Finally got all the cows preg checked. Yeah, I know I'm running late. The fescue thing finally caught up with us I guess. Terrible bred rate of 77% over the whole herd. Vet said he suspected fescue combined with summer breeding is what's hurting us so bad. I've been breeding May 15-Aug 15 with heifers breeding May 1- August 1. So I've been researching as hard as I can the last few days trying to come up with a new plan. Some of you guys running on fescue may have some ideas that could help me. So far here's my plan.
1- Move breeding up as far as possible without cutting off too many late calvers. I think I may start breeding 45 days sooner this year and cut 15 days off the end. Next year cut another 15 days off the end and so on untill I get to a 90 day breeding season. That will cut out some of the breeding in the hottest weather. Most cows would be bred by June 1. I'd really rather not calve before the first of the year. My other job is really busy from Oct. to Christmas.
2- Keep pastures clipped to eliminate seed heads and stems. Through my research i've read this is where most of the endophytes are??? This will take a lot of diesel or more cows seeing how we have an abundance of grass most springs.
3- Keep oat or millet silage out through breeding season. Not sure how well the cows will eat it with green grass available but most studies are showing if you can get 2-5lbs a day in them of a non toxic forage you can reduce the effects. Thinking the baleage will be tastey enough to do this.
4- We already feed a high mag mineral year round but are open to suggestions if a certain mineral may help us. This is an area I'm not real educated on.
5- Overseeding clover. How am I going to control all the other broadleaf weeds without killing it?
Completely killing and going MaxQ is something I am really not fond of. May consider doing a pasture or two but I skeptical if that stuff will survive our hot dry summers.
Anybody got any ideas?
1- Move breeding up as far as possible without cutting off too many late calvers. I think I may start breeding 45 days sooner this year and cut 15 days off the end. Next year cut another 15 days off the end and so on untill I get to a 90 day breeding season. That will cut out some of the breeding in the hottest weather. Most cows would be bred by June 1. I'd really rather not calve before the first of the year. My other job is really busy from Oct. to Christmas.
2- Keep pastures clipped to eliminate seed heads and stems. Through my research i've read this is where most of the endophytes are??? This will take a lot of diesel or more cows seeing how we have an abundance of grass most springs.
3- Keep oat or millet silage out through breeding season. Not sure how well the cows will eat it with green grass available but most studies are showing if you can get 2-5lbs a day in them of a non toxic forage you can reduce the effects. Thinking the baleage will be tastey enough to do this.
4- We already feed a high mag mineral year round but are open to suggestions if a certain mineral may help us. This is an area I'm not real educated on.
5- Overseeding clover. How am I going to control all the other broadleaf weeds without killing it?
Completely killing and going MaxQ is something I am really not fond of. May consider doing a pasture or two but I skeptical if that stuff will survive our hot dry summers.
Anybody got any ideas?