When there’s no rain to power pasture growth, no grazing system will fix the problem. Monitoring and management can however make a difference to how effectively resources are used and decisions made.
Early weaning is a good example of using pasture assessment, reducing demand and setting priorities to improve efficiency. As such, early weaning is one of the key feed management tools available to beef producers in times of feed shortfall or uncertainty.
Weaning saves some energy by providing feed direct to the weaners, rather than the less efficient feeding of mum to produce milk and then feed the young.
Even more powerful than this DSE saving however, is the capacity to more effectively allocate the best feed to the animals that really need it, the young growing stock.
Some considerations are that the calves need to achieve a critical weight for age on mum first, they must be weaned to high quality feed, and of course monitored to ensure that their growth is on target.
Early weaning places far more emphasis on the manager to ensure the weaners are adequately fed. There is no buffer being provided by the fat on mums back to smooth out any shortfall of feed in the paddock.
This added responsibility however, comes with the considerable power to make more effective decisions about the feed that is available. Early action increases this power in times when pasture growth is slow.
The feed that is available can then be made directly and more efficiently available to the weaner. This feed however must be high quality feed, high in energy and protein. Green feed, silage or grain supplement are all high quality options.
In contrast, the cow doesn’t need to grow body and muscle. She needs only to meet her maintenance requirement and slowly improve in condition. She can do this on far poorer quality pasture or supplement than the weaner.
Early weaning is a tool that places power in the managers hands to decide how best the limited feed resources are used. The MLA More Beef from Pastures producers manual provides an excellent guide to making this practice work.
- Don’t wean the calves until they weigh at least 100 –120 kg liveweight, and are at least 100 days old.
- Wean to high quality feed of 11.5 MJ ME/kg DM with 15% crude protein.
- Make sure the feed resource saved by weaning, is used by the weaners.
- Monitor feed availability and animal performance.
- Manage the cows to maintain condition score 2.5 –3.0
Early weaning is a strategy that some Tasmanian beef producers tried for the first time last year with very good results observed for both the weaners and the cows.
This is one experience worth remembering, not only for drought times but also as a strategy for increasing productivity and efficiency in the good times.
For further information contact Peter Ball, Department of Primary Industries and Water, on 6233 6810, email Peter.Ball@dpiw.tas.gov.au
