Gross margin now in the coming years, as the U.S. rebuilds its herd inventory, may be a little smaller compared to the past couple of years. Remaining profitable may require taking advantage of every opportunity to capture additional value from calves.

Shane Gadberry

Whether analyzing weaned calf value or fat cattle destined for slaughter, the main factor that affects the total income from that calf is weight, and the easiest way to manage for less calf weight is to not feed the cow herd properly through winter.

Cows are often fed harvested and stored forages four to six months out of the year, a time that coincides with greater nutritional needs as well.

Feeding cows to calve in adequate body condition requires understanding the nutrient content of harvested forages. In the fall of 2015, 45 farms participated in a hay-test program for winter feed planning in Arkansas. Among those farms, 202 samples were analyzed for an average combination of 10 percent protein and 55 percent total digestible nutrients.

Finding deficiencies

The interesting thing is: There were only three samples that resembled average quality. The remaining 199 samples deviated from average for protein, total digestible nutrients or both. Nearly one-third of the samples were inadequate in total digestible nutrients, but not protein, for late-gestation and lactating cows, and 44 percent of the samples were inadequate in both protein and energy for lactating cows.

Reproductive efficiency is associated with the body condition of cows, and maintaining proper body condition requires testing the nutritive value of the hay to be offered to avoid consequences attributed to false assumptions about hay quality.

In addition to increasing the amount of pounds weaned per cow exposed by feeding the cow herd properly to maintain high pregnancy and weaning rates, additional management can add value and weight to calves for market.

The first place to start is with castration. A common perception is that bull calves weigh heavier at weaning than steer calves.

In two recent studies examining the response to castration at birth or at 90 days old, weaning weight of intact bulls did not differ from non-implanted steers; however, in both instances, castration at weaning resulted in reduced post-weaning weight gain.

In receiving studies, freshly castrated males were two to three times more likely to get sick than purchased steers. Castration in early life appears to have a lesser impact on health and weight gain compared to castration at normal weaning age or later.

Historically, bull calves in Arkansas have been discounted $5 to $8 per hundredweight. Some might argue they are still paying too much for bull calves.

Applying growth-promoting technologies such as steroidal implants and medicated feed additives (excluding tetracyclines) can also increase weight at a low cost. Improvement in weight gain from these technologies is not restricted to cattle on a high plane of nutrition.

A summary of 11 studies with growing calves grazing toxic fescue pasture revealed implanted calves gained 0.22 pounds per day more than non-implanted cattle. Among seven studies conducted on toxic fescue, medicated feed additives provided an additional 0.13 pounds per day weight gain.

Field supplementation

Weight can also be added to grazing calves through protein and energy supplementation. Choice of supplement varies according to forage species (nutritive value) and available forage. A recently invited speaker to a conference in Arkansas made a bold statement that everyone should be creep feeding.

The part the speaker forgot to mention is, “when it’s cost-effective.” When it comes to adding weight with creep feed, the response is highly dependent on pasture conditions.

In a study with spring-born calves on mid- to late-summer bermudagrass pasture during a hot, dry summer in south Arkansas, creep feed conversion was very good – around 4 pounds creep feed per pound of additional weight gain.

Using the same creep formulation with fall-born calves in south Arkansas during spring on abundant, high-nutritive value ryegrass pasture, creep feed conversion was terrible – around 15 pounds creep feed per pound of additional weight gain.

Another consideration for improving nutrition to increase market weight of calves is through post-weaning retention and grazing with supplemental feeding.

There is value to be gained from low-stress weaning, retained ownership and marketing preconditioned cattle. During past sale barn studies (2010 most recent) in Arkansas, preconditioned calves at regular weekly auction markets were reported selling $5 to $7 per hundredweight above the average selling price.

Unfortunately, costly supplemental feeding decisions can cancel out the added income from preconditioning weight gain and value-added premiums. Calves grazing improved warm-season grasses have responded well to a low-level supplementation rate of byproduct feeds such as dried distillers grains.

Summarizing five Arkansas studies with calves grazing improved mixed warm-season grass pasture, supplementation at 0.36 percent bodyweight daily or 0.72 percent bodyweight every other day improved weight gain by 0.46 pounds per day with a supplemental feed conversion of 5 pounds supplement per pound of additional weight gain.

Supplementation at a higher rate, 0.6 percent bodyweight, has not shown to be as cost-effective as the 0.36 percent bodyweight supplementation rate.

For cattle grazing toxic fescue, the situation is different. Summarizing 33 studies conducted throughout the southeastern U.S., supplementing calves grazing toxic fescue with highly digestible byproduct feeds at 0.5 percent to 1 percent of bodyweight increased weight gain 0.5 to 0.9 pounds per day, respectively, above non-supplemented cattle with a feed conversion of 5 to 6 pounds feed per pound of additional weight gain.

In summary, the total value of a calf is influenced most by weight, and the first weight to consider is that attributed to pregnancy and weaning rate. The potential total pounds weaned per cow exposed can succumb to choosing the wrong type or amount of supplement when feeding harvested forages throughout winter.

The total potential value from calf weight is lost by the perception that bull calves weigh more than steer calves at weaning. Additional weight can be captured by calves through the use of growth-promoting technologies, even for cattle grazing toxic fescue.

Lastly, supplemental feeding can add weight cost-effectively when it is implemented from an understanding of supplemental feed conversion ratio.