Oklahoma cattle, calves and sheep down

The January 1, 2013, inventory of all cattle and calves in Oklahoma, at 4.20 million head, was down 300 thousand head from the January 1, 2012 inventory according to the Oklahoma Cattle Report issued Friday by the USDA-NASS Oklahoma Field Office.  All cows and heifers that had calved, at 1.80 million head, were down 2 percent and bulls, at 120 thousand head, were unchanged from January 1, 2012.

All heifers over 500 pounds, at 700 thousand head, were down 14 percent from last year. Steers over 500 pounds, at 870 thousand head, were down 5 percent from January 1, 2012.

The 2012 calf crop, at 1.67 million head, was down 10 percent from the previous year

Steers, other heifers and calves grazing on small grain pasture in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas totaled 1.34 million head, down 16 percent from a year earlier.

Oklahoma’s sheep producers had 75 thousand head of all sheep and lambs on hand January 1, 2013, up 7 percent from last year according to the Oklahoma Sheep and Goat Report issued today by the USDA-NASS Oklahoma Field Office. Breeding ewes one year and older, at 44,000 head, were up 5 percent from last year. Rams, at 4,000 head, were unchanged from 2012. Replacement lambs, at 11,000 head, were up 1,000 head from the year earlier.

Market sheep and lambs on January 1, 2013, totaled 16,000 head. Market lambs comprised 94 percent of the total. Fifty-six percent were lambs under 65 pounds, 13 percent were 65 84 pounds, 13 percent were 85 105 pounds, and13 percent were over 105 pounds. Market sheep comprised the remaining 6 percent of total marketings.

The 2012 lamb crop was 49,000 head, up 7 percent from the previous year.

Wool production in 2012 was 150,000 pounds, up 7 percent from last year. Sheep and lambs shorn totaled 30,000 head, up 11 percent from 2011. The average price paid for wool sold in 2012 was $0.70 per pound for a total value of $105,000, up 7 percent from 2011’s total value of $98,000.

The entire Oklahoma report can be view online at: www.nass.usda.gov/ok under “Recent Reports.” The national database, Quick Stats, and all USDA-NASS reports are available on the agency’s web site: www.nass.usda.gov. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the USDA-NASS Oklahoma Field Office at 800-525-9226.