Beef Management Tips

Livestock Update, May 2000

John Hall, Extension Animal Scientist, Beef, Virginia Tech

May Beef Management Calendar

Spring Calving Herds

• Calving should be coning to an end
• Give pre-breeding vaccinations to cows - IBR, PI3, BVD and Lepto
  Use modified live vaccines on cows with calves; killed vaccines on pregnant cows
• Begin estrous synchronization programs for AI (begin AI this month some herds)
• Breed heifers 2 to 4 weeks before cows
• Get breeding soundness exams done on bulls
• Supplement 1st calf heifers with energy through breeding
• Implant calves at turnout if not implanted at birth
• Keep high quality, high magnesium high selenium minerals available
• Make 1st cutting of hay
• Start creep grazing and/or managed intensive grazing

Fall calving herds

• Creep graze calves while on cows
• Give vaccinations for Virginia Quality Assured program (VQA)
• Wean calves based on marketing plan for calves - must be weaned 30 days for VQA weaned program
• Implant calves at turnout
• Make 1st cutting of hay
• Continue feeding high magnesium minerals to prevent grass tetany
• Continue managed intensive grazing; hay pastures with excess forage

Wait to Put in Fly Tags
Since most of us work cattle sometime in the spring, there is a tendency to want to put fly tags in at that time. However, this is too early for most fly tags. Fly tags that are put in too early fail to put our enough insecticide late in the fly season. Exposure to low levels of insecticide aids in the development of resistant flies. Entomologists suggest that fly tags are most effective when the flies exceed a threshold level of 100 flies per side. Most of us are not going to count flies and the time when threshold occurs varies from year to year depending on the weather conditions. For most parts of Virginia, producers should delay putting fly tags in cows until early to mid June. More information on specific fly control methods can be found at your local extension office or in the on-line version of the Virginia Pest Control Guide at: http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/pmg/index.html#home. Look under the field crops section for livestock.

Virginia Premium Assured Heifers Sell Well at Expo
Thirty-Three Virginia Premium Assured Heifers were among the 166 commercial replacement heifers sold at the 2000 VA Beef Expo. All VA Premium Assured heifers were Premium Assured Plus heifers who were sired by bulls with above average EPD's for growth and in the top 70% for milk. All bred heifers (71 hd) averaged $1008.10 per head while 28 Premium Assured Plus bred heifers averaged $1127.68. The one lot of 5 Premium Assured Plus open heifers averaged $ 725.00 while all open heifers averaged $ 673.84. A few exposed heifers were sold for an average of $ 786.11. The Virginia Premium Assured heifers offered at the VA Beef Expo represented 3 well-known breeders, so the premium for these heifers may be higher than normally expected. However, it appears that the Virginia Premium Assured heifer program is making a difference.

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