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<blockquote data-quote="JRGidaho`" data-source="post: 1697549" data-attributes="member: 13410"><p>Fenceline weaning is the least stressful and generally keeps calves gaining. You need to have adequate pasture on the side where the cows will be and very good pasture on the side where the calves will be. We originally did this with 5-strand electrified hi-tensile fence but found we did equally well with 3-strand. Just make sure the fence is packing a punch. </p><p></p><p>We generally would have the cows and calves directly across from each other for 3 days and then we would start moving them away from each other. Usually, we could have calves grazing by themselves behind single wire fence in 7-10 days after weaning day.</p><p></p><p>We weaned 3800 calves this way over the course of 18 years. Our weaning period was 21 days during which the calves gained an average of 1.5 lbs/day. Our poorest year was less than .5 lbs/day and our best years were little over 2 lbs/day. We never fed any kind of supplemental feed. All they had was stockpiled cool-season grass-legume pasture.</p><p>In those 18 years of fenceline weaning, we had a total of two calves doctored during the 21-day period and a total of two calves that died. One was a chronic that only weighed 225 lbs at weaning and had been repeatedly doctored from birth to weaning. The other one doctored was respiratory. The second calf that died during the weaning process got his head caught in a tree crotch and hung himself. I guess he really, really missed his mom...</p><p></p><p>The only reason calves lose weight at weaning is because of how it is commonly done.</p><p>If you leave the in calves an environment they are used being in and eating food they are used to with the cows within sniffing distance, they will do fine.</p><p></p><p>30 extra pounds for essentially no extra cost certainly makes weaning worthwhile in my view.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="JRGidaho`, post: 1697549, member: 13410"] Fenceline weaning is the least stressful and generally keeps calves gaining. You need to have adequate pasture on the side where the cows will be and very good pasture on the side where the calves will be. We originally did this with 5-strand electrified hi-tensile fence but found we did equally well with 3-strand. Just make sure the fence is packing a punch. We generally would have the cows and calves directly across from each other for 3 days and then we would start moving them away from each other. Usually, we could have calves grazing by themselves behind single wire fence in 7-10 days after weaning day. We weaned 3800 calves this way over the course of 18 years. Our weaning period was 21 days during which the calves gained an average of 1.5 lbs/day. Our poorest year was less than .5 lbs/day and our best years were little over 2 lbs/day. We never fed any kind of supplemental feed. All they had was stockpiled cool-season grass-legume pasture. In those 18 years of fenceline weaning, we had a total of two calves doctored during the 21-day period and a total of two calves that died. One was a chronic that only weighed 225 lbs at weaning and had been repeatedly doctored from birth to weaning. The other one doctored was respiratory. The second calf that died during the weaning process got his head caught in a tree crotch and hung himself. I guess he really, really missed his mom... The only reason calves lose weight at weaning is because of how it is commonly done. If you leave the in calves an environment they are used being in and eating food they are used to with the cows within sniffing distance, they will do fine. 30 extra pounds for essentially no extra cost certainly makes weaning worthwhile in my view. [/QUOTE]
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