Determining Calving Season

[anewcomer]

Looking at some recent posts here made me wonder. How do you select the time of year for your calving season?

 

[dun]

Our spring flush usually gets started in late April to early May and we like the calves to be old enough to start eating the higher quality grasses that the flush brings. So we calve starting around the beginning of March that way the majority of the calves are ready to go.

 

[cow pollinater]

Where are you from and what is your pasture made of? Like Dun said, most of us try to have a calf that's a month or two old when the grass really gets cranking. That way The calf is old enough to eat the grass himself and the mother gets enough nutrition to crank out the milk without losing to much weight herself.
And :welcome:

 

[ohiosteve]

Welcome anewcomer. I am also a newcomer to calving outdoors as i grew up around dairy cows calving year-round indoors. I am sure the ideal time is different for different locations, for me in Northern Ohio I think late spring early summer is best, around late April/ early May. I want the least amount of stress on the cow (Mud, cold weather, snow, etc) and I want her to be well fed with the new flush of grass to meet the high nutritional needs of nursing her calf. There is nothing better than calving in lush grass in my opinion. Plus, I'm not pre-occupied with feeding hay. Good luck!

 

[Kscattle]

I start calving on jan 1 just because I want to AI for a month before I turn out the bull and I haul cows to grass on may 1. The bull breeds for feb calves and like Dun said I like them to be strong when grass is there to eat. If I had pastures close enough I would try and calve a little later but the cold weather doesn't seem to bother newborns that much. I am considering going to nov/dec calving so I can get more cows AI bred through the winter