Managing First Calf Heifers

First-calf heifers are among the most challenged members of the herd.

They require special care to successfully make the transition from birthing their first calf to becoming a reproductively efficient cow that produces a healthy calf each year and breeds back early. Which, should be the goal of heifer management.

The first-calf heifer, which may breed for the first time at about 15 months and have the first calf when she is two years old, faces many physical and nutritional stresses associated with:

• Parturition (Calving)

• Lactation

• Continuing her own growth (she won’t be mature until age 3)

• Maintaining an optimal body condition score

• Repairing the reproductive tract

• Overcoming any post-partum disease and returning to normal estrus cycles

• Preparing to conceive in her second breeding season

The first hurdle for the first-calf heifer is to become pregnant during their second breeding season. 

In most cattle operations, cows that do not calve once a year are culled (Sold) because they become an economical liability. 

If you can ensure that your first-calf heifers are pregnant by the end of the second breeding season, most of your goals regarding first-calf heifer management will have been achieved.

A Body Condition Score (BCS is an estimate of the relative fatness of beef cattle. A nine-point BCS scale can be used to manage the cow herd. 1=Thin, 9=Fat) of 6 at calving appears to be optimum for first calf heifers to achieve successful calving and reproductive performance.

BCS is an excellent tool for monitoring nutritional status and for making decisions regarding changes in the nutrition and management of first-calf heifers.

A Louisiana study found that first-calf heifers with a BCS of 6 or 7 had higher pregnancy rates and a shorter interval from calving to pregnancy than heifers with a BCS of 4 or 5.

Before calving, all heifers should be at 85 percent of mature body weight. The last three months of gestation is critical for both the calf and the heifer. Approximately 70 percent of fetal growth occurs during this period. This is also a critical time for preparing the heifer nutritionally for calving, lactation, and rebreeding.

To be reproductively efficient, a heifer needs energy, protein, minerals and fat to support growth and performance, including reproduction, bone structure, muscle development, milk production, digestion and metabolism.

One of the challenges is providing a high-quality diet to these females after calving. In many situations, the energy needs are not met and the first-calf female loses weight and body condition from the time of calving to the start of the breeding season.

The pounds of protein or energy needed by the first-calf female compared to a mature cow at the same stage of gestation or lactation are not all that different. 

However, the percent of the diet that needs to be protein or energy between these two groups of females is different.

The difference is because of the amount of feed/forage that they can eat. The mature cow can eat more feed compared to the younger female.

In addition to providing good nutrition, manage your first-calf heifers by keeping them apart from more mature cows, which can be aggressive competitors for food, adding even more stress to the life of the first-calf heifer.

The first-calf-females post-calving need to consume a diet that is at least 62% TDN (Total Digestible Nutrients) and 10% to 11% crude protein, depending on level of milk production.

Feeding meadow hay that tests 58% TDN and 12% crude protein, prairie hay that tests 54% TDN and 6.5% crude protein, bromegrass hay that is 58% TDN and 11% crude protein, or early-bloom alfalfa that is 60% TDN and 20% crude will not meet the first-calf-female’s energy (TDN) needs, whether feeding individually or in a combination of feeds. 

Some of these forages will not meet their protein needs. A high energy feed needs to be supplemented. Corn, gluten feed, 20% cube, or silage may be good choices. 

Make sure the protein requirement is met, especially when corn or silage is fed.

In ranch situations, the supplement may be fed on the ground instead of in bunks. 

Depending on the quality of the hay and the energy content of the supplement, it may take two to three pounds per head per day to meet requirements. 

Likely there is minimal waste when feeding an energy cube/cake or whole shell corn.

A young beef female poses challenges, but she is the future of your cow herd. Don’t short her after calving, especially don’t skimp on the energy. 

She has enough challenges between calving and the beginning of the breeding season. Don’t over-feed her, but give her an opportunity to be a productive part of the herd.

Sources:

Management Tips for First Calf Heifers, Purina Mills, Inc.

Feeding First-Calf Females After Calving, Rick Rasby, Beef Specialist, University of Nebraska