I couldn't help but wonder? I'm sure there is a prefectly good explanation for this and by no means do I think I have any clue how to raise cattle in the extreme north. (North Dakota, Montana, Canada, etc.) Most people around here calve from fall to spring with temperatures somewhere between 30 and 60 degrees for the most part. I hear the northerners talking about "saving ears" and checking cows in 0 to -20 temp. during calving season. My question is, why do ya'll not calve in the late spring when I'm guessing temperatures are 30- 60. Not saying our system is better, I just feel bad for ya'll.
northern calving temp?
- Thread starter triple'S'
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George
Well-known member
This is when i have time to calve them,i got field work to do come spring,so when it's warm i don't have time to calve cows,i'm working in the field.Another reason,calving when it is cold,there isn't scours.I have a very good barn,so the cold doesn't really affect me.Except for shovelling a little extra manure.If it is really cold,like last week with the windchill it went down to minus 50 celcius a few nights.I will leave the cow and calf in the barn a little longer,providing i don't need the room in the barn for other pairs.I will agree it is a lot more work,because you have to watch the cows so close,when it is cold out.I am one of those lucky people,that don't need a lot of sleep though.So i really don't mind.
Susie David
Well-known member
Well said...not to mention the bugs, no insects in winter. We calve in March, just us and it's a little warmer.
DMc
DMc
CattleAnnie
Well-known member
Well, I can't answer for all the Northerners, but in our case it all boils down to the grazing season and climate.
Grazing Season
Honey and I both have allotments in our local community pasture. We pay for our grazing from turnout which is the weekend closest to June 1, up to when we bring them out...usually the third weekend in October.
To prevent predator problems, one of the regulations that the grazing association members drew up is that no cows are turned out into pasture if there is a chance of them calving on the range.
So, basically, you want to have all your calves on the ground at least a couple weeks before turnout, so that all the calves are old enough to trail out and not wander off from their dams.
Now in our particular pasture, all the bulls are turned out onto grass at the same time as the cows. Due to the fact that the areas are only subdivided into large general areas (termed 'sections',but not as in the land measurement) there will be usually three or more different members cattle herds in each 'section'.
This means that even if you wanted to break a regulation and not turn your bulls out hoping for later calving dates, you're outta luck, as the other fellows bulls will be working on whichever cattle are handy. So basically, like it or lump it, with a June 1 exposure date to bulls, you're going to start calving second week in March. And if you haven't turned your bulls out with your cows before you turnout into the pasture, there's no guarantee that you'll be getting calves from your own bulls.
(All bulls do have to have proper breeding tests and registration papers, and must be dehorned - mind you all cows have to be dehorned as well - but that's another story for another day.)
Climate
Alrighty, so our climate is kind of chilly in the winter months, so if you're calving in the early part of the year, you know you're going to have to be vigilant about your checks in order to avoid having calfsicles. So if you start calving in February, in a perfect world one would hope to be pretty much done by the end of March/beginning of April.
Why not calve in April some might ask?
We know that keeping calves warm in Feb and Mar calving is the priority, but keeping them healthy in April and May can be a real challenge when faced with newborns.
I live in an area that has a humdinger of a spring...we call it "Break-up". What's that? Well, basically, it's when the frost comes out of the ground and the whole world turns into one big giant gumbo-mud-pie.
So now your barnyards become mireyards. Trying to feed hay sees you bog down the tractor three times from the hay yard to the cattle. Just keeping a pair of gumboots from being sucked off your feet in the goop is a big enough challenge, much less trying to find some clean areas to put your expecting cows and new calves. And then of course, all the warm weather and moisture combine to make a lovely cocktail called "Scour Soup", and once that little wonder starts rolling it can be nigh near impossible to keep up with doctoring sick calves.
It usually takes to about mid May here till you can almost not count on any more snowstorms, so by then things are generally getting firmer underfoot.
Now in a perfect world, Honey and I would own oodles of acres, and we'd calve 'em all on the grass starting in the middle of May. In the meanwhile, we just sort of make do.
Hope this at least sheds a glimmer of light on why some of us are busy with calving cows in February. ;-)
Take care.
Grazing Season
Honey and I both have allotments in our local community pasture. We pay for our grazing from turnout which is the weekend closest to June 1, up to when we bring them out...usually the third weekend in October.
To prevent predator problems, one of the regulations that the grazing association members drew up is that no cows are turned out into pasture if there is a chance of them calving on the range.
