It is weaning time again out on the range. Weaning is the time of year when you, as a rancher, see the fruits of your labor. Labors, such as with your breeding programs. But that does beg the question about success.
What does success or failure mean when it comes to weaning? That is a tricky question to answer because different people have different answers to this. It is up to the individual and their production goals to determine what is a successful weaning.
There may be different ideas on how to wean your calves, but the goal is still the same. You want to wean every calf you have with the minimum loss to your crop. It would be best to get your calves started off on the right foot to accomplish this.
Starting your calves off right is one of the most important things that you can do. Doing so will ensure that calf’s lifelong production success. The first 30-45 days after weaning are the most stressful in that calf’s life. In order to make it as smooth as possible with their transition, you will need to avoid three common problems.
Having to feed supplements is sometimes necessary for cattle operations. That being said, it is something other than what most ranchers like to do. Feed costs remain the single most considerable expense for any cattle producer. The amount really depends on different things, but it can easily be half of the total annual expenses.
Hay is a very common sight in every cattle producer’s operation throughout the country. It is used during the winter to provide supplemental nutrition when forages are lacking. However, with the extremely dry conditions we have been having lately, getting hay bales is becoming harder and harder. With this difficulty, producers are looking for ways to make their current supplies last longer.
Maintaining your pasture during the summer can take much work. It can go from adequate moisture to extremely dry in no time. Managers must be on their game to keep their pasture from suffering too much.
Breeding season preparations are crucial for any cow/calf producer’s bottom line. Their steps will determine if they will have a good calf crop. Good quality calves to sell are the defining factor between a successful and a not successful rancher.
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. Like those two, though it is unavoidable, it is also something that most producers need to prepare for.
There is one constant in the livestock industry, if you have animals then you will have to build a fence. Fencing is a barrier to keeping your animals where you want them and keeping predators out.
Feed costs remain the single largest expense for any cattle producer. Depending on different factors this expense can easily be half of the total annual expenses for a rancher.
Trying to control flies that are on your cattle can be a very frustrating endeavor, to say the least. It can often feel like an uphill climb with no rest in sight. No matter what you seem to do they just keep coming back year after year.
Breeding season is a very important time on the ranch. We begin with the hope of making a new calf crop to keep the ranch going. In order to have a good calf crop, you will need to make sure that all, or at least 90%, of your cows, will be bred.
