Tag: weighing calves

  • Estimating Calf Birth Weight

    For cattle producers with cow-calf operations, you may also be interested in our October 2019 post on: Beef Bull Castration: Using Castration Banders, including the Callicrate SMART Bander.  We also discuss our new approach of “delaying calf processing.” Be sure to check it out! Thanks!

    DSCN7948Birth weight is a genetically heritable trait in beef cattle that has a direct impact on cow-calf management.  On the surface, some might think that a bigger calf is better.  However, big calves often cause difficult births, and if a farmer or rancher isn’t around to assist with the birth, they can end up with a dead calf or, in some cases, a dead cow.  A small, live calf is much easier to sell in the fall than a dead one!  Plus, with quality genetics, many of the smaller-born calves will weigh just as much as their heavier-born companions in the fall.  On our farm we aim for a 65-75 lb birth weight.  Last year we had one calf born at 110 lbs.  Luckily we were present during the birth – we had to pull the calf, and would prefer to avoid having to deal with a calf born that big in the future.

    Since birth weight is so important, good managers often attempt to collect weights on most of their calves around the time of birth.  Seed stock producers do this routinely, as birth weight, along with assisted birthings are data they report to calculate EPD’s (expected progeny differences used to evaluate bulls).  Commercial producers often times will guess a calf’s birth weight, or place them in categories (i.e. small, medium, large).

    DSCN2817The most accurate method used to collect calf birth weights is by weighing each calf with a scale.  We use a spring scale that can be carried out in the field.  The calf is placed in a weigh sling and picked up with the scale.  Simple as that.  This method requires some extra work, and can be difficult to do when the momma cow is breathing down your neck trying to protect her calf.

    A less accurate, but quick method to estimate calf birth weight is the calf scale tape.  A while back, Marshall Ruble, from Iowa State University, found a strong correlation between a calf’s hoof circumference and its birth weight.  He determined that you could get a pretty good estimate of calf weight by simply measuring the circumference of the hoof.  Ruble developed a simple tape that can be placed around a newborn calf’s hoof and gives an easy-to-read weight.  One side of the tape is used for bulls, the other for heifers.

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    Calf Scale, from Ruble Cattle Services

    We used the calf scale tape last year and followed up by taking hoof diameter and spring scale weight on a couple of calves.  Though our sample size was low, we found that the tape gave weights very close to our scale weights.  A South Dakota State University study negated some of the claims of the Ruble Calf Scale, finding a relatively poor correlation between hoof circumference and birth weight, so you can take the information with a grain of salt. Some folks swear by the calf tape, and others refuse to use it.

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    CalfScale, from www.rublecattleservices.com

    A number of methods are available for estimating calf birth weights, including visual guesses, hoof circumference and actual scale measurements, and each has its strengths and weaknesses.  If you’re interested in collecting birth weights of your calves to help improve management and make selection decisions, give these methods a try.

    For cattle producers with cow-calf operations, you may also be interested in our October 2019 post on: Beef Bull Castration: Using Castration Banders, including the Callicrate SMART Bander

  • Vaccinating your Calves

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    Red Angus steer calf grazing on October 31st, 2014. Enjoying the nice fall weather.
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    November 2nd, 2014. Hello, winter.

    Today’s post will focus on vaccinating your calves. Stay posted for our next post on weaning your calves.

    As I am typing, we are just a week away from Christmas and winter has arrived on the Wood Farm.  Normally, having lots of snow in mid-December is nothing out of the ordinary in our neck of the woods.

     

    This winter, though, our farm underwent a winter wonderland on the evening of November 1st.  Yes, November not December.

    I think Mother Nature got her months mixed up.

     

     

    Last year, our cows grazed on pasture up until the first day in December and we had hoped to have the same fall-time grazing success this year.   We had to start our cows on hay bale grazing on November 8th.

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    Hay bale grazing started on November 8th, 2014.

     

    All of our grand ideas of stretching out our fall grazing and thus, our winter hay bale supply (save $30/day) flew out the window into swirls and swirls of snowflakes.  Oh well, that’s how it goes with farming. I strongly believe that having a flexible attitude with large doses of patience and positivity can take you very far in this crazy, wonderful world of beef cattle farming!

     

    Getting back to the focus of this post (vaccinating your calves), though, we had no clue that winter would come a month early.  On that wintery day, as we watched the first snow of the season fall and pile up all around us, we felt so fortunate that the two very critical tasks to have done before winter – vaccinating and weaning calves – were done.  We vaccinated our calves on September 21st and weaned them October 4th (Post on weaning coming soon).

    Vaccinating Calves

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    Our alley, chute and head gate.

    We chose to vaccinate our calves a few weeks before we weaned them.   These calves had not yet been worked through an alley, chute and head gate and just going through that maze had the potential to be a slightly stressful event for them.  We had no desire to couple that process with weaning.

     

     

    After consulting with our veterinarian, we decided to do the vaccinations ourselves.  Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures from this as it proved to be a very high-energy event.  The whole process took eight hours to complete, and I wore our 30lb son in the backpack for half that time.

    September 21st was the big day.  We had 10 Angus calves to vaccinate, ranging in age from 2 1/2 – 5 months old. Jer and I worked these calves by ourselves and boy, did we learn some important lessons.  Lessons on what NOT to do but at the same time, some affirmation that parts of our process were working.   I just can’t stress enough how important it is to remain calm, patient and positive when handling cattle, especially these young calves.  If you are getting upset and impatient, you better believe that calf is fielding those emotions from you and you are going to have a fight on your hands getting that animal down an alleyway and into a head gate.

    We administered the following vaccinations to each of our 10 calves:

    1. 2ml of 20/20 Vision 7 with spur (pinkeye).   Given subcutaneously in the upper neck.
    2. 2ml of Presponse HM (prevention of bacterial pneumonia).  Given intramuscular in the upper neck.
    3. 2ml of Bovi-Shield Gold 5 (for a range of respiratory diseases).  Given subcutaneously in the upper neck.
    4. 3ml Multimin90 (mineral supplement).  Given subcutaneously in the upper neck.
    5. 16ml of Ivermectin Pour on (wormer).  Applied along the top line.

    In addition to the vaccinations, we were able to get weights on nine of the calves.  We had been pleased with the calves’ performance and growth over the summer and the weights provided us with some much-needed affirmation that we were well on track to have 500+ pound calves for sell in November.

    When we finished up that night, we came inside and over dinner, we brainstormed ideas for making the whole vaccination process more effective, streamlined and calmer for both human and animal.  We talked about what went wrong and what went right.  The day was not perfect.  We always try not to let our emotions get the best of us when working with our animals but we stumbled a bit that day.  In the end, though, we always try to remind ourselves that at least we have cattle; yes, we sometimes get frustrated and impatient but at least we have cattle.  Could be a lot worse.  We could not have cattle and we just couldn’t imagine life like that.  🙂

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    Coming to your pasture soon…Weaning.

     

    We could check vaccinating calves off our fall to-do list.

     

    Next on the list?  Weaning.  What an adventure and yet another, learning lesson, that would turn out to be.