2010 - THE YEAR OF THE OPEN COW?
Animal Science
Shawn Deering
LIVESTOCK SPECIALIST
ALBANY
Abstract
The fall pregnancy check of 2010 held big surprises for many NW Missouri beef producers. The occurrence of open cows seemed far greater than “normal”. In seemingly well managed herds, it was not uncommon to see 18 to 30 percent open females. Trying to pinpoint an exact cause is almost impossible. However, it does appear that a series of events contributed to create a perfect scenario for this phenomenon to happen. The winter of 2009-10 was extremely harsh. Bred cows were battling frigid temperatures, snow, precipitation and deep mud. Years of hay samples taken from the area indicate that hay quality on average is medium at best. Since most cows are only supplemented with hay during the winter, it would seem that they were on a nutrient deficient diet and losing body condition prior to calving. The spring of 2010 was cool and very wet. Our cool-season forage base was slow to develop and extremely washy when it did. At the onset of the breeding season, body condition scores may have been less than desirable. This could have caused prolonged anestrous periods. The hot, humid summer and endophyte infected tall fescue that followed would have compounded the problem. In an effort to discuss and shed light on the subject, this topic was covered in Ag Update meetings held in six NW Missouri counties during February of 2011. Other reproductive management practices such as herd health, heifer pre-breeding exams, bull breeding soundness exams, bio-security and trichomoniasis testing were also discussed.
Authors: Deering, S.
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Deering, S. Livestock Specialist, University of Missouri Extension, Missouri, 64402