Does Fetal Programming Affect You? Only if You Are in the Cattle Business…
As you look at the picture below, ask yourself, “Do I provide adequate nutrition to my calf crop early enough?”
You may have heard talk about fetal programming at a Cattleman’s symposium or similar beef industry meeting, but does it affect you? In short, YES! If you are in the business of producing or selling beef cattle, fetal programming affects what you have to sell.
Fetal programming is the concept that a maternal stimulus or insult at a critical period in fetal development has long-term impacts on the offspring. This long-term impact is not unlike genetic potential that is programmed before birth. You cannot change a calf’s genetics after it is born; you can only provide that calf with the optimum growing conditions and hope that it has the genetic potential to be profitable. Fetal programming is similar in that you cannot fix periods of gestational malnutrition after the calf is born.
All you can do is provide that calf with the optimum growing conditions and hope that it still has the potential to be profitable. A partial list of the areas fetal programming has been shown to impact include:
• Skeletal muscle development/calf growth and weight potential
• Marbling/carcass potential
• Reproductive efficiency of replacement heifers
• Increased body weight from weaning through 3 years of age
• Greater pregnancy rates
• Heifers more likely to calve in the initial 21 days of the calving season
Studies have compared herds split into two groups for at least the first two trimesters (6 months) of their pregnancy. One group received inadequate crude protein in their diet, and the second group received adequate crude protein. Even though calves were treated the same after birth, lack of adequate crude protein early in gestation caused differences throughout the calf’s life.
Now, look at that picture again. Should we be concerned about the nutrition for the 6-month-old calf that you can see, or the 3-month-old fetus that can impact next year’s profitability? We really should be concerned with all three: the cow, the calf and the fetus within the cow.
Historically, we have more or less been taught to only worry about nutrition for the gestating cow during the last trimester of gestation. Research indicates that we should be concerned about gestational nutrition much earlier. Many spring calving herds will be in the second trimester of pregnancy in September and October. Fall pastures often do not provide adequate crude protein for gestating beef cows. You are only given one opportunity to get things right.
Give those calves the protein they need NOW during gestation to set the stage for lifelong profitability. Early fall is the time to act. Program your herd for profitability with self-fed CRYSTALYX
® Brand protein supplements for ultimate ease of use and low cost-per-head per-day delivery of key nutrients like protein, vitamins or minerals.
Natural Beef Programs Gain Extra Benefits
Ingredient and commodity prices continue to escalate, and many producers are tempted to think that adding supplementation costs may not be good for their bottom line. But some revealing data from research done on receiving calves in a major Northern Great Plains commercial feedlot shows that, even in the face of higher ingredient costs, supplementing with CRYSTALYX® Brigade® Stress Fighting Formula still pays for both traditional commercial and natural programs.
The calves were divided into a 421-head control group and another group of 455 calves that were supplemented with Brigade®, and tracked over a 46 to 51-day period. Both groups were fed the same nutritionally balanced feed ration. The pens with calves in the Brigade® group had Brigade® barrels placed between the water and the feed bunk. The returns were impressive.
The Brigade® group experienced fewer treats and pulls, fewer deaths, higher feed intake and improved feed efficiency. When it comes down to dollars and cents, the difference Brigade® makes is even more distinct. The control group had a net profit of $2.42 per head. The Brigade® group had a net profit of $12.20, a difference of $9.78 per head better profit with Brigade®. And the $6.45 per head Brigade® cost was already accounted for in the feed costs. In other words, the advantage is based on performance alone, above the cost of Brigade®.
“For the commercial producer the Brigade® benefit is clear,” Mark Robbins, Research and Nutrition Services Manager for Ridley Block Operations, says. “If you spend the $6.45 on Brigade®, you get that back, plus the $9.78, so you get $16.23 total, a return on investment of two-and-a-half-to-one.”
Brigade® is a “Natural” for Natural Beef Programs
Reducing the treatment of sick calves, in addition to being cost effective, also makes Brigade® an excellent fit for natural beef programs. A natural program stresses no use of antibiotics or hormonal growth promotants. The nutritional boost will prevent spare producers from having to treat as many calves and pull them out of the program.
“These cattle were in a natural beef program,” Robbins notes. “If you have a sick calf in a natural program, you’re obligated to treat that calf to save its life. Treating it means using antibiotics in most cases, and using antibiotics makes that calf fall out of the program, thus it can’t be marketed as natural.”
The study shows that Brigade® gives producers fewer treats and pulls, and that means less dollars, less time, less labor. In a natural program that results in more calves that sell at a higher price.
In this study there were 158 calves treated in the control group. Those calves were sorted off separately, sold commercially, and eliminated from the natural program. The Brigade® group treated 90 calves, 68 fewer than the control group. Brigade® allowed the owner to keep 68 additional calves in the natural program. At 654 pounds average end weight and assuming $12 a head per CWT premium, that results in an $11.89 per head increase in profit across all Brigade® calves marketed in this study.
Remember what happened last fall? Did you have an unacceptable number of open cows? Going into the calving and breeding season, now is the time to avoid that from happening again in 2010. The key is to start taking care of cows at calving. If you do, you can see a dual payback.
How do you do that? By providing a CRYSTALYX® supplement with vitamins and trace minerals pre-calving, through the breeding season.
“That will produce better colostrum and result in calves with increased immunity,” Mark Robbins, Research and Nutrition Services Manager for Ridley Block Operations, said. “So you have improved calf health this summer and fall, plus you’re setting up your cows to do a better job of breeding back this spring and summer.”
“If forages have adequate crude protein, you can use a mineral product that doesn’t supplement protein,” Robbins said. “If you’re still feeding stored forages that are of lower quality (low crude protein), feed a protein block, like BGF30,™ BREED-UP 20® or BREED-UP 28®. If your cows need extra phosphorus (late gestation and lactation), you should use CRYSTAL-PHOS,® PHOS-LYX® or MINERAL-LYX® in addition to a protein block.”
Start Early and Stay With It
Another key to closing the open gap is starting early and staying with the supplementation program.
“Ideally, you should be on a year-round mineral program, but, at a minimum, start supplementing 45 days before calving with a good vitamin and mineral program,” said Dr. Dan Dhuyvetter, Director of Research and Development for Ridley Nutrition Solutions.
“And if you’re already within the 45 day period before calving, it is better to start supplementing late, than not at all. Cow nutrient requirements for energy and protein significantly increase as cows approach calving and, especially once they calve, with increasing demands from milk production. Green grass can often help meet these increased requirements, but if you are still some time away from green-up, you really should be feeding adequate energy and protein as well. Supplementation, especially mineral and vitamin delivery, should continue through calving and breeding. Bull turn-out is the start of your breeding season and it’s critical that your free-choice delivery of nutrients continues through this period of time so cows breed early with a paycheck that is delivered on time.”
Early Calves = Better Profitability
It’s a simple fact: The earlier you get cows bred, the older those calves will be when you wean your herd in the fall. Calving date has a dramatic affect on profitability, as shown in this chart.
Hughes also notes that if a cow produces a calf in that first 21-day period, and continues to do so over her reproductive life (an average of eight to nine years), producers can gain one and one-half to two additional calves in weaning weight over a cow that produces a late calf and continues to do so. It takes the profit from two early-calving cows to cover the loss from one late-calving cow.
A recent University of Nebraska study of calving frequency on steer calf feedlot performance and carcass quality showed similar results. There were 659 steers evaluated by when they were born, either in the first, second or third 21-day calving season.
The weaning weights of the steers born during the first 21-day period were 32 pounds heavier than calves born during the second period and 60 pounds heavier than those born during the third period. And the percentage of carcasses grading Choice or higher also favored the steers born during the first 21-day calving period.
This is a critical time for producers to maximize herd reproductive efficiency and, ultimately, maximize their profitability. Strategic supplementation with CRYSTALYX® will help close the “open gap,” that can lead to economically productive cows and healthy calves you depend on for 2010 and beyond.
YOUR CALF HERD: GETTING IT RIGHT FROM THE START WITH BRIGADE®
The old saying that it’s not important how you start out, it’s where you end up, may be true in many cases, but it’s definitely not so when it comes to starting calves. The stress that comes with weaning, shipping, grouping and the breeding period can cause a number of production problems, from poor weight gain to illness, and in extreme cases, death. Stress is the number one thief of calf herd profitability. If you can improve the herd’s immune status by reducing stress, you can increase profitability. That’s where a stress-fighting CRYSTALYX® product can make a difference.
