Mortality rate?
- Thread starter Sir Loin
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backhoeboogie
Well-known member
Sir Loin":3cs5ogrf said:
0 is acceptable. 3.5% is good, and you should feel good about it. But, I strive to lose none. A 10% loss is about a 30% loss in profit.
Breeds absolutely make a difference. In the last two years I lost two calves, both to angus cows. If either cow loses another calf, they are goners.
Birthweights over 80 lbs alarm me. I'd rather sell a 5 weight weaned steer than a would be 6 weight that didn't survive or else he did damage to momma when he/she was born. If momma can't calve regularly again, that is a loss as well.
Iowa237
Active member
Mortality rate from birth to weaning? o% to maybe 1%. Calves like baby humans... the older they get the easier it should be to keep them alive! A little kid can start talking and help tell you what the problem is... as with a growing calf... you should be able to see curtian signs of problems and treat before it becomes a problem. Knock on wood, but I have never lost a calf out in pasture while on the cow. I've lost to many come weaning time! but never out in pasture. So I've changed my weaning program. I'll turn the cows back in with the calves morning and night for about an hour. They suck and then the cows go back out to grass while the calves hit the bunks. After a week... all you do is open the gates and they sort themselves. Less stress, resulting in less sick calves going off of grain! Been doing that for the last two years and havn't lost one calve and my wieghts are a little higher... maybe not worth the 2 extra hours a day in chores. but also helps getting the new cows use to ya!
3.5% for calving is not bad at all. You can b proud of that. Bad to say but I lost 8 out of my 200hd fall herd last year! I usually can keep my fall calvers pretty low. So far My spring calvers are doing excellent with the weather we had in Feb. I've lost two so far out of 147hd! only 174 left to go! sure that number will change... last year I lost 14 calves in the spring and only had 301 hd. calving! Do the math on that and you will see that you beat me! So just keep a watchful eye on those calves at weaning. For the most part they will let you know something is up before its to late!
3.5% for calving is not bad at all. You can b proud of that. Bad to say but I lost 8 out of my 200hd fall herd last year! I usually can keep my fall calvers pretty low. So far My spring calvers are doing excellent with the weather we had in Feb. I've lost two so far out of 147hd! only 174 left to go! sure that number will change... last year I lost 14 calves in the spring and only had 301 hd. calving! Do the math on that and you will see that you beat me! So just keep a watchful eye on those calves at weaning. For the most part they will let you know something is up before its to late!
novaman
Well-known member
In my opinion there really isn't an acceptable rate. Mine varies quite a bit from year to year. This year has been really bad for me. The winter was mild and then we hit a couple cold snaps closer to calving. Caused a few cows to calve premature. This was true for a lot of people in my area and the vet agrees that the weather was the cause so that's uncontrollable. Lately the weather has been into the upper 70's during the day and dropping into the 20's at night. Now I've been treating animals (both cows and calves) for pneumonia. Despite walking through the animals a few times everyday I have lost a couple younger calves from being sick and not being able to bring them back. The weather just doesn't cooperate sometimes. Some years will be good and the mortality rate will be in the low single digits but other years it can be in the upper single digits. I also feel it depends on the number of cattle that an individual runs. A person that runs fewer head can monitor the cattle more closely. However, the guy that runs several hundred head can keep his death rates down despite having a few premies. I feel that you need to take the good with the bad and just be happy that you've got live calves running around. I know a guy that needed to buy feed and it ended up being contaminated and lost their entire calf crop.
mnmtranching
Well-known member
Sounds like a nice place you have there cowboy. 8) 8) :lol:
mnmtranching
Well-known member
Realistically, That 3.5 % is acceptable. As an average. Folks that spend time around cows/calves know lots of things can happen.
Running Arrow Bill
Well-known member
With our Longhorn Herd:
Just our own program...
- 100% Unassisted Calving Record
100% Live Calves that don't get sick or die & Become Adults
Bermudagrass Pasture (as little pasture acreage as we have)
Horse Quality Bermuda and Other High Protein Hays
High Quality Minerals 24/7/365
Pastures and pens free of any debris
Dedicated Vaccination & De-Worming Program
Disease Free and Illness Free Herd
Clean well water: Tanks changed & re-filled +/- Weekly
Just our own program...
TheBullLady
Well-known member
I'd also suggest 1% or under to be acceptable. But I also think you have to take into account some factors. Like.. how old is your herd? Herd health? Do you buy females at the auction barn? These things will definately skew your percentage.
Hey sorry it took me so long to get back to yawl.
