Calves calves

[backhoeboogie]

5 new babies on the ground. 2 in labor when I got here. Too early for fall calving. 4 backed way up on me. 3 heifers n 2 bulls.

One heifer was 31 months and finally Calved last night. The only reason she's still here is for a nurse cow prospect. Looks like she's gonna get some wheels as a 3 in 1 come spring. She's half dairy out of another nurse cow. Plenty of milk for one but not enough for much more than that.

Need to get some tags applied and I'm in shorts. Gonna head home and come back.

 

[calfbuyer]

Backhoe, I'm interested in your nurse cow operation as i also keep some nurse cows. From what i gather from other posts, we kind of do similar things.
I have just kind of started doing good with mine and figured some things out over the past 4 years or so that i have been doing it.
I'm just interested in knowing all i can and always wanting to learn especially from experience.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Pretty much everything I know has been posted. There's an old widow lady who has been at it for years. She's the guru.

I have a crate for the cows. Calves nurse for three days and they have the cow's scent. Then it is easy.

Buy beef splits from the sale barn if you can. Let 'em get hungry then crowd them towards the cow in the crate. Week old calves are already healthy enough.

I'll post a pick of the crate again if that helps.

 

[calfbuyer]

I have a barn with 4 stantions, I buy week old to 150lb splits at the sale and do the same, i have tried buying dairy bull calves and never had any luck with that (3 out of 5 die) then once you get em raised you aint got much.

I pretty much have all that figured out, the biggest thing i am working on is trying to find a good affordable ration for my cows.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Mine get two full coffee cans of sweet feed when they are in the crate. (3 days).

About a coffee can of 20 percent cubes twice a day when they are on pasture nursing calves.

When it is as hot as it is now they go onto an all grain dairy feed I buy down in Glen Rose.

In winter they are on coastal hay and about twice the ration of cubes.

Hold the total cost to less than a dollar a day per calf and you'll profit nicely. 4 calves on the cow gives you a margin. Wean one when their intake gets up. You should be able to hay and feed for less than a dollar per day per calf. (hay in winter). That's roughly $100 per calf.

It sounds as tho you already have things figured out.

 

[chippie]

backhoeboogie,
you may want to rethink about shipping your 31 month old heifer. It is not uncommon for a dairy cow not to produce a lot for the first calf. We bought a first calf cow from a dairy because she was not producing enough. A couple of gallons a day. When she had her second calf, her production increased to 28 lbs per milking (close to 7 gallons per day.)
Also, it may take a week or two before she comes into full production.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Chippie I'm just going by past experience from that line. 3 full sisters are in the herd. 2 are good. All are 1/2 brangus. 1 has more udder than the dam.

 

[regolith]

backhoeboogie,
you may want to rethink about shipping your 31 month old heifer. It is not uncommon for a dairy cow not to produce a lot for the first calf. We bought a first calf cow from a dairy because she was not producing enough. A couple of gallons a day. When she had her second calf, her production increased to 28 lbs per milking (close to 7 gallons per day.)
Also, it may take a week or two before she comes into full production.

I've seen some slow starters go on to produce right in the top 5 - 10% of the herd but if I were to put a number on it, it's probably half of them. The other half get culled for doing it a second time.
Twelve hours is way too early to judge a heifer though... some of my *cows* don't really get going in the first couple of days, lucky to have enough to feed their own calf. Others give enough in their first milking to feed ten calves. It's not a good indicator of how much they'll be producing a week or month ahead.

 

[calfbuyer]

My cows will calve In October and November. That's when the feeding begins, I have plenty of Klien/Johnson grass round bales that should test 10 to 12% protein. I keep hay out free choice all winter. I have a grinder/mixer and in the past have made my own feed. I would mix 1500lbs corn, 300lbs cotton seed meal and about 200lbs hay(for roughage). Last year, that was costing me about 320 a ton. I don't think i can do it for that this year and that was pretty high even last year. I was able to buy some big 3X3X8 squares of alfalfa that a local hay jockey had left over from last year. I was thinking of limit feeding the alfalfa hay and letting them have free choice grass hay, I also plant wheat in the field where i turn them out.

