Beef Management Tips

Livestock Update, September 2000

Bill R. McKinnon, Extension Animal Scientist, Marketing,
John Hall, Extension Animal Scientist, Beef
Virginia Tech

September Beef Management Calendar

Spring Calving Herds

• Give pre-weaning injections to calves (VQA)
• Pregnancy check cows
• Body condition score cows at weaning and separate thin cows
• Put open, old and very thin cows on cull list; put cull cows in a separate pasture to feed for sale in December
• Make arrangements for backgrounding calves
• Continue feeding high Se salt
• Inventory feed supplies for winter
• Continue to stockpile grass

Fall calving herds

• Body condition score cows; plan nutrition grazing program on BCS
• Make sure all calving supplies are on-hand and clean
• Move pregnant heifers and early calving cows to calving area about 2 weeks before due date
• Start calving
• Check cows 3 to 4 times per day; heifers more often - assist early if needed
• Keep calving area clean and well drained; move healthy pairs to large pastures 3 days after calving
• Ear tag and dehorn all calves at birth; castrate male calves in commercial herds
• Give selenium and vitamin A & D injections to newborn calves
• Feed cows extra energy after calving especially to two-year-olds. Cows calving at BCS < 5 should receive special nutritional attention
• Keep high quality, high Selenium, high magnesium minerals available
• Purchase estrous synchronization supplies; line-up AI tech or AI supplies

Buckingham Cattlemen's Sale
The culmination of a year's effort came on August 1 during the telo-auction feeder cattle sale conducted by the Buckingham Cattlemen's Association. The association offered 1086 head of mainly fall born calves in fifteen lots. The 812 steers and 274 heifers were consigned by 20 association members. The sale was conducted through the Virginia Cattlemen's Association telo-auction system.

The cattle sold at a distinct advantage to other cattle marketed through special graded feeder cattle sales held the same week. On a weighted average basis, the steers brought a $5.23/cwt. premium while the heifers reaped a $5.67/cwt. advantage. A more complete breakdown is listed below.

Steers
Weight Range	Price Per Cwt.	Advantage to Other Graded Sales
500 - 599 lb.	$104.25 - $110.75	+$7.63
600 - 699 lb.	$97.10 - $100.75	+$4.19
700 - 799 lb.	$90.90 - $96.90	+$3.71
Heifers
Weight Range	Price Per Cwt.	Advantage to Other Graded Sales
500 - 599 lb.	$94.00 - $96.25	+$5.95
600 - 699 lb.	$86.80 - $91.20	+$5.23

All the cattle source verified and health and genetically certified under the Virginia Quality Assured program. All calves received the VQA purple tag. The calves were sired by either Angus, Gelbvieh, or Polled Hereford bulls.

Members delivered twelve of the lots to the Lynchburg Livestock Market on Friday, August 4 when the cattle were weighed and sorted into sale lots for loading. The remaining three lots were delivered at later dates agreed upon between the buyers and sellers. The cattle were sold to buyers in either Pennsylvania or Ohio.

The successful sale is a tribute the cooperative efforts of the Buckingham Cattlemen's Association, the Virginia Cattlemen's Association, Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and the Lynchburg Livestock Market.
(Bill McKinnon)

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