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Alberta, Canada | We like our red calves too, but the buyers don't. We always get a "premium" (and by that I mean we don't get jabbed as badly) for the blacks.
We've had just about every common type of cow and bull, and now for the past few years we've got 4 black bulls (angus and welsh black) servicing a mixed herd. We're extremely happy. Buyers seem to prefer the Welsh black over the Angus, though they swear up and down that our Welsh Black bulls/calves are actually Angus. They're wrong, and we've got the papers to prove it. We also prefer them over the Angus.
We've been feeding in the late afternoon for years. Our neighbors made fun of us, figured we should be out feeding cows at 7am like they were. They had people on night shift checking for calves in the middle of the night. We don't even do a night check. Once before bed, then once before work in the morning. Might get 3% a year born in the night, and they're usually still wet when we get there in the morning (should probably mention we calve in May-June)
The other thing of feeding later in the day is they've got full bellies going to bed, and then they have all morning/day to pick through what they didn't eat from prior day(s). Usually start feeding at noon, get done by about 4pm. They come for water between 4 and 7.
Works for us!
Take care,
-Josh | |
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feeding cows at night for calving
