Weight loss at weaning

[Sd1030]

This is probably a dumb question and im sure theres a lot of factors that go into play, but if you have 6 mos old calves that are already using on feed and you fence line wean how much if any weight loss can be expected? Ive got some im doing this to and just curious as to how bad the stress of weaning affects gains. Since ive seperated they still graze and are still using the feeder but im sure the stress impacts them some. Whats yalls experiences?

 

[bird dog]

My guess 50 lbs. When its hot, maybe a little more. I have weighed cattle straight off the mom and then again in 30 days feeding similar to you. Mine are started on creep and continued on creep but are not given all they can eat, just enough to get them going good. They have all they want during the fenceline weaning phase but just off and on after that. Free choice of decent hay and good pasture at all times.

It takes about 20 to 30 days for the herd average to get back to where they were. After about 30 days they start doing a lot better. The industry wants calves weaned 45 days for a reason.

 

[Sd1030]

I was thinking 50-100lbs was prolly what id be looking at if id weighed first then weighed again in 30 days. I was planning on waiting til mid august to wean but had something come up so i went ahead and started now.

 

[kenny thomas]

I don't think as much as that. First if they are eating in a feeder already that will help a lot. Second if you are fence line weaning again it helps. Yes they loose some weight but I would be very surprised if they are not heavier after the first month than the day you wean.
Now, there is a huge difference with market bought calves that you might bring in to the farm than yours that are already there..

 

[Sd1030]

Good points kt, just kinda got me to wandering how they do. I hear people say theyll lose at weaning and stuff and i understand its stressful but if they are already on feed and still using the feeder and grazing its made me wander just how bad it could be. Like i mentioned earlier i was thinking the 50-100lb range but wasnt sure so i thought id get feedback from yall.

 

[dun]

Ours if the lose any at all typically don;t lose more than a couple of pounds the first week. Some may lose a little, some will just stay about the same, others will gain from the start.

 

[skyhightree1]

keep good quality feed in front of them and green grass they might lose some but will get it back quick if the genetics are right.

 

[RiverHills]

keep good quality feed in front of them and green grass they might lose some but will get it back quick if the genetics are right.

Ours if the lose any at all typically don;t lose more than a couple of pounds the first week. Some may lose a little, some will just stay about the same, others will gain from the start.

That's what we have experienced also. We weigh at weaning and 30days post weaning.

 

[talltimber]

I don't have scales yet, and admittedly, sometimes my eye is not too good, but I notice a little gaunting up while they are bawling, for about four days, and maybe up to a week gaunted a little bit. After that they start coming back. I dry lot fence line wean though, so mine come off momma and grass for the week or so. I figure the hay is gaunting them maybe as much as the rest of it. I doubt that they will lose 50 lbs

 

[Lucky_P]

Bird Dog is pretty much right on the mark - 50 lbs melts off 'em pretty doggone quick; even more if they're doing a lot of walking/bawling for mama.
Last group that we weighed at weaning, then a week later... and they were in a quarter-acre barnlot with free-choice hay/water and about 3#DDG fed twice daily, with dams right across the electric fence from them... were, on average, 50 lbs lighter a week later - some even more than that ... took about 2-3 weeks for them to get back to their original weight.

 

[Lucky_P]

I've seen studies done, looking at 'conventionally weaned' calves - meaning they just separate calf and dam and either haul one or the other away, out of sight. Those calves may walk 10 miles(or more) a day, bawling - bet they lose more than 50#.
I was surprised - and imagine many other folks would be as well - at the weight they lose, even with fenceline weaning, when there's minimal bawling/walking, and they've got free-choice access to good feed.

Anymore, I'm going to wean before I sell... but instead of trying to sell them on sale day the next week... I'm gonna hold them at least a month, to regain the weight they lost at weaning.

 

[gizmom]

Our calves lose a little the first couple of weeks but by 30 days they are gaining and will be heavier than when weaned. How much gain greatly depends on the individual some calves are more attached to mamma than others so the separation anxiety causes more weight loss. We fence line wean and feed in a feed pen not free choice it usually takes a week and a half to two weeks to get all the calves coming to the pen for feed. The majority will come within the first three to four days it is the mamma's boys and girls that take a bit longer.

