Javier Ramirez

​​How did you become interested in this feld of study?
My interest in animals began at a very young age. I was either learning about animals in books or watching “Zoboomafoo” on the television. As an undergraduate student, my goal was to become a veterinarian. However, when I began to work as a volunteer at Cal Poly Pomona’s livestock units, I was exposed to broader opportunities. From that experience I decided to focus more on livestock animals and began to educate myself on how much of an impact these animals have on our daily lives.

Why are you interested in this project?
The basic mechanism underlying our hypothesis is a biological process called the circadian rhythm. The process by which feeding time can potentially increase the effciency of the growth of cattle and dairy cows can later be applied to human subjects as well.

Describe your role as you’ve conducted research in this ARI project.
My main role was to feed the cattle and collect their unconsumed food twice a day. We would take morphological measurements once a week to track weight gain and growth.

What do you hope to learn, or have you learned, through your involvement with this ARI project?
I have learned that there are more opportunities than one might imagine once you begin to get yourself out there and expose yourself to different experiences.

What is the title of the ARI project you are working on?
“The Effects of Feeding Time on Feed Effciency on Steers”

Briefy describe your project and why it is important to California agriculture or natural resources.
In California, the dairy industry (milk and cream) and cattle/ calves production industry are worth $10.2 billion. The costs within these industries are rising, mainly because of the increased price of animal feed. Increasing an animal’s feed effciency by even a small percentage can have a major economic impact.

What do you want to do after graduation, and how will working on this ARI project help you to achieve that goal?
After graduation, I hope to work in the cattle breeding industry. Having worked with beef cattle most of my time as an undergraduate and all of my graduate career, I have greater confdence in my skills, knowledge and abilities, and I think these attributes will be valued by the beef cattle industry.

Is there anything else you would like to share with us regarding your background and interests?
I am the president of the Cal Poly Pomona Livestock Show Team. We work with the livestock units on campus and showcase the animals that are raised and bred at Cal Poly Pomona.

What did you fnd most rewarding about the ARI program?
Because of the ARI program, I have expanded my knowledge on cattle and even took a teaching position as a lecturer at Cal Poly Pomona.