7 tips to manage heifers calving at two years

Calving beef heifers at 24 months increases the lifetime productivity of the cow and reduces rearing costs, as well as lowering the carbon footprint of the herd.

However, careful management, particularly post-calving, is required to ensure a 365-day calving interval is retained. 

Sarah Penrose, senior knowledge exchange manager at AHDB beef and lamb, provides a step-by-step guide to post-calving management.

See also: How maternal genetics helped double kg output/ha

1. Monitor condition and prioritise heifer nutrition

Heifers naturally have a post-partum interval (the time between calving and bulling) that is 18 days longer than cows.

Growth and milk production are the heifer’s highest priority, so uterine repair and ovulation will only take place if nutrient supply is higher than maintenance and milk production.

Trying to reduce the post-partum interval is key to ensuring heifers conceive within a tight breeding period and retain a 365-day breeding interval.

Body condition is the single most important factor linked to the resumption of cycling. Research has shown that thin heifers – those under 2.5 – have a 30-day longer post-partum interval than those in good condition.

Ideally, heifers should calve at a body condition score of 3, and any calving at less than 2.5 should be fed more to increase their condition from the point of calving.

2. Give heifers preferential grazing

Newly calved heifers should be turned out as early as possible onto preferential grazing.

A good quality, permanent sward should consist of at least 50% ryegrass and 20% white clover.

Improved pasture in the UK can grow more than 12t dry matter(DM)/ha, but the current average is 8t DM/ha.

Ensuring optimum soil fertility, weed control and optimum stocking rates will help increase this.

However, there is little point in growing as much grass as possible if it is not used.

Rotational grazing has the potential to increase grass use by 15% compared to set stocking.

The first stage in setting up rotational grazing is to calculate the group’s DM intake. This is usually 2-3% of bodyweight for newly calved heifers.

Electric fencing can then be used to adjust paddock size, so grazing pressure can be controlled.

Two strands of electric fencing will be required when grazing heifers with calves and ensure the live wire – which is directly connected to the power source – is at nose height.

3. Run heifers in their own group

Heifers should be kept separate from the main herd until after their second calving to avoid competition for feed from mature cows.

The nutrient demands of heifers are greater than those of a mature cow and, therefore, keeping them separate allows them to be fed accordingly.

4. Consider vaccinations and trace elements

Ensure all health treatments are up to date and complete the vaccination programme at least two weeks before the breeding period commences.

It is also important not to forget about trace elements. Usually, boluses are administered before calving, so that the calf can also benefit from them.

Suckler cows and heifers are at particular risk of grass staggers when grazing lush grass in cold, wet conditions.

Work with your vet to develop a bolus plan which works for your farm.  

5. Check bull fertility

Bull fertility is just as important as the fertility of the first-calved heifer.

Very few bulls are infertile. However, many are sub-fertile and will produce fewer calves than a fertile bull.

A breeding soundness exam, performed by the vet, is recommended to test semen quality and physical attributes.

This should be done at least 10 weeks before the start of the breeding season.

6. Maintain a 12-week breeding period

Even though it can be tempting to keep bulls in for a longer period to ensure all heifers are back in-calf – don’t.

Maintaining a short breeding period not only increases the overall fertility of the herd, but ensures an even batch of calves at weaning with increased weaning weights. 

Calving heifers in the first three weeks of the calving period, or a couple of weeks before the cows, ensures they will be cycling before the bulls are introduced.

It is expected that 10% of heifers may be barren after the breeding period. These are likely to be the ones who experienced calving difficulties or were in poor condition prior to calving. 

With cull cow prices currently being 30% up on last year, the best option is to cull those heifers that are not back in-calf.

7. Wean early, if necessary

Thin heifers at weaning struggle to calve easily and conceive the following year.

Early weaning can be used as an effective tool to prevent heifer body condition loss as the animal approaches her next calving.

Calves should be at least five months of age at weaning.

This is because once the calf is six and a half months old (200 days), 75% of its nutrient requirement will be from feeds other than milk.

Feeding the calf directly will be more efficient than feeding the cow to produce decreasing amounts of milk, at the risk of losing body condition as well.

More information can be found on these top tips on the AHDB website.