Tips For Breeding Tricky Two-Year-Olds

 

 

Keeping cows in the herd long enough for them to pay for themselves, is often easier said than done especially when brining young cows into the herd each year to replace cull cows. This is because in order to get young females into the brood cow herd, we must first succeed at breeding them back after they have their first calf. Two-year old cows are the most difficult group to rebreed because they are still growing while raising their first calf, thus requiring extra groceries in order to meet nutrient demands and resume normal estrous cycles. It is also especially critical that she conceives at this age because to date she has yet to bring any income into the bank until her first calf is weaned and sold this fall. Depending on individual cost of production, cows must remain on average in the herd until they are at least 6 years of age and weaned 5 calves before they’ll start turning positive dollars at the bottom of the balance sheet.