock is is an essential part of the plan. “The Shade Haven complements our farming practices perfectly. It’s what makes it all work here in the summer.”