little diffi culty. That’s probably one of the biggest con- siderations right at calving for the fi rst breeding season.” When the heifers experience dystocia on their fi rst
calves, the postpartum interval between calving and the resumption of cyclicity is extended. “We’ve seen a pretty signifi cant reduction in the incidence of calving diffi culty since producers have begun to pay more at- tention to calving ease EPD, in terms of direct calving ease and/or birth weight EPD of the service sires to which those heifers are bred,” he says. “The data would indicate that the postpartum in-
terval is going to be extended based on how severe the diffi culty was that she experienced. So, anything that can be done to limit both the incidence and the severity of calving diffi culty will really contribute to reproduc- tive success going into that second breeding season.”
Pelvic size is highly heritable When considering heifers entering their fi rst calv-
ing period, calf birth weight and pelvic area are the 2 factors most infl uential in determining calving ease or diffi culty. If the heifer is nutritionally restricted dur- ing the developing period to the extent that her pelvic growth or skeletal growth has been limited, that could contribute to an increased incidence and severity of calving diffi culty. Pelvic area is a heritable trait, so it is important to
know that sires may infl uence whether the pelvic area of a heifer is abnormally small or abnormally structured in a way that leads to calving diffi culty. This is where prebreeding exams of yearling heifers going into their fi rst breeding season can head off future problems. Patterson notes the number of Texas herds with
Brahman infl uence. For females of that parentage, he says calving diffi culty in general is not an issue, but nutritional management is. The drought and environ- mental extremes over the last few years can further complicate efforts to maintain heifers at body condition scores favorable to rebreeding. Johnson and Funston note the results of a study of a
group of heifers that delivered their fi rst calves. These females had been fed to achieve body condition scores of 4, 5 or 6 at calving and were targeted to gain either 1 or 2 pounds a day. “The magnitude of response to energy level was greater for BCS 4 heifers than those with greater BCS on the proportion of heifers initiat- ing estrous cycles early in the breeding season,” they report. “However, even with increased postpartum energy, the pregnancy rates of thin, primiparous (fi rst pregnancy) cows may not be acceptable.” MORE
64 The Cattleman March 2014
TEXAS
ABILENE Wylie Implement 800-588-7100
ALICE Edgars Farm Equipment Service 361-664-5022
AMARILLO Wylie Implement Co. 855-335-2861
ATHENS Athens Tractor & Equipment 903-675-9158
BAY CITY Hlavinka Equipment 979-245-4630
BRENHAM Bren-Tex Tractor Co. 979-836-1801
CALDWELL Drgac Fleet & Ag Services, LLC 979-324-4326
CAMPBELL Hunt County Farm Supply 903-862-2273
CLARKSVILLE Bachman Equipment 903-427-2120
CLEBURNE Zimmerer Kubota Equipment 817-645-9106 800-732-4702
CONROE Lansdowne-Moody Co, LP 936-321-6677
CROCKETT Collins Tractor & Equipment 936-544-3157, 800-717-3157
DE KALB Bowie County Equipment 903-667-2584, 800-622-3728
DECATUR Hendershot Equipment 940-627-5451
DeLEON Comanche County Tractor 254-893-6711
DENTON Zimmerer Kubota Equipment 940-382-1564, 800-582-6823
FAIRFIELD Fairfield Tractor 888-522-8404, 903-389-9894
FLORESVILLE Ewald Tractor Inc. 830-216-7279
GAINESVILLE Zimmerer Kubota Equipment 940-668-7861
GONZALES Saturn Sales & Service 830-540-4285
HENDERSON Lowe Tractor & Equipment 903-657-3538
HILLSBORO Tipton International 254-582-5333
JASPER Jasper County Tractor 409-384-7523
LaGRANGE ELK Tractors & Equipment 979-242-5656
LAMESA Wylie Implement Co. 877-308-9685
LIVINGSTON Peters Tractor & Equip. 936-967-4094
LONGVIEW Longview Vermeer Baler Sales 903-663-0282
LUBBOCK Wylie Implement Co. 800-722-4001
LUFKIN Hammer Equipment LLC 936-634-7000
MISSION Pioneer Equipment Company 956-585-1696
MUNDAY Wylie Implement Co. 800-338-2401
PALESTINE Dogwood Sales, Inc. 903-723-2165, 800-256-8803
PEGGY Farm Machine Shop, Inc. 830-780-3984
PITTSBURG Pittsburg Tractor Inc. 903-856-654, 800-342-6568
PLAINVIEW Wylie Implement Co. 855-293-4116
QUEEN CITY Cass County Implement 903-796-9594
SEALY W.A. Virnau & Sons 979-885-3549
SEGUIN Rehfeld Equipment Company, LLC 830-557-5583
SEMINOLE Wylie Implement Co. 888-758-1181
SPLENDORA Lansdowne-Moody Co, LP 281-592-5266
STEPHENVILLE Hendershot Equipment 254-965-6783
STAR Moore’s Service Center 325-948-3595
SULPHUR SPRINGS Farm Country 903-885-7561
SUMNER W&H Farm & Ranch 903-784-5595
TAYLOR K & M Manufacturing Co., Inc. 512-352-2588
TEMPLE Blackland Implement 254-773-2409
TERRELL Mitchell & Bourland Inc. 972-563-2171
TEXARKANA Texarkana New Holland 903-838-6336
TYLER Rose Country Tractor 903-593-5337, 800-567-8251
WACO Tipton International 254-662-2420
WAXAHACHIE Waxahachie Equipment Co., Inc. 972-937-5870
WICHITA FALLS Construction Ag Supply 940-332-9950
OKLAHOMA
ADA Great Plains Equip. Sales of Ada 580-427-9000
CHECOTAH Golden Ag, Inc. 918-473-0335
CLINTON Rother Bros. Inc. 580-323-1981
DUNCAN Great Plains Equip. Sales of Duncan 580-255-1117
FAIRVIEW Rother Bros. Inc. 580-227-2547
GUTHRIE Beck’s Farm Equipment 405-282-1196
KINGFISHER Rother Bros. Inc. 405-375-5349
NEWCASTLE Holman Equipment Sales 405-412-6152, 405-833-0773
OKEMAH S&W Equipment 918-623-0100
OKMULGEE Stewart Martin Equipment 918-756-3560
PONCA CITY Simunek Equipment 580-363-3914
POTEAU Gray Brothers Equipment, Inc. 918-647-8000
SHAWNEE Great Plains Equipment Sales of Shawnee 405-275-4455
TULSA Kubota Construction Eq. of Tulsa 918-970-4614
WELCH Eubanks Jorgenson Equipment 888-833-7042
YUKON John Parizek Equipment 405-354-6156, 405-833-0030
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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