Turning Heifers Out

[inyati13]

I am getting 4 heifers ready to breed in April or May. One may not be ready by then. But my question is, "if I turn them out into the herd and then put the bull in the bull pen until breeding season, does the cows riding the heifers pose a risk to be avoided?" I have a couple cows that will go 1800 to 1900 lbs. If they ride 800 to 900 lb heifers when they are bullin, wouldn't that be a problem to avoid.

 

[Bigfoot]

They should be fine.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Until grazing season, I keep open yearlings seperated, 2 & 3 yr olds seperate from mature cows. When you are feeding hay, the younger animals would never eat enough, even if you had enough feeder space.
But, on the riding, I also try to avoid having the young stock with the mature cows. Sure, you might never have a problem, but they can mush them pretty bad. Most breeders are soooo afraid of putting a mature bull on heifers for that reason, but it's OK to put a 1900# cow? :shock: "Most" bulls don't put their full weight on them & are fast. Cows want to stay up there forever.
I sure wouldn't recommend it. Like I said, may never have a problem, but most farms don't have that large a spread of weight.

 

[inyati13]

Until grazing season, I keep open yearlings seperated, 2 & 3 yr olds seperate from mature cows. When you are feeding hay, the younger animals would never eat enough, even if you had enough feeder space.
But, on the riding, I also try to avoid having the young stock with the mature cows. Sure, you might never have a problem, but they can mush them pretty bad. Most breeders are soooo afraid of putting a mature bull on heifers for that reason, but it's OK to put a 1900# cow? :shock: "Most" bulls don't put their full weight on them & are fast. Cows want to stay up there forever.
I sure wouldn't recommend it. Like I said, may never have a problem, but most farms don't have that large a spread of weight.

I also thought the feeding might be a concern. The four together get a fair share and I give them extra mixed feed to keep them growing to their genetic potential. OK, I will keep them separate for a while.