Stress-free weaning: how to actually boost calf performance

shorter and the weather turns cooler, the upcoming fall processing period takes on a significant role in your operations. This is the time when most producers, including you, will be running their cows through the chutes and weaning the spring-born calves from their mothers. It’s a crucial phase that sets the stage for the future of your herd.

Much like during the spring, this can be a hectic time for producers. With all of the doctoring and separation that is going on, it can take a lot of work to keep track of what is going on. However, there is a better time to slouch when it comes to your calf crop.

What you do here can determine the productivity of your fall calves. Calving will be stressful for them, so whatever you can do to alleviate as much of that as possible will be helpful. Here are five steps that you can follow to get your calves going in the right direction.

How do you wean your calves?

Weaning is a pivotal stage in a calf’s life, with a significant impact on its growth and overall performance. The stress of separation from their mothers and adaptation to a new diet can be mitigated or exacerbated by the weaning strategy chosen. Understanding the various weaning strategies and their implications is crucial for producers to make informed decisions for their operations.

There are several strategies available to make the weaning process easier for calves. Each strategy, whether it’s fenceline weaning or gradual weaning, offers potential benefits. By choosing a strategy that minimizes stress, you can improve the health and growth of your calves during this transition. This should give you confidence in the positive impact of your decisions.

Choosing a weaning strategy that minimizes stress can enhance the health and growth of your calves during this transition. Calves that experience less stress during weaning are less likely to get sick and are more likely to maintain a healthy appetite, leading to better weight gain and performance. Careful planning and execution of your weaning strategy can make a substantial difference in the success of your herd.

Types of weaning strategies

Total separation is where you remove the calf from the dam without any physical contact. Typically, you will move the calves to an entirely new environment, such as being sold or to a drylot. A pro of this strategy is that it will allow the producer to sell the calf right off of the cow. It will also decrease the need to either reserve any forages or buy any feed for the calves. The problem with this strategy is that it is the highest stress for the calf, often leading to many health problems.

Fenceline weaning is when the cow and calf have nose-to-nose contact through a fence for a period of time. This contact will allow for decreased stress because the calf will remain in a familiar environment. A problem with this is that a unique fenceline must be built to contain calves and cows. Also, a producer must devise a grazing management plan to accommodate the animals.

Two-stage weaning is where a device is used to prevent the calf from suckling. In the first stage, a nose ring is fitted on the calf for 4-14 days. After that period, the ring is removed, and the calf and cow are separated. This weaning method will be less stressful than abrupt separation since the calf will stay with the dam. The calves are allowed a period of adaptation before they are removed. A massive problem with this strategy is the cost of labor involved.

Whatever strategy you use, it’s essential to consider all the pros and cons. Also, look at what type of facilities and the amount of labor you can provide. This comprehensive approach will empower you to make informed decisions that best suit your operation. Oregon State has a post that goes into a little more detail about what each strategy requires.

Vaccinating your calves

The best time to vaccinate your calves is when you are running them through the chutes in the fall. Vaccinating at this time will help them to build up any immunity they might need. At this time, they are at risk for respiratory disease and some clostridial diseases. Because of their high amount of stress, we need to protect their immune system as much as possible.

Of course, if we are being technical, the BEST time to vaccinate your calves is 3-4 weeks before weaning. That would allow the vaccines to fully kick in by the time they are dealing with the stresses of weaning. All of the problems they face at that time can lead to increased exposure to harmful pathogens.

Here are three vaccines that you are most likely to encounter in your area, but always consult your veterinarian:

• A modified live 5-way vaccine. This vaccine will cover things like Bovine Viral Diarrhea (BVD types I and II), Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR), Bovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus (BRSV), and Parainfluenza3 virus PI3).
• A Pasteurella vaccine. These types are a very common bacteria that can infect the lungs and cause severe pneumonia. You can get them separate from the modified live or included.
• A 7- or 8-way blackleg vaccine, depending on which part of the country you are in. A consultation with your vet will tell you which one is best for you to go with.

If you will be banding your bull calves at this time, you should consider giving a tetanus toxoid, too. Ideally, you would provide two rounds of this, with the second being at banding time. If you can only give 1, that can work out for you too.

Implanting

Implanting is one of those that tends to be a love/hate type of thing with producers. Some swear by it and see it as valuable, too. Some see it as almost inhumane and unsafe for animals entering the food production cycle. Whichever side you fall into, do your homework and choose the best option.

With that being out of the way, using implants can be valuable to you as they improve efficiency and profitability. They can increase an animal’s growth by up to 20% and improve feed efficiency by up to 10%. Again, I urge you to run the numbers yourself to see if the investment is worth your return.

When going with implanting, there are some things you can do to improve the outcome:

• Make sure you put the implant in the right place. The implant should go in the backside of the ear in the middle third.
• You should follow low-stress cattle handling while implanting. Low-stress cattle handling will reduce overcrowding and the possibility of manure contamination of the head and ears.
• Make sanitation and cleanliness the 1st priority while doing this. Having it as a priority will reduce the risk of infection and ear abscesses.
• Have a bucket nearby with a stiff brush to gently clean the ear using a disinfectant.

Deworming your calves

Since you are running them through the chutes at this time, now would be the time to deworm them. There are a few different options that you can go with: Oral, injectable, and pour-on.

In order to prevent parasite resistance from showing up, you will need to rotate the type of dewormer you use. Rotating dewormers does not mean the brand but rather the drug class, such as using Benzimidazoles after using a Macrocyclic Lactone. I have included a picture that will give you some ideas of what to look for.

The timing of when you use the dewormer is just as important. Ideally, you want to use it right after the first killing frost of the year. This period will mean the parasites enter hibernation, and your cattle enter the pasture with a clean slate. But that is only sometimes an option, so during fall, processing will work, too. In a previous post, “Controlling internal parasites for fun and profit,” I go into a little more detail about deworming programs.

You will want to do a fecal egg count reduction test to know if your deworming program is working. Your veterinarian will be able to help you with this test.

Supplementation

Proper nutrition is vital in weight gain and immune response in your calves. Usually, a higher stress level means an increased need for energy, protein, and minerals. In the event that intake decreases, it will be necessary to provide a feed source that is highly palatable and digestible.

Three usual sources of supplements for calves:

• A high starch feedstuff, such as corn and barley, provides highly digestible energy. In the absence of rumen adaptation, it may result in bloat and acidosis in calves.
• Forages such as grass hays and alfalfa can provide adequate protein levels. Still, they can be marginal in the quantity of digestible energy. Since calves usually prefer forages over grain, palatability and intake are generally not an issue.
• A third feedstuff source is non-forage fiber sources. These include soybean hulls, distillers’ grains, or beet pulp. They are typically rich in digestible energy and contain good quantities of digestible protein,