Managing the Length of the Calving Season in Commercial Beef Cattle Operations

By Jordan Thomas

Figure 1. Managing the length of the calving season has significant implications for the profitability of a commercial cow-calf operation.

Managing the time of year in which cows calve can have significant implications for the profitability of a cow-calf operation (Figure 1). Cow-calf herds with no defined calving season are labor-intensive and potentially very inefficient, with significant management and marketing challenges due to widely varied cow requirements and calf age. Meeting the nutritional requirements of lactating cows is far more expensive during certain times of the year due to a lack of high-quality forage available for grazing. Likewise, some portions of the year present challenges for newborn calf survival without significant investments in facilities and labor for intervention. Management for a short, defined calving period is therefore a major opportunity to reduce costs and optimize productivity of the cow herd.