Dr. Jim Neel's Monthly Cow-Calf Management Suggestions

The "lazy, hazy days of summer" get underway this month. With the recent increase in temperature the past few days, one could conclude all that it lacks being summer is the calendar. The elevated temperatures will have a negative effect on reproductive efficiency of both the cows and the bull. The higher temperature will also slow forage growth and especially slow the growth and reduce the availability of clover which is essential to maintain a level of quality in the pastures to ensure both calf growth and reproductive performance of the cows and bull. Producers also have a tendency to relax their management applied to the herd and allow the cattle to manage themselves. With this philosophy, lots of practices that impact reproduction, health and marketing and harvesting of hay are allowed to slide.

Following are some timely management practices that would be appropriate for Tennessee cow-calf producers to apply during the month. There are suggestions for both late winter-early spring calving herds (January, February and March) and late fall-early winter calving herds (October, November, December) . There is a section that covers practices for both groups.


About the Initiative Our Partners Current Marketing Information Beef Cattle Time Breeding and Genetics Production Forages and Nutrition Marketing *including Tennessee Beef Evaluation* News & Events Links Contact Us Home		Dr. Jim Neel's Cow-Calf Management Suggestions for June The "lazy, hazy days of summer" get underway this month. With the recent increase in temperature the past few days, one could conclude all that it lacks being summer is the calendar. The elevated temperatures will have a negative effect on reproductive efficiency of both the cows and the bull. The higher temperature will also slow forage growth and especially slow the growth and reduce the availability of clover which is essential to maintain a level of quality in the pastures to ensure both calf growth and reproductive performance of the cows and bull. Producers also have a tendency to relax their management applied to the herd and allow the cattle to manage themselves. With this philosophy, lots of practices that impact reproduction, health and marketing and harvesting of hay are allowed to slide. Following are some timely management practices that would be appropriate for Tennessee cow-calf producers to apply during the month. There are suggestions for both late winter-early spring calving herds (January, February and March) and late fall-early winter calving herds (October, November, December) . There is a section that covers practices for both groups. Late Winter-Early Spring Calving Herds For these herds, June is the last month of the breeding season and plans should be made to remove the bull from the herd. Check the cows to determine if they are bred, very few of the cows should be cycling. Remove the bull around the 20th of June for January, February, March calving. When the bull is removed, evaluate his condition. Young, thin bulls may need to be supplemented to improve body condition. Bulls should have a BCS of at least 5 or 6. Do not allow the bull to become overly fat. The bull's lot should provide both ample exercise, shade and shelter. Think of the bull as an athlete and manage accordingly. The bull lot should be constructed with strong material. Removing the bull and ensuring that all bull calves have been castrated will prevent early maturing heifers from getting pregnant. In fact, there should be no pregnant heifers marketed as feeders if these two significant practices are carried out. Heifers sold as feeder calves should be guaranteed open. Do mid-summer reimplanting and deworming of calves. Deworming has demonstrated to pay in both added weight and thriftiness of appearance of the calves at marketing. Implanting has been on the decline in the past few years and producers tell us that with the market price for feeder calves, they feel like they do not need to implant. What a misnomer! When calves are selling for more than $1.25 per pound, that 20 extra pounds from implanting will bring in more than $20.00 extra dollars. Implanting pays more now than ever before. Prepare calves for marketing. For some sales in early September, calves should be receiving the first round of vaccinations. Castrate and dehorn late calves, two "money making" practices. Generally, there is limited advantage to deworming mature cows at this time unless they show signs of being "wormy." Young cows are different and might benefit from deworming. Egg counts would also aid in confirming their parasite load. A demonstration conducted in White County showed that deworming the cows that appeared to be parasite infested improved both the reproductive performance of the cows and gain of calves. Late Fall, Early-Winter Calving Herds Calves from these cows are approaching 7 to 8 months of age and should be weaned and prepared for marketing. They should be provided a recognized VAC-45 health and management program as well as plans made to market them cooperatively with other producers' feeder calves. These practices add value to the calf crop. Quality of forage should be adequate to maintain performance and improve the condition of the cows following weaning of the calves. If not already done, these cows should be pregnancy checked as well as evaluated as to their overall physical condition. Make plans to market those that do not meet the criteria for "keeping." If the culls are in a poor body condition, grazing should improve condition and value the next 2 to 3 months. Market these cows before the fall rush starts. All open replacement heifers should be culled and marketed. There might be an opportunity to market these heifers to another producer with a late winter - early spring calving. As the calves are weaned, it is a good time to make initial selection of replacement heifers. Research conducted the past decade continues to add strength to the basic recommendation to select replacement heifers from those born the first half of the calving season. Research has demonstrated that these heifers have a more mature reproductive tract, larger pelvic areas and will start cycling earlier, calve earlier and can be developed more economically. See article in this issue on Reproductive Trait Scores. Carry out a recognized "VAC-45" health and management program to prepare calves for marketing. Manage the feeding program for the calves gain at a rapid rate but, not to fatten them. Trials conducted at Kentucky have shown that the faster gaining calves over the 45 day period were the ones that produced the greatest profit compared to slower gaining calves. "On the farm" demonstrations conducted here in Tennessee show the same results. Tennessee's small cow-calf producers should work together and pool their calves in order to create a number of calves for market that would attract buyers. Work toward marketing a 50,000 lb. load lot of calves. This will require a lot of cooperation and giving up independence by the individual producers but, it will pay off. There are several cooperative efforts going on in Tennessee. Both Groups of Cows In that most of the hay will be harvested in June, quality should be foremost in producers plans as they harvest and manage hay. Rain postponed some hay harvesting during May. Delayed harvesting produces lower quality. But, rain on "cut hay" is also damaging. As hay is harvested, store it off the ground and cover to keep dry matter losses at a minimum and reduce winter feed costs. Maintain an effective fly control program. If not already completed, put fly tags in cattle. Be aware of potential poisoning of cattle due to the consumption of wilted cherry leaves. Wilted cherry leaves can poison cattle . This could be a problem when summer storms produce "blown off" limbs or in extreme cases, trees could be uprooted. It is not too early to start planning winter feeding program. Plan on about 1.5 tons of hay per mature cow (1,000 lb.). Adjust for wasteage. If bales were stored on the ground, anticipate 25-30% spoilage. If cattle are allowed unlimited access to the hay, an additional 25-30% can be wasted. Make adjustments for hay needs based on winter feeding management. Clip pastures to reduce weed population and to maintain the quality of the forage. This will help to both reduce eye irritation and consequently pinkeye, as well as improve the quality of forage. Observe herd for symptoms of pinkeye. Pinkeye severely reduces the performance of both cows and calves. Bulls with pinkeye will also experience reduced reproductive performance. They feel bad and if the pinkeye condition is severe, they can not see the cows in heat. The result will be open cows or those that get bred late as result of skipping a heat period not getting bred. Calves with active cases of pinkeye or evidence of having had pinkeye also experience severely reduced price when marketed. This results in a "double whammy," reduced weight and discounted prices. For more information contact your local Agricultural Extension Agent.
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