strategies for forage-based heifer developement
TRANSCRIPT
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Strategies for Forage-Based
Heifer Development
Brad Austin, Joel Yelich,
and Matt Hersom
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What is the goal of any
replacement heifer
development program?
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Introduction
• Most expensive segments of cow-
calf industry
• Increased productivity when a high
% of heifers become pregnant
early in the breeding season
• Heifer management should not be
over looked
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Introduction
• Heifers calving at 2 years have
increased lifetime productivity
• Must be bred by 15 months
– Puberty 1 month prior to breeding
– Heifers bred 1 month before cows
• Heifers must be pubertal by 11 to
13 months of age
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Challenges
• Bos Indicus breeding
– Slower maturing and older at puberty
• Higher nutritional requirements
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Challenges
• Forages
– Lower CP and TDN
• Bahiagrass
– 8.9% CP and 54% TDN
• Fescue
– 15% CP and 61% TDN
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Forage Quality Determines
Performance and
Supplementation
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Forage #1
CP= 6%
TDN= 47%
Forage #2
CP= 9%
TDN= 54%
Forage #3
CP= 12%
TDN= 58%
Gain Supp.
(lb)
CP
%
Supp.
(lb)
CP
%
Supp.
(lb)
CP
%
1.0 lb/d 6 13.8 4 10.3 2 4.5
1.5 lb/d 9 13.4 7 12.3 5 8.0
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Forage Quality
Increasing the quality of
forage available to heifers
will decrease supplement
costs
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Forage Quality
• Proper pasture management
• Winter/summer annuals
• Proper hay field management
• Proper hay harvesting
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Round Bale Silage
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Round Bale Silage
• Allows for timely
harvest of forage
– Forages are stored
at peak nutrient
value
• Cost of machine
and wrap
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Round Bale Silage
• Hay only vs. Hay/RBS
– Hay/RBS had 2 more cuttings
– 55 tons more dry matter
• Hay only- CP= 10.1% TDN= 53.8%
• Hay/RBS- CP= 12.9% TDN= 57.1%
(Hersom et al., 2007)
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Round Bale Silage
• Investment in wrap and wrapper
pays for itself in increased forage
quality
• Wrapping forage will not improve
the quality
Bad Hay is Bad Hay
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Alternative Forages
• Rye, Ryegrass, Oats, and Wheat
• Corn or Sorghum Silage
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Forage Testing
• Know the nutritive value of the forage
• Test all forages
• Cost is minimal
• Costs recovered in
animal performance
and supplement
savings
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Forage Rules
• Always provide heifers the best
forage available
– Increased gains with less supplement
– Decreased supplement costs
– Decreased overall costs
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Energy Supplements
• Usually the limiting nutrient
• Feed high TDN supplements
• Grains can lower rumen pH
– Decrease forage digestibility
• By-products have comparable
TDN but will not decrease
rumen pH
– Cheaper
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Energy Supplements
• Fat supplementation
– Energy dense
– Limit to less than 5% DM intake
• Nutritionally challenged heifers
may benefit reproductively
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Protein Supplements
• Increase intake of low quality
forage
• Increased performance from
natural protein sources vs.
non-protein nitrogen sources
(urea)
• Protein is expensive
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Minerals
• Feed or allow access to a complete
mineral at all times
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Management Programs
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Management
• Goal
– Grow heifers to a point where the
majority of heifers are pubertal and
cycling at the start of the breeding
system
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Body Weight Changes of
the Replacement Heifer
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
1200Uterine Mass, lb
Shrunk BW, lb
Weaning Breeding Calving
65% of
mature
weight
85% of
mature
weight
1200 lb Brangus
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Target Body Weight
• Heifer #1- mature wt.- 1100 lbs
– Target weight @ breeding- 715 lbs
• Heifer #2- mature wt.- 1200 lbs
– Target weight @ breeding- 780 lbs
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Target Body Weight
• Weaned September 1
• Breeding starts March 15 (196 d)
• Both heifers weaned @ 500 lbs
• Target BW @ Breeding
– Heifer #1- 715 lbs (1.10 lb/d)
– Heifer #2- 780 lbs (1.43 lb/d)
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Management
• Choose a program and stick with it
• Ample supply of forage and
supplement
• Alterations in diet can drastically
effect performance
• If possible, weigh a set of heifers
every 2 months to determine ADG
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Management
• Always manage heifers separate
from the cow herd
– Different nutrient requirements
– Body size
• Group heifers by size if possible
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Management
• Constant weight gain
– Most common method
• Heifers supplemented to gain
continuously
• Easy
• Effect of supplementation interval?
– Possibly
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Supplement Interval
• Cooke et al. (2007)
• Ona, FL
• Bos Indicus cross heifers
• Grazing Bahigrass pasture
• 45 d prior to breeding
• Fed equal amounts of low-
starch, high-energy supplement
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Supplement Interval
• ADG greater for daily-fed vs. 3-
times per week
– 1.98 vs. 1.60 lb/d
• Age at puberty was less and
pregnancy rates were higher for
daily-fed heifers
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Supplement Interval
• Alachua, Fl
• Angus and Brangus Heifers
• From after weaning to breeding
– 6 months
• Access to Bermudagrass RBS
• Fed dried distillers grains
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Supplement Interval
• ADG higher than predicted
• Similar for daily-fed and 3-times a
week
– 1.85 and 1.83 lb/d
• Daily-fed heifers had higher
puberty rates at breeding
– 60% vs. 40 %
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Supplement Interval
• However, synchronized pregnancy
rates were higher for 3-time a week
heifers
– 57% vs. 43%
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Supplement Interval
• Reasons for differences
– Different supplements
– Different forages
• RBS had greater CP and TDN than
bahigrass pasture
– Different durations
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Programmed Feeding
• Programmed Feeding
– Slower rate of gain in the beginning
followed by a faster rate of gain
• Compensatory gain
• Increased feed efficiency
• Decreased supplement cost
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Programmed Feeding
• Weekley, 1991
• Bos Indicus cross heifers
• Drylot for 5 months
• 2 groups
– Even- 1.34 lb/d for the trial
– Low-high- 1.17 lb/d for the first 3 months and 1.63 lb/d for the last 2 months
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Programmed Feeding
• Even gain heifers reached puberty
30 d earlier
• However, pregnancy rates were
similar between the two groups
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Programmed Feeding
• Lynch, et al. (1997)
• 2 year study
• Angus X Hereford heifers
• Drylot for 6 months
• 2 groups
– Even- 1.00 lb/d for the trial
– Low-high- 0.25 lb/d for the first 4 months
and 2.0 lb/d for the last 2 months
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Programmed Feeding
• At breeding- frame score, BCS, and body weights the same both years
• Age at puberty
– First year- Similar
– Second year-Delayed in the low-high heifers by 3 weeks
• Similar pregnancy rates both years
• Low-high heifers more efficient
– Consumed 12% and 2.5% less feed
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Programmed Feeding
• Possible management system for
Florida
• No data on grazing/hay systems
• Currently working on this in our
lab
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Summary
• Greatest investment for producers
• Heifers must be pubertal by 11 to
13 months of age
• Know target body weight of heifers
and provide the appropriate level
of nutrition to achieve it
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Forage Quality Determines
Performance and
Supplementation
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Questions?
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Additional
Management Tools
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Deworming
• Deworm heifers
– Reach puberty
2 to 3 weeks
earlier
– Improved
conception
rates (7%)
(Mejia et al, 1999; Purvis and Whittier, 1996; Larson et al, 1992)
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Ionophores
• Antimicrobial compounds fed to improve feed efficiency
– Alter the rumen microflora
• Monensin, lasalocid, laidlomycin
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Ionophores
• Purvis and Whittier (1996)
– Puberty reached 10 d earlier
– 5% increase in conception rates
• Mosely et al. (1997)
– Increased puberty rates by 40%
– Increased conception rates by 7%