A number of research trials have proven that Brigade® Stress Fighting Formula will help fight stress in cattle. Brigade® contains and continuously delivers additional protein, vitamins and minerals. Brigade® is also formulated with electrolytes to make it an especially effective stress fighter. Enhancing immune response is another crucial element in an effective starter calf program, and Brigade® has organic sources of copper, zinc and manganese that get the job done.
Stress can also negatively affect a calf’s appetite. Brigade® has an answer for that challenge as well. Brigade® is highly palatable and contains yeast culture, so it helps stimulate calves’ appetites, helping them to start eating sooner. Field trials demonstrate that offering a highly palatable low-moisture block at weaning appears to offer a jump-start to the feed-familiarization process. When fortified, highly palatable supplements are placed in weaning pens, even calves that are naive to supplement experience interest that stimulates acclimation to the bunk. And calves that are eating are less stressed.
Many producers are also seeing a Brigade® benefit in terms of lower health care costs. Reducing the treatment of sick calves, in addition to being cost effective, also makes Brigade® an excellent fit for natural beef programs. The nutritional boost helps lower the number of calves that need to be treated and pulled from the program.
Feeding cows and heifers to maintain the ideal 5 or better condition score going into calving sets the stage for a whole season’s productivity:
• Better newborn survival. Studies have shown that nutritional stress before calving leaves newborns with lower fat reserves to maintain body heat, higher rates of morbidity and mortality. One study showed that heifers fed protein deficient diets dropped calves that generated 11 percent less body heat.
They also took more time to stand after calving than those from dams getting adequate protein.
• Bigger calves without added calving difficulty. Research from the ‘70s disputed the conventional wisdom that thin cows giving birth to smaller calves will suffer less dystocia. Studies since have continued to demonstrate that lower-energy dam diets lead to lowerweight calves–with no decrease in incidence nor severity of dystocia.
• Healthier calves. Research has shown a correlation between cow condition at calving and the concentration of immunoglobulin (IgG) in calves’ blood. Low concentrations of IgGs have been shown to contribute to more scours in young calves.
• Heavier weaned calves. Improved newborn health results in increased calf growth throughout the season. Plus, higher cow body condition improves post-colostrum milk production, further improving calf growth.
• Earlier return to estrus. Colorado State work showed that cows calving in thin condition only achieved a 66 percent cycling rate by 90 days. Moderate conditioned cows, in contrast, improved to 92 percent by 90 days.
• Conception rates increase. Numerous studies have linked nutrition and conception rates. As body condition at calving drops, days to rebreeding increases and conception rate falls.
During the last sixty days of pregnancy, cows generally must get at least two pounds of crude protein daily, plus sufficient energy to maintain fetal growth and development. Heifers need particular attention, both before parturition when they are still growing themselves, and after calving, when new strategic use of rumen-bypass protein has been shown to improve body condition without sacrificing calf growth. Pre- and post-calving nutrition sets the tone for cow herd productivity
• Ensuring cows and heifers have sufficient nutrition to maintain and improve condition in the last 50 to 60 days of gestation improves these critical productivity measures:
- Calf growth and survival
- Return to estrus
- Rebreeding performance
• Cows need adequate protein before calving, with particular attention to heifers and thinner animals.
- Helps meet animal requirements.
- Improves low-quality forage intake and digestibility.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
Short your cows nutritionally in the last 50 to 60 days before calving, and you risk:
• Fewer calves. Every dead calf leaves an average $300 to $500 in annual cow costs to be covered by the rest of the calf crop.
• Reduced calf immunity to disease. Failure to pass on adequate immunity has been found to lower survival rate all the way through weaning by about one-fifth.
• Lighter weaned calves. Calves that suffer significant disease in the first 45 days of life can be expected to weigh 35 to 40 pounds less than healthy herdmates.
• Longer return to estrus. Every cycle a cow fails to breed subtracts 40 to 50 pounds of marketable calf from your crop.
• Lower pregnancy rates. When undernourished cows cycle, they stand a higher chance of not settling, further pushing the breeding season’s boundaries or–worse yet–going open for the year.
The old saying that it’s not important how you start out, it’s where you end up, may be true in many cases, but it’s definitely not so when it comes to starting calves. The stress that comes with weaning, shipping, grouping and the breeding period can cause a number of production problems, from poor weight gain to illness, and in extreme cases, death. Stress is the number one thief of calf herd profitability. If you can improve the herd’s immune status by reducing stress, you can increase profitability. That’s where a stress-fighting CRYSTALYX® product can make a difference.
A number of research trials have proven that Brigade® Stress Fighting Formula will help fight stress in cattle. Brigade® contains and continuously delivers additional protein, vitamins and minerals. Brigade® is also formulated with electrolytes to make it an especially effective stress fighter. Enhancing immune response is another crucial element in an effective starter calf program, and Brigade® has organic sources of copper, zinc and manganese that get the job done.
Stress can also negatively affect a calf’s appetite. Brigade® has an answer for that challenge as well. Brigade® is highly palatable and contains yeast culture, so it helps stimulate calves’ appetites, helping them to start eating sooner. Field trials demonstrate that offering a highly palatable low moisture block at weaning appears to offer a jump-start to the feed-familiarization process. When fortified, highly palatable supplements are placed in weaning pens, even calves that are naive to supplement experience interest that stimulates acclimation to the bunk. And calves that are eating are less stressed.
Many producers are also seeing a Brigade® benefit in terms of lower health care costs. Reducing the treatment of sick calves, in addition to being cost effective, also makes Brigade® an excellent fit for natural beef programs. The nutritional boost helps lower the number of calves that need to be treated and pulled from the program.
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With spring calving upon us, it is time to start thinking about the upcoming breeding season. For the brood cow, calving through re-breeding is a high stress time. Mother Nature has a way of taking care of the next generation, which means several key nutrients are transferred from the cow to the calf during the last trimester of gestation.
After the calf is born, the stress continues. Colostrum is nutrient rich and especially high in vitamin content. The transfer of nutrients to the newborn calf puts a drain on the maternal reserves at a time when she needs them to recover from calving and then breed back.
Jackie Nix, a nutritionist with Ridley Block Operations, explains more. “Gestation is roughly 280 days. It takes a minimum of three weeks for the uterus of the cow that has just calved to become ready for pregnancy. So, if we wish a cow to calve every 356 days, there are only one to three heat periods to settle the cow.”
Bulls too, need supplemental nutrients in their diet to get ready for breeding. CRYSTALYX
® Brand Breed-Up
® Supplements supply 200 percent of NRC requirements for trace minerals and vitamins to achieve the higher plane of nutrition needed from calving through breeding.
CRYSTALYX
® Breed-Up
® 20 and Breed-Up
® 28 are protein supplements and work best until green grass arrives. CRYSTALYX
® Breed-Up
® MAX is a mineral supplement designed to be fed with high quality forage or on green pastures.
There are two words producers dread hearing: “She’s Open.” When open and late cows are discovered during pregnancy checks, it puts even more pressure on a producer’s already tight bottom line. Research in commercial herds has shown that if a cow goes a year without calving, it will take the next six years of her life to make up for the profit lost. This numbers game has never been more important in cowherd production and calving distribution.
So what can producers do to make sure the numbers game works to their advantage? Pre-breeding nutrition decisions are in the producer’s hands, and basic supplemental nutrition can help put calving distribution in the win column come spring.
A shorter calving season can be a producer’s most cost-effective strategy. And the numbers add up, according to Mark Robbins, Research and Nutrition Services Manager for Ridley Block Operations.
“A cow cycles every 21 days,” Robbins says. “If she doesn’t become pregnant when she first cycles, it will be another 21 days before she has a chance to become pregnant. And if she becomes pregnant 21 days sooner, that extra calf growth is an economic benefit.”
That benefit is based on when the cow conceives. Let’s assume the average gain for a calf is over two pounds per day. The chart at left shows that if a calf is born 21 days earlier, producers gain an average of an extra 42 pounds of calf weaning weight over one that is born 21 days later. If the average productive cycle of a cow is eight years, producers could gain nearly an extra 350 pounds in calf weight over that life span.
“And if you have some cows that you can successfully breed 42 days, or two cycles sooner,” Robbins added, “that’s close to an additional 700 pounds of gain over
a cow’s average lifetime.”
Supplementation’s Pivotal Role
Assuming producers start with a healthy herd, supplementation can play a pivotal role in earlier conception and calving. The cost of inputs over the last two years has made producers more cautious about supplementation. But, as always, pastures and forages are generally deficient in trace minerals. They can also be deficient in protein during parts of the year. That deficiency can spell trouble for breeding cows at a crucial time.
