Livestock Management RANCHING
Set Them Up for Success
Start managing fi rst-calf heifers early in life to set them up for successful calving, timely rebreeding By Gary DiGiuseppe
S
UCCESS WITH REBREEDING HEIFERS AFTER THE FIRST CALF can depend on how well the rancher has planned in managing the herd following the initial calv-
ing and even before the heifers were born. The condition of the rebred heifer “is pretty man-
agement-dependent,” says Dr. David Patterson, profes- sor of animal science with the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, “and that’s often the challenge. “Ideally I prefer [heifers being bred back] to be in
a body condition score of 6. That gives them some leeway,” he says because their body condition can be greatly reduced depending on the availablity of feed and on how much milk they produce (heavy milkers will lose more condition faster). Patterson says the fi rst-calf heifers are “still trying to meet new additional requirements for lactation, and they’re still trying to meet their own requirements for growth because they’re not fully grown yet.” Two researchers, Dr. Sandy Johnson of Kansas State
University and Dr. Rick Funston of the University of Nebraska, make that point in an article written for Veterinary Clinics of North America: Food Animal Practice, entitled “Post Breeding Heifer Management.” They write, “Nutrient demands during late gesta-
62 The Cattleman March 2014
tion include continuing heifer growth as well as fetal growth. Fetal birth weight increases by 60 percent during the last 70 days of gestation. Timely provision of adequate dietary energy and protein to meet this demand is a key step to have adequate body condition at calving. The importance of prepartum protein and energy level on reproductive performance has been consistently demonstrated. Reproduction has low prior- ity among partitioning of nutrients and consequently, cows in thin BCS often don’t rebreed.” Johnson and Funston also say intake during ges-
tation impacts dystocia (diffi cult births), calf health and calf survival. Inadequate protein and energy to the dams results
in calves more susceptible to cold stress, to being weak and slow to suckle, increasing the risk for the calf to fail to receive antibodies through colostrum. “If heifers are thin at calving, achieving a positive
energy balance postpartum is essential for timely re- turn to estrus and pregnancy,” they write. However, they note, caution should be used with
feeding excess nutrients before or after calving. It’s costly, and cows and heifers with body condition scores greater than 7 have lower pregnancy rates and more calving diffi culty than do females with scores of 5 to 6.
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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