Calves have been weaned and vaccinated with their first round of shots since September 17th. With warm and dry weather we had after weaning, there was no need to run any calves through the chute to treat for coughs, temperatures or runny noses. Weaning weights this fall were average for both steers and heifers at each herd. This was expected with the hot, dry summer we had. It is amazing how quickly the calves are growing. Looks like I will be halter breaking heifers very soon!
Since the crops were harvested, the cows grazed on corn stalks in the fall. What a pretty sight, especially with a gorgeous fall sunset in the background! November 26th and 27th, we pregnancy checked and vaccinated our cattle herds with our pre-calving health program. We were very pleased that our cattle had a conception rate of 98.5% and were due to calves in March and April. Our calves received their second round of vaccinations on December 17th. My dad and I went through the selection process of choosing replacement heifers. Each year we retain 12-14 head of heifers or about 20% of our herd. This year, we chose 12 head of heifers. They received their calfhood vaccination from our vet, Dr Baird. We put in a new numbered tag to identify our heifers. I recorded data to prepare for registering our heifers for pedigrees with the American Shorthorn Association.
