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feeding cattle minerals
Cattleman’s Corner, Columns, Cow-Calf

Providing proper mineral mix the first step to meet cattle nutrient needs

It's one thing to put it out there, but another to make sure they eat it

By
Many commercial cattle minerals can be fed on a free-choice basis to gestating beef cows until calving. But even the best of these products fail if cows don’t eat enough, or engorge themselves. Mineral intake problems must be corrected quickly so cows can either maintain or build a mineral (and vitamin) status which contributes to […] Read more
It is important to crunch the numbers to determine if backgrounding pays. This may not be the year.
Beef Cattle, Cattleman’s Corner, Columns

Economics of backgrounding didn’t pencil out

With high feed costs, this example of adding 300 pounds over winter was a losing proposition

By
Years ago, I took one of my first beef marketing courses from a professor who wore a clean white lab coat to class. There was nothing wrong with that, but his previous class was a red meat-cutting class. One of the first thing he taught us is how to determine background-feeding profit. If its expenses […] Read more
Make sure cows have a good body condition score and aim for a 60-day breeding and calving season.
Cattleman’s Corner, Cow-Calf

A short 60-day breeding season leads to profit

Produces a more uniform batch of calves and higher weaning weights

By
The calving season is well underway on the Prairies, with some cow-calf operations calving with snow on the ground, while others plan to calve on pasture. Regardless of the starting date, the length of the calving season is directly related to the length of the previous breeding season. Research shows moving toward a desirable 60-day […] Read more
Improved conception rates tell the story
Cattleman’s Corner, Cow-Calf

Improved conception rates tell the story

Good-quality mineral mix got this herd back on track

By
The four principal trace elements essential to successful beef cow reproduction, are copper, zinc, manganese and selenium. All too often, they are either deficient in forage or bound by compounds also found in forage, which makes them biologically unavailable to cattle. I instruct beef producers to plan the best mineral-(and vitamin-) feeding program to their […] Read more
Females still need high level of proper nutrition after calving.
Cattleman’s Corner, Cow-Calf

Proper nutrition needed before and after calving

An example of a good feeding plan based on common sense and economy

By
Most people have done a good job in feeding their gestating cows this winter in order to maintain good body condition for calving. Yet hard work doesn’t stop once the last calf is born. Rather, good nutrition should continue for months afterward, so fresh cows can produce lots of milk for their growing calves and […] Read more
Suggestions for balanced winter rations for beef cattle
Beef Cattle, Cattleman’s Corner

Suggestions for balanced winter rations for beef cattle

Use available feedstuffs to their best advantage

By
Good-quality forage for beef cows is in short supply this winter and the price of grain is still relatively expensive across Western Canada. The good news is well-balanced rations still can be put together for late-gestation beef cows to prepare them for a good calving season. This is a good reminder I received recently, when […] Read more
Salt block feeder for cattle
Cattleman’s Corner, Livestock

Feeding salt to beef cattle is easy

From either blocks or in loose form, a beef animal now needs about 50 grams per day


By
What could be easier than throwing a salt block off the back of a truck for each group of grazing cattle in a cow herd? Or filling a part of a mineral compartment with loose salt? Then coming back in a week or so and putting out salt in one of these ways, again? It […] Read more
Provide first-calf heifers with nutrition and TLC
Cattleman’s Corner, Cow-Calf, Livestock

Provide first-calf heifers with nutrition and TLC

But first-calf heifer rations need not be fancy

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I was talking to a retired beef producer who owned a purebred Charolais herd back in the 1970s. He reminisced on how winter-hardy the breed was compared to more traditional breeds of the time and how the cows calve out huge white calves. Eventually, he got rid of these cows and replaced them with easier-calving […] Read more
Consider weaning calves early this fall
Cattleman’s Corner, Cow-Calf, Livestock

Consider weaning calves early this fall

Creep feeding gives calves a chance to grow, takes pressure off cows

By
Recently, I was at drought ground zero in southern Saskatchewan and passed a group of about 50 blonde and whiteface cows and calves grazing dried-out pasture. The thin condition of the cows caught my attention and their calves looked gaunt and on the small side. My immediate reaction was this cow-calf herd was a good […] Read more
cattle in a field
Beef Cattle, Cattleman’s Corner

Late spring calving can pack a profit

There are management issues, but also several pluses by waiting ’til mid-May calving

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I remember not too long ago, cow-calf operators in Western Canada calved most cows by mid-March. This century-old tradition allowed cows to nurse their calves and put heavy weaning-weight over the course of the summer and then calves were sold to feedlots by the end of October. This doesn’t seem to be the sole case […] Read more

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