Moving calving season

[BEJ]

What is the biggest jump you've made with your calving season and how succesfull was it…my current calving season starts May 1 and goes for 60 days have calved for 2 years now in May and am not as big of a fan as I thought I would be so with that I plan on going back to March 15…I am currently running 60 cows that all ultrasounded to calve within 60 days with only 5 on the tail end already plan on them not rebreeding so will end up culling them…how would you go about moving them back without having to cull a considerable amount I don't plan on doing it all in one year but would like to be back in March within 3 yrs or sooner…I currently have 4 2yr old home raised bulls and 1 3 yr old bull with that bull power if I lutalysed them would I be able to move them ahead 3-4 weeks the first year or just shoot for 2 weeks every year and hope for better rebreads

 

[farmerjan]

My cows will back up a month if their nutrition is good and they start coming in heat 45 days after calving... put the bulls in 30-45 days sooner than you normally would. Shoot, my longhorn backed up from August to March in 3 years... bull did not get taken out when he should so she calved and the bull was still in there and she backed up over 60 days the first year... I am not a big fan of Lute unless they are a problem breeder to start with (silent heats etc...) or you want to change things... like you do... But to only want to back them up 60 days, I would make sure they are in good flesh, and nutrition levels are good, put the bulls in sooner and most should come in heat and breed back....I would be more inclined to use Lute if I was AI breeding to make sure I caught the heats... some will be quiet or silent heats early on... but the bull will catch them....
That's just me....

 

[kenny thomas]

Unless they are already cycling i don't think lute helps.

 

[Brute 23]

Make your calving season 90 days and start 30 days earlier over the next two season. Don't cut yourself short and not breed cows. Sell them off the back end as breds rather than open.

 

[simme]

Lutalyse will produce a heat (in 2-5 days) ONLY if the cows are already cycling and only if they have not cycled in the last 10 days or so (they need a CL formed in order for lutalyse to have an effect). If they are already cycling, no reason to use lutalyse for your goals.
In theory, CIDR's might help, but good nutrition, good minerals, and good bulls are the better plan.

 

[Dsth]

I AI everything so my system may work for bull breeding. I backed my herd of 30 back from March to November in about 3 years. you will need to monitor which cows are cycling early. heat detector patches will help you do that. cows that are 45 days post calving and not cycling yet can get A Shot of Gnrh, a CIDR installed for 7 days to start cycling, and a shot of PG when CIDR removed. You would probably want to limit number of cows in heat at the same time with bull breeding vs. AI which works best grouping cows together.

 

[BEJ]

I AI everything so my system may work for bull breeding. I backed my herd of 30 back from March to November in about 3 years. you will need to monitor which cows are cycling early. heat detector patches will help you do that. cows that are 45 days post calving and not cycling yet can get A Shot of Gnrh, a CIDR installed for 7 days to start cycling, and a shot of PG when CIDR removed. You would probably want to limit number of cows in heat at the same time with bull breeding vs. AI which works best grouping cows together.

I'm open to syncing everything and doing one round of timed AI then turning the bulls out it doesn't matter to me who the sire is just want to get as many bred as quick as possible

 

[Dsth]

I'm open to syncing everything and doing one round of timed AI then turning the bulls out it doesn't matter to me who the sire is just want to get as many bred as quick as possible

Do you already have an AI tech that you have contacted about moving your calving date earlier? I have much better luck breeding on standing heats rather than TAI, but I do my own breeding. other protocols may work better for TAI. Your vet may also be a great source of info. good luck, I'm sure there will be some challenges along the way.

 

[simme]

I'm open to syncing everything and doing one round of timed AI then turning the bulls out it doesn't matter to me who the sire is just want to get as many bred as quick as possible

Availability of various and some great genetics, recognized pedigree - AI bull usually has advantage. Those are reasons to use AI.

Getting cows bred as quick as possible - Natural service bull has advantage. Most natural service bulls are better heat detectors than the owner, have better timing, on the job around the clock, and deposit more sperm. That's the reason most people that AI also use a cleanup bull.

 

[StrojanHerefords]

I AI everything so my system may work for bull breeding. I backed my herd of 30 back from March to November in about 3 years. you will need to monitor which cows are cycling early. heat detector patches will help you do that. cows that are 45 days post calving and not cycling yet can get A Shot of Gnrh, a CIDR installed for 7 days to start cycling, and a shot of PG when CIDR removed. You would probably want to limit number of cows in heat at the same time with bull breeding vs. AI which works best grouping cows together.

I did that protocol with some heifers a couple of years ago except I didn't give the shot of lute when I pulled the CIDRs. Worked pretty well to move up the heats without having them all come in at the same time.

 

[kenny thomas]

Availability of various and some great genetics, recognized pedigree - AI bull usually has advantage. Those are reasons to use AI.

Getting cows bred as quick as possible - Natural service bull has advantage. Most natural service bulls are better heat detectors than the owner, have better timing, on the job around the clock, and deposit more sperm. That's the reason most people that AI also use a cleanup bull.

I feel a bull makes them cycle sooner.

 

[simme]

I feel a bull makes them cycle sooner.

Yes, putting the bull in early is thought to stimulate earlier cycling. From the below article:

"Bull exposure to cows after calving.
This practice has, in some circumstances been shown to decrease the time interval that it takes for a cow to return to estrus when compared to herd mates that were not exposed to a bull. The use of a bull that has had an epididymectomy can be used to induce estrus, but keep cows from conceiving until the start of the breeding season."

How to get late calving cows to breed earlier

Producer Question from 2015 Q: How can I get late calving cows to breed earlier so they calve earlier in the calving season next year? (May 1, 2015) A: There are a number of things that producers can do that will encourage cows to return to estrus more quickly after calving and thus be more...

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