“Right before a cow breeds she goes through a tremendous period of need for both rebreeding on time and lactation,” Dr. Dan Dhuyvetter, Director of Research and Development for Ridley Nutrition Solutions, says. “Her body reserves begin to be mobilized once she calves and starts to milk. Peak nutrient demand for milk
production generally occurs right before she starts breeding. Even if your cowherd looks to be in good body-condition, shortages of key nutrients like trace minerals or vitamins during gestation can negatively impact the time to rebreed and the number of open cows, not to mention the ability of your calf crop to cope with environmental stresses and defend itself from disease.”
Supplementing with CRYSTALYX® low-moisture blocks provides a nutritional boost that can promote early conception, and earlier calving, by ensuring that protein, minerals, vitamins and trace mineral levels are at an adequate to optimal level in the herd. And several CRYSTALYX® products are specially formulated to overcome nutritional stress associated with the breeding period.
The cost of owning and maintaining a cow for a year has increased dramatically over the past few years, so it is crucial that every cow in the herd be fully productive. That’s why it is so important that producers make sure their supplementation strategy is in place so that the numbers add up to an early and healthy calving season.
For me, College NCAA Basketball is one thing that makes it possible to get through March and April. This year has been especially fun. Who knew what would happen. A number 11, three 12s, a 13, a 14 and a 15 all won. The Final Four had only one number 1 seed. How did these lower ranked teams win? They played the whole game. Many games went to the wire with teams fighting to the end.
Much like the basketball players in the final minutes, cattle producers cannot stop investing in proper nutrition for the cow herd during spring calving season. Many cows are in the last trimester of pregnancy. This is a critical time for nutrient transfer to the calf. The cow will transfer trace minerals from her body reserves to the calf. The calf’s mineral status at birth is critical for optimum immune function and growth in the first months of life. This is especially true for copper and zinc. The young calf is on a milk diet and milk is a poor source of the trace minerals copper and zinc. Grass is also low in copper and zinc. The CRYSTALYX® Breed Up™ product line is designed to provide added trace mineral and vitamin E during the pre-calving through breeding season. The Breed Up™ 20 and 28 provide protein and mineral where the Breed Up™ Max is a mineral only supplement. Breed Up™ 17 Mag has been added for the areas that need additional magnesium.
Less than a minute to go! Down by 3! Hay supplies are tight. It costs too much!!
The 2012 hay acreage was down 20% from 2011. It was the smallest harvested area since 1948. The December 1 crop report showed supplies of less than 77 million ton, which was the smallest December 1 amount since 1957. This winter weather from January to April was cold for most of cattle country and cattle went through some feed. There is not a great deal of hay left and what is available is expensive. The severity of the hay situation was demonstrated to me this week. In Western Wisconsin, I followed a load of what had to be 2-3 year old hay that had been in someone’s fence row. It was traveling west on Interstate 94. No strings were left and the load was secured with straps and a cargo net. The tractor and trailer were from Nebraska.
Cows in late pregnancy and early lactation need the best forage and supplements possible. If you are buying hay it may be tempting to “save” some money by skipping the supplement. Actually, CRYSTALYX® can help stretch forage supplies by improving fiber digestibility, while providing the additional mineral and vitamins the cows and calves need. Research has shown a 10% improvement in fiber digestibility which will allow your cows to get more out of the hay. Cheating the cows now can cause too much weight loss and poor breed back later, which can be really costly.
Much like a basketball game, we cannot stop before the buzzer sounds.
One thing about writing a blog, you often think about what topics are on the minds of producers in the industry and then start looking for information to help shape our opinions and come to a conclusion about that particular topic. We are all aware of the recent increase in calf prices over the last decade and how that has impacted the beef industry (see graph). Weaned calves weighing 550 lbs were once in the $400 to $500 range in the 90’s and are now more like $800 or higher at the present time. A common question that often comes up when looking at the dramatic increase in calf value in recent years, is what has happened to the costs of production associated with raising weaned calves, especially when considering feed costs.
When gathering information to address this question, I came across an article authored by Steve Metzger who is the ND Farm Business Management Coordinator. He had focused his article on Cow-calf costs over the last 10 years based on records from the ND Farm Business Management program. After talking with Steve, he directed me to a very easy to use website with a variety of agricultural production records that have been collected through various University efforts. It is called FinBin and is a Farm Financial Database collected from producers who use FinPack farm financial planning and analyses software. It can be accessed at http://www.finbin.umn.edu/ and is supported by the University of Minnesota. The benchmarking database has cow-calf records from primarily ND, MN, NE, MO operations accessing over 40,000 cows with an average of 333 farms/ranches each year starting in 1993 up to 2011. The website pulls together the Beef cow-calf enterprise and provides a comprehensive overview of the costs and returns from the information provided. It is very easy to use and I would encourage anyone who is interested in comparing their production records to use these benchmarks.
Getting back to the question at hand: Have the costs of production went up more, less or at the same pace as calf value in recent years? Being a nutritionist the first area I am always interested in is with feed costs. As you look at the graph below you can see why feed costs are so important. Because feed costs make up a substantial amount of the total Direct expenses associated with maintaining the cow herd, it is always a logical target for managing costs. Feed costs were generally $200 per cow in the 1990’s up until early 2000 to 2001. They then moved to around $300 per cow in 2007 and are presently at around $350 per cow. As we look at total direct expenses that would also include veterinary charges, supplies, fuel and repairs, we see these increased in a similar manner with a sharper increase in the last few years. I then included historical CattleFax prices for 550 weight calves to look at the trend over time. You can see that the calf prices generally have more variability from year to year compared to either feed costs or total direct costs, but the trend for calf prices appears to be providing enough returns to more than compensate for increases in feed cost.
Because of year to year variability, one should really look at the trends as one could really skew the take-home message by pulling out individual years. If we estimate calf prices were about $450 in the early 90’s and today they are $800 you see that they rose about 178%. Likewise, if you look at feed costs per cow at $200 in the early 90’s and they are $350 now they increased 175% or at basically a similar rate. How have these changes impacted profitability for Cow-calf producers?
In the Second part of this discussion next week, I will bring in some observations that CattleFax has made over the same time period and see how impacting calf prices, or increased direct costs, including feed costs, impact profitability.
Graph: Feed costs and total direct costs are as reported by FinBin, a Farm Financial Database supported by the University of Minnesota, http://www.finbin.umn.edu/. CattleFax 550 lb choice steer prices are from the March 13’ CF Factors to Watch Report.
For many of us that have been around cattle the biggest risk is becoming complacent and not putting safety first. Agriculture is a dangerous occupation. The Bureau of Labor Statistics and The Center for Disease Control regularly collect injury and death rate information and the numbers are alarming. From 2003 to 2007, there were on average 583 agriculture related deaths per year. In 2011 agriculture had 557 deaths. Transportation and construction had more deaths, but agriculture had the highest death rate at 24.4 deaths per 100,000 workers. As the graphs below indicate, farming is the most dangerous occupation compared to other industries.
Most of the deaths occurring on a farm, involve equipment and tractor accidents, but 25-30% of all deaths are related to livestock production. A study conducted by the Iowa Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation with the Great Plains Center for Agriculture Health examined all the livestock related deaths in 2008 for Iowa and Nebraska. This study pointed out that handling cattle accounted for 85% of deaths.
Table 1. Trends and activities associated with reported deaths
During the calving season we may allow our focus on safety to waive. Feeding hay and the daily chores may have become routine. However, the activities associated with calving season are the ones shown to be associated with increased risk of injury and death. We are MOVING animals into calving pens and we may need to work in an ENCLOSED AREA to assist them during calving. Often we are LOADING animals to take them to different pastures.
Low Stress Animal Handling From a Safety Prospective
The animal is the primary cause of injury in 85% of the Iowa and Nebraska deaths. If we take into account some principals of how animals react to stimulus we can then anticipate their response. We can begin to use low stress handling techniques to get the desired result with less stress on the animal and less risk for injury to ourselves. The items listed below are the basic concepts to keep in mind when working with animals. Calving season is a time when we are in close contact with animals and these low stress handling tips can help decrease the risk of injury.
Field of vision
Cattle have very good periphery vision which covers 340 degrees except for the blind spot directly behind them. Staying out of the blind spot can help avoid kicking risk and rapid movement by the animal. Cattle will want to keep you in their line of site.
Flight zone
Every animal has a flight zone. Once a threat enters this area they react by moving away.
