Drought is one of those things that every cattle producer will have to deal with at some point. It ranks right up there with Death and Taxes. Just like those two though it is unavoidable it is also something that most producers find themselves unprepared for.
But what is drought? Drought is simply a deficiency in precipitation over an extended period of time and is a part of normal climate variability. The duration of a drought can vary widely from just a matter of weeks to months or even years. Although hurricanes and tornadoes are more dramatic droughts are among the most costly weather-related events.
Since these are slow-moving and don’t usually involve direct property damage we tend to underestimate the effects of drought. This is the wrong way to look at it as I mentioned above. A study done by FEMA back in 1995 concluded that droughts cost the United States an average of $6 to $8 billion per year.
Now that I have gotten you good and scared, sorry about that by the way, you may be asking yourself “How can I mitigate the effects that drought will have on my place?”. Well fear not, I have 5 tips here that you can follow to make the economic impact a little more bearable for you.
Tip #1: Monitor your cattle’s drinking water source
Surface water is often the main source of water for cattle in the pasture. Since it is a water source that means if it is dry enough it can dry up. This can be remedied if a live water tape is near your fill tanks. If you do not have a live tap then either moving cattle out of the pasture or hauling water may be your only option for the short term.
If you are thinking hauling water will be easy let me warn you of that. Keep in mind that a cow will drink 20 gallons and calves will drink 5 to 8 gallons per day. I don’t know about you but that is a lot of water that will need to be hauled and to top it off you can’t let it run out. A cow can go a couple of days without water which is not really the issue here. The issue comes in trampled calves at the tanks when you start dumping fresh water. If you are going to be hauling water then you will need to do it in advance of the naturally supplied water running out. This gives the cows a chance to establish their pecking order before it becomes a dire situation.
Even though the old pond has dried up cows will continue to go back to it. This is usually bad for the calves because they can get bogged down in the silt at the bottom of the pond bed. Once you have established a new water supply fence out the old water to keep the cattle out of the silt bed.
Tip #2: Creep-feed calves during drought
Creep-feeding calves could be a possible grass-saver for some operations out there. Though feed is expensive right now, and doesn’t look to be going down anytime soon. it may be the only option before you start carving up your herd for culls. Keeping calves on a low to moderate energy creep will reduce grass intake by as much as 20%.
I have a few different articles on the benefits and issues with creep feeding if you are interested in learning more. If you are considering putting some creep feed out the University of Nebraska has a guide for information on possible feed formulations.
Tip#3: Cull cows now in drought conditions
Due to being so late in the year, we are past the point in the growing season where any rain we get is going to restore forages to normal this year. Do not get me wrong rain always helps but your grass yields will still suffer tremendously.
So if you are planning on culling here are some thoughts for you:
- Do not wait till you are out of the grass. Most herds can be kept intact if 10% to 25% of the herd is sold off. If you have something you can feed them till fall that is fine, though most people are not able to. Not to mention it may not be very profitable to do so.
- If you bred early then preg-check your cows and sell the open and late-bred ones. There is no reason to keep feeding the cows that are the least profitable in your herd.
- Sell your oldest cows first. This may be a little hard because she may still be a decent cow. They are the least valuable to your remaining herd though. If you do not have many older cows then cut into the older run of the running age next (6 to 8 year-olds). If you still need to trim out some more consider selling some of your replacement heifers. This will leave you a core group of your most valuable cows (3 to 6 years old).
- Selling pairs or bred pairs isn’t going to be much of a possibility this summer. Though things may change the current drought extends to over 75% of cow country right now. This means that there aren’t many producers looking to add more mouths to feed. Early weaning of your calves might be the way to go.
Tip #4: Wean your calves early
Early weaning of calves is one way to lighten the load on your remaining grass. This practice has been shown to reduce the grass intake of cows by about 25%. Calves can be successfully weaned at around 90 days of age and started on feed fairly easily. This is particularly if they have been fed creep-feed prior to weaning. Nutrition is the key component to a successful early weaning program.
Other major considerations for early weaning include performing standard vaccinations prior to weaning, controlling dust to keep dust pneumonia in check, and adequate fly control. Manage heat stress in calves as much as possible by giving them shade and plenty of clean water. If you are interested in learning ways to manage early-weaned calves then check out my previous article “3 ways to manage early-weaned Calves”.
Tip #5: Control flies and other pests
Pest control is more critical during a drought. Cows and calves are hounded constantly by biting flies, face flies, mosquitoes, and ticks in the pasture. Periods of dry weather tend to make these worse. Cattle use a lot of energy fighting flies. They also will tend to bunch up which makes heat stress worse. Provide relief to your cattle by using dust bags, oilers, rubs, and/or fly tags. Whichever you use make sure to keep them fresh and current.
