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| I once had a banker tell me you could be a total screw up type of guy running cows, and they figured you could still come home with 70% of the calves in the the fall. But he didn't tell me if that figured in weaning death loss either. I think this about right on the 70% thing. From calving till you come off fall ranges. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't stand for those kind of numbers from a hired man or anybody else. This is what he said they figured out if they were loaning you money on those cattle.
The worst case I've seen on our ranch is coming home with 80% live calves in the fall. Now let me explain that statement, that is coming thru a tough winter, cattle snow bound on winter ranges, having to be rescued, trailed out of there, then taken to feed grounds to be fed. Loses from weak cows, calves, weather, etc. losses from having to trail these cattle 20-70 miles in big bunches. Then being brought home, weaning process till shipping in November. That is the worst case I've seen in our area. In other words, that is a total wreck of a year! I've seen it happen twice in 35+ years.
For that reason I will not contract more than 80% of my known calf crop ( branding numbers ) in the spring. Sometimes it is just the will of God, that you will lose some. You can work your hardest, live right with them, and still lose them. This spring about four weeks a go I had a heifer calve, she got calf up and going, he had sucked that morning. A little snow shower came thru, the heifer proceeded to try and shield calf from wind. She ended up laying on the calf, and killing him.
She wanted a calf bad, and she had a great udder lots of milk that week. So I locked her up, put a Holstein calf on her. All I had to do was put the calf in with her, she took right too it. I then watched her for a week or more. Then kicked her out to a bigger pasture 160 acres, two weeks later, she started to dry up on her milk. She starved him to death. There was plenty of feed, tall wheat grass, crested wheat grass, cheat grass, short sage, plus I was even supplementing them alfalfa hay as well as protein tubs! every time I ever saw her, she had calf with her, and he would suck her! It wasn't for a lack of feed, nor was she mean. Some things you just can't explain.
The neighboring ranch has been losing a bunch of calves to lupine poisoning from last summer. Some of his cows got into some Lupine last summer, I know he has lost 12-15 calves, born dead, or crooked legs, backs, etc. He has had to pull a lot of them. This is on 3-4 year old cows. It's a sad deal, you never know what is going to hit you. All you can do is try to feed your cows right, breed them to the right bulls, supplement them, vaccinate them and the calves, and hope for the best. I've only had two years where I can honestly say I've had 100 % calf crop from calving till shipping date. | |
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% OF CALF LOSS EXPECTED
