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Feeding and Managing Beef Cattle

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Title: Feeding and Managing Beef Cattle


1
Feeding and Managing Beef Cattle
  • Chapter 26

2
  • Chapter 26 Feeding and Managing Beef Cattle
  • What should be major goals of cow-calf producers?
  • What affects cow-calf percentages?
  • What affects weaning weights?
  • What affects annual cow costs?
  • What factors affect the profitability of
    stocker-yearling producers?
  • Explain the differences between the two types of
    cattle feeding operations.
  • What affects the profitability of feedlot
    systems?
  • Explain the four major environment issues
    affecting the cattle feeding industry.

3
Cow-Calf Management
  • Need to generate profits and provide
    opportunities for other producers
  • How to assess profitability
  • Calf-crop percentage weaned
  • Average weight of calves at weaning
  • Annual cow cost

4
Cow-Calf Management
5
Cow-Calf Management
  • Good Management
  • Know what affects calf-crop
  • Weaning weight and annual cow cost
  • Goal
  • Improve number of lbs weaned per cow
  • Reduce or control annual cow costs

6
Cow-Calf Management
  • Primary Objectives
  • Heifers need a balanced ration
  • Obtain puberty at months of age (breed at 14
    to 15 mo.)
  • British
  • Continental
  • Calve at years old
  • Heifers should be bred to calve early in the
    season
  • More likely to rebreed at 2 and 3 years of age
  • Heifers typically have longer postpartum interval
    than cows. What can be done?

7
Cow-Calf Management
  • Primary Objectives
  • 4. Design a feeding program for heifers and cows
    to be in moderate body condition
  • Evaluate your cattle for body condition scores
  • BCS 1 Extremely Thin
  • no fat, ribs obvious
  • BCS 5 6 Moderate Condition
  • good appearance, fat over ribs tail-head
  • BCS 9 Extremely Fat
  • Fat around ribs tail-head, poor mobility

8
  • Body Condition Scores

BCS 3 BCS 4 BCS 5 BCS 6 BCS 7
9
Cow-Calf Management
  • Primary Objectives
  • 5. Check cows frequently during calving time
  • Especially heifers!
  • Dystocia
  • 6. Calving difficulty should be minimized
  • Usually cannot be eliminated
  • High birth weights dystocia high weaning
    weights
  • Low birth weights calving ease increased
    death rate

10
Cow-Calf Management
  • Primary Objectives
  • 7. Bull examination
  • Breeding soundness exam
  • Conformation and skeletal soundness
  • Palpate reproductive organs
  • Measure Scrotal Circumference
  • Test semen for motility and mobility
  • Libido is important
  • Bull-to-Cow Ratio

11
Cow-Calf Management
  • Primary Objectives
  • 8. Crossbreeding effects calf-crop (8 -12 )
  • Higher conception rates
  • Calves are more vigorous
  • Primary nutritional factor influencing calf-crop
    percentage is adequate energy intake
  • lbs of Total Digestible Nutrients (TDN)
  • initiate puberty, maintain BCS, shortening
    postpartum interval
  • vitamins and minerals
  • calcium, phosphorus, and protein
  • deficiencies in soil and feed

12
Cow-Calf Management
  • Primary Objectives
  • 10. Calf losses during gestation
  • Usually low (2 3)
  • Reproductive diseases
  • Brucellosis, Leptospirosis, Vibriosis, IBR
  • Manage by blood testing
  • Vaccinations (Herd Health Program)
  • 11. Calf losses 1 to 2 d following birth
  • Usually low (2 3)
  • Death losses caused by

13
Optimum Weaning Weights
  • Factors Affecting Weaning Weights
  • Calves born early in the calving season are
    typically heavier, as they are older.
  • Each missed estrus cycle causes a calf to be 30
    to 40 lbs lighter at weaning
  • Limit your breeding season to
  • Forage availability influences cows BCS and calf
    weaning weight
  • When will a calf start to consume forage?

14
Optimum Weaning Weights
  • Factors Affecting Weaning Weights
  • 3. Growth stimulants given to nursing calves
    will increase weaning weight by
  • Ralgro, Synovex C, and Compudose
  • pellets given under the skin of the ear
  • Do not use on replacement bulls and heifer
  • Causes reproductive problems
  • The use of implants may lower the incidence of
    cattle grading USDA Choice and may decrease
    palatability

15
Optimum Weaning Weights
  • Factors Affecting Weaning Weights
  • 4. Creep Feeding
  • May not always be profitable
  • Creep feeding can impair development of the
    mammary system and later in life reduce milk
    production in replacement heifers
  • Fat accumulates in the udder and crowds secretory
    tissue
  • 5. Some diseases can affect the milk supply of
    cow and growth rate of the calf, reducing weaning
    weight

