Released March 23, 2009

BROOKINGS, S.D. -- A new Extension blog focused on pasture and range livestock production is up and running on the Internet.

The SDSU "South Dakota Pasture and Range Livestock Production" blog is available at this link: http://sdpastureandrangelivestockproduction.blogspot.com/.

Extension Livestock Educator Rebecca Schafer is the author of the blog, and said she hopes it provides another avenue for producers to connect across South Dakota.

"We created the blog to serve as a way to get a better understanding of producers' interests and programming needs," said Schafer. "While it is very new, we hope it will help serve pasture and range livestock producers, giving them a chance to ask questions and get answers."

Schafer said the blog, like all blogs, thrives due to community involvement.

"We want this platform to be a place where many share ideas and perspectives on a wide range of topics," she said. "While I will create content for it, we hope to have more and more producers leaving comments or creating threads on which Extension personnel can assist them. We want the blog's content to create a more personal connection with producers."

SDSU range sciences professor Sandy Smart said the blog can serve as a vehicle for news and information, as well as a place for peer-to-peer idea sharing.

"This blog has the potential to speed up the process of getting answers to producers," he said. "It also can serve as a database of frequently asked questions because more than likely someone else has thought of the same question."

Call Schafer at (605) 874-2681 for more information about the SDSU Pasture and Range Livestock Production blog.

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http://agbionews.sdstate.edu/story.cfm?id=4663

Contacts: Rebecca Schafer, (605) 874-2681

Jarett C. Bies, (605) 688-4642, Jarett.Bies@sdstate.edu