BEEF CATTLE MANAGEMENT

1. BEEF CATTLEMANAGEMENT by David R. Hawkins Michigan State University

2. Comparison of Dairy & Beef Industries

3. Comparison of Dairy & Beef Industries

4. Seedstock Commercial Cow-Calf Dairy Stocker/Backgrounder Feedlot Packer Retailer Consumer 120,000 breeders 904,000 producers 117,000 farms 44,000 feedlots 1,250 packers 250 food chains 270+ million U.S. BEEF INDUSTRY STRUCTURE

5. Conception to Calving Calving to Weaning Stocker/Backgrounder Feedlot Packer Retailer Consumer Total 9 months 6 to 8 months Variable (2 to 8 mo.) Variable (3 to 7 mo.) 3 to 7 days Variable Variable About 30 to 32 mo. BEEF INDUSTRY TIMELINE

9. SIZE of CATTLE OPERATIONS • Dairy and feedlots tend to be full time. • Beef cow herds tend to be part time • U.S. average herd size is 38 head • 1 to 49 hd = 28.9% of cows (78% of farms) • 50 to 99 hd = 19.1% of cows (12% of farms) • 100 to 499 hd = 37.1 % of cows (9% of farms) • >500 head = 14.9% of cows (0.7% of farms)

10. Angus – 271,222 Hereford – 80,976 Limousin – 49,036 Charolais – 45,354 Simmental – 44,159 Red Angus – 41,900 Gelbvieh – 32,323 Beefmaster – 30,416 Brangus – 25,500 Shorthorn – 21,608 Brahman – 15,000 Maine Anjou – 12,267 S. Gertrudis – 11,500 Salers – 10,286 Chianina – 6,679 T.Longhorn – 6,200 BREED REGISTRATIONS 2001

11. BREED WEBSITE • Oklahoma State University maintains an excellent web page for breeds of livestock. • www.ansi.okstate.edu/BREEDS/index.htm

12. Straight breeding Crossbreeding Breed complementarity Heterosis or hybrid vigor Individual heterosis Maternal Heterosis Two Breed Cross Terminal Sire Two Breed Rotation Three Breed Rotation Rotation + terminal Sire Composite BEEF BREEDING SYSTEMS

13. Effects of Heterosis on Lbs. of Calf Weaned per Cow Mated

14. Example of a Three Breed Rotational System

15. BREEDING SEASON MGT. I • Breeding Soundness Exam • Natural Service with Bulls • Yearling – 10 to 20 females • Two Year Old – 20 to 30 females • Mature bull – 30 to 40 females • Artificial Insemination • Less than 5% of cows in commercial herds • Up to 40% of cows in seedstock herds

16. BREEDING SEASON MGT. II • Limited season results in uniform calf crop • 60 days would be ideal • 100 to 120 days is more common • Michigan Beef Cows Calving by Month • Jan. & Feb. 7.3% • March 24.2% • April 39.7% • May 17.1% • Other 11.8%

17. BREEDING SEASON MGT. III • At weaning (7 mo.) heifers should weigh 45% of mature weight. • At breeding (15 mo.) heifers should weigh 65% of mature weight. • At calving (24 mo.) heifers should weigh 85% of mature weight. • Measure pelvic areas prior to breeding • Use light birth weight and low birth weight EPD bulls for mating to heifers

19. MICHIGAN COW CALF NUTRITION • Pasture 5/15 to 10/30 – 165 days • 1 to 5 acres per cow calf pair • Harvested Forage 11/01 to 5/14 – 200 days • Corn stalk residue – 30 to 60 days • Grass-legume hay or silage – 140 to 200 days • Free Choice Minerals • Salt, Ca, P, Mg + Trace Minerals • Clean fresh water

20. COMMON NUTRTIONAL PROBLEMS in BEEF COWS • Thin Cows • Body Condition Scores (1 to 9) 5 to 6 is ideal • Calving Difficulty & Delayed Rebreeding • Dry vs. Lactating • Fat Cows • Calving Difficulty and Reduced Milk Flow • Legume Bloat • Grass Tetany

21. SEPARATE HERD INTO MANAGEMENT GROUPS • Bred Heifers & Thin Cows • Dry Mature Cows • Lactating Cows • Weaned Heifer Calves • Mature Herd Sires • Young Bulls

22. HERD HEALTH PROGRAM I • Calving Season • Colostrum within first hours after birth • Iodine navel • Selenium – Vitamin E • Scour Vaccine (E.coli 7/or Viruses) • Castrate & Dehorn • Implant non replacement calves • Vaccinate Cows (IBR, BVD, PI3 + Lepto)

23. HERD HEALTH PROGRAM II • Pasture and Breeding Season • Deworm & Control Flies • Vaccinate heifer calves for Brucellosis • Consider Blackleg & Malignant Edema • Creep feeding is optional • Keep free choice mineral available

24. HERD HEALTH PROGRAM III • Preweaning • Vaccinate calves for IBR, BVD, PI3, Blackleg & Hemophilis somnus • Castrate and dehorn if not done earlier • Get calves used to eating grain & drinking water from troughs • Weaning Time • Pregnancy check females exposed to breeding

25. HERD HEALTH PROGRAM IV • Booster vaccinations • Grub & lice control • Late Gestation • Check mineral for P and Se • Treat for lice if they are a problem • Consider scour vaccine for cows & bred heifers

