Reducing Stress for Cattle

On this episode of the Casual Cattle Conversations Podcast, Shaye interviews first-generation Texas rancher Kim Jungkind about staying curious to reduce cattle stress and improve performance. Kim shares how observing cattle led her to test music and color preferences: her herd moved away from rock music but gathered closely to Bach, especially Yo-Yo Ma’s cello, which she now plays during feeding and stressful events like trailering or difficult births to calm the herd; she connects stress reduction to better weight gain by preventing metabolic energy loss.   She also found cattle are drawn to yellow after placing art in a corral, and notes cattle see yellow best and blue well, inspiring practical changes like using yellow flags on sorting sticks. Kim recounts transitioning from nursing and academia to ranching after inheriting her father-in-law’s operation, receiving community support through a local church, and facing a major fire early on. She recommends helping new ranchers network and directs listeners to order her book, “Back to the Barn and Bach,” at www.insightskj.com.  Links and Resources   Learn more about Cargill here: https://bit.ly/4e1qygS    Catch more conversations like this one and learn more at https://www.casualcattleconversations.com/  00:48 Why Curiosity Matters  01:15 Yellow Flags Reduce Stress  02:14 Testing Music Preferences  04:00 Stress Economics Weight Gain  04:46 From Nurse To Rancher  07:14 Finding Help Through Church  09:32 Wildfire Wake Up Call  10:57 Learning Cow Personalities  12:45 Grandin And Behavior Research  14:08 Playing Cello For Cows  17:33 Art In The Corral Colors  19:25 Key Takeaways Curiosity Community  21:13 Where To Get The Book