spring vs fall
- Thread starter widowlane
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widowlane":3s110os6 said:
I think the biggest benefit for fall calving is that you're not selling the calves in October. Historically there is a glut of calves delivered to the sale barns in October and prices are down. But there's also a cost to feeding lactating cows through the winter and we've always had lighter weaning weights on fall born calves. On the other hand, if you calve in March (around here) the cows have good forage to get back into condition to breed and you might have higher weaning weights. It's an individual choice.
Friend of mine runs 2 herds, one spring and one fall. His fall born calves are lighter when he sells but they bring more. He's pencil whipped tyhe numbers and came to the conclusion that he pretty much makes the same profity on both herds, the only savings being that he needs half as many bulls.
jerry27150
Well-known member
also cows with calves sucking on them in the winter take a lot more hay & need better hay
Baldie Maker
Well-known member
We've recently been talking about this in my college animal science class and my professor says and I agree that fall if you can do seems to have more advantages. If you calf in the fall it's cooler so you can get better breed back, usually not as muddy so you don't have to deal with that, usually less scours as grass is not full of sugar instead of water, no more endophyte in fescue (i'm in ky so that's a major forage) and prices are usually at their highest in spring. If you are able to stockpile forages and strech your days grazing that can greatly reduce the amount of hay and byproducts you have to feed your lactating cows.
so i think you can tell I'm now a fan of fall calving.. :tiphat:
so i think you can tell I'm now a fan of fall calving.. :tiphat:
widowlane":35uctjl9 said:
We always spring calved because the cold weather diminished the spread of disease. It also eliminated the effects of the heat, reduced the amount of feed required for a cow/calf pair going into winter, and worked for our circumstances. We never ran a bull year round, there was a specific breeding season, a specific calving season, and any animal that came up open at the end of that breeding season was culled.
bird dog
Well-known member
I run two herds also with one bunch in the spring and one bunch in the fall. I prefer the fall calvers and I think they do better, but this year with the mud problem and cool weather has been an exception. I move my bull around as needed and it gives him some fresh cows every six months to keep him interested instead of going over the fence. I do like my fall calvers to calve in late August or early September to avoid the warm days cool nights that come in October in Central Texas. This also gives them about two good months before it gets cold.
Bird Dog
Bird Dog
Stocker Steve
Well-known member
widowlane":305ilqvk said:
Neither - I prefer "summer". I can buy discounted "out of season" heifers/cows, calve them out on grass, and over winter the smaller calves. Once you calve on grass it is pretty hard to justify another approach.
Nebraska ran some numbers and came up with what they called modified summer calving. Apparently that is June for them. Their point was taking calves through the winter and going to grass during the following spring flush is usually more profitable than calving early or late. Harlon has run some similar scenarios with similiar results.
The other thing that comes into play is capital needed for stocking. I am a better grass farmer than an investment banker - - so carrying over some 6 wt. calves reduces the number I need to buy in for the following spring. The down side is less uniform sizes/smaller groups when it comes time to sell.
