Term
| What types of animals would be included in a cow-calf operation? |
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Definition
| cow herd, bulls, calves until weaning (up to 7mo old) |
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Term
| What types of animals would be included in a stocker operation? |
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Definition
animals over-wintered on pasture or roughage (6-14mo)
*this stage is optional, some animals go directly from cow-calf farm to feedlot |
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Term
| What types of animals would be included in a feedlot operation? |
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Definition
| steers (6-21mo) and heifers (14-21mo) |
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Term
True or False
Grass finished animals do not go to a feedlot |
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Definition
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Term
| What provinces are the largest producers of beef in Canada? |
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Definition
Alberta
Saskatchewan
Manitoba |
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Term
| What is the biggest export market for Canadian beef? |
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Definition
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Term
| What are the goals of health management in a beef herd? (5) |
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Definition
1. Promote optimal health
2. Promote animal welfare
3. Promote human & food safety
4. Consider environmental impact
5. Do all of the above while recognizing business/economic realities |
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Term
| What is the 'health management' cycle? |
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Definition
1. Set goals
2. Monitor & assess current status
3. Make decisions, develop plans of action
4. Analyze performance outcomes
Then make adjustments or continue operating as you are! |
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Term
| What is the formula for profit in cow-calf production? |
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Definition
| [#cows X % calf crops X weaning weight X sale price] - cow costs |
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Term
| What factors affect the income in terms of the number and size of weaned calves? |
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Definition
-colostrum management
-monitoring disease
-% cows open
-weaning weight
-sale price
-feed costs
-capital costs
-labour
-gender of calf
-calf health
-survival to weaning |
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Term
| What factors affect the costs in terms of the number and size of weaned calves? |
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Definition
-health costs
-feed & water
-replacement cows
-capital costs
-labour
-interest rate |
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Term
| What are the goals of cow-calf production? |
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Definition
1. Get cows pregnant
2. Keep cows pregnant
3. Keep calves alive
4. Get uniform growth
5. Optimize inputs |
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Term
| How old are beef cows at weaning? |
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Definition
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Term
| How long are beef cows considered heifers? |
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Definition
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Term
| What is a cow's gestation period? |
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Definition
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Term
| How many days is a cow open for after giving birth? |
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Definition
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Term
| At what age are beef heifers bred? |
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Definition
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Term
| At what age do beef heifers calve? |
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Definition
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Term
| How much does a heifer weigh at first breeding? At first calving? |
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Definition
breeding: 65% of mature weight
calving: 85% of mature weight |
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Term
| What are some of the challenges of getting cows pregnant? |
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Definition
Bull infertility
-semen quality, libido, lameness, genetics
Cow infertility
-body condition, systemic illness, genetics, lactational & nutritional anestrus |
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Term
| What is the recommended ratio for bulls:females? |
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Definition
| 1 bull for every 25 females |
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Term
True or False
1 in every 8 bulls is subfertile |
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Definition
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Term
| What would aspects would a bull examination include? |
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Definition
general physical health
breeding soundness
libido test |
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Term
| What factors are considered in a breeding soundness exam? |
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Definition
scrotal circumference
appearance of scrotum & penis
semen motility, morphology, number |
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Term
| What is the target in terms of keeping cows pregnant? |
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Definition
| Less than 3% abort or stillbirth |
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Term
| What are some of the causes of failure to keep a cow pregnant? |
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Definition
Viral
-BVD & IBR
Bacterial
Vibriosis & leptospirosis
Protozoal
neospora caninum & trichomoniasis foetus |
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Term
| What is the agent, host and environmental factor(s) concerning vibriosis? |
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Definition
Agent: campylobacter fetus
Host: female repro tract or male prepuce
Environment: doesn't play a large role |
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Term
| Describe the pathology of vibriosis in male cattle |
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Definition
-young animals show acute infection for short time
-bulls will develop chronic infection after 4+ years
-often asymptomatic |
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Term
| What are the clinical signs of vibriosis? |
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Definition
Males: asymptomatic
Females
-infertility, repeat breeders, EED
-prolonged breeding/calving season
-more open cows at end of breeding season
-mild endometritis |
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Term
| What are the agent, host & environmental factors involved with trichomoniasis |
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Definition
Agent: trichomonas fetus
Host
bulls - asymptomatic
cows - in repro tract (often no clinical signs) |
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Term
| What are the clinical signs of trichomoniasis? |
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Definition
Males: none
Females
-repeat breeders
-endometritis & vaginitis
-pyometra after breeding
-EED, 16wk abortions |
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Term
| How can you prevent venereal diseases? |
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Definition
-use AI
-screen new bulls & cows for disease
-cull infected animals
-vaccinate yearly
-maintain a naive, clean group separate from older infected animals |
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Term
| Why is it difficult to detect trichomoniasis? |
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Definition
| Preg checks are done at the end of breeding season, so don't notice abnormalities with conception until it's too late to be able to assist with pregnancy/conception |
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Term
| What is the target goal in keeping calves alive? |
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Definition
| less than 2% mortality rate up until weaning |
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Term
| What are the main considerations in keeping calves alive? |
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Definition
preventing distocia
intervening appropriately during calving
prevent neonatal diarrhea |
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Term
| How can you prevent dystocia? |
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Definition
-don't breed heifers if too young or small
-genetic selection for ease of calving
-restrict breeding & calving seasons |
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Term
| What are some factors to consider when restricting breeding/calving seasons? (6) |
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Definition
-seasonal breeding/calving
-concentrate calvings to focus labour
-provide selection pressure for breeding
-breed heifers first
-focus heifer calving period
-time heifers so they calve earlier, calves have more time to grow |
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Term
| Describe the typical pattern of spring calving in a herd |
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Definition
1. Heifers bred June 1st
2. Cows bred July 1st
3. Heifers calve mid March
4. Cows calve mid April |
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Term
| What are the agent, host and environmental factors associated with neonatal diarrhea |
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Definition
Agent
-rotavirus/coronavirus
-E. coli
-coccidia
-cryptosporidia
Host
-young calves, colostrum-inhibited, susceptible
Environment
-pathogen load, animal density, fluctuating temps |
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Term
| How can you prevent diarrhea by maximizing maternal immunity? (4) |
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Definition
-vaccinate dams for viral agents
-good nutrition = quality colostrum
-ensure calf stands & suckles
-colostral replacement/supplementation if necessary |
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Term
| How can you prevent diarrhea by minimizing other stressors? |
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Definition
-clean environment
-shelter/weather protection
-dystocia management |
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Term
| What is the 'Sandhills' calving management system? |
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Definition
Rotate calving herd through different pastures
-those that calve remain on that pasture, ones who haven't are moved to new ones weekly
-heifers calve first, get cleanest pasture
-heifers kept closer to barn, better supervision |
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Term
| Why do you want heifers to calve earlier when aiming for a uniform calf size at weaning? |
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Definition
-calves are born smaller, have slower growth rate
-more days on feed = closer in size to other calves at weaning
-reduces calf disease |
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Term
| What are some factors to consider when dehorning calves? |
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Definition
-best done at an early age using caustic paste (smaller horn buds, less invasive)
-decreased pain & stress if done between 2-4 weeks of age
-do at least 3 wks before weaning |
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Term
| What are some methods of castration? |
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Definition
Band a birth (*clostridial vaccine req'd!!)
Burdizzo pinch cord
Cut testicles
(all done 3 wks before weaning) |
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Term
| What are some advantages of pre-weaning? When is it done? |
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Definition
Weaning at least 28 days before the sale
-increases immunity
-decrease stress around time of sale
-more time to put weight on before the sale after the stress of weaning |
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Term
| What diseases might be vaccinated for if pre-vaccinating a calf before selling? |
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Definition
Clostridial (repeated up to 12 months of age)
IBR, BVD,M. haemolytica, Leptospirosis (12 mo)
E. Coli, Rota & coronavirus (pre-calving) |
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Term
| What are pre-conditioned calves? |
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Definition
| dehorned, castrated, weaned, pre-vaccinated and often also bunk-adjusted calves |
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Term
| What are the pros of pre-conditioning? Cons? |
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Definition
Pros
-buyer expects less disease, reduced stress, increased immunity
Cons
-seller may not receive enough at sale to justify costs
-stress of sale & co-mingling may counteract benefits |
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Term
| What time of year is a beef herd dewormed? |
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Definition
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Term
| What time of the year should the best quality forages be fed to beef herds? |
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Definition
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Term
| What events take place during the spring in a beef operation? |
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Definition
calvings
bull BSEs
process calves in May
breed heifers in May, cows in June |
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Term
| What events take place during the summer in a beef operation? |
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Definition
| manage pastures, supplement diet as necessary |
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Term
| What events take place during the fall in a beef operation? |
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Definition
-wean & pre-condition
-market calves
-select replacements
-preg test, cull open cows
-de-worm herd |
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Term
| What events take place during the winter in a beef operation? |
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Definition
| -feed good quality forages, monitor BCS |
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Term
| What is the goal for breeding seasons on a beef operation? |
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Definition
heifers: less than 45 days
cows: less than 60 days |
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Term
| What is the goal for calving rates? |
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Definition
| more than 65% calving in first 21 days of calving season |
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Term
| What is the target weight for weaning? |
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Definition
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