LEXINGTON, Ky. – A controlled cattle breeding and calving season can significantly improve efficiency and profitability for cow-calf operations, according to a report by University of Kentucky (UK) beef specialists.

The report said a shorter breeding window often results in a more uniform calf crop, with calves that are heavier at weaning and more attractive to buyers. In addition, producers can better manage herd health programs and nutritional supplementation when calving occurs within a defined period. For herds currently operating with year-round breeding, transitioning to a controlled calving season should be approached gradually.

The report said beef specialists recommend moving to a 75-day calving season over two years rather than attempting the change in a single season, which can create greater production and financial challenges.

The first step is to determine the preferred calving season and its duration. Producers should then evaluate the reproductive status of every cow by reviewing calving records or estimating calf ages if records are unavailable. The report said this information helps identify breeding patterns and determine whether maintaining one calving season or separating the herd into spring- and fall-calving groups is the best option.

Next, adequate facilities are also important, with a secure bull pen or fenced pasture needed so bulls can be separated from the herd when required. The report said producers should remove bulls based on their desired calving schedule and keep them separated until the next planned breeding season.

Beef specialists added that about 60 days after bull removal, cows should be pregnancy checked. Non-pregnant breeding-age females and open cows with older calves should be considered for culling to improve herd productivity.

In addition, replacement heifers may benefit from beginning their breeding season 20 to 30 days earlier than the main herd, additional time beef specialists said helps young females rebreed successfully after their first calf, reducing the risk of extended calving seasons in future years.

During the second year, producers should continue the same management approach, while shortening the breeding season further to reach the desired calving schedule and improve long-term herd performance, the report said.

Leslie Anderson, University of Kentucky professor of animal and food sciences, told Farm World, “My work at the University of Kentucky involved 147 beef cattle operations in Kentucky over a nearly 10-year period. After three years, the weaning rate increased 6 percent, the number of cows calving in the first month doubled, and pounds of calf weaned per cow exposed increased 64 percent.

“These numbers continued to climb over the next two years, resulting in calving seasons less than 60 days, weaning rates over 90 percent, and pounds of calf weaned per cow exposed nearly doubling,” he added.

He said more calves born over a shorter period resulted in marketing larger groups and thus higher market prices: “Participants surveyed indicated that labor inputs were reduced one-third for many reasons, including less time observing cows calving, easier-to-schedule vaccinations when the cows were on schedule, more efficient feeding of the cow herd because more cows are in the same production cycle, and nutrients can be applied more appropriately.”

In 2004, he said, agricultural economists from Oklahoma State University, Texas A&M and New Mexico State University looked at production data from nearly 400 ranches in the Southwest, selling feeder cattle at the local stockyards.

“The calving seasons from these farms ranged from 70 days to 365 days,” he said. “They collected financial and production records and demonstrated that ranches that calved year-round sold 45 pounds fewer beef per animal per year at an increased cost of nearly $14/CWT (hundredweight), compared to ranchers that calved over short periods.”

He said, however, “The structure of the reproduction program must match the marketing plan. So, cattlemen raising feeder calves may need a different reproductive management plan than someone selling freezer beef from their 20 cows each year.”