USU Researcher Receives USDA Grant, Named to UN Animal Welfare Panel

Training lambs to avoid picky eating habits isn’t so different from teaching human babies to develop a diverse palate, says Utah State University researcher Juan Villalba.

“Animals — four-legged or two-legged — exposed to flavors early in life will learn to like them,” says the associate professor of foraging behavior in USU’s Department of Wildland Resources.

And teaching animals to enjoy nuisance plants can bring big benefits to livestock producers and to the long-term health of the animals’ grazing lands.

Villalba is a 2011 recipient of a $416,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture Rangeland Research Program. The award will fund a three-year project involving scientists of varied disciplines and livestock producers in research to control invasive weeds, including the pesky Medusahead, a spiky, grass-like plant that’s ravaging Western rangelands.

But before he embarks on the study, Villalba is off to Rome, Italy, to serve on a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization panel to develop guidelines on food-producing animal welfare.

“The overall goal of the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization is to promote agriculture and food production to stop world hunger,” says Villalba, who will participate in the panel Sept. 26-30. “Our panel will discuss sustainable methods to improve the welfare of livestock while enhancing food production.”

Back at Utah State, Villalba and his interdisciplinary team will begin studies with lambs at varied sites in northern Utah.

“Adult sheep won’t eat medusahead because they don’t like the taste and, if they do eat it, they experience discomfort because they can’t digest it well,” he says. “But lambs exposed to the weed early in life with their mothers and with an appropriate supply of nutrients will learn to like it. Their bodies actually undergo physiological changes that allow them to digest it without problems.”

As the lambs mature and become breeders, their offspring follow their examples and eat an array of weeds as well.

“The same principle also applies to other livestock, including cattle and goats,” Villalba says. “With appropriate supplements, the animals will receive good nutrition from low-quality forage, while contributing to greater biodiversity and healthier rangelands.”

Assisting Villalba with the study are soil scientist Helga Van Miegroet, professor in the Department of Wildland Resources, who will study soil response to the sheep’s foraging behavior, and Rhonda Miller, agricultural environmental quality specialist with USU Cooperative Extension, who will monitor plant responses to the study.

As the project progresses, Beth Burritt, Extension assistant professor in Wildland Resources, will conduct short courses and field days with livestock producers to share knowledge gained from the study. Layne Coppock, associate professor of applied ecology, will survey livestock producers to determine any barriers to implementation of the foraging practices.

Also participating in the project is Don Snyder, professor in USU’s Department of Applied Economics and assistant director of the Utah Agricultural Experiment Station. Snyder will investigate the economics of grazing versus use of pesticides to combat invasive weeds.

“We anticipate a win-win solution for livestock producers that will have clear, positive impacts close to home,” Villalba says. “Sheep and other livestock can manage the land while producing a marketable product. It’s a good option for producers and land managers.”

Related links: