Herd Health

How can a veterinarian best help a beef producer prepare for a successful calving season? Is it by prescribing a secret recipe of shots that will prevent all retained placentas, navel infections, scours, political ads, bad weather and taxes? If only that would work.

Cow-calf producers always strive to set their heifers up for success, especially when it comes to first calvings. A low-stress calving and a live calf are some of best ways to turn a heifer into a reliable cow.

A newborn calf instinctively wants to suckle. The cow’s first feeding is colostrum, and it is vital to his survival. Calves that obtain adequate colostrum soon after birth stay healthier than calves that are slow to suckle or don’t get enough.

Calving season is an exciting and nerve-wracking time of year. While we hope each cow will calve on their own, with a live, healthy calf, any beef producer knows that often life goes awry and we find ourselves with a prolonged or difficult calving, known as dystocia.

Calving season is a highly anticipated event for cow-calf producers. They’ve spent the last year making genetic selections and management decisions in hopes for a healthy and superior calf crop.

Strong work procedures and routines are vitally important when calving time arrives at the farm or ranch. To help assist with the birthing process, most cow-calf producers are equipped with a calving pen.