Proper Cow Culling Is Important To Your Business
by Glenn Selk Emeritus Extension Animal Scientist Oklahoma State University
Cull cows represent approximately 20 % of the gross income of
any commercial cow operation . Cull beef cows represent 10 % of the beef that is consumed in the United States . Therefore , ranchers need to make certain cow culling is done properly and profitably . Selling cull cows when they will return the most income to the rancher requires knowledge about cull cow health and body condition . Proper cow culling will reduce the chance that a cow carcass is condemned at the packing plant and becomes a money drain for the entire beef industry .
Cull open cows . Why feed a cow all winter that will not have a calf next spring ? Call your veterinarian , schedule a time for pregnancy checking and determine which cows have not bred back . Cull them while they are in good body condition after summer pasture and before you spend $ 200 or more on the winter feed bill .
Is she good for another year ? At cow culling time , producers often face tough decisions . If she is not pregnant , the decision is easier . However what do you do when an older cow is re-bred ? Optimum culling of the herd seems to require a sharp crystal ball that could see into the future . Will she keep enough body condition through the winter to deliver a healthy calf next spring ? How old is the cow ? Is her mouth sound so that she can harvest forage and be nutritionally strong enough to raise a big calf ? At what age do cows usually start to become less productive ?
There is great variability in the longevity of beef cows . Data from large ranches in Florida would indicate that cows are consistent in the re-breeding performance through about 8 years of age . A small decline was noted as cows aged from 8 to 10 years of age . However the most consistent decline in reproductive performance was noted after cows were 10 years of age . A steeper decline in reproductive performance was found as they reached 12 years of age . In other words , start to watch for reasons to cull a cow at about age 8 . By the time she is 10 , look at her very closely and consider culling ; as she reaches her 12th year , plan to cull her before she has health problems or is in very poor body condition .
Other reasons to cull cows :
Examine the eye health of cows . One of the leading causes of condemned beef carcasses is still “ cancer-eye .” Although producers are doing a much better job of culling cows before “ cancer-eye ” takes its toll , every cow manager should watch cows closely for dangerous eye tumors .
Check the feet and legs . Beef cows must travel to consume forages and reach water tanks and ponds . Cows with bad stifle joints , severe foot rot infections , or arthritic joints may be subject to substantial carcass trimming when they reach the packing plant . They will be poor producers if allowed to stay on the ranch while severely lame . They may lose body condition , weigh less , and be discounted at the livestock market by the packer buyers . Culling them soon after injury will help reduce the loss of sale price that may be suffered later . If the cow has been treated for infection , be certain to market the cow AFTER the required withdrawal time of the medicine used to treat her infection .
Bad udders should be culled . One criteria that should be examined to cull cows is udder quality . Beef cattle producers are not as likely to think about udder health and shape as are dairy producers , but this attribute affects cow productivity and should be considered . OSU studied the effect that bad udders had on cow productivity . They found that cows with one or two dry quarters had calves with severely reduced weaning weights ( 50 - 60 pounds ) compared to cows with no dry quarters . Plus , cows with bad udders tend to pass that trait along to daughters that may be kept as replacement heifers . Two key types of “ bad ” udders to cull include : the large funnel-shaped teats and weak udder suspension . The large funnel-shaped teats may be indicative of a previous case of mastitis and cause the quarter to be incapable of producing milk . In addition , large teats may be difficult for the newborn calf to get it ’ s mouth around and receive nourishment and colostrum very early in life . As some cows age , the ligament that separates the two sides of the udder becomes weakened and allows the entire udder to hang very near to the ground . Again it becomes difficult for the newborn calf to find a teat when the udder hangs too close to the ground . Select against these faults and over time your cow herd will improve its udder health .
Cull any really wild cattle . They are hard on you , your equipment , and they raise wild calves . Wild calves are poor performers in the feedlot and are more prone to producing dark cutting carcasses as they reach the packing plant . “ Dark cutters ” are discounted severely when priced on the rail .
Cull cows when in moderate body condition . Send older cows to market before they become too thin . Generally , severely emaciated cattle have lightly muscled carcasses with extremely small ribeyes and poor red-meat yield . This greatly lessens the salvage value of such animals . Just as importantly , emaciated cattle are most often those which “ go down ” in transit , as they lack sufficient energy to remain standing for long periods of time . Severe bruising , excessive carcass trim , increased condemnations , and even death are the net results of emaciation . Very thin cows have a low dressing percentage ( weight of the carcass divided by the live weight ). Because of these factors , cow buyers will pay less per pound for very thin , shelly , cull cows . In addition , thin cows will weigh less . As you combine these two factors ( weight and price per pound ), thin cull cows return many fewer dollars at sale time than if the cow was sold when in moderate body condition . If they are already too thin , a short ( 45 to 60 days ) time in a drylot with a high quality feed will put condition back on the cows very efficiently . There is no need to put excess flesh or fat on cows . They become less efficient at converting feed to bodyweight after about 60 days and the market will not pay for excessive fatness on cows .
• JANUARY 2021 71