Happy New Year!
We want to thank you for ringing in the new year by continuing to choose Spencer Ag for your animal health and nutrition. We are grateful to serve our community and the agricultural industry for another year.
New Years — the holiday for resolutions, new beginnings, and plans to make the new year the best yet. But did you know some cultures associate swine positively with the holiday? Pigs have been associated with good fortune and prosperity throughout the centuries when celebrating New Years.
Pigs have been a symbol of wealth dating back to Ancient Greece and Rome, where pig ownership was considered a sign of affluence, wealth, and prosperity. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the pig was still a popular good luck charm in France, England, Ireland, Germany, and Austria, where it was – and still is – known as Glücksschwein (“good luck pig”). The phrase originally comes from the German phrase “Schwein haben” which means “to have a pig”. The pig was often paired with four-leaf clovers and horseshoe symbols, and gifted in the form of marzipan or lemons (with cloves and toothpicks for eyes and legs).
The pig symbol expands further than in European countries, in Chile, they have the Chanchito (“little pig”) which is a hand-crafted three-legged figurine said to bring stability, balance, and prosperity to one’s life, which was typically gifted to one's loved ones and friends. China also uses the pig in their 12-year zodiac calendar, where the pig is a symbol of wealth, luck, sincerity, and having a warm heart.
In America, while our traditions are not as tightly wound around the pig symbolism during the new year, the pig still has a positive association. In the 1800s, Pigs were often called “Mortgage-Lifter” as they were a reliable profit farmers could use towards their new homesteads when settling the Midwest farm regions of America. Even during less profitable seasons of life, many understand the value and honorable symbolism that comes from pork production.
Happy New Years, farmers! Thanks for putting food on the table for another year!
Mark your Calendars!
January 22-23 Iowa Pork Congress—Des Moines, Iowa
Spencer Ag Center will be at booth #1222. Come to our booth and say hello!
Sign Up Here: https://events.american-tradeshow.com/iowap25/begin?i=Rp5SZDD3iZYh-22TBWLYXGJa5jNSVhSu
The Calving Tool Belt
It’s time to prepare for Calving Season. Check out products Spencer Ag Center carries that may help your herd! With calves being highly susceptible to health problems, it is wise to be on guard with health management tools to keep your calves strong.
Colostrum
Colostrum is the first milk your calf receives from its mother. (And likely the first tool you need in your tool belt.) This first milk contains high levels of antibodies (immunoglobulins) that help protect the newborn against infections. We carry Bovine Colostrum mix as a replacement or supplementation of maternal colostrum. Dry Colostrum can aid in the treatment of Failure of Passive Transfer (FPT).
We carry three different varieties of
bovine colostrum.
These include:
Calf’s Choice Total Gold (SCCL)
Bovine IgG Preplacer 115 (VetOne)
Colostrx Bovine IgG 50g
Scour Preventative Balancer
Spencer Ag has their own Scour Preventative Balancers by incorporating Bio-Mos into our rations. What is Bio-Mos?
Bio-Mos is a yeast product that is derived from the Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain meant to support animal performance. By stimulating the natural defense of the organism and reinforcing digestive system function, this product provides fortification against scours. Moreover, with this support, your animal’s feed efficiency and marketability improves.
Ask your sales rep if our Mineral or Co-Products with Biomos are the right fit for you. We also carry Bio-Mos by the bag too!
Gel Tubes
We carry a wide variety of tube products to help get your calves going. Examples include Vita Charge, Biozyme’s Probios, and Huevepharma’s Achieve Pro –all oral gel products that can support calves’ ability to overcome stress and environmental changes. Additionally, we have Tech Mix’s “Calf Perk” which can be used on newborn calves that need a boost, to help increase body temp and respiration levels. All of these tubes are great for cool weather calving.
Electrolytes
Electrolytes play an important role in preventing dehydration which can be caused by several problems including stress, extreme temperature changes, transportation, and more. In addition to rehydration, electrolytes play a role in supporting immune function, and muscle function, combatting metabolic problems such as acidosis and diarrhea. We carry a wide variety of electrolytes at Spencer Ag Center, including:
Calf Restart One 4
BlueLite Replenish for Calves
Merrick’s Blue Ribbon Calf Electrolytes
First Defense—Tri-Shield
“First Defense protects calves from scours by giving them antibodies directly. Calves receive an instant dose of immunity from the most common scour pathogens. There’s no reliance on dam- or calf-level vaccines to stimulate an antibody response.” The Tri-Shield product is a single-dose gel tube that provides a dose of immunity from E. coli, coronavirus
and rotavirus. A tube of Tri-Shield administered at birth, along with maternal colostrum, has been proven effective in third-party research to provide passive immunity against K99+ E. coli, bovine coronavirus, and rotavirus infections
Source: First Defense
“Oh, the weather outside is frightful….”
As the snow continues to fall, please remember to leave room for our delivery trucks when removing the snow on your farm site! Clean up around bulk bins and storage buildings, this
makes maneuvering simpler for our large delivery and bulk trucks!
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