Reproductive Success in Young Beef Cowswesternbeef.org/pdfs/field_days/2014_summer_field_day/... · 2018. 6. 23. · With help from Tim Petry, NDSU June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day June

2014 WBDC Field Day June 24, 2014

www.wbdc.sk.ca 1

Reproductive Success in Young Beef Cows

Kendall Swanson North Dakota State University Department of Animal Science

June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


www.wbdc.sk.ca 2

Outline

•  Challenges with young cows •  Nutrition for heifers and 1st calf heifers •  Other management considerations •  Potential effects on offspring


Introduction

•  Getting cows pregnant and maintaining that pregnancy is critical for overall system efficiency

•  Young cows (especially 1st calf heifers) are more prone to challenges with becoming pregnant and maintaining that pregnancy

•  Keeping her in the herd for more years makes you more money!



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Example of calculating profit from a bred heifer

•  Weaned calf value: $1,100 •  Cost to produce calf: $600 •  Cull cow value: 1250 lb*$0.80 = $1,000 •  Cost to purchase bred heifer: $2,000 •  So:

–  $1,100 - $600 * 1= $500 +1,000 - $2000 = -$500 –  $1,100 - $600 * 2= $1,000 +1,000 - $2000 = $0 –  $1,100 - $600 * 3= $1,000 +1,000 - $2000 = +$500

With help from Tim Petry, NDSU June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day



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• Nutrition programs directly impact growth rate and body condition score

• BW (in heifers), BCS and nutrition interact to be major factors influencing reproductive success June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Cost of production

0

100

200

300

400

500

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700

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Cos

t/cow

Other Costs Feed Costs

MN Farm Business Management Report 2012 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Cost of production

0

100

200

300

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600

2012

Cos

t/cow

, $

Other Costs Feed Costs

Larson, WBDC Fact Sheet #2012.05

Feed and pasture = ~59% of COP


Heifer Development

•  Preweaning •  Weaning to Breeding •  Breeding to Calving •  Calving to Rebreeding



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Replacement Heifers

•  16 – 18% of the cow herd is typically replaced by heifers each year

•  ½ calves are heifers so 32 – 36% of heifers serve as replacements


Cycling status of beef cattle females before the beginning of

the breeding season

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

100

% C

yclin

g

Virgin heifers Primiparous cows Multiparous cows

Stevenson et al. 1997 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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http://igrow.org/livestock/beef/replacement-heifer-development-feeding-replacement-heifers/ June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Day and Nogueira, 2013 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Preweaning

•  Good cow nutrition •  Creep feeding or early weaning

– Only when limited cow nutrition? –  If heifer has too much condition at weaning can

reduce subsequent productivity •  Implanting

– Detrimental effects on subsequent fertility


Effects of creep-feeding on subsequent performance as a cow

0

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1400

Life

time

wea

ned

calf

prod

uctio

n,

lb Creep

No Creep

Martin et al. 1981 P


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Weaning until Breeding •  Should be fed separately from rest of herd •  Must reach puberty by 12 to 14 months to calve by

2 yrs of age •  Target to gain 1.25 to 1.75 lb / day •  Shoot for 65% of mature cow size at the beginning

of the yearling breeding season •  Lead breeding: Heifers bred 3-4 weeks before

mature cow herd •  Short breeding season (45 d)

–  Open heifers culled June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Calving group = 21 d period Patterson et al., 1992



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Patterson et al., 1992 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Endecott et al. 2013 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Is 65% of mature size still optimum for breeding weight?

•  Recent research suggests 0.51 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Does it matter how you get there?

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

100

Preg

nant

, %

High Medium Low-High

P = 0.85 Freetly et al. 2001 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

•  Calf survival was lower for calves from heifers on the low-high treatment in 1 year (73% vs. 89% or 81% for the Med and High treatments)

•  Second-calf pregnancy did not differ between treatments



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Breeding until calving

•  Aim for calving at about 85% of mature weight – Too small, difficult to get rebred – Too fat – other problems and inefficient

•  Gain ¾ to about 1 ¼ lb per day •  Last 50-60 d before calving critical

–  fed separately from mature cows? – Hard to catch up later – Restriction will result in decreased calf weights and

vigor, and make it more difficult to get heifer rebred June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

NE Requirements for bred heifer (1400 lb mature weight)

Calving

NRC, 1996 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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NE Requirements (1400 lb mature)

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14

16

18

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

NE

m, M

cal/d

Months since Calving

Pregnancy Lactation Growth Maintenance

Breeding Weaning


MP Requirements for bred heifer (1400 lb mature weight)

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900

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

MP,

g/d

Months since Breeding


Breeding

Calving



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MP Requirements (1400 lb cow)