Pressure zone and point of balance
Every animal has a zone where they will react to pressure or stimuli from handlers. Pressure is just the human presence and movement. On the diagram below, the A is outside the pressure zone and movement will stop when at this location. The B is inside the pressure zone and will initiate movement. Point of balance is the spot where our pressure can move an animal forward faster or change direction. Most of low stress handling training is learning how animals react to minor changes in your location relative to the point of balance. We do not need prods, canes, load noise or shouting to get animals to react.
Return behavior
Cattle will want to go back to where they came from. Take this into consideration for layout of head gates and calving pens. A cow will walk past an open gate and continue down a straight lane. If they are allowed to turn around and go back, the will turn into a pen or head gate alley if they think they are going back to where they were.
Calving season is a great time. The calves are the reward for our efforts to provide the proper care and nutrition needed for a profitable herd. It is a time when we are in very close contact with the animals. Take some extra to consider safe handling practices.
When was the last time, you knew ahead of time, that your car would run into the ditch, in a blizzard? Or maybe, you absolutely knew that the Tornado warning on the radio was for a tornado that was headed directly at your home? I’m guessing these events have never occurred with certainty. That is why you may pack a survival kit in your car every winter, or why you head for the basement or some other tornado shelter, when you hear the warnings. If possible, many of us purchase insurance to protect against such unknown events. You make certain choices in life, to be prepared, just in case…….
When was the last time that you knew in February, that your newborn calves would break with scours, during a late March blizzard? When was the last time you knew in March, that Summer would bring another drought? Or, that the plentiful green grass you were counting on to put lost condition on your cows, would not be there this year. You can make certain choices in life, to be prepared, just in case…….
Is your cow herd prepared for what Mother Nature throws at them every Spring? Are they prepared for what Mother Nature may throw at them this Spring and Summer?
You may ask, “How do I prepare for the unknown threat or risk ?”
The answer is below in the Safety Pyramid of reducing hazards. Figure 1, illustrates that there could be 115,000 possible hazards, in one year, at a particular company. These unsafe acts likely lead to 11,500 close calls. These close calls translate into 1,150 recordable injuries, 115 of which are lost time injuries. On average, 115 lost time injuries can lead to 4 fatalities. Obviously the company would like to avoid the lost time injuries and fatalities, but they cannot simply zero in on them, as they cannot possibly see them before they happen. Sound familiar ?
What all companies do with a safety program, is target the 115,000 unsafe acts, as those ultimately lead to lost time injuries and fatalities. You work with the entire workforce, versus just the ones that may have a lost time accident or fatality.
You can apply this to your cow herd too. Look at figure 2. If you have a herd of 100 cows to be bred this Spring/Summer, you could likely have 1,000 threats to the entire herd, due to sub-optimum nutrition. That is just 10 situations per cow, that may cause her not to breed back in 1 of 3 cycles. Because of these fertility threats, perhaps half the cows do not settle in the first cycle, and half of those, miss the 2nd cycle. If half of those do not get bred after 3 breeding cycles, 12% of your herd is open. Later that summer, if nutrition is still sub-optimum, you could have 3 cows abort. Suddenly, you have 15% of your herd open. Today, that could be worth $15,000 when you sell your calves.
Again, you cannot specifically just target those 12 cows that will be open in September no more than you can identify the 3 that will abort. You have to prepare all cows for the 1,000 threats. CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements are an easy way to affordably provide protein, trace minerals, vitamins and phosphorus in a supplement block that’s available 24/7, while minimizing your investment in time, labor and equipment. Use CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements as insurance to maximize the breed-up on your cow herd.
Are you and your beef cows ready for calving season? What supplies and equipment do we need to have ready before the first calves arrive? What are the metabolic changes that impact the cow’s energy, protein, mineral and vitamin requirements?
Preparation for calving season needs to include gathering the items listed below. Calving season could start 10-14 days earlier than expected so don’t wait until the last minute to get items together and organize your calving equipment. The items need to be stored in a clean and easily accessible area. Give some thought to how the OB tools and puller will be cleaned after each use. How and where are the OB tools washed and dried? The calf’s immune system is naïve until it consumes colostrum and the cow’s immune system is suppressed around calving. The emphasis on sanitation is to prevent exposing the calf and the cow’s reproductive tract to pathogens during this high risk period. If an animal is needing assistance with calving her stress level is higher than normal. If it is a very difficult pull there will be additional trauma to the reproductive tract. What we do during these few hours will impact the cow’s ability to recover from calving and breed back on schedule.
Supply and Tool Check List
Source of warm water Bucket for OB tools and disinfectant
Disinfectant Empty soap bottle for squirting disinfectant solution
OB gloves OB lubricant
1 Long OB chain 2 Short OB chains
Calf puller (check cables) Head snare
Soft brush for cleaning cow Brush for cleaning equipment
Navel disinfectant Colostrum Replacer
Small pail for mixing Calf bottle – extra nipple
Milk Replacer Paper towels or clean cloth towels
Esophageal feeder Syringes and needles
Tags Bands
Medications Electrolytes
Biological processes that increase nutrient requirements
Most of the calf’s development occurs during the last trimester of pregnancy which increases the demand for energy, protein, mineral and vitamins. The majority of mammary system development is occurring at this time as well as the production of colostrum. The cow will pull from maternal stores to meet the growing calf’s demand. This is especially true for the trace minerals copper, zinc and selenium. These trace minerals are needed for many functions, but critical for maintaining a strong immune system. Milk is a poor source of copper and zinc, which implies the calf will be using the stored minerals the first several months of life. In short, the pre-calving period is when we need to have the best nutrition program possible. CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplement offers a wide variety of supplements to fit your operation. The Breed Up® formulas are designed with a higher nutrient profile just for the calving and breeding season.
Now is the time to prepare your calving equipment and supplies and check your nutrition program for a successful calving season. A little effort and planning now can make assisting at calving go much smoother.
It is almost Christmas time. Before you know it, the holidays will be over, and some of you may actually be looking forward to this! You may also be wondering if we will go over the Fiscal Cliff. As I write this, no one seems to have any answers.
Back to cows…. come January 1st, 2013, many of you will be within 60 to 90 days of calving. So, your cows are approaching a “Nutritional Cliff”. For the brood cow, calving through re-breeding is a high stress time, coupled with high nutrient requirements. The final 3 months of gestation see somewhere around 70% of the total growth of the fetus. Several key nutrients are transferred from the cow to the calf during the final 3 months of gestation. If cows are short on protein, weak calves can often result. Good quality colostrum is a must for healthy calves.
For spring calving cows, most forages are deficient in the trace minerals and vitamins necessary for production of good quality colostrum. Supplementation of trace minerals, vitamins and phosphorus is then absolutely essential to building the quality of colostrum that will provide the calf with a robust immune system necessary to avoid scours. This transfer of nutrients to the newborn calf puts a drain on the maternal reserves at a time when she needs them to recover from calving and then breed back.
Another factor to consider this year is how the impact of recent drought conditions and dry summer/fall pastures impacted your cow herd. Limited forage availability as compared to typical grazing conditions may have resulted in less energy converted to cow weight gain. Are your cows coming into the winter with their normal body condition stores or are they a bit thinner than normal? Given the time of the year you still have ample time to influence fiber digestibility and harvest more energy from your current forage supplies.
How can you avoid this nutritional cliff? It is not hard at all. Make sure you ramp up your cow herd supplementation at 3 months prior to calving. If your cows are not going to calve at a Body Condition Score (BCS) of 5 or better, you will need to feed more energy to get them to a BCS of 5 by calving. Failing to have your cows in this good of condition will often result in poorer conception rates this spring and summer.
There may be some of you thinking that you don’t want to make a drastic increase in the plane of nutrition for cows late in gestation as it may result in more dystocia or calving difficulty. There have been a number of studies that refute this observation when elevating the nutritional plane for cows prior to calving. Generally you may see a small increase in Birth Weight of the calves but more importantly, you find that cows are much better prepared physically to handle the birthing process and are able to calve unassisted when compared to under fed cows. I would caution anyone who wants to use this reasoning to not supplement their cows prior to calving if they indeed want to have cows that will provide high quality colostrum milk after an unassisted calving followed by producing strong healthy calves that can face the uncertain spring environmental conditions with minimal health concerns. Simply put, don’t let your cows go into calving underfed!
If you are concerned that you have not prepared your cows for the upcoming nutritional cliff, take steps to provide supplemental nutritional well ahead of the cliff. CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements are an easy way to affordably provide protein, trace minerals, vitamins and phosphorus in a supplement block that’s available 24/7, while minimizing your investment in time, labor and equipment.