And thanks for your responses. They sure made thing of all the things I had forgotten over the years
Now here's my story. I retired a few years back and started out just helping out around my friend's farm just to be near cattle. Well to make a long story short, I now work more hours per day now that I'm retired. This is a large operation by my standards.
Now before I got here if a calf was found sick in the field, it was treated in the field. And if it was determined it was bad sick and probably wouldn't make it, it was removed from the field and given to the 4-H club. If they could save it, it was theirs.
Well that turned out to be to costly and traumatic for the kids when most of them died so they said they didn't want any more.
So the boss said any employee who wants them can have them.
At first there were 5 people on the list, then 4, then 3, then 2, then 1, then none and I came along. They all went the way of the 4-H.
So here is the picture.
For the most of my time I am a fulltime cattle rancher, but the minute a sick calf hits the front seat of my truck, I'm a hobby farmer.
And it was my hobby farmer frame of mind that caused me to reevaluate weather I was doing all I could for these little brown eyed guys as a cattle rancher. I don't know what made me thing I could save them as a hobby farmer rather then a rancher so that is what provoked my question about mortality and had me questioning my own abilities.
Now as a rancher I know that 5% is the rule of thumb and any thing less then that is good but I guess I just needed to hear someone else say it..
But as a hobby farmer I feel it was unacceptable to the point where I was considering becoming "then 0 again", let um die.
You all helped me reevaluate what I can do as a"rancher" to help a sick calf from becoming sick in the first place. It seem the two main problems are water and finding them before the point of no return.
Now that's not to say I don't find some and treat then and things turn out fine. (By the way, as we have mostly all black angus and they all look alike, when I treat one in the field, I spray paint it with orange mark out paint so I can identify it later for follow-up.)
And there's not much I can do about those, as they are leased properties.
So it looks like there will always be bad sick little guys coming.
Now as a hobby farmer over the last two years I have taken in a total of 21 and have saved only 3.
Now it's not the money or time that bothers me and I certainly can live with the depression that comes on, even at my age, when I lose one.
So "calf whisperer" infirmary will remain open.
And I will not give up on trying to fill my daycare center to the brim.
If they don't give up, I will not either.
So my goal now is to be a better primary care giver for all new kids I know will be arriving. Weather they be well, sick, bad sick or should ride the short bus.
Thanks again all.
SL
And thanks for your responses. They sure made thing of all the things I had forgotten over the years
Now here's my story. I retired a few years back and started out just helping out around my friend's farm just to be near cattle. Well to make a long story short, I now work more hours per day now that I'm retired. This is a large operation by my standards.
Now before I got here if a calf was found sick in the field, it was treated in the field. And if it was determined it was bad sick and probably wouldn't make it, it was removed from the field and given to the 4-H club. If they could save it, it was theirs.
Well that turned out to be to costly and traumatic for the kids when most of them died so they said they didn't want any more.
So the boss said any employee who wants them can have them.
At first there were 5 people on the list, then 4, then 3, then 2, then 1, then none and I came along. They all went the way of the 4-H.
So here is the picture.
For the most of my time I am a fulltime cattle rancher, but the minute a sick calf hits the front seat of my truck, I'm a hobby farmer.
And it was my hobby farmer frame of mind that caused me to reevaluate weather I was doing all I could for these little brown eyed guys as a cattle rancher. I don't know what made me thing I could save them as a hobby farmer rather then a rancher so that is what provoked my question about mortality and had me questioning my own abilities.
Now as a rancher I know that 5% is the rule of thumb and any thing less then that is good but I guess I just needed to hear someone else say it..
But as a hobby farmer I feel it was unacceptable to the point where I was considering becoming "then 0 again", let um die.
You all helped me reevaluate what I can do as a"rancher" to help a sick calf from becoming sick in the first place. It seem the two main problems are water and finding them before the point of no return.
Now that's not to say I don't find some and treat then and things turn out fine. (By the way, as we have mostly all black angus and they all look alike, when I treat one in the field, I spray paint it with orange mark out paint so I can identify it later for follow-up.)
And there's not much I can do about those, as they are leased properties.
So it looks like there will always be bad sick little guys coming.
Now as a hobby farmer over the last two years I have taken in a total of 21 and have saved only 3.
Now it's not the money or time that bothers me and I certainly can live with the depression that comes on, even at my age, when I lose one.
So "calf whisperer" infirmary will remain open.
And I will not give up on trying to fill my daycare center to the brim.
If they don't give up, I will not either.
So my goal now is to be a better primary care giver for all new kids I know will be arriving. Weather they be well, sick, bad sick or should ride the short bus.
Thanks again all.
SL
