Rolling The Dice On Early Or Late Calving

The number of variables affecting profit on cattle ranches is staggering and most are circumstances we can do nothing about. We can’t control weather, insects, exchange rates, market prices, foreign trade, commercial inputs, government regulations, grain prices, new machinery costs, fluctuating cycles or unmotivated politicians. About the only issue in which cattlemen can exercise control […] Read more

Early Or Late Calving…

University of Manitoba agribusiness and agricultural economics masters student Tanis Sirski is currently wrapping up the economic risk and return analysis of the birth-to-weaning phase of the time-of-calving study reported in our story “A Tale of Two Calving Systems on the Canadian Prairies” on page 10. She reported her findings at the recent Manitoba Grazing […] Read more


Quality Starts Here – for Jan. 24, 2011

CALVING TO WEANING The cow-calf Good Production Practices manual offers four checklists of recommended steps at calving, breeding, spring roundup and weaning. Calving Standard calving protocols are developed and used by staff, who are trained in appropriate calving techniques to reduce calving injuries (e.g. non-ambulatory animals) as well as cow and calf mortality. Make sure […] Read more

Weighing A Change Of Calving Season

There are many factors involved when making decisions about when to calve. Whether you calve in January-February (early calving), March-April (spring), May- June or June-July (summer) or September- October (fall) often hinges on region and climate, marketing goals, feed costs and availability, breeding season considerations, constraints of management, and other factors that enter into this […] Read more


Some Different Thoughts On Calf Treatments In The Spring

With the reduction of calving problems in many herds today the treatments given to calves during this busy season have changed considerably over the years. Newer longer-acting products as well as anti-inflammatory drugs help get calves on their feet quicker and minimize relapses. Although daily treatments may still have their place the need for intensive […] Read more

Heifer Development

Dr. Patsy Houghton sees heifers as a mixed blessing. In fact, she has thought of little else but heifers 365 days of the year for the past 20 years. Houghton is the owner and general manager of Heartland Cattle Company (HCC), the first professional heifer development centre in the U.S., which she and two former […] Read more


Learning The Art Of Calving

The science and art of calving a cow out is being lost because there are fewer and fewer cows that give us problems these days. The new generation on the farm generally will have much less exposure to cows calving, calf pullers and the application of a calving chain. The fact that the genetics of […] Read more

When’s She “Gonna” Calve?

I used to wish you could just ask the old girl if it would be “tonight,” or maybe the night after? But then I became the expectant mother myself and guess what! Overdue and full as a house, I didn’t have a clue when my own actual blessed moment would come. This comes under the […] Read more


Abnormalities That May Impede The Birth Process

Occasionally the stockman encounters a diffi cult calving situation caused by an abnormality in the fetus or dam. As stated by Dr. David Steffen, diagnostic pathologist and professor, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Nebraska, the most common problem is discrepancy between size of the calf and pelvic area of the dam. This type of […] Read more

Calving At Kirlene Cattle

Like many farm operations Kirlene Cattle takes its name from the owners. Kirby and Arlene Hakkesteegt raise purebred Charolais cattle between Brighton and Trenton just north of Lake Ontario in Ontario’s Northumberland County. They have four grown children and farm with their 23-year-old son Bryce. Another son, Kevin is planning to return to the farm […] Read more