The answer is right now, today, if not sooner! Many of you have spring calving herds, and you have probably already weaned this year’s calves, or, you are about to. There are three main reasons that the time immediately after weaning is a great time to add condition to your cows, for very little investment.
- Those cows are no longer lactating. Lactation takes a large portion of energy each day for a cow. The priorities for partitioning energy from the diet in a beef cow, are first, for maintenance, then lactation, and then gain. By removing the lactation energy requirement, you immediately push all that energy in to gain.
- In number 1 above, we briefly mentioned a cow’s maintenance energy requirement. Maintenance energy requirement increases as temperatures increase or decrease when cows are outside of their thermal neutral zone. The thermal neutral zone is a moving target that is greatly impacted by hair coat, moisture and wind, just to name three variables. For the purpose of this article, I believe most would agree that cows maintenance energy requirements will be lower with the temperatures we see in November, versus January. This lower maintenance energy requirement again frees up more energy for weight gain.
- While the maintenance energy requirements are lower in November versus January due to warmer temperatures, a Spring calving cow will also have lower fetal energy requirements during gestation in the Fall. Again, this means more of her daily energy intake can go to weight gain or body condition stores.
The vast majority (70%) of fetal weight gain occurs in the last 3 months of gestation. This is a very challenging time to try to add condition to your cows. Unfortunately, this is the time when many cattlemen are paying more attention to their cows, as they are likely feeding them stored forages, and we budget more time to pay attention to the herd as we near calving. Trying to add condition at this time of the year is not impossible, it will just cost you more than it would have in the Fall. So, plan ahead, put that extra condition on now, before the opportunity is gone.
While cows will generally gain weight in the Fall after calving, most forages are of poorer quality this time of year. They will respond greatly to even a little protein supplementation. Protein supplementation of low quality forage (whether grazed or fed in bales) will increase the digestibility (energy release) and intake (even more energy available to the cow). Many cattlemen refer to this as s t r e t c h i n g their forage.
This is generally the point where I hear how busy Cattlemen are in the Fall, and supplementing the cow herd may not be at the top of the priority list. This is well understood, but you should also remember that “CYSTALYX® has a barrel for that.” CRYSTALYX® Brand self-fed protein supplements are an excellent way to maximize your returns from a supplement program that’s available 24/7. A properly stocked set of CRYSTALYX® barrels will generally last about 2 weeks. This will minimize your investment in time, labor and equipment, while you take care of other priorities that also need to be done today!
The drought will have lingering effects on cow-calf producers well into next year, especially in the areas of forage quality and availability. Any technologies, management practices or additives that can help us better use forages we have on hand should be evaluated to determine if their benefits will outweigh their expense. Probably the most predictable forage utilization responses observed are those directly affected by protein supplementation, particularly on low quality forages that are less than 8% crude protein. If you have lower quality forages, the addition of supplemental soluble protein that is degraded in the rumen provides an improvement in forage digestibility and often times increased forage intake. This provides added energy to your cow-herd from the forages that you have on hand in two ways. Cows will digest more nutrients from the forage and they will consume more of these low quality forages.
You should make sure that you are selecting protein supplements that contain ingredients that are digested in the rumen. Mark Robbins wrote an earlier Blog related to the use of Non Protein Nitrogen (NPN) ingredients like urea as a ruminally degradable protein (RDP) source. Rumen microorganisms that ferment/digest fiber need a certain level of nitrogen available in the rumen that comes from the diet. Urea is one of the lowest cost means of providing this first limiting nutrient in order for fiber digesting microflora to work efficiently. A mix of other natural protein ingredients can then provide more slowly degraded protein to the rumen that will be used as microorganisms grow and ferment forages. If you use supplements that contain high levels of ruminally undegradable protein (RUP) such as feather meal, blood meal or corn gluten meal among others, you should be aware that much of the protein supplied by these ingredients is not digested in the rumen and therefore are not made available for rumen microorganisms. The key is to fix up the rumen first and then if additional protein is required to meet animal requirements, supplements with high levels of RUP can be optimally used.
As one looks at additives that can help improved forage utilization for Beef cows, the list is generally not very long. Particularly when looking for products that are labeled for mature beef cows. We did, however, find a marked improvement in forage digestibility with a natural dehydrated brown seaweed meal called Tasco®. This work was conducted at North Dakota State University and the results published in the peer reviewed Journal of Animal Science 2005 83:2938-2945. A digestibility study was set up to evaluate several feed additives on low quality forages (CP of 6%). The steers were provided either no supplement, a 40% CP supplement (19% as NPN from urea) or the same 40% CP supplement that contained the Tasco seaweed meal feed additive at 10 grams per head per day. Supplements were fed at .77 lb per head per day, typical of CRYSTALYX® low-moisture block supplements.
The results of the study showed that protein supplementation of low quality hay increased dietary intake and digestibility as we would typically expect. We also showed that when Tasco seaweed meal was added to the protein supplements, we saw an additional improvement in organic matter digestibility which came predominantly from NDF or fiber digestibility improvements. The increase in digestibility was approximately a 10% improvement over and above the increases already observed with protein supplementation and resulted in an additive benefit. This means that if a cow is consuming 25 lbs of hay or forage per day she will realize an added 2.5 lbs of forage digested, just with the addition of Tasco® in the protein supplement.
As you are looking for economical ways to stretch your limited forages, first consider protein supplementation and for added returns make sure to ask for CRYSTALYX® Tasco® 35-CP supplement from your local CRYSTALYX® dealer. The additional benefit from Tasco® seaweed meal will pay dividends as the value of forage increases. Let CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements help you get the most out of your forage supplies.
2012 has been a tough year for many in our business so far. The negatives of the drought and its effect on the industry continue to make headlines. In times such as these I find it important to remind customers, prospects and fellow colleagues of the basic fundamentals of CRYSTALYX® supplement programs. During opportune or inopportune times (depending on how you see the glass as ½ full or empty), a lot of producers and sales people study alternatives which means there are new people looking at CRYSTALYX® programs.
I’ve been fortunate over the years to work with a lot of good sales people and producers in the field of Animal Nutrition and have learned a great deal from the many professionals in our industry. Whether you are a rancher, farmer, feed professional or involved at any other level of food production in the U.S., you’ve had to learn basic fundamentals of your business and practice them to be successful. Below I’ve listed what I consider to be three fundamental reasons CRYSTALYX® is successful, and made reference to some past research. Much of these areas have been discussed in more detail in past blogs here on www.crystalyx.com.
CRYSTALYX® Fundamental Number 1: Forage utilization
The word supplement means to improve, help, or make better. This is what CRYSTALYX® does for forage, especially low quality forages. What 0.75 pounds of CRYSTALYX® does to stimulate fiber digestibility, increase rate of passage, and improve rumen microbial activity and turnover is classic in terms of what protein supplementation does for utilization of low quality forages. This is supplement strategy. The benefits are greater intake of the forage fraction of the diet; which means more energy intake all because of a little protein supplement. Nutritionists call this Positive Associative Effects. A Cowman calls it better feed efficiency and the cow herself will call it maintaining Body Condition. One CRYSTALYX® study conducted at Kansas State Univ. in 1997 measured a 19% increase in dry matter intake which translated to a 26% increase in digestible energy intake of steers on low quality forage (< 6% Crude Protein and >70% neutral detergent fiber). Again, in cow language, this is more energy from low quality forages. With the ongoing drought, high forage cost and a limited supply, every stem of fiber is important.
Crystalyx Fundamental Number 2: Predictable Intake for the ideal delivery mechanism of self-fed supplements
Have you ever heard the adage, “A supplement is only as good as it is consumed?” CRYSTALYX® being a molasses based supplement is very palatable and cattle will seek it out and consume it consistently on a daily basis. Research has proven it’s a great tool to use in attracting cattle to underutilized rangeland/pastureland (when placed farther from water or in difficult terrain) and that cattle prefer CRYSTALYX® over salt and dry mineral when given the choice. Consistent intake makes CRYSTALYX® an attractive supplement in managing costs, and in offering supplemental additives such as feed through fly control compounds (Altosid® or Rabon® Oral Larvacide) or the Ionophore Bovatec® for improved feed efficiency. In addition to consistent intake, CRYSTALYX® is fed with virtually no waste and very low time and labor inputs.
