It’s heating up here in the West, and I hope you find the time to slow down and take advantage of the warmer weather and spend time with your family.
As breeding season winds down and bulls are taken off your pastures, you will inevitably have open or late-bred cows that no longer make the cut. After so much expenditure in developing that cow that needs culled, it can be a tough pill to swallow when you send her to the packer. A study performed by researchers at the University of Nebraska, University of Tennessee and at California Polytechnic University found that on a pasture system, it took an average of three to four years for a heifer to recoup her development costs and become profitable, and when in a drylot system, it took on average nine to 10 years.
While this may not be the exact cost of developing heifers on your farm or ranch, it illustrates that heifer development is expensive, and being selective with which heifers we keep on the operation is critical. In mountain states where we run cattle on sloped grazing areas, or areas where they must travel to water, structure becomes critical. When evaluating heifers, look at their feet, specifically foot and claw angle. Claws should be symmetrical and not overlap and should be at an appropriate length to allow the foot to have a 45-degree angle with the ground. It is important to note that foot scoring should be done after 300 days old and performed annually; feet will change as animals mature. Many resources can be found online about foot scoring, or you can reach out to your relevant extension educator.
After feet, legs must also be considered. Evaluate females for correct angles in their back legs, and ensure they are not cow- or sickle-hocked, and that they have enough flex in their hock. Front legs should be straight and not knock-kneed or bow-legged. Structural problems generally only get worse with age, so it is important to cull females who show these structural problems and ensure that bulls you use do not pass along genetics for these problems either.
While there are many other factors that influence heifer selection, take a longer look in your replacement pen to ensure you are keeping the best heifers that can stand up to long grazing seasons in the mountains.
