It’s also important to use a bull that’s not a lot bigger than your cows. A big bull siring a big calf in a small cow adds up to calving problems.
Instead of buying a bull, you could ask around about renting a bull either before or after the main breeding season, if you’re willing to adjust your calving calendar. That way, you’ll need to have the bull on your farm for only a couple months.
Another option, if you can find a willing bull producer, is to rent a yearling bull for the summer. Many bull producers like to sell two-year-old bulls, and if you pay them some rent for a yearling for a few months, it cuts their cost of raising a bull to two years. In many areas, you used to be able to get a bull for the summer just for feeding him, but that is happening less and less, and usually not with high-quality animals.
Whatever bull you buy or rent, have its fertility tested. A disturbingly high percentage of beef bulls are infertile, and if you don’t catch the problem before you breed, you’ll have gone to all that expense and trouble and won’t have any calves the next spring—a disaster.
Combining AI and Live Bull Methods
Many serious beef producers use AI followed by a “cleanup” bull for those cows that don’t “settle” with AI. This provides the advantage of getting some top-notch genetics into a herd without having to worry about getting all of the cows bred in time to hit your desired calving window. If you’ve been using AI and having problems getting all of the cows to conceive, this might solve the problem.
A pregnant cow needs proper nutrition for both herself and her calf.
Care and Feeding of Pregnant Cows
A cow that is nurturing a fetus while also nursing a rapidly growing calf works hard and needs a good diet to keep her in condition. A heifer is still growing herself when she is bred for the first time, so she needs a good diet, too. A young cow with her first calf and pregnant with the next—and that is still growing itself—may be working hardest of all.
Fortunately, most beef cows are built to do all of these jobs on only good pasture and hay. Even a nursing and pregnant cow shouldn’t need any grain, although many producers will supplement their pregnant heifers with a small grain ration through the winter. With some large breeds in certain climates, it may be advisable to supplement grain; ask other producers in the area or contact your breed association. Whatever your feeding program, keep an eye on your cows’ condition through the winter. If they start getting thin, you’ll need to supplement their feed in order to ensure healthy calves the following spring.
Calving
A clean, green pasture in the spring is a great place for cows to calve. If you’re calving in cold or very wet weather, however, you should have a shed or a large pen with a thick layer of clean bedding (straw or old hay) available for the cows. Wherever you calve, plan on checking the cows and heifers several times a day to make sure no one is in trouble. Have a small pen ready for any cow that starts having problems.
As it gets close to calving time, watch the cows’ udders closely. Most, but not all, cows will “bag up” before calving. The udder will slowly swell and fill out over a few weeks. Then, a day or so before the calf arrives, the udder will start looking like a balloon that’s been blown up to the very edge of popping, and the teats will stick straight out. This is only a general rule, however. Some cows bag up days before the calf arrives, and some don’t bag up until the calf is on the ground.
When a cow is ready to calve, bagged up or not, she’ll wander off alone, provided there is sufficient room in the pasture and she can find a quiet corner. The cow will be restless and will graze just a few bites at a time or quit eating altogether. Some fluid may trickle down her legs, and she may keep her tail cocked. After a while, the cow may stand still and strain for a minute or so. Sooner or later, she will lie down and get serious. After some pushing, two little hooves will appear. After some more pushing, the nose will peek out. It usually takes a pretty good heave to get the head out; then the rest of the calf will follow in a rush. Immediately after the birth or up to twelve hours later, the placenta is delivered, and the cow usually eats it.
Within minutes of delivery, the cow should be up and licking the calf dry. Within an hour or two, at the most, the calf should be on its feet and looking for the teat. Seeing a calf born, get on its feet, and find milk is an amazing experience.
When to Intervene
For the beginning cattle producer, the number-one rule is not to intervene during calving unless it’s apparent that something is wrong. If a cow’s “water” (the fluid-filled membrane surrounding the calf) breaks—you’ll see a lot of yellowish fluid—and she hasn’t lain down and started hard labor within two to three hours, something is wrong. If a cow has been lying down and straining but fails to deliver a calf within an hour, something is wrong. If you see hooves appear and the entire calf doesn’t follow within an hour, something is wrong.
If, however, the cow is taking longer than expected but is on her feet and puttering around, not in any distress, with no sign of broken water but taking longer than you expected, chances are that nothing is wrong, and you should just leave her alone. Going out and bothering the cow will only upset her, slowing down the process even more.
Until you’ve had some experience with difficult calvings, it’s wise to call the veterinarian or an experienced neighbor before attempting to help the cow. Be prepared to give a precise description of the cow’s behavior and what you can observe at her back end. If the veterinarian can’t come immediately, get some advice about what to do.
If a cow is having a problem but still on her feet, herd her gently and slowly into a pen or chute, where you’ll be able to get close enough to give her a hand. If the cow is lying down, approach slowly, talking softly, and try to determine whether the calf is coming out the wrong way or whether the calf is too big for the cow.
A baby that is simply too big for its mama can sometimes be pulled out. Make a loop with a slipknot at the end of two flexible ropes, then slip a loop over each of the calf’s feet, just above the first joint of the leg. When the cow begins to strain, start to pull—hard enough to help but not so hard that you risk injuring the calf. When the cow quits straining, quit pulling until she starts again.
If that doesn’t bring the calf into the world, get help. If the calf is coming out the wrong way, get help. If the veterinarian can’t come, call a neighbor who has some experience. You may end up using a calf puller or, worse, having to kill the calf to save the cow. These are sad situations, and it’s why cattle owners pay a lot of attention to getting cows and heifers that calve easily.
If your cows calve out on pasture instead of in a small, closely monitored calving pen, you may not see a cow having its calf, even if you’re checking several times a day. As I said earlier, most of them will sneak off to a sheltered corner, often during the night, and in the morning when you check the cattle, you’ll find a mother with a dry, nursing, happy calf. If mother and baby are fine, leave them alone and let them rejoin the herd on their own schedule.
Nursing usually takes place naturally.
Taking Care of Newborn Calves
There are two schools of thought about what to do with a newborn calf. The first says that