In last week’s PCC Update, I talked a little about calving here at PCC.  We are two days past our due date and already have 26% of our calves on the ground.  This week I’m going to explain some of the things we look for and record at calving time.

 

The Body Condition Score (BCS) of the cow at calving tells me two things.  First, it tells me whether the cow has had enough time on green grass to reach an ideal BCS of 5-6 prior to calving.  Second, it is a very good indicator of whether she will breed back later this year.  If the BCS is too low at calving, her chance of breeding back on time is significantly lower.  If the cow’s BCS is not at an optimal level at calving time, then forage management or calving date should be addressed.  Click here to see a description of Body Condition Scoring.

 

The Udder Score I give at calving time combines udder suspension and teat size.  I use a five-star system.  This information is used in the sale catalog on the bull calves.  This score is predictive of how long a cow will stay in the herd, and whether her progeny will have a good or bad udder.  The udder score can be a useful tool with breeding selection or culling.  Click here to see a description of Udder Scoring.

 

The Maternal Instinct Score given at calving time also uses a five star system, with five stars being the best.  Does she quickly clean off her calf?  Does she encourage her calf to get up?  Does she encourage her calf to nurse?  Does she treat me somewhat like a predator when I tag the calf?   Because I only check cows twice a day, I don’t see all of these traits with every cow.  But I can tell if the calf was cleaned off and if it has nursed.  I also get to test every cow when I tag the calf.  I would rather have a cow stand as if I’m a predator than run over the hill without her calf.  This is good information to have when you’re doing some culling.

 

The Disposition Score is a little more difficult to give at calving time; when I give a cow a poor Disposition Score she usually has a very high Maternal Score.  I’m looking for a cow that will protect her calf without trying to kill me.  A cow that’s willing to run over the top of her own calf just to get to me gets a free ride to town!

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