**6. Conclusion**

Confining cattle in close proximity to each other greatly increases social stress and animal-to-animal disease transmission. Reducing the use of antibiotics in growing and finishing beef cattle is impossible without significant modification in beef cattle management before confinement feedyard placement. Non-confinement investigations incorporating crop production and beef cattle grazing reported herein have

defined successful protocols that reduce the need for using antimicrobials for animal well-being from minimal at weaning to nearly non-existent during grazing. Nonconfinement protocols have increased utilization of home-grown crops through crop and beef cattle grazing integration and by employing the five principles of soil health. Employing a diverse multi-crop rotation with beef cattle grazing increased water infiltration and soil water holding capacity as well as improved and reduced reliance on commercial fertilizer application. Additional merits of the systems' integration are found in improved wildlife habitat for birds, small animals, and large game. Beef cattle grazing a sequence of perennial and annual forages improved grazing animal performance, carcass weight and net return. Reducing agronomic inputs that can be replaced with naturally occurring nutrient cycling has the potential to increased profitability for the farm-ranch enterprise and improve revenue for local economies. Moreover, systems analysis has shown that significant modifications to cattle management before the first point of sale using retained ownership and an annual forage grazing integration protocol from birth to slaughter can be profitable for the cow-calf producer. Well in advance of any business model transition to an integrated croplivestock system from birth to slaughter, ranch managers considering a business model shift are encouraged to conduct an in-depth through feasibility analysis of the proposed change and cash flow that will support the enterprise modification to include infrastructure additions for cropland fencing and water installation as well as establishing bank operating loan repayment schedule during the business model transition.