Fundamental No. 3 -- Herd health and Productivity
More recent research and production applications with weaning/receiving beef cattle and in dairy production have shown the health benefits of CRYSTALYX®. When animals are stressed they don’t eat as well putting them at risk for immune suppression, disease and poor performance. It has been well noted that when CRYSTALYX® Brigade® for beef cattle or Transition Stress Formula™ for dry and fresh dairy cows has been fed, a positive intake of the basal diet dry matter occurs. CRYSTALYX® does not replace anything in the basal diet but it will provide important nutrients during stress periods and can help stimulate appetite. It only makes sense that when cattle consume feed better there is less sickness, less death loss, and more efficient performance.
These are some of the fundamental features and benefits of CRYSTALYX® programs. With better forage utilization, consistent intake, and positive health benefits, CRYSTALYX® performs. Its reputation and success would not have lasted over 30 years if it didn’t. Mother Nature always has challenges for beef producers and 2012 is obviously no different. Put CRYSTALYX® to work in your herd and help manage the fundamentals of your business.
USDA’s Weekly Crop Condition Report includes pasture conditions for each state. Pasture conditions are currently as poor for this time of year as seen in the last 16 years. The data for the whole US and selected states in cattle country are listed below. Some of the drier and warmer months of the grazing season are still to come and expectations are that pasture conditions will continue to decline.
USDA Pasture Condition Report, June 17, 2012
|
Area/Condition
|
Very Poor
|
Poor
|
Fair
|
Good
|
Excellent
|
|
Texas
|
12
|
25
|
34
|
24
|
2
|
|
Oklahoma
|
4
|
12
|
40
|
41
|
3
|
|
Nebraska
|
7
|
23
|
39
|
31
|
-
|
|
South Dakota
|
1
|
10
|
33
|
48
|
2
|
|
Kentucky
|
4
|
13
|
36
|
42
|
5
|
|
US 48 States
|
9
|
19
|
32
|
35
|
5
|
Several management factors related to stocking rate need to be considered to address the declining pasture conditions, such as cow body condition, creep feeding and supplementation strategy. With some modifications we can extend days to graze and delay the need to begin hay feeding.
Cow Body Condition
We hope to have cows in a body condition score of 6 or greater going into the late fall and winter feeding season. It is much more economical to add condition now as compared to later in the winter. The CRYSTALYX® Body Condition Score App is a great tool that creates a pictorial record of individual cow’s body condition. The app is available for both the iPhone and Droid operating systems. We would expect cows to be adding condition after peak milk production. Use the Body Condition App to create a record today that can be evaluated again in 30 days. If cows have not added condition or worse yet, lost body condition, we need to make some adjustments.
To find out more information in regards to the CRYSTALYX® Body Condition Score app please click the link below.
http://www.crystalyx.com/news/
Creep Feeding
Creep feed has increased in cost compared to historical prices, but the economic return in added calf weight has never been greater. Pasture carrying capacity and cow body condition can be improved by utilizing a creep program. These factors in addition to added calf weight make the economics of creep extremely positive. Calves on creep will rely less on pasture and mother’s milk. This takes the nutrient demand off the cow for milk production and can provide more pasture to meet her needs for body condition.
Stocking Rate and Early Weaning
Matching stocking rate of a pasture to the forage production is a key management tool. This year may be a time when we evaluate this relationship more often. Moving some cows to other pasture, crop residue or grazing non-traditional forage will help extend the grazing season. In some areas with the worst pasture condition, we may need to consider early weaning or herd reduction.
Matching Supplement Strategy with Pasture Condition
We have not been able to say the weather has been normal for several years. That was the case last year in western Minnesota. Normally July is a very dry month, but some timely rains helped maintain pasture productivity. However, August turned hot and dry which caused pasture quality to drop rapidly. As forages mature the protein content declines, fiber content increases and energy content decreases. Experience and research have shown a positive response to protein supplementation of low quality forage. Working with a producer in the Holland MN area, we were able to take pasture samples and determine when to change from a mineral type supplement such as Mineral-Lyx ™ to a protein type supplement such as BGF-30™. This change improved the forage digestibility of the maturing grass. Cows continued to improve body condition and the producer was able to continue grazing this pasture through the season.
Pastures that are rated as Good to Excellent are the lowest for this time of year as anytime in recent history. There are several things that can be done to ensure a profitable calf crop this year and getting cows back in proper body condition for a successful calving and breeding season next year. Monitoring pasture condition, creep feeding, adjusting stocking rate and supplement strategy are items that need to be evaluated often as the summer progresses.
If you’re in the cattle business, drought is a bad word but sooner or later the occurrence of drought is likely going to be reality. A good portion of cow-calf producing regions in the U.S. and Canada are in areas that may experience dry conditions more years than not. So, preparations for dry years and their consequences need to be understood. This article is not necessarily about drought, but of early weaning of beef calves; one of many drought management strategies.
It’s about Cow Body condition & Reproductive Efficiency
Normally calves are weaned around 6-7 months of age with 205 days being a common benchmark weaning point. Early weaning would be considered anytime earlier than normal and is usually to help the dam more so than the calf, especially in drought years. Nutrient demands for protein and energy are at their peak in a cow’s production cycle during lactation. Couple this with drought and decreasing forage quality and quantity and cow body condition will suffer. When condition suffers during the breeding season or just prior, reproductive efficiency will suffer as well. So, one main benefit of early weaning s is a reduced nutrient demand on the cow that will help maintain condition and have cows return to estrus in a timely fashion.
When’s the Right Age?
Minimum age to wean a calf is about 40 days of age (roughly 6 weeks). This may sound pretty young but is a common age to wean calves such as those that are fed milk replacers (bucket calves and/or dairy calves). Weaning at an age range of 60-100 days coincides with the time frame when cows should return to estrus and breed back to maintain a one year calving interval. In cows that are too thin to cycle, early weaning removes the udder stimuli of nursing which can cause hormonal changes in the cow that can help induce estrus in thinner cows. Again, it may or may not be necessary to wean this early but Body Condition Score along with gauging the feed resource are the key governances in making a decision to early wean.
The Calves
Early weaned calves require additional management and feed. This will require increased cash cost as higher quality feeds and supplement will be required and certain management considerations may be needed such as more pen space to sort smaller calves from larger ones. However, in the long term, early weaned calves can be expected to weigh as much or more as calves weaned around 200 days of age. In fact, calves that are not early weaned in situations that would justify the practice are at a disadvantage. They have to compete with the cows for a limited forage base and are nursing cows that may be losing body condition.
Just as in any “normal” weaning program, the first two weeks are critical. Calves need to have a highly palatable ration and begin eating ASAP in order to overcome the stress of weaning. Calves that are vaccinated prior to weaning, and that have been offered creep feed ahead of time will handle weaning stress better. Also, feeding CRYSTALYX® Brigade® supplement in pens at weaning is very advantageous in helping calves to start consuming feed. Numerous demonstrations and producer citations of this practice have proved that weaned calves offered Brigade® at weaning eat more feed, are more feed efficient, have less sickness and health costs, and less death loss than herd mates not offered Brigade® at weaning.
For more information on early weaning, contact your University extension service as many good publications exist on Early Weaning strategies and tips. More information on Brigade® and other CrystAlyx® programs and feeding in drought situations can be found at www.crystalyx.com
Are the Numbers Growing & What’s the Right Development Program?
The beef cow herd number in the U.S. has been on a steady downward trend since the peak of the last defined cattle cycle (mid 1990s). In Canada, the number has been an even steeper decline. Some would suggest that the cattle cycle is broken, looks different or is simply not well defined today. Record values of essentially every class of animal in the beef industry, coupled with low inventory and supplies, is leading to an outcry by many analysts and experts for herd expansion. Well, these calls are likely being heard to some extent as there is evidence of more replacement females being retained.
The USDA January 1 Cattle Inventory Report cites replacement heifer numbers up one percent to 5.2 million head. The report listed several states where the largest increase may be occurring, primarily in the Northern Plains and some Rocky Mountain states. This would probably makes sense given the drought in the Southern Plains, however that could change now as improved moisture conditions are returning to some drought stricken areas. I have also had lots of recent discussions with cattle producers and traders that would anecdotally support more replacements being held over.
Replacement heifers do get bred (or at least that’s the intent) and a lot of good research has been done on how to best achieve this. After all, the heifer is the beginning of a very large investment that takes a few years to fully achieve and win back a just reward. If indeed a lot of heifers are being held back due to price and demand, there may be more than average that don’t, or will not, measure up. If you are purchasing, select what fits you and take time to evaluate.
