she wanted, she would need a diet that would be roughly 7 percent protein and 49 percent TDN (total digestible nutrients), just from a maintenance standpoint,” he says. As the cow gets within a couple of weeks of calving, she needs about
8 percent protein and 55 percent TDN. Post-calving and at peak lactation, her needs are around 11.5 percent protein and 63 percent TDN, depending on her milk production level. The goal is to keep the cow in good enough body condition as she
goes through calving so she’ll have enough energy reserves for rebreed- ing. A publication by the Samuel R. Noble Foundation in Ardmore, Okla., notes that the cow’s fetus makes 75 percent of its growth in the last third of pregnancy, and protein and energy needs increase about 40 percent and 20 percent, respectively. “For a 1,200-pound cow, that’s 0.4 pounds of additional protein and 1.75 pounds of additional energy (TDN),” the publication states. Dr. Deke Alkire, livestock consultant with the Noble Foundation, says
the 1 to 9 body condition score (BCS) scale is the way to determine if the cow’s diet is being adequately supplemented. “Cattlemen need to be aware of body condition score and how to score their cows, especially going into calving,” Alkire says. “It’s easy to look at fat cover over her ribs and down her back, and around her tailhead. We’re looking for a cow to have a body condition score of 5 or better going into calving, so you’re looking for no more than the 2 last ribs showing.” If you’ve tested your forage and added enough energy feed to meet those
needs but the cow is still not maintaining body condition, says Alkire, “there could be several things wrong. I would encourage producers to talk to their veterinarians, but the fi rst thing I would ask is does she have a parasite load, and did you recently deworm that cow or treat for parasites?” He adds that it could also be a matter of temperament. “If you’ve got a
PREDICTING PEAK MILK IN BEEF COWS* Peak Milk lb/day
Mature Weight (lb)
880 950
1030 1100 1170 1250 1320 1400 1470
*Fox et al, 1988 68 The Cattleman April 2013 6 12
444 460 475 491 506 521 537 550 565
18 24
Avg. expected 7 month male calf weight (lb) 398 416 431 449 464 477 491 504 517
477 --- 493 --- 510 546 526 561 541 576 557 590 572 605 587 620 601 634
30
--- ---
574 590 607 623 638 656 671
group of cows that, for some reason, are thinner than others, it might make sense economically to sort them off and feed them different- ly. There are several reasons they might be thinner and one might just be pecking order, or their ag- gressiveness towards going to feed.” Alkire says there’s “a little bit
of wiggle room” for the condition of cows calving in the spring com- pared to the fall. With green grass coming on in the spring, he says, “Your cows could be a little bit low- er in condition, but I still like to see them in a 5 or better. Then when they calve they start lactating and they’re going to pull some condition down. We can use that green, lush forage to put condition back on her.” They don’t have that advantage
heading into the winter, so a higher condition score is in order. Alkire adds that in southern Oklahoma and North Texas, producers have been going to more of a hybrid season that isn’t necessarily spring or fall. “They’re calving earlier,” he
says. “Maybe a January time frame, which is earlier than our typical spring calving and later than our typical fall calving.” That, of course, moves them a
couple of months farther out from the emergence of new grass. “It’s really important to match your calving season to your particular resources,” Alkire says, “and that varies depending on where you are and what resources you have on your ranch — cool-season forages versus warm-season forages, and annual forage components that you can use to fi ll the gaps. It really needs to be tailored to each indi- vidual operation.”
Score cow condition during the year Banta recommends scoring the
thecattlemanmagazine.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102