With fall and cooler weather right around the corner it is important to give your cows their best chance going into winter. As with other seasons a cow’s nutrition requirements are different during this time of year. Here are some things you can do to help your cows going into the later part of the year:
Focus on Reproductive Performance
Profitability in any cow/calf operation is largely determined by this factor. Your calf crop percentage and average weaning weight play a part in this as well. Success in any cow/calf operation depends on how many healthy uniformed weight calves that you can deliver. You will want to make sure that all of your cows are being rebred during your breeding season window to ensure uniformity.
Nutrition plays a key role
Your herd’s nutrition plays a huge role in their reproductive performance. A low level of nutrition in your cows will lengthen the time between calving and their first estrus. It can also prevent her from even getting bred at all. Cows with a good level of nutrition have less calving difficulties and are bred back quicker. Good nutrition both before and after calving are essential in getting cows to perform at their best.
Manage cows to calve in good condition
Your cow’s body condition score at calving is very important. Cows that are in good condition give birth to healthier calves. Healthier calves mean more weight gained during growing and less doctoring required. They also tend to produce more milk and wean heavier calves. If your cows are in less than ideal body condition score now it is a good idea to get it up now while their requirements are lower rather than trying to play catch up while they are in the late gestation phase.
Make good use of your fall forage
During this time of year a cow’s nutrient requirements tends to be lower than other times of the year. Abundant and relatively inexpensive fall forage is available for them to eat. Mature native pastures, improved pastures, meadow re-growth, corn stalks, grain stubble, and straw are good sources of energy. If properly supplemented to increase digestibility and intake, these forages can exceed the modest nutrient requirements of dry cows. If you are hand feeding them you can use the placement of the supplements to ensure complete utilization of the forages.
Fall supplement can be especially helpful to first calf heifers. They will need a little bit more than mature cows for the simple fact that they are still growing. Providing adequate nutrition to them will help them get rebred quicker thus justifying the 2 year investment you have put into them.
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