Given this scenario what would you do for feed?

 

[Massey135]

Call a local dairyman and ask him what the tdn% is on the ration he's feeding his fresh cows. Guarantee 6lbs of 20% cubes and hay isn't even coming close. plenty of protein but not high enough energy.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Another bull and heifer yesterday. Another heifer the day before. All out of the neighbor's angus. Terminal calves. Nickels in the pocket come spring.

 

[TexasBred]

My cows will calve In October and November. That's when the feeding begins, I have plenty of Klien/Johnson grass round bales that should test 10 to 12% protein. I keep hay out free choice all winter. I have a grinder/mixer and in the past have made my own feed. I would mix 1500lbs corn, 300lbs cotton seed meal and about 200lbs hay(for roughage). Last year, that was costing me about 320 a ton. I don't think i can do it for that this year and that was pretty high even last year. I was able to buy some big 3X3X8 squares of alfalfa that a local hay jockey had left over from last year. I was thinking of limit feeding the alfalfa hay and letting them have free choice grass hay, I also plant wheat in the field where i turn them out.

Given this scenario what would you do for feed?

That will work. It's not like your asking them to give 90 lbs. of milk per day and go to the barn 2-3 times a day. Energy requirements are higher now in Central Texas than they'll be for the next 6 months. Let them all hit the wheat fields a couple of hours each day then go to the hay. Wheat won't contain a lot of dry matter but what they do consume may well be over 25% crude protein on a dry matter basis.

 

[calfbuyer]

Thanks TB, I was hoping you would reply, you seem to be pretty sharp on nutrition judging from many of your posts. What would you do for the energy requirement? Or do you think i am good there.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Another bull and heifer yesterday. Another heifer the day before. All out of the neighbor's angus. Terminal calves. Nickels in the pocket come spring.

Yet another bull and heifer calf yesterday. The heifer is out of my new Char bull. First calf out of that bull. Red calf. That cow must have been bred the day the bull went in the pasture. Thought of holding him back about a month but that angus bull kept coming in.

The Char calf is small. I am guessing 50 lbs. Good sign. The char bull is out of Wyoming Wind lineage.

 

[TexasBred]

Thanks TB, I was hoping you would reply, you seem to be pretty sharp on nutrition judging from many of your posts. What would you do for the energy requirement? Or do you think i am good there.

A good shade tree for now. She'll be fine energy wise come mid September.

 

[Massey135]

How many lbs of milk could 4 calves handle per day?

 

[calfbuyer]

My bred nurse cows are turned out on grass now and are fat and happy. My question is: after they calve in Sept/Oct, if I limit feed alfalfa and have them on free choice hay, and grazing wheat/oats (if it rains), do I also need some source of energy for them such as Corn, Milo, Mix 30? Or is that what you meant by "she'll be good come mid-September"?

 

[Massey135]

I'd watch the calves. If they're milking her dry, she needs more. No point in struttin her bag if they can't take it though.

 

[TexasBred]

My bred nurse cows are turned out on grass now and are fat and happy. My question is: after they calve in Sept/Oct, if I limit feed alfalfa and have them on free choice hay, and grazing wheat/oats (if it rains), do I also need some source of energy for them such as Corn, Milo, Mix 30? Or is that what you meant by "she'll be good come mid-September"?

Just meant she'll be good until cooler weather comes and then she'll be even better. (Like the rest of us). ;-) As for the cattle after they calve...just watch their body condition. If you have no winter pasture and the hay is low quality you may want to supplement with some cubes but if the alfalfa is good quality it along wtih the hay should furnish everything she needs except a bag of good loose mineral.

 

[calfbuyer]

Thanks TB. I thought i would be good with what i had, just wanted to hear it from someone else.