So, basically, you want to have all your calves on the ground at least a couple weeks before turnout, so that all the calves are old enough to trail out and not wander off from their dams.
Now in our particular pasture, all the bulls are turned out onto grass at the same time as the cows. Due to the fact that the areas are only subdivided into large general areas (termed 'sections',but not as in the land measurement) there will be usually three or more different members cattle herds in each 'section'.
This means that even if you wanted to break a regulation and not turn your bulls out hoping for later calving dates, you're outta luck, as the other fellows bulls will be working on whichever cattle are handy. So basically, like it or lump it, with a June 1 exposure date to bulls, you're going to start calving second week in March. And if you haven't turned your bulls out with your cows before you turnout into the pasture, there's no guarantee that you'll be getting calves from your own bulls.
(All bulls do have to have proper breeding tests and registration papers, and must be dehorned - mind you all cows have to be dehorned as well - but that's another story for another day.)
Climate
Alrighty, so our climate is kind of chilly in the winter months, so if you're calving in the early part of the year, you know you're going to have to be vigilant about your checks in order to avoid having calfsicles. So if you start calving in February, in a perfect world one would hope to be pretty much done by the end of March/beginning of April.
Why not calve in April some might ask?
We know that keeping calves warm in Feb and Mar calving is the priority, but keeping them healthy in April and May can be a real challenge when faced with newborns.
I live in an area that has a humdinger of a spring...we call it "Break-up". What's that? Well, basically, it's when the frost comes out of the ground and the whole world turns into one big giant gumbo-mud-pie.
So now your barnyards become mireyards. Trying to feed hay sees you bog down the tractor three times from the hay yard to the cattle. Just keeping a pair of gumboots from being sucked off your feet in the goop is a big enough challenge, much less trying to find some clean areas to put your expecting cows and new calves. And then of course, all the warm weather and moisture combine to make a lovely cocktail called "Scour Soup", and once that little wonder starts rolling it can be nigh near impossible to keep up with doctoring sick calves.
It usually takes to about mid May here till you can almost not count on any more snowstorms, so by then things are generally getting firmer underfoot.
Now in a perfect world, Honey and I would own oodles of acres, and we'd calve 'em all on the grass starting in the middle of May. In the meanwhile, we just sort of make do.
Hope this at least sheds a glimmer of light on why some of us are busy with calving cows in February. ;-)
Take care.
Cabo
Well-known member
Thanks for the info. my barn area is just about unwalkable now therefore we try to calve about March when things firm up a bit.
Our reasons are a lot like the others. We own a dirt construction business that builds terraces, waterways, and the like. It has a very small timeframe to get all the work done before crops get planted so we have to run hard at it. We need to have calving done before this so we can concentrate more on the dirt work. We have also split our cows into 2 calving seasons. We can get away with owning one bull instead of two this way. It also gives a second chance if one would come up open. Only have to wait 6 months for the next attempt at breeding instead of a year. We also can't move our calving to after dirt work because that's when my folks get the bull. We have half interest in the bull. All of this made the decision for us to calve in Jan./Feb.
badroute
Well-known member
I calve my older cows out starting the first of April. I got tired of fighting mother nature. To be truthful it really hasnt hurt my weaning weights since I only kick the bulls out for 45 days so basically the last calf is born May 15 therefore the calves are pretty darn uniform. As for the heifers I am calving them right now. I really dont know why when the weather was 45 below here last weekend. I farm also but I dont worry about the cows calving, I check them right away in the morning and at dusk.
Dap
Well-known member
Thanks CattleAnnie
I'll re-read that post every time I get tired of dealing with a little mud or cold.
About your community pasture. How many acres and how many cattle are out there? What % of your calves are coming out of your bulls? Seems like you and the 2 or 3 others in your "section" would have to be able to got along pretty well for that to work.
I'll re-read that post every time I get tired of dealing with a little mud or cold.
About your community pasture. How many acres and how many cattle are out there? What % of your calves are coming out of your bulls? Seems like you and the 2 or 3 others in your "section" would have to be able to got along pretty well for that to work.
DiamondSCattleCo
Well-known member
Good post CattleAnnie. About the only thing I can add to that is Feb/March calves seem to do a little better than May calves when they get kicked out on pasture. I tried both ways, and my weaning weights on the March calves was significantly higher (and not just by the two months extra growth). The cows also came in in a little better shape because the calves were eating more roughage.
Rod
Rod
