Are your Heifers too fat?

[IluvABbeef]

Let me know if this has been discussed on here before, but I couldn't help but do a little reading on this.

Seems like the show heifers are being overfed at an age that they're reaching their puberty and they're reproductive organs are at the stage of final growth and development, which would be at around 8 to 13 months.
And this overfeeding would hamper (or even retard) their effectiveness to becoming replacement heifers or just being able to calve properly thus wasting the time and money of the producer who aimed making a paticular show heifer (who was initially growing at 1.5#/day, now had increased to 2.5#/day on an extra ration of grain just because she's being showed) a future replacement heifer for his/her herd. Not anymore. She's better off at the feedlot, if you can't make her loose that extra weight some way or another.




Now for my "dumbass" question. Does this overweight thing apply to ONLY showcattle, or can it apply to heifers in general, depending on the feedstuff/diet that your giving them?

 

[KNERSIE]

It applies to all heifers.

Under normal circumstances a heifer won't get TOO fat to the extend that it would hamper future milk production and fertility if on grass or good hay only.

 

[IluvABbeef]

Under normal circumstances a heifer won't get TOO fat to the extend that it would hamper future milk production and fertility if on grass or good hay only.

True...but then there are a lot of those that DO feed with grain, and then if they're not careful, they feed up the heifer for looks, not really thinking about the development she's undergoing.

 

[llcupit]

To fat can cause problems but have 10 x-show heifers that are now cows having babies with no problems.

 

[IluvABbeef]

To fat can cause problems but have 10 x-show heifers that are now cows having babies with no problems.

...because they were probably at a good condition to begin with, right? And they were probably not "fat" to begin with, I'm guessing.

 

[jkwilson]

Makes me cringe when a judge tells my kids their registered heifers don't have enough finish on them. Finish?? This isn't a slaughter animal! I always watch beside the tails, and as soon as fat starts showing there, I have them add a little more oats to the ration.

 

[donnaIL]

i hope that show judges can tell a fat animal from a fed animal...maybe not with the trimming and etc..goes on..with showing. We have a fat cow that we fed as a heifer cz we never thought shed breed, we were ai ing then. we did get a calf from the ai and the bulls love her...no problem with her even tho she is fat.

I always look at it like, fat ladies have babies and so do skinny ones. Sometimes the skinny ones have to have c-sections, sometimes the well endowed cannot breast feed., sometimes vice a versa... the fat animal is an easy keeper i figure..the others don't get fat, same feed, same chances...its genetics...

JMO, donna

 

[TheBullLady]

Another thing to consider about show heifers is they generally get very little excersize, compared to a replacement heifer that is probably running in a pasture.