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Northeast Iowa | I've been using the daylight calving method for almost 20 years after hearing about it at Iowa State University. It's referred to as the Konefal Calving Method. Feed your pregnant females all of their daily allotment of feed sometime in the late afternoon around 4:00 to 6:00. If they don't have it all cleaned up the next morning, lock them away from feed so they can't eat anything during the day. They can have unlimited access to water all day long, but no feed between early morning and late afternoon. Bedding counts as feed, too, so bed them when you feed them.
The results have been amazing for me. I never go out at night when heifers calve. It takes about two weeks or more ahead of the due date to get them switched over, so don't think you can change feeding time and see results right away.
There are a variety of theories on why the system works. Some think it gets the cow's system into a routine where the rumen is active at a certain time and comparatively idle at other times, thereby sending a signal to the brain to begin the birth process during the downtime. Some think it may depend on hormone blood levels and how they vary after eating. I don't have a clue. All I know is the system has worked great for me, so I religiously feed my bred females in the late afternoon.
http://farmindustrynews.com/jeffryan/here-to-maternity/
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feeding cows at night for calving
