Give a helping hand

People who know me even a little bit, know I’m not much of a night owl. After a lifetime on the ranch a few months of shipping starter cattle in the feedyards I am perfectly happy waking up at Stupid-Dark:30 to get a little extra work done. If I’m staying up until 2, or Heaven forbid pulling an all-nighter, it better be the middle of calving season for 100 head of synchronized heifers. College has a strange way of changing these habits, and it doesn’t exactly make me a happy camper.

To be honest I haven’t been sleeping much over the past few weeks. On the bright side, I’ve been sleeping in until 8 on the weekends! (Major lazy for this guy) Between a couple of projects in class, pending exams, and a practically void bank account, I’ve been seeing the wee hours of the morning more often than I care to, ever. If it weren’t for the treadmill in the apartment clubhouse, I’m pretty sure I would have lost my marbles by now.

Despite all of this discouraging worry and fretting over nothing, I found myself up until 1 the other night helping my roommate practice for his seminar presentation the next day. I hate being critical of people – not really one to be aggressive – but when I’m helping others critique their work or gain a better understanding of something, I feel…. more comfortable doing it. There’s a bit of adrenaline to it when I’m able to help someone out like that. This reminds me of the many times in undergrad when I could help my classmates study and I got to explain all the problems and scenarios related to cattle production. I guess that’s why classes are all the more frustrating when I feel lost.

Events like this just remind me what it’s like to see others “get” something when I’m able to help them through a problem. I need to get back to doing that.

Just a few thoughts. Let’s hope with Spring comes a few more trips to the pasture. I’m getting major cabin fever being in town every day. I don’t know how people do it.

Questions about Heifer Development

Spend an afternoon reading scientific journal articles like it’s the latest newsstand gossip and your head will be spinning like a carnival ride. If only I could master the art of speed-reading…
Everyone has a different approach to developing replacement heifers for their beef herds. Some simply focus on a good feeding and mineral program, consistent from weaning through breeding. Others approach with ideas of modifying nutrition levels and gaining the advantages of compensatory gains. Then there are physiological aspects of puberty; at what age and weight will the heifer reach puberty, how can we determine this point, and how can we manage this.
Reading all of these articles, I can get pretty wrapped up in trying to over think the topics and forget what I am looking for. Sometimes our best ideas start with the basics, then work their way up.
Here are some basic principles of heifer development covered in various papers:

• Heifers will reach puberty at a specific weight and age, which can be influenced by genetics and management of their environment
• Post-weaning management of heifers is critical to their longevity and productivity in the cowherd.
• Early (preweaning) rapid growth can have a negative impact on development of the reproductive tract and endocrine system in heifers.
• Once heifers reach puberty, fertility in the first cycle in lower, increasing with the second or third ovulation.
• In order for a heifer to calve at 24 months of age, she must be cycling and ready to breed at 15 months.
• Breeding heifers earlier in the season will increase their longevity in the cowherd with a restricted breeding window.

Now it’s your turn. What is important to you in replacement heifer development? What aspects do you have questions about? What obstacles stand in the way of breeding heifers to calve successfully and by the age of 24 months? Do you have any suggestions or opinions from your experience?