26. RECORD KEEPING • 27.6% of beef cow calf operations have no records at all. • 65.2% keep records by hand Source- National survey of 3,300 producers in 48 states

27. Types of Records • Inventory • Ancestral • Performance • Birth, weaning and yearling data • Health • Vaccinations and examinations • Financial – IRM & SPA

28. EXPECTED PROGENY DIFFERENCES (EPD) • EPDs can be calculated for any trait that we can measure. • EPDs are estimates of the genetic ability of animals to transmit to their progeny • EPDs are expressed in the same units as the trait is measured • Analyses are done by the national breed associations

29. EPDs continued • Breed average is not “0”. • EPDs change over time as more information enters the analyses. • Most breeds run two analyses per year. • They are widely used and widely accepted in the industry • Accuracy ranges from 0 to .99

30. IRM & SPA • Integrated Resource Management (IRM) is a system approach to managing a farm or ranch. • Standardized Performance Analysis (SPA) is a way of analyzing records of both production and financial performance of a farm or ranch in order to make better decisions and impact profitability.

31. 2000 ILLINOIS SPA SUMMARY • Calf Crop Weaned 82.9% • Average Weaning Weight 486 lbs. • Lbs.weaned/Cow Exposed 420 lbs. • Annual Cow Cost $ 305 • Feed cost was $ 209 • Breakeven Calf Price $ 73/cwt. • Investment per cow $ 1,858

32. HOW TO IMPROVE PROFIT • Improve Reproductive Rate • Wean Heavier Calves • Wean Higher Value Calves • Develop Alliances and Retain Ownership • Reduce Cow Herd Costs • Use cattle inventory and price cycles in management decision making

33. CATTLE INVENTORY & PRICE CYCLES • High inventory = low prices • Low inventory = high prices • Historically cattle inventory cycles have averaged 9.6 years long from peak to peak. • In 2001, we are at the low inventory part of this cycle. • Cow calf producers should be profitable for the next 4 to 5 years.

35. STOCKER/BACKGROUNDER • Purchase weaned calves in fall, sell in the spring • Goal is 1.5 to 1.75 lb. ADG • Moderate energy, high roughage rations • Growth and normal development are the goals Fattening is not a goal. • Grazing winter wheat in the southern plains states from November to March • Wintering on hay &/or silage in Michigan

36. STOCKER/BACKGROUNDER continued • Buy yearlings in late winter and graze in summer. • Goal is 180 to 300 lb. gain in 120 to 150 days • Some programs will combine both a winter stocker and summer grazing program before entering the feedlot.

38. STARTING CATTLE ON FEED • First day begin with top quality grass hay • Second day top dress hay with grain or silage • Transition to high energy ration should be made over 10 to 14 days to avoid digestive upsets. • Don’t use all NPN supplements until calves weigh at least 600 lbs. • Keep fresh feed and water available at all times

39. FEEDLOT NUTRITION • Grains – Corn, Barley & Milo • Roughages – Corn Silage, Alfalfa Hay or Haylage • Protein Supplements • Soybean or Cottonseed Meals • Brewers Grains • Urea or Anhydrous Ammonia

40. NUTRITIONAL PROBLEMS • Acidosis on high energy rations • Ionophores (Rumensin or Bovatec) help • Founder (laminitis) on high energy rations • Bloat • Urinary calculi • Need Ca:P ratio > 1.1 • Often occurs on high energy diets

41. FEEDLOT STEERS & HEIFERS • Steers gain 8% to 15% faster than heifers of same body size. • Steers consume 5% to 10% more feed than heifers. • Heifers require 2% to 10% more lbs. of feed per lb. of gain than steers • Some feeders tend to over fatten heifers • To be equal in profit, heifers must be purchased about 10% to 15% less per cwt. than steers.

42. FEEDLOT STEERS & BULLS • Bulls gain more rapidly and more efficiently than steers. • Bulls produce leaner carcasses that are more variable in tenderness than steer carcasses. • Bulls are more difficult to manage than steers or heifers. • There is only a limited market for bull beef.

43. AGE OF FEEDLOT CATTLE • Yearlings gain 10% to 20% faster than calves depending on weight and condition. • Yearlings consume 10% to 40% more feed than calves. • Yearlings are less efficient in converting feed to gain than calves. • Yearlings require fewer days in the feedlot to reach final weight and carcass grade. • Western U.S. feedlots prefer to feed yearlings.

44. BREED EFFECTS • Larger continental breeds gain faster than British breeds, but must be carried to heavier weights to grade choice. • There is little difference in feed efficiency when fed to the same carcass endpoint. • Holsteins require about 10% more feed per lb. of gain than beef breeds but ADG is similar to beef breeds.

45. EFFECT OF BODY CONDITION • When placed on comparable diets, thin cattle gain faster and more efficiently than fatter cattle. • This phenomenon is called “compensatory gain”. • Cattle feeders try to avoid buying fat feeder cattle unless they are priced somewhat lower per cwt. than thin feeder cattle.

46. FEEDLOT PROFIT OR LOSS • Dekalb feedlots average profit per head over a 23 year period was $ 26. • Profitability is influenced by changes in the grain and cattle markets. • Risk can be controlled by use of contracts and trading for future market access. • Marketing skills are critical for success.