 

[dun]

Our calves lose a little the first couple of weeks but by 30 days they are gaining and will be heavier than when weaned. How much gain greatly depends on the individual some calves are more attached to mamma than others so the separation anxiety causes more weight loss. We fence line wean and feed in a feed pen not free choice it usually takes a week and a half to two weeks to get all the calves coming to the pen for feed. The majority will come within the first three to four days it is the mamma's boys and girls that take a bit longer.

Exactly the same for us.

 

[cfpinz]

Second if you are fence line weaning again it helps. Yes they loose some weight but I would be very surprised if they are not heavier after the first month than the day you wean.

I get a chuckle every time someone mentions fenceline weaning being less stressful. The ones we fenceline wean here at the house are still bawling to mom 5 days later whenever she gets near the fence. The ones that are hauled in from 20 miles away are done walking/talking after 2 days.

It's amusing how different groups of cows have their own "cultures".

 

[aaroninga]

The biggest & oldest heifer I bought last year in March whined and cried for mama for a week at 7-8 months old.
They were separated when I backed the trailer up to load her.
She didn't seem to lose any weight but I fed them a couple weeks till grass started growing.
The other 5 were separated for a week, being fed and never heard a peep.

 

[Dave]

Back when I was running pairs I weaned in a relatively small set of pens, 5,000 square feet for 50 calves. Three water troughs in the area. Feed troughs for grain set up perpendicular to the direction that calves milled. Which ever way they moved they ran into a water trough or a feed trough. I fed a weaning ration for the first 14 days that was especially high in protein and fat. It also smelled of anise and they loved it. Day one they bawled. Day two you couldn't hear yourself think. By day three there was an occasional bawl but when I fed all you could hear was the smacking of lips. Plenty of water and nutrition goes a long ways to helping reduce the shrink during weaning.

 

[cow pollinater]

I've never worried about shrink from weaning. Yes they will weigh less but the buyers will pay more for calves that are in the right condition, meaning not milk fat.

 

[cfpinz]

Back when I was running pairs I weaned in a relatively small set of pens, 5,000 square feet for 50 calves. Three water troughs in the area. Feed troughs for grain set up perpendicular to the direction that calves milled. Which ever way they moved they ran into a water trough or a feed trough. I fed a weaning ration for the first 14 days that was especially high in protein and fat. It also smelled of anise and they loved it. Day one they bawled. Day two you couldn't hear yourself think. By day three there was an occasional bawl but when I fed all you could hear was the smacking of lips. Plenty of water and nutrition goes a long ways to helping reduce the shrink during weaning.

Never thought of disrupting their walking path with feeders/waterers. That's a good idea, thanks.

 

[dun]

Second if you are fence line weaning again it helps. Yes they loose some weight but I would be very surprised if they are not heavier after the first month than the day you wean.

I get a chuckle every time someone mentions fenceline weaning being less stressful. The ones we fenceline wean here at the house are still bawling to mom 5 days later whenever she gets near the fence. The ones that are hauled in from 20 miles away are done walking/talking after 2 days.

It's amusing how different groups of cows have their own "cultures".

The whole idea is to move the mommas away a couple of days after weaning. The fenceline deal just decreases the orgianl stress. After that the calves are ready to get on with their lives as are the cows. You'll be about a week too early to see when you come by this fall.

 

[bird dog]

As I have said before, a good set of scales will open your eyes to how much the weight of a cow or calf will lose or gain in a short period of time. Of course the buyers will pay more for the calves "in the right kind of condition". They know that the 5 to 10% a calf loses at the sale barn can quickly be recovered.

Remember the old buyer's trick. Buy the calves with the lowest sale tag number which indicates the order they came to the barn. The low numbers probably came the day before and have shrunk the most. Keep them healthy and they will gain back a quick 10%.
I don't sell many calves at the sale barn for various reasons but the ones I do are long weaned and I try to take them where they will sell shortly after unloading. I would rather sell last and have less shrink.