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| Fall born replacement heifers have been weaned and at a very
critical growing period. It is imperative that they reach the target
weight of 65% of their mature weight by the start of the breeding season.
Warm season pastures such as native grass or bermudagrass will be declining
in forage quality in the hot dry days of August and September. Also
they are reaching plant maturity which accelerates the decline in protein
content. There the young heifers must receive supplemental protein
to continue to grow at the necessary pace of 1.3 to 1.5 pounds per head
per day going into their first breeding season. An economical solution
would be to give these heifers 1.5 to 2 pounds of the protein supplement
called Oklahoma Gold. This is an OSU-developed protein supplement
scheme that consists of a high protein (38% - 45%) pellet that contains
the label-recommended dosage of one of the ionophores. Ionophores
are feed additives (monensin or lasalocid) that improve feed utilization,
inhibit coccidiosis, and enhance the onset of puberty in growing heifers.
Research from Texas A&M in the 1970's indicated that heifers receiving
an ionophore reached puberty about 2 weeks earlier that counterparts that
did not receive an ionophore. Therefore inclusion of the ionophore
in the growing program should cause a few more heifers to be cycling early
in the breeding season.
Some ranchers choose to booster replacement heifers with modified live
vaccines for the respiratory diseases. This is a sound practice that
will encourage the development of long-lasting cell-mediated immunity.
The modified live vaccines should be given to the heifers at least 30 days
prior to the onset of the breeding season. This will insure maximum
disease protection and reduce the possibility of the small increase in
body temperature due to the vaccine causing any reduction in breeding rate.
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