It is weaning time again out on the range. This is the time of year that you as a rancher get to 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 tough question to answer because different people have different answers to this. Really it is up to the individual and what their production goals are 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 that you have with the most minimum loss to your calf crop. In order to accomplish this, you will need to get your calves started off on the right foot.
Starting your calves off right is probably 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 3 common problems.
No weaning plan in place
When it comes to weaning there are many people who do not even have a plan in place. They just pick a day with the best weather and just “wing it”. This strategy is similar to trying to hit a bullseye in the dark. Sure you might get lucky and hit the target but your odds do not look so good. But as productive cattle producers, we are not looking for “some of the time”. What we are looking for is a consistent and predictable outcome.
Ask anyone who has worked cattle for any length of time and they will tell you that things do not go smoothly all the time. There is always a problem that will come up. It can be not having enough feed to not having the right amount of vaccines available.
Develop a flexible plan at least 1 month in advance of weaning time. This will give you time to order any feed or medications that you will need. This will also give you the time to inspect your facilities and do any repairs. Nothing is more frustrating than to have a calf break through a fence or gate and hurt itself.
The goal here is to have it planned out so you can get your calves into the next stage of production in the least stressful way possible. Speaking of taking care of your facilities…
Weaning facilities are not ready
The facilities that you are going to use should be able to keep a calf from getting back to its mother. Or keeping that cow from getting back to its calf for that matter.
The calf is already going through a stressful enough time being taken from an environment that it is used to and being thrown into something completely different. You need to give calves a stress-free space with plenty of room and grass for them to roam. The idea here is that since they have spent the first part of their life out in the pasture it is giving them a somewhat familiar surroundings.
Many producers put the feed bunks where it is easier for them to fill them and not where it would be better for the calf to find it quickly. The general rule of thumb here is that you will want to place the bunks perpendicular to the outside fence of the calf pen. This is so when the calf is pacing around it will run into the feeder thus increasing the chances of them beginning to eat and put weight on.
The placement of the water trough in the pen is also very important. Like the feed bunk, you will want to place them on the outside perimeter of the pen. This will be so they will run into them also. One tip is that if your cattle get their water from a trough then you may want to use the same type of trough in your weaning pen. This will help because it is something that the calf is familiar with and knows that they can get water from it.
Calf’s nutrition needs are not being met
The calf is having a stressful enough time having been taken away from its mother. Not to mention a familiar environment to one without the security of its momma. It is never a good idea to just start them off with a feed that they are unfamiliar with.
The first problem with this is that they are less likely to eat is since they know nothing about it. Introducing a new feed right off the bat can also cause different kinds of digestive problems as well. According to a study done by the Iowa Beef Center, it takes 1-2 weeks for the microbes in the rumen to adjust to new feeds.
Think about creep feeding
When they are just arriving at the pen provide them with something that they are familiar with. This can be something such as creep feed. This will work of course only if you provided some creep feed to them while they were still with the herd. If you are interested in learning more about creep feeding I talk about them in a few previous articles such as “Pros and Cons of Creep Feeding”.
Not providing creep feed does not mean your calves can’t succeed. You can start off with like a 90/10 mixture of say forage and grain, or whatever they are familiar with. Another thing to look at is to include in this mixture any supplements that you want your calves to eventually start eating. After you begin feeding the original mixture every few days you can decrease the original feed and increase the other. You will continue doing this in small steps till they are eventually eating what it is that you want.
If you are interested in learning more I do cover this in other articles such as “The unconventional guide to weaning”.
