Getting Cows Bred Early: A Calving Window That Pays

A cow that does not have a calf this year is a cost with no income against it. That is the whole case for fertility. You can have the best genetics in the county, but if the cows do not breed, you are feeding pets. The way to see where you stand is your calving distribution: how many calved in the first 21 days, how many in the first 42, and how many dragged in after that.

You will hear stories of herds that get nearly every cow calved in six weeks. I could not pin a verified six-week figure on one, so I will not quote a number to you. What I can do is show you what those herds do.

The math behind six weeks

A cow cycles about every 21 days. Give her a 60-day breeding season and an open cow gets around three shots at it. Cows that settle on the first or second cycle calve in the first six weeks of the calving season. The ones that miss the second cycle fall into the third. A ragged calving season means cows cycled late, or settled late, or did not settle.

What it pays

An early calf is an older calf at weaning, and an older calf is a heavier calf. A short season means the whole herd is worked in one stretch: calving watch, shots, branding, weaning. Your labor is easier and your calves are more even, and even calves bring better bids. A short season also culls cows that cannot keep pace, which makes the herd better every year.

One breeder profile on the American Angus Association's site describes a herd with a conception rate of 97 percent or better in a 60-day breeding season in a commercial setting, and a goal of cows that calve every 365 days for 12 to 15 years. Note that the page is sponsored content and the figures are the breeders' own claim, not independently checked (Angus Beef Bulletin). I mention it because it states the goal clearly, not because I can vouch for the number.

What gets you there

Put condition on them

A cow that calves thin and loses weight on lactation will not cycle on time. The hard time is between calving and breeding. Hold condition going in and have feed in front of her coming out. See hay math to make sure you have the winter covered.

Develop heifers right

First-calf heifers are still growing and are slow to rebreed. Breed them a couple of weeks ahead of the cows so they get extra recovery time. Get them to target weight without making them fat.

Check every bull

One bad bull can leave a pasture full of open cows. Get a breeding soundness exam every year before turnout. Watch bull-to-cow ratios and keep bulls in shape. See bull care all year for the details.

Protect the herd

Reproductive disease, parasites and short minerals wreck conception. Build a health program with your vet and stick to it.

Cull without mercy

Fertility is not highly heritable, so progress is slow. The way to speed it up is to keep the cows that calve early and breed back every year, and sell the late and the open. Do not keep an open cow because she is gentle or has a nice udder.

Set a season and hold it

None of this works if the bulls stay out year-round. A defined breeding season is what makes the cows get busy. Sixty to seventy-five days is a common starting point, set so calving lines up with the best grass. If calves hit the ground when the grass is peaking, your cows have what they need to breed back.

Where the calving window usually leaks

If your calving season runs long, look for the leak in this order. First, condition: were the cows lean at calving or at turnout? Second, bulls: did every bull pass a soundness exam, and were there enough of them for the pasture size? Third, season: did the bulls stay in too long, which hides the problem instead of fixing it? Fourth, health: did you have abortions, a bad parasite load or short minerals? Most herds find one of these four on the first pass. Fix it, then measure again next year. Do not change five things at once, or you will never know what worked.

Measure it

Keep a calving book. Track the share that calved in the first 21 days, the first 42 and the full season, plus preg-check results. Write down open and late cows by number. If most cows calve in the first 42 days, you are close. If the distribution has a long tail, work backwards: condition, bulls, health. The extension folks at the University of Nebraska beef program have good material on this.

The payoff for the buyer too

Even, early calves sell well, and packers working with programs such as Certified Angus Beef depend on a steady stream of them. For more, see farm.fm's page on improving reproductive success in Angus breeding, and the agriculture directory can steer you to a vet or supplier.

Goals vary by region and management, so check them with your vet or county agent. This site is independent and not affiliated with the American Angus Association or Certified Angus Beef.