Ranchers deal with forces outside their control daily, including markets, weather and public policy. While these issues present challenges to cattle producers, focusing on what can be controlled gives them opportunities to remain viable in the industry.
Los Angeles County cattleman Mike Williams has found ways to use a grazing management plan, virtual fencing technology and involvement with his local and state cattle associations to meet the unique challenges of being a rancher in southern California.
“I think ranchers should always be looking for ways to improve their operations, improve their pastures and improve their genetics,” says Williams, who ranches with his wife, Lynda. “Don’t get into a comfort zone, but stay on top of what you can control.”
Williams grew up in a farming family in Idaho, and cowboyed before serving in the Army. After his time in the service, he moved to California and shod horses. The couple began Diamond W Cattle Company, a cow-calf and stocker operation, and leased land in both Ventura and Los Angeles counties to begin ranching in 2002.
Creating a flexible grazing management plan allows ranchers to adapt as needed.
Currently, the Williams’ cattle graze on 12,000 acres of leased private land in Acton near the Angeles National Forest. Even though it’s not a requirement of the lease, Williams has a written grazing plan. The high desert climate and average rainfall of 6" to 12" makes flexible resource management crucial.
“I use a grazing plan to better utilize the forage and improve the overall condition of the pastures,” says Williams, who makes decisions based on forage quantity and quality.
“The rain in this part of the country isn’t much and is highly variable in how much you get and when it comes,” he explains. “One year to the next, the amount of forage you have can vary significantly.”
While the past few years have been better, the area experienced several droughts for about 10 years.
“You have to consider the times of year you can spend in certain parts of the pasture,” Williams explains. “There might be grass in some areas, but the water might not be adequate. In wintertime or at wetter times of the year, there is enough, but maybe not in the hottest part in the summer. I might move to another pasture sooner than I had originally planned in order to take advantage of the forage production while the temperatures are low enough there will be enough water to sustain the cows.”
The forage availability also plays a role in how Williams manages his cow herd.
“I wean my calves, and on good years I’ll keep my calves another year or at least through another season if I have the forage,” he says. “If I don’t have the forage, then I may sell the calves just after I wean them or I may keep just the heifers. Part of the drought management plan is whether or not my calves stay on the ranch or go someplace else.”
When Williams took over the lease, the land was degraded with fences, infrastructure and water resources being neglected. He began improving water sources and has two wells and three springs.
“This mountain is dry,” he says. “But the mountains are like a sponge. The water comes down out of the sky, and it just sinks into the ground, and then it comes out in springs over the years.”
Incorporating technology can help save time and money.
Through the years Williams began incorporating new technology to help increase grazing capabilities, including photo monitoring, pasture management software and virtual fencing. He says he is seeing improvements, which he attributes both to grazing management and two good years of rainfall.
“I’m seeing an increase in my perennial grasses,” he says. “There’s a lot of variables, but I am seeing more resilient pastures. I’m able to see some of the spots that were degraded from the cattle spending way too much time there starting to rehabilitate. It’s a slow process, but I am definitely seeing improvements.”
Prior to starting to use virtual fencing two years ago, Williams had used a stockmanship technique to keep his cattle bunched up and herded together on horseback. This new system gives him better management.
“The problem was if you’re not there every day, or every two to three days, the cows would start getting spread out, and that’s a lot of work keeping them together again,” Williams explains.
The virtual fence has cut down on time and labor.
“I thought it would work as a backup; if my cows started to spread out, they wouldn’t go all over 12,000 acres, which has no cross fencing,” he adds. “I still use the herding when I really want to get impact in a certain area, but virtual fencing has been a game changer of giving me more control over land and cattle management.”
Williams also appreciates the data he receives from using technology.
“It gives me a snapshot of what my pasture is doing, and I can understand if what I’m doing is having a positive effect or a negative effect,” he says. “It takes a certain amount of time to really understand the impact your decisions are having, versus the impact of all the other variabilities you’re having, so it’s a process that takes time to kind of realize and understand.”
While grazing data is important to individual ranchers, Williams understands the importance of the science when it comes to reducing fuel loads and dry vegetation. Located about an hour northeast of the city, the LA fires in January 2025 didn’t affect Williams’ ranch, but he has been affected by previous wildfires in the state. A fire in 2017 pushed him off his lease in Ventura County, and since then he has focused on improving the soil conditions, grass and water infrastructure on the Ritter Ranch property where he runs an Angus-based cow herd.
“The worst of the fires were in areas that don’t have a lot of cattle,” Williams says. “The cattle were pushed out of those areas a long time ago, which I would attribute to be a major reason why the fires were so catastrophic.”
At one time, all those hills were grazed by cattle, Williams says.
“Fires are going to happen, but they don’t have to be as devastating as they are, and management decisions all over the state are largely responsible for the conditions we’re seeing today,” he says. “There’s no rancher I know in the state of California that hasn’t been affected at some point by fire.”
Becoming involved in local and state cattle associations that focus on making policy decisions makes good business sense.
Wildfires in recent years have brought more awareness to the role cattle and grazing play in resource management. Williams encourages ranchers to get involved, and he currently serves as the first vice president of the California Cattlemen’s Association and the Chairman of the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (USRSB). Williams has seen the positive impact they can make for the cattle industry firsthand.
“I’m definitely sensing an attitude shift in the state among the more urban citizens,” Williams says. “People are starting to question the narratives environmental groups have been pushing, and opening up to the idea that cattle and other livestock can be a net benefit in protecting those communities from these catastrophic fires, but also in restoring these rangelands that can be better than if it just sits fallow. It’s actually worse to leave land alone than it is to use it.”
Williams sees opportunities for ranchers to stay engaged in the process and continue the momentum.
“We need to be on our game and doing things right,” Williams says. “We need to be looking for how we can be better stewards of what we got. Most ranchers are, but every one of us can improve, and we need to be looking for opportunities to improve. It’s not only good for the overall image of ranching in general, but it’s good for each of our operations. With today’s challenges, whether it’s input costs, the markets, the droughts, all the other things, you got to be firing on all cylinders in order to keep your operation afloat.”
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