16
Optimum Weaning Weights
  • Factors Affecting Weaning Weights
  • 6. Genetically select for milk production and
    calf growth
  • Look at EPDS
  • Effective bull selection can account for 80 -90
    of the herds genetic improvement
  • Effective selection can increase weaning weights
    4 6 lbs per year per calf
  • 7. Crossbreeding
  • increase in pounds of calf
    weaned per cow
  • Increase occurs because of
  • Improved reproductive performance,
  • Heterosis and increased milk production
  • Life-time performance of crossbreed cows is
    better than purebreds
  • Wean a greater number of calves that tend to be
    heavier

17
Management for Low Annual Cow Costs
  • Top five ways to reduce costs

18
Management for Low Annual Cow Costs
  • Feed costs
  • Accounts for of annual cow costs
  • Weaning to last 1/3 of gestation in next
    pregnancy cows can be maintained at lower costs
  • Use crop aftermath for feed
  • Cornstalks, grain stubble, straw
  • Maximize grazed forage

19
Management for Low Annual Cow Costs
  • Labor costs
  • Accounts 15 20 of annual cow costs
  • Per head
  • Interest charges
  • Accounts for 10 15 of annual cow cost

20
Management for Low Annual Cow Costs
  • Pregnancy Checking
  • When should cows and heifers be palpated?
  • Producer may want to sell open cows
  • Failure to preg-check cows
  • Higher annual cow costs
  • Lower calf-crop percentages
  • Higher break-even costs

21
Stocker-Yearling Production
  • Goal
  • obtain the most pounds of gain within economic
    reason, yet insuring high-quality forage yields
  • Primary factors affecting costs and returns
  • Marketing (both purchasing and selling)
  • Amount of and quality of forage and roughage

22
Stocker-Yearling Production
  • Need to be aware of current market prices
  • Buying and selling
  • Understand shrink
  • Can reflect profit and loss
  • Yearlings shrink 3 12

23
Stocker-Yearling Production
  • Gaining ability
  • High gaining potential
  • Health
  • Cattle can exchange hands many times until
    arriving at their final destination or feedlot
  • Exposed to disease, hunger, thirst, and fatigue
  • Poor health programs lead to higher costs of gain
    and higher death losses

24
Cattle Feeding Operations
  • Commercial Feeders
  • having more than 1,000 head one-time capacity
  • Cattle typically owned by someone other than the
    owners of the facilities
  • Custom feedlot or custom feeding
  • Farmer Feeders
  • having less than 1,000 head one-time capacity
  • Cattle typically owned and operated by a family

25
Cattle Feeding Operations
  • Number of farm feeder operations decreasing
  • Pros and Cons of the different types of
    operations
  • Family Feeders
  • Utilize homegrown feeds
  • Utilize high roughage feeds in backgrounding
  • Distribute labor over several enterprises
  • Flexibility-
  • Reduced risk
  • Commercial Feeders
  • Obtain and analyze better records and have more
    professional expertise
  • Problems with keep lots full

26
Feedlot Cattle Management
  • What are the primary factors influencing a
    feedlot operation?


27
Feedlot Cattle Management
  • Facilities Investment
  • Varies with facility type and location
  • Typical-
  • Farmer Feeders lots may differ

28
Feedlot Cattle Management
  • Cost of Feeder Cattle
  • Prior to purchasing cattle, need to determine
    feed costs and what the prices will be when ready
    for slaughter
  • Use these figures to determine how much you can
    spend for feeder calves

29
Feedlot Cattle Management
  • Feeder cattle are price according to
  • Gender
  • Heifers are usually a few cent cheaper per pound
  • Weight
  • Skeletal size
  • BCS
  • Buy cattle with compensatory gain
  • Older and lightweight
  • Grow rapidly to compensate for previous lack of
    energy in their diet

30
Feedlot Cattle Management
  • Feed Costs
  • 60 -75 of total costs of gain are from feed
    costs
  • Feed cost can be influenced by many factors
  • Feed additives and implants improve gain and feed
    efficiency and lower cost of gain
  • Feed costs increase as days on feed increase

31
Feedlot Cattle Management
  • Nonfeed Costs
  • Yardage
  • cost of gain other than feed
  • Death loss and veterinary costs can greatly
    increase nonfeed costs

32
Production and Prices
  • Low production high prices
  • Producers save more replacement heifers and cull
    fewer cows during times of high prices
  • Increased production increase amount of beef
    available to the consumer
  • Low beef prices producers will cull more cows and
    keep less replacements

33
Environmental Management
  • What are the primary environmental issues for
    feedyards?
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