Tips to Prepare for a Successful Calving Season

You’ve waited approximately nine months to see the results of your breeding decisions and cattle nutrition, and calving day is right around the corner. Kevin Glaubius, Director of Nutrition and Regulatory Support at BioZyme^® Inc., offers three tips to make sure you are prepared for the approaching calving season.

1. Prepare Your Calving Kit

There is nothing like getting the first calf on the ground, then running around trying to find the tubing bag, or worse yet, not being able to find the one calving chain if assistance is needed. Take time now to check your inventory and see what has gone missing or needs to be replaced.

BioZyme has prepared an online checklist of important supplies and equipment that you will need for assisting with deliveries, getting the calf up and going and properly treating calves as well as information on where to purchase these items. View the checklist.

2. Protect Cows and Calves from the Elements

With the variety of weather extremes that producers experience across the country, its best to be prepared for all situations. Be sure you have taken an inventory of available bedding options. First-calf heifers aren’t always the best about finding the ideal spot to calf in. Ensuring that you have plenty of dry areas in your pens with protection from the wind can make the difference in calf survival, especially once winter arrives and wind chills dip.

3. Get That Calf Up and Going

Once the calf is on the ground you want to ensure that it has the best start to life possible. Consult with your veterinarian about health protocols and your nutritionist about a feeding program.

Glaubius offers some tips to manage stress and feed adequately during the winter months:

• Feed higher quality hay (with more energy) and expect cows to increase intake during cold stress. Without a forage analysis, you cannot be exactly sure of your hay’s energy level, which can lead to inadequate nutrition. BioZyme offers complimentary hay testing and nutrition analysis to its customers and potential customers through its nationwide dealer network and Area Sales Managers. For more information, visit http://vitaferm.com/hay-report/.
• Feed a supplement that contains BioZyme’s prebiotic Amaferm^® to improve digestibility of feed and help ensure that they are extracting all of the energy possible. Research shows that feeding a supplement that contains Amaferm has similar benefits to feeding at least 1lb. of grain.
• Consider moving cows to locations with protection from the wind and wet weather. The energy requirement of beef cattle increases about 3% for each degree that the wind chill is below 59 degrees F. This increases even further in wet conditions and prior to fully developing a winter hair coat. This is a major reason programs fail during an abnormally severe winter.
• Match animal nutrition requirements to the quality of your forage. Heifers and thin cows require a more energy-dense diet, compared to older or fleshy cows. Sorting animals into groups based on body condition allows you to feed the available forage more effectively. Start by targeting your higher quality, more immature forages toward heifers and thin cows. These earlier harvested forages will be the most energy dense as energy declines considerably with maturity. The older and higher body condition cows can then be fed slightly more mature forage. This allows you to maximize the use of your forage supply while better targeting the nutritional needs of your entire herd.
• A good guideline during an extended cold or wet winter period is to feed 3-6 lbs. of energy supplements like soyhulls, corn gluten feed, or corn to avoid weight loss during these stressful periods.

Glaubius also recommends having a supply of colostrum on-hand for emergencies. Two other products that should be readily available for your newborns include Vita Charge^® Gel and Vita Charge Neonatal. Both products provide a jump-start to the digestive system to protect calves during stress and help calves recover quickly while supporting immunity and performance. Vita Charge Gel also provides the perfect boost for mom if the delivery was stressful.

Calving time can be a lot less stressful if you plan ahead and go into it prepared. Have the tools you need to help your calves get a jump-start should they have any challenges, and be prepared to help your cows recover too. This is just the beginning of your next adventure of seeing your genetics grow in your herd, and with some nutritional advantages along the way, you’ll be sure to see performance that pays.