What Should They Weigh and When Do They Need to Be Bred?
One common benchmark in developing heifers is to have them reach a target weight of 65 percent of mature body weight by breeding and 85 percent of mature weight by calving. It’s also understood (or not) that mature weights of cows are getting larger. So, with the above benchmarks, today 65 percent of a 1400 lb cow is a 910 lb breeding heifer. Sounds pretty big doesn’t it?
Develop Heifers Under Similar Conditions They Will Experience Throughout Life
Puberty is more a function of size versus age in beef cattle, but can it be reached too aggressively? It’s relatively easy to feed healthy heifers into breeding or achieve the desired weight, but feed costs may be prohibitive in today’s $6.00+ corn reality. More recent studies have shown that targeting 50-60 percent of mature body weight may wind up in selecting a more fertile heifer long term and for less cost to develop. The breeding percentage on these replacement heifers may not be as high, but selling an open yearling heifer for the feedlot is more profitable than selling an open two-year-old cow. And those heifers that do breed are likely to be more efficient lifetime breeders. In the end, the second calf, or the second conception on a cow, is probably more important than achieving the first. A costly scenario is one where a not so efficient heifer was fed well or was perhaps over-conditioned, did breed, and then failed to rebreed the next season because she’s then treated like a cow and fed more like the rest of the herd. In addition, over-conditioned animals may have more dystocia at calving.
Feeding and supplement strategies for the above scenarios do support utilizing self-fed supplements such as Crystalyx® with moderate to low quality forages and in good forage grazing systems. It also supports the use of Ionophores such as Bovatec® or Rumensin® to improve feed efficiency and growth. Overall, we still need a breeding heifer that is in adequate body condition (six would be ideal) prior to breeding.
None of the above takes away the need for matching the type of genetics to the environment and the goals of the individual operation. Conducting breeding soundness exams for replacement heifers 1-3 months ahead of the breeding season is also a good practice in determining fertility, pelvic scores, body conformation, etc.
With today’s market and demand, there appears to be more interest in retaining more replacement heifers. This will provide opportunity for those buying, selling and developing heifers. Choose heifers that fit your program the best and follow through with nutrition programs that support cost efficient growth and reproduction.
As a Nutritionist, I often field questions from cattlemen on calf scours, weak calves and other calving time disasters. Most all of these questions come after the problem has already set in. While we cannot control the weather that will play a large role in stressing newly born claves, we can control the management of stress in our herds.
Providing more than just “adequate” facilities/pastures for calving is one management tool that will pay dividends when trying to prevent a scours outbreak. If you are calving in or around buildings, providing a clean, dry area for the cows and calves is essential. A buildup of manure or moisture, as well as other calves that may be sick, are your worst enemies if you calve in a small area. If you calve in pastures, you can reduce the pathogen load normally seen in smaller lots or around buildings. In addition, the University of Nebraska Sandhills Calving System may provide even greater protection to newly born claves. In short, this system suggests you move the pregnant cows to a new pasture every two weeks or so. By leaving the cows with calves behind, you minimize the pathogens that can affect newly born calves in the new pasture.
Nutrition is also a management tool we all control. For spring calving cows, most forages are deficient in the trace minerals and vitamins necessary for production of good quality colostrum. Supplementation of trace minerals, vitamins and phosphorus is then absolutely essential to building the quality of colostrum that will provide the calf with a robust immune system necessary to avoid scours. Supplementation should start at least six weeks prior to calving and may be required all winter (for protein) if low quality forages are used. If you wait until scours become an issue, you will have waited too long. It takes weeks of proper nutrition to build quality colostrum.
In recent years, we have seen a number of supplements with Altech’s® Bio-Mos® become available to cattlemen to use pre-calving through the end of calving. Bio-Mos® is a mannan oligosaccharide (mos) that attaches to harmful bacteria in the gut of cattle. It has been suggested that this attachment renders the bacteria harmless as it can no longer cause damage to the gut wall.
If you are worried about colostrum quality, take steps to provide some nutritional insurance. CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements are an easy way to affordably provide protein, trace minerals, vitamins, phosphorus and Bio-Mos® in a supplement block that’s available 24/7, while minimizing your investment in time, labor and equipment.
It’s a new year, 2012, and the optimism in the Cattle Industry continues. Spring calving is just around the corner and thus a great percentage of the 2012 Calf-crop is in the 3rd trimester of fetal development or very close to it. Over 85% of fetal growth occurs during this stage of gestation, and nutritional demands of the mother cow are increasing at a rapid rate. Protein and energy demands increase nearly 20% just during the last month of pregnancy (see chart below).
Cow Body Condition has got to be the number one priority in a cow-calf nutrition program. As an indicator of Energy status, it affects everything from health to reproductive efficiency, and ultimately profitability. At no point is Body Condition more critical than during late gestation and early lactation. The processes of fetal development, delivering a calf, milk production and repair of the reproductive tract, are all physiological stresses. All these require large quantities of energy to enable cows to rebreed in 85 days in order to maintain a calving interval of 12 months.
Once the calf is born, its survival and immunity is dependent on receiving high quality colostrum the first 24 hours of life. Colostrum in milk provides the passive immunity to a calf from the IgG (Immunoglobulin) concentration. These immunoglobulins are antibodies that fight bacterial and viral challenges the calf will encounter until its active immunity is developed.
A cow that is in good health, adequate body condition (BCS 5-7), and is meeting nutritional requirements during the last trimester of gestation will produce adequate amounts and quality of colostrum for her newborn calf. On the flip side, cows that are nutritionally challenged and losing body condition will produce lower quality colostrum, experience more dystocia, have less vigorous calves with more health problems, and be challenged to re breed efficiently etc.
So, with Mother Nature’s help, if we have been utilizing a good supplement strategy to maintain body condition and utilize forages effectively, calving season should go well right? Yes, it should if we continue to pay attention to nutrition and continue to make best use of available forages. Now is likely the time to utilize our better quality forages or increase supplementation to lower quality forages (generally forages less than 10-12% protein).
Mineral and vitamin requirements also increase during the third trimester and are important to immune function, reproductive efficiency, etc... If byproduct feeds such as distiller grains are being utilized, mineral nutrition can be further complicated and may need to be fine -tuned in addition to simply being fed at higher levels.
For many areas of the U.S., it’s been a nice mild winter so far. For cow-calf producers, that’s not a bad thing as cold stress, nutritional stress, feeding costs, etc…, have likely been reduced from where they potentially could be. These market and environmental conditions have made it possible to get more out of winter grazing and hopefully producers have used supplement strategies to maintain or even add condition score to their cows. Now as calving season approaches, be sure to continue to pay attention to nutrition and make the best of 2012.
Talk to your CRYSTALYX® dealer for more information. Obtain input on specific CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplement and programs that fit the third trimester of pregnancy for your Beef Cow operation.
Cash Flow Considerations THEN and NOW
As I travel in cow calf regions and visit with cattlemen, I have noticed a distinct shift in their plans for retaining heifers. Last year at weaning, a heifer calf was more valuable as a feeder than a breeding animal. On many farms and ranches cash was tight due to increasing input cost. Generating some cash and paying bills by selling the heifer calf had very little risk. If a cow in the herd needed to be replaced a young cow could be purchased for about the same or less money.
This year the economic considerations for retaining heifers for replacements have shifted. Input costs have increased, most notably forage cost, but we are seeing record prices for feeder calves and replacement heifers. Projections are the nation’s cow herd will be smaller due to the prolonged drought in the southwest.
Another difference between this year and today is related to the value of ground for row crops versus pasture. People that had to decide between planting more acres verses keeping cows and pasture made their choice last fall. Those cows are not on the market today. These and other factors have pushed the value of breeding animals to the point where cash flow is not the only consideration in deciding to keep heifers for breeding stock. We now have more questions to discuss at meetings, coffee shops and sales barns.
- What will replacement heifers and cows cost in the future?
- Will raising your own replacements be less expensive?
- Is there more income potential in selling replacement heifer?
Below is a summary of some recent bred heifer sales.*
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Date
|
Head
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Location
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Avg. Heifer Price
|
|
Nov. 26, 2011
|
197
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Kingsville, MO
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$1,760
|
|
Dec. 5, 2011
|
127
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Fruitland, MO
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$1,716
|
|
Dec. 10, 2011
|
250
|
Palmyra, MO
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$2,112
|
*Sales results should not be considered “official” and were taken from posted sales data and radio market reports
Spring born calves are now being weaned, shipped, marketed and transitioned from summer through fall to winter. The words “calf weaning” can spell fear for some producers and opportunity for others. Weaning practices or methods vary from conventional methods to ones where pre-conditioning is involved, to fenceline, two-step, or simply the “weaning them on the truck to town” method.
