| - Bred replacement heifers that will
calve in January and February need to continue to grow and maintain body
condition. Ideally, two year old heifers should be in a body condition
score 6 (see heifer pictured below) at the time that their first calf is
born. This allows them the best opportunity to provide adequate colostrum
to the baby, repair the reproductive tract, return to heat cycles, rebreed
on time for next year, and continue normal body growth. From now
until calving time, the heifers will need to be gaining 1 to 1 1/2 pounds
per head per day, assuming that they are in good body condition coming
out of summer.
Heifers will need supplemental protein,
if the major source of forage in the diet is bermudagrass or native pasture
or grass hay. If the forage source is adequate in quantity and average
in quality (6 - 9% crude protein), heifers will need about 2 pounds of
a high protein (38 - 44% CP) supplement each day. This will probably
need to be increased with higher quality hay (such as alfalfa) or additional
energy feed (20% range cubes) as winter weather adds additional nutrient
requirements. Soybean hulls or wheat mids may also be used to insure
adequate energy intake of pregnant heifers.
Wheat pasture (if adequate rainfall
produces growth) can be used as a supplement for pregnant replacement heifers.
Using wheat pasture judiciously makes sense for pregnant heifers for two
reasons. Pregnant heifers consuming full feed of wheat pasture will
gain at about 3 pounds per head per day. If they are on the wheat
too long the heifers can become very fat and cause dystocia. Also
the wheat pasture can be used for gain of stocker cattle or weaned replacement
heifers more efficiently. If wheat pasture is used for bred heifers,
use it as a protein supplement by allowing the heifers access to the wheat
pasture on at least alternate days. Some producers report that 1
day on wheat pasture and two days on native or bermuda will work better.
This encourages the heifers to go rustle in the warm season pasture for
the second day, rather than just stand by the gate waiting to be turned
back in to the wheat. What ever method is used to grow the pregnant
replacement heifers, plan to have them in good body condition by calving
so that they will grow into fully-developed productive cows.
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