Basis risk or residual arising from disparity between an index’s estimate of losses and actual is inherent in index-based insurance products. We approximate basis as the false negative probability (FNP) within pasture, rangeland, forage (PRF) rainfall index for south-central coastal region California. FNP on average that at least one two selected coverage intervals will fail to provide indemnit...

Creating personalized emergency plans for evacuating or sheltering-in-place with horses helps horse owners to be as prepared possible when natural disasters occur. This publication discusses disaster-specific considerations, making a plan, water and feed, documentation, fence pasture preparations, animal identification, vaccinations, insurance, what expect at agricultural inspection station sto...

Two, 8-week experiments, each using 30 lactating Holstein cows, were conducted to examine performance of animals offered combinations of total mixed ration (TMR) and high-quality pasture. Experiment 1 was initiated in mid October 2004 and Experiment 2 was initiated in late March 2005. Cows were assigned to either a 100% TMR diet (100:00, no access to pasture) or one of the following three formu...

Mimosa pudica is the most abundant and problematic invasive species in tropical pastures. This study investigates the effects of two cattle grazing systems, long-term moderate grazing (LTG, 2.7 animal unit/ha/yr for 33 years) and short-term heavy grazing (STG, 5 animal unit/ha/yr for 2 years) compared with ungrazed exclosure pasture on the invasion of M. pudica and its relationship with herbage...

Pasture ecosystems may be particularly vulnerable to land degradation due to the high risk of human disturbance (e.g., overgrazing, burning, etc.), especially when compared with natural ecosystems (non-pasture, non-cultivated) where direct human impacts are minimal. Using maximum annual leaf area index (LAImax) as a proxy for standing biomass and peak annual aboveground productivity, we analyze...