Weaning tips normally revolve around stress reduction. There may be an ongoing debate on which programs work the best and which fit facilities, topography, feed resources, and manpower issues. There is strong data from several studies around the U.S. that suggest fenceline weaning or low-stress weaning programs have advantages on calf behavior and performance.
Below summarizes some benefits of a fenceline weaning system for a 7 day period vs. conventional or total separation weaning from dams (source, Price et. al - Univ. of California Davis 2003)
- Increased time grazing and eating in days immediately following weaning
- Less time walking and more time spent lying down following weaning
- Less time bawling (vocalizing)
- Increased weight gain in the first 2wks following weaning (23 more lbs.) and this gain difference persisted through 10 weeks following weaning (26 lbs. more )
While the advantages above do support the practice, Fencline weaning will require well maintained fences (often a combination of a permanent and electric fence) and adequate, easily accessed water on both sides of the fence.
Whatever the practice, good nutrition is not exempt in making a program more successful. Just as important is management and perhaps the weaning method that makes the most sense for an individual operation. Even calves sold right off the cow will benefit by good nutrition prior to weaning as this will help whoever buys them in their receiving program. This may sound like it cost the seller and benefits the buyer, but calves marketed in value added programs or preconditioned typically bring significantly more money.
For years now, Crystalyx® has highlighted a very versatile supplement product in Brigade®. This product was first evaluated in receiving calves that are typically stressed and experience high morbidity. Volumes have been written that calves that get sick in a weaning or receiving situation do not perform as well, are less profitable, less marketable, have higher health and treatment cost, etc... One key to reducing stress and ultimately sickness in weaned calves is getting them to start on feed quicker or maintain feed intake. Several demonstrations and the experience of many cattle producers have shown the economic benefits of Brigade®.
Using a product like Crystalyx® Brigade® will supply a continuous availability of concentrated nutrients in a palatable form. Even if calves are not eating normally, they still tend to consume Brigade®. This small amount of supplement will increase appetite, stimulate rumen microbial activity and forage digestion. It will also encourage water consumption which in-turn can help improve dry matter intake. One practice that would work in both fenceline and conventional weaning programs would be to offer Brigade® to both cows and calves prior to weaning for about 1-2 weeks. This gives a head start nutritionally for calves, plus it acclimates them to the barrel so they know exactly what it is come the day of weaning.
CRYSTALYX® Brigade® has been recommended by many CRYSTALYX® dealers and sales professionals as a key tool in starter programs. Make it part of yours when weaning program as it will fit all methods!
Earlier this month I was fortunate enough to attend the Joint Annual Meetings for the American Society of Animal Scientists. One of the hot topics was the debate on cow size and management.
Over the past 3 decades the predominant measure of cow efficiency has been pounds of beef produced per beef cow. This figure has increased notably in this time. Between 1975 and 2005 carcass weights for steers and heifers have increased 144 and 194 pounds, respectively1. In attaining these heavier carcass weights, the face of the U.S. beef breeding herd has changed. Average live weights for mature cows and bulls have increased to 1,350 and 1,769 pounds, respectively, in 2005 from 1,047 and 1,340 pounds, respectively, in 19751. At the same time, cows were selected for increased milk production along with increased mature weight. This increased the average beef cow’s dry matter requirement by roughly 25%1.
The debate hinges on whether we should be adapting the environment to sustain these larger cattle, or if we should be choosing different genetic types to better conform to differing environments. Should we be choosing for cattle that are better adapted to limited resources with minimal inputs? In many instances this choice would lead to a smaller mature cow size and lowered milk production. Rising grain prices and an overall reduction in available grazing lands make sustaining today’s current production levels with the current genetic base a challenge.
How will you be dealing with the rising cost of harvested and supplemental feed? Do you have any plans to decrease the overall mature size of your cow herd?
1 A historical perspective on the influence of the beef industry on mature cow size. B. McMurry. J. Anim. Sci. Vol. 89, E-Suppl. 1. p. 161. 2011.
The beef cow herd is at the lowest level since 1963, and the heifers are going to the feed yard at a rate that does not support herd expansion. Several factors around the country are contributing to the further decline in the cow herd. The rate of decline may have slowed due to lower culling activity on a national basis, but drought conditions in some parts of the country are sending cows to the sale barn. In the Midwest and Southeast producers are dealing with reduced pasture availability due to competition for crop ground. In addition, some heifers that were held back for replacement may have been sold due to tight cash flow as the result of a slow start to the grazing season which resulted in unplanned hay purchases. What will be the determining factor for when the herd begins to expand? Cash flow and forage availability will be short term factors to consider. However, the decision to retain heifers as replacements needs to consider the long term demand for breeding stock and feeder cattle. If the feeder cattle market stays strong and the cow herd continues to decline, those who decide to retain heifers this year should be very well rewarded for the decision.
Areas that have available grass have a distinct advantage in the cost to raise replacement heifers. Raising heifers on pasture and a low cost per head per day supplement such as Iono-Lyx® B300 is a proven system. In areas of reduced pasture availability, some producers are taking a new look at rotational grazing and various low moisture block supplement strategies to maximize pasture utilization. Efforts to extend the grazing season by 2 to 3 weeks will have a significant economical impact.
In areas where pasture availability is a concern, some operations are considering a dry lot feeding program for all or part of the replacements. This option will be more expensive due to increased use of stored forage, but can be a viable option if total cost is controlled. The cost can be minimized if consideration is given to ways to reduce the total labor and equipment cost associated with dry lot feeding. A common assumption is a tractor and feed wagon will be utilized every day. Using the Crystal Clear Economyx® tool, I entered a conservative tractor value of $100,000 and feeder wagon cost at $30,000 and contributed 25% of that expense to the heifer feeding program. Fuel and operating cost of the tractor was estimated at $0.40 per hour. Feeding every day with 1 hours of tractor time resulted in estimated yearly cost for the wagon of $50 per head and tractor/fuel cost of $164 per head. Nutritionally we don’t need to feed replacement heifers like feed lot steers, and mechanically we don’t need to feed replacement heifers like steers. A dry lot feeding program for replacement can be profitable if the equipment and fuel cost can be minimized.
What factors are you considering in your decision to retain or not retain heifers?
Most all cattlemen easily understand the direct impact conception rate has on their bottom line. Another measure that can directly affect ranch profitability is calving distribution. While pregnancy checking may give us a good indication of what our conception rate is (number of cows pregnant divided by the number of cows exposed), we will likely need to wait until calving to get a better feel for our calving distribution.
So, what is “calving distribution”, and why should I be concerned with it? Calving distribution is a look at which cycle of your breeding season each of your calves are born. If you have a 60-day breeding season, you have about three, 21-day cycles, to get your cows bred. If you keep track of the birthdates of your calves, you can then generate the calving distribution of your calves. You can now look at the percentage of your calves that are born in each of the 3 breeding cycles in this 60-day breeding season.
Why would this matter? Harlan Hughes has put together a graph in Figure 1, showing the relative profitability of when a calf is born within the calving distribution of a herd.
I have heard ranchers tell of herds where 65 percent of the calves are born in the first 21 days, as well as herds where 85 percent of the calves were born in the first 21 days. It is entirely possible that both of these herds have the same conception rate, yet one is likely to be more profitable. Let’s say both herds are 100 cows and 95 percent of the cows were pregnant. If the ranches were only measuring conception rate, they are likely to be equally happy at this point. Let’s also say 3 percent of the live calves were lost by the time they were weaned. This gives us 92 live calves per herd to sell at weaning.
Will the checks for both herds be the same? Probably not. The second herd has 18 more calves born in the first cycle than the first herd (92 x 65% = 60 calves and 92 x 85% = 78 calves). If those 18 calves gain 2.5 pounds a day for an extra 21 days before they are weaned, they have added 945 pounds more pay weight than the first herd. That could total over $1,400 more in your paycheck. And that herd probably has calves moving from the third cycle to the second cycle as well. Each cow that conceives a cycle earlier, can add about $78 more to your bottom line. Regardless of when a cow conceives, the cost to carry her for a year will be pretty much the same. She should just as well conceive earlier, and deliver a heavier calf.
Now, just how do you get a calving distribution more like the second herd than the first? Nutrition, genetics and management are the tools you have at your disposal. You may still have time to optimize any of these before your 2012 calves are conceived.