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500

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900

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

MP,

g/d

Months since Calving


Breeding Weaning


Effect of BCS on PPI

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100

Post

part

um in

terv

al

2 2.5 3 3.5 4

Houghton et al. 1990 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Johnson and Funston, 2013

Nutrition critical in maintaining adequate BCS

BCS Pregnancy rate, %

Calving interval, d

Calf ADG, lb

Calf weaning weight, lb

2 43 414 1.61 374 2.5 61 381 1.76 460 3 86 364 1.85 515 3.5 93 364 1.85 515


Calving to Rebreeding

•  High nutrient requirements – Maint, growth, lactation, rebreeding

•  Likely require supplementation depending on pasture/forage quality

•  Ideally would feed separate from mature cows



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Management considerations for heifers and pregnant 1st calf heifers •  Bull selection (reduce calving difficulty) •  Synchronization – AI? •  Good mineral program •  Specific supplements?

– Fats, escape protein •  Creep feeding, early weaning for 1st calf

heifers? •  Preg checking June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Creep Feeding •  Benefits

–  Teach calves to consume dry feed –  Increased weight gain –  Benefit to mother in times of low-quality pasture

•  Also early weaning

•  Pitfalls –  Low feed conversion (avg 11.5 lbs of feed per pound of

gain) –  Non-creep fed calves compensate after weaning –  Heavier more fleshy weaned calves may bring lower

prices than “thinner” weaned calves –  Could result in excess nutrition for replacement heifers



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Early Weaning

•  Benefits –  Improved body condition of cows in times of poor or

limited forage availability –  Increased weight gain of calves if kept and fed

harvested or purchased feeds –  Improved quality grade after finishing?

•  Pitfalls –  Increase initial costs (feed, labour, management, etc.) –  Decreased cash flow if calves sold at early weaning –  Increased health problems with calves?


http://www.animalrangeextension.montana.edu/articles/beef/nutrition/earlyweining.htm

•  Early Weaning Study done in Montana June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Programming

•  The process through which a stimulus or insult establishes a permanent response

•  Developmental programming hypothesis •  Exposure during a critical period in development

may influence later metabolic or physiological functions in adult life –  May be more so in adolescent/young females having 1st

offspring June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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“Farmers, ranchers and animal scientists know more about how nutrition affects fertility in cows, pigs and other commercially important animals than fertility experts know about how it affects reproduction in humans. There are small hints scattered across medical journals, but few systematic studies of this crucial connection in people”


Effects of protein supplementation to the pregnant cow on offspring fertility

80

93

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

100

Preg

nanc

y R

ate,

%

No Supplement Supplement

Martin et al. 2007

Cows grazing dormant native range in NE last trimester Also greater marbling in steers June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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Wallace J M et al. J Physiol 2005;565:19-26

©2005 by The Physiological Society

Wallace et al. 2005 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Ewe lamb overfeeding model (blood flow)



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Ewe lamb overfeeding model (fetal weight)


Doppler Ultrasonography

Kennedy, Vonnahme, Bauer, Swanson, et al. June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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DDGS Supplementation during mid- to late-gestation

•  October 2013 – March 2014 •  27 multiparous beef cows •  Corn stover diet as forage source •  Supplementation with DDGS (0.3% of BW)

•  Doppler ultrasound assessment of uterine and mammary blood flow –  d181, d216, d246 gestation, d44 lactation



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0

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BW, K

g

Day of Gesta0on

Body Weight

CON

TRT

Day by Treatment P < 0.01 Treatment P < 0.01 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

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204 211 218 225 232 239 246 253 260 267

Intake (k

g/d)

Day of Gesta0on

Stover Intake

Con

Trt

by trt*day P = 0.01 June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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0

5

10

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20

25

30

35

40

45

Day 181 Day 246

Blo

od fl

ow, L

/min

Control DDGS

Influence of DDGS supplementation on total uterine BF

Treatment P = 0.02 Day P < 0.01 Trt*Day P = 0.18


Summary •  Young cow nutrition key for setting cow up

for successful “career” •  Nutrition and BCS critical for successful

pregnancies – BW for heifers, BCS for 1st calf heifers

•  Many ways to accomplish successful young cow nutrition program

•  However, can impact overall productivity of the cow – MUCH YET TO LEARN. June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day


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What characteristics make an animal (cow, calf, beef, etc.) more

efficient?

Genetics and environment

(nutrition, etc.) interact in many ways

http://gemssty.com/category/funny/page/2/ June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day

Thanks!


Documents

Reproductive Success in Young Beef Cowswesternbeef.org/pdfs/field_days/2014_summer_field_day/... · 2018. 6. 23. · With help from Tim Petry, NDSU June 24, 2014 WBDC Field Day June