| Monitoring cow nutrition prior to calving is important |
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| Written by News Release | |
| Wednesday, 14 January 2009 03:00 | |
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During the last trimester of pregnancy, the fetus grows rapidly, placing increasing nutrient demands on the cow.
By Robbie Baird LeValley CSU Cooperative Extension In addition, cold weather increases the cow’s nutrient requirements. Body condition (fat cover) plays an important role in successfully wintering beef cows. Late weaning, overstocking, late supplementation, poor parasite control programs, and inadequate winter rations can all lead to cows in poor body condition. Research has clearly demonstrated that spring calving cows should be at BCS 5 or higher at calving time for optimal reproductive performance the following breeding season. It is also recommended that earlier calving cows (January and February calving) and young cows (2- and 3-year-olds) calve in slightly higher BCS (5.5). A greater percentage of cows with BCS 5 or greater at calving will be in heat at the start of the breeding season. If a cow is in heat at the beginning of the breeding season, the greater the chance that she will breed and calve early in the season, resulting in heavier weaning weights the subsequent fall. Cows in higher body condition scores had more immunoglobulins in their colostrum than thinner cows. Thus, you can see that cow nutrition during gestation will affect the health and productivity of the newborn calf. Research conducted in Australia has investigated the effects of precalving nutrition level on calf and dam behavior immediately following calving. Calves born to dams on a low plane of nutrition took significantly longer to nurse than calves born to dams on a maintenance or high plane of nutrition. The longer the calf takes to nurse, the higher the likelihood that colostrum absorption will not be adequate to protect the calf from disease. For more information or to work on a specific beef cattle ration, contact the Colorado State University Extension Office at 874-2195. Source: Lardy, G. and C. Stolenow. Preparing for a Successful Calving Season. NDSU Extension Bulletin AS-1207. June 2001.
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