cattle

Shayla Curts was pregnant with her third child when she was shot and killed in December. Her family says this might not have happened if Jackson County's child welfare system had worked like it was supposed to. Plus: The plan to conserve water in western Kansas and save the region from drying up altogether.

After decades of irrigation, the aquifer that makes life possible in dry western Kansas is reaching a critical point. Several counties have already lost more than half of their underground water. But a new plan could save more of what’s left.

It’s been one year since drought-fueled wildfires tore across western and central Kansas. For the ranchers who lost so much, the rebuilding process is far from over.

Bison grazing on native prairie for three decades transformed the landscape, allowing wildflowers to thrive that can feed legions of bees and butterflies.

From deadly wildfires to choking dust storms to decimated crop harvests, this year’s drought has left its mark across the country. For the hardest hit areas, such as the Great Plains, recovering from the far-reaching impacts of this historically dry year won’t be easy.

Bison grazing on native prairie for three decades transformed the landscape, allowing wildflowers to thrive that can feed legions of bees and butterflies.

Drought is taking its toll on western Kansas cornfields this year. And all that dead corn could mean higher prices for products that depend on the state's grain supply, such as ethanol-infused gasoline and corn-fed beef.

Environmentalists are praising the news of an electric vehicles battery plant coming to Kansas, but this "green industry" comes with its own issues. Plus: An experimental farm in southern Missouri is trying to prove that grazing animals in forests is better for everyone, including the cows.

Silvopasture is the practice of grazing livestock in a forested area instead of an open pasture. It’s a very old practice that might see new life.

Climate experts say summer nights have gotten warmer. One study found the average minimum temperature in the United States has gotten warmer by 2.5 degrees over the last 50 years. For farmers, this means crops and livestock could suffer.

More than 2,000 cattle carcasses were put in landfill piles or pits after dying in the southwest Kansas heat. But that’s not a prohibited or uncommon method of livestock disposal.

The weather event that killed thousands of cattle in southwest Kansas last month was a rare combination of extreme factors. But it highlights the ongoing risk that heat stress poses for cattle, especially as climate change pushes temperatures higher.