Livestock Management RANCHING
Nutrition and Body Condition Count in a Healthy Beef Herd
S
UCCESS IN 4 AREAS OF THE COW-CALF PRODUCTION CYCLE can be directly linked to the herd health or nu- trition program.
First, the best reproductive performance from the
cow herd (best percentage of females that get pregnant compared to females that are exposed to bulls) is bol- stered by a good vaccination and nutrition program and by having the cows in optimum body condition. Second, we need to know how many of those preg-
nant cows actually calved, or how many lost their fetus during gestation. Third, we need to know how many calves survived
calving and the fi rst 60 to 90 days of life. This depends on timing the vaccinations so they are properly given to the dams to build the colostrum that will protect the newborn calf. The diet has to be good enough to support both the cow and calf in order to allow the maximum number of calves to survive. Fourth, the cow or fi rst-calf heifer has to rebreed
while she is milking and still wean a healthy, heavy calf while she’s gestating.
Nutrition basic to success Nutrition is a natural mate to a successful health
program on any cow-calf operation. Nutrition programs must start with the available
nutrients of the operation and expand or be developed from there. Most operations start with grass or hay. Then other residue feed, such as corn stalks, wheat pastures or something comparable that is available to the rancher, are considered. The main ingredients to be analyzed for a completely
balanced ration are: • Percentage of dry matter • Crude protein • Percentage of total digestible nutrients (TDN) • Net energy maintenance (NEM) • Net energy gain (NEG) • Percentage of calcium • Percentage of phosphorus • A micro-mineral package to supplement any ingredients that may be lacking in the feedstuffs It is a challenge to develop a complete, balanced
ration for all the animals you are feeding, such as replacement heifers, second-calf heifers, and mature
tscra.org
cows or bulls. Some of these groups, such as weaned calves that are in a backgrounding program, may need a separate diet. Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cows (NRC) pre-
calculated tables and computer programs are available for accurately determining the nutrients required by beef cows. The objective of any feeding program is to ensure optimum fertility and production from every female as economically as possible. It is a good idea to consult with an independent nutritionist and your veterinarian.
Body condition score Body condition scores (BCS), when used on a regular
basis, are a great means of evaluating the success of your feed rations. Progressive ranchers recognize the important relationship between the physical appearance and the reproductive performance of their cow herd. Body condition scoring merely formalizes this pro-
cedure by placing a quantitative score on the relative degree of fatness or energy reserves that can be observed or palpated. Body condition scores allow producers to group cattle according to their nutritional requirements. On a scale of 1 to 9 — 1 representing very thin body
condition and 9 representing extreme fatness — a score of 4, 5, or 6 is considered acceptable for most stages of demand on a mature cow or growing animal. Expect each BCS to represent a difference of about 79 pounds of body weight on a mature cow. The critical periods in the beef cow’s reproductive cycle are from calving through rebreeding, and dur-
December 2014 The Cattleman 63
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