Page 19 - MWC 10-6-2022s

Which Cows Are Worth Keeping? The Midwest Cattleman · October 6, 2022 · P19

Select Cows That Best Fit Your Operation condition must be evaluated. year doesn't necessarily mean
Brad White, K-State DVM, says she's out of line with the envi-
By Paige Carlson it’s not about the gross received, ronment, as long as she can get
In a year like this, taking percentage. In the case where a it's about the net benefit. back into body condition on the
time to evaluate your herd and large percentage of cows come Feed is often a limiting re- normal feeding regimen.
its present genetics may be up open, it’s important to con- source, so producers need to While there are many things
valuable to set your operation sider the breeding season and consider whether the operation to consider when deciding
up for success in the coming strategy to see if any adjust- is better off having fewer, larg- which cows to keep and which
years. ments should be made. er calves out of large-framed to cull, evaluating these factors
For a spring calving cow, cows; or could the operation may be helpful in setting your
with a weaning-aged calf at her Net Benefit benefit from having more, po- operation up for success in the
side, now’s a great time to eval- Cows producing a large calf tentially smaller-framed calves years to come.
uate the performance of that that also require an excessive out of smaller-framed cows? Drovers
cow for your operation. Experts amount of feed to keep in body Also, a thin cow this time of
at the Beef Cattle Institute at
Kansas State University share
their insights for consideration.

Body Condition Score
From a nutritional stand-
point, body condition score can
be a good place to start. How-
ever, it’s important to analyze
why “thin cows” are thin. Are
they producing more milk than
the forage resources can sup-
port? Therefore, will they take
additional or supplemental LOT 6 LOT 2
feed resources to get back to
breeding condition? WIA Ridge Top 163 P ET, BD: 3-21-21 WIA G4 Dotson 109P, BD: 1-23-21
In a drought year, these fac- PVF Ridge 7142 out of Creek Cut Greta 576 P ET a M6 Grid WDZ Phenom 839 x WC Doubletree 2009 x M6 Grid Maker 104.
tors may be emphasized. How- Maker 104 daughter out of RLL Goin’ Places 1329P ET. BW: 83 lbs., AWW: 720 lbs., AYW: 1,253 lbs.
ever, as droughts may occur BW: 70 lbs., AWW: 741 lbs., AYW: 1,333 lbs. EPDs: BW: -1.7, WW: 55, YW: 97, Milk: 27, MARB: 0.23, TSI: 242.74
more than once in a cow’s life- EPDs: BW: -2.6, WW: 65, YW: 115, Milk: 23, REA: 0.92, TSI: 259.75
time, now might be a good time
to genetically select for cows
that “do better” during tougher Wild Indian Acres
environment years.

Frame Size
Frame size may also be a key
factor to assess when selecting 2022 F ALL BULL S ALE
the best cows for your opera- SATURDAY // OCTOBER 29 // 1:00 PM
tion and the environment.
Is there a cow that is notice- Interstate Regional Stockyards, Cuba, Missouri
ably larger than all your other
cows? More frame may simply Mike & Sara Kisner Greg Hubert
mean more “groceries” are re- Connor & Cannon P.O. Box 100
5805 PERKINS RD
Oakley, KS 67748
quired to keep that cow in good DE SOTO, MO 63020 785-672-7449 (cellular)
(636) 236-0306 cell
body condition. wildindianacres@yahoo.com
Easy-Keeping Cows Shannon Carpenter: 937-418-2275
As Bob Larson, K-State
DVM, says, “I think you can ask Selling 36 Charolais Bulls, all 18 months old
it both as a population, a whole-
herd question or as individuals.
I would start at the percentage
of cows that breed up. So, cows
that breed up and wean a calf,
if I didn't have to spend a lot of
resources supplementing them,
they fit my environment; that's
the definition of they fit my en-
vironment.”
He also notes, cows must
bring up a decent quality calf,
not simply survive and bring LOT 21 LOT 7
up a “donkey calf.” The cow WIA Ridge Line 166 P ET, BD: 3-22-21
WIA Nick 149P, BD: 4-1-21
must also have sufficient body WCR Notorious 6170 P x Oakdale Duke 9003 PVF Ridge 7142 out of Creek Cut Greta 576 P ET a M6 Grid
condition and rebreed readily. BW: 72 lbs., AWW: 859 lbs., AYW: 1,557 lbs. Maker 104 daughter out of RLL Goin’ Places 1329P ET.
It’s also important to consid- EPDs: BW: -2.0, WW: 77, YW: 139, Milk: 31, MARB: 0.15, TSI: 279.18 BW: 71 lbs., AWW: 782 lbs., AYW: 1,393 lbs.
er the whole herd pregnancy EPDs: BW: -2.6, WW: 65, YW: 115, Milk: 23, REA: 0.92, TSI: 259.75