BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

Implants Still Worthwhile, Tips to Reduce PostWeaning Stress and Calf Supplement Considerations

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PRODUCT INFORMATION NADA 141-334, Approved by FDA.

048539 R10

18%

Injectable Solution for Cattle ANTIMICROBIAL DRUG 180 mg of tildipirosin/mL For subcutaneous injection in beef and non-lactating dairy cattle only.

Not for use in female dairy cattle 20 months of age or older or in calves to be processed for veal.

CAUTION: Federal (USA) law restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian.

BRIEF SUMMARY: for full prescribing information use package insert.

INDICATIONS: Zuprevo® 18% is indicated for the treatment of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) associated with Mannheimia haemolytica, Pasteurella multocida, and Histophilus somni in beef and non-lactating dairy cattle, and for the control of respiratory disease in beef and non-lactating dairy cattle at high risk of developing BRD associated with M. haemolytica , P. multocida, and H. somni.

CONFIDENCE IS KNOWING THAT YOU GOT IT RIGHT. When you run a stocker operation, the sun doesn’t tell you when the work is done. So, when you do get some downtime, it’s because you know things are on the right track. That’s why you choose the confidence of treatment with Zuprevo® (tildipirosin) when you see signs of BRD. Talk to your veterinarian about Zuprevo, and visit usa.zuprevo.com to learn more. merck-animal-health-usa.com • 800.521-5767 Copyright ©2016 Intervet, Inc., doing business as Merck Animal Health, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved.

55154 6/16 53715

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR USE IN ANIMALS ONLY. NOT FOR HUMAN USE. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. TO AVOID ACCIDENTAL INJECTION, DO NOT USE IN AUTOMATICALLY POWERED SYRINGES WHICH HAVE NO ADDITIONAL PROTECTION SYSTEM. IN CASE OF HUMAN INJECTION, SEEK MEDICAL ADVICE IMMEDIATELY AND SHOW THE PACKAGE INSERT OR LABEL TO THE PHYSICIAN. DO NOT USE Zuprevo® 18% IN SWINE. Fatal adverse events have been reported following the use of tildipirosin in swine. NOT FOR USE IN CHICKENS OR TURKEYS. Cattle intended for human consumption must not be slaughtered within 21 days of the last treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle 20

months of age or older. Use of this drug product in these cattle may cause milk residues. A withdrawal period has not been established in pre-ruminating calves. Do not use in calves to be processed for veal.

The effects of Zuprevo® 18% on bovine reproductive performance, pregnancy and lactation have not been determined. Swelling and inflammation, which may be severe, may be seen at the injection site after administration.

Subcutaneous injection may result in local tissue reactions which persist beyond slaughter withdrawal period. This may result in trim loss of edible tissue at slaughter.

WARNINGS: FOR USE IN ANIMALS ONLY. NOT FOR HUMAN USE. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. TO AVOID ACCIDENTAL INJECTION, DO NOT USE IN AUTOMATICALLY POWERED SYRINGES WHICH HAVE NO ADDITIONAL PROTECTION SYSTEM. IN CASE OF HUMAN INJECTION, SEEK MEDICAL ADVICE IMMEDIATELY AND SHOW THE PACKAGE INSERT OR LABEL TO THE PHYSICIAN. Avoid direct contact with skin and eyes. If accidental eye exposure occurs, rinse eyes with clean water. If accidental skin exposure occurs, wash the skin immediately with soap and water. Tildipirosin may cause sensitization by skin contact.

For technical assistance or to report a suspected adverse reaction, call: 1-800-219-9286.

For customer service or to request a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), call: 1-800-2113573. For additional Zuprevo 18% information go to www.zuprevo.com.

For a complete listing of adverse reactions for Zuprevo 18% reported to CVM see: http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ SafetyHealth.

DO NOT USE ZUPREVO 18% IN SWINE. Fatal adverse events have been reported following the use of tildipirosin in swine. NOT FOR USE IN CHICKENS OR TURKEYS.

RESIDUE WARNING: Cattle intended for human consumption must not be slaughtered within 21 days of the last treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle 20 months of age or older. Use of this drug product in these cattle may cause milk residues. A withdrawal period has not been established in preruminating calves. Do not use in calves to be processed for veal.

PRECAUTIONS:The effects of Zuprevo 18% on bovine reproductive performance, pregnancy and lactation have not been determined.

Swelling and inflammation, which may be severe, may be seen at the injection site after administration.

Subcutaneous injection may result in local tissue reactions which persist beyond the slaughter withdrawal period. This may result in trim loss of edible tissue at slaughter.

Made in Germany Distributed by: Intervet Inc d/b/a Merck Animal Health, Summit, NJ 07901 Copyright © 2011, Intervet Inc., a subsidiary of Merck & Co. All rights reserved.

CATTLE HEALTH

BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

Implants Still Worthwhile, Tips to Reduce PostWeaning Stress and Calf Supplement Considerations Table of Contents 4 After 60 Years, Implants Still Proving Worthwhile 8 Tips to Reduce Post-Weaning Stress 12 Calf Supplement Considerations

The Cattleman, the monthly journal of Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, is pleased to partner with Merck Animal Health on a series of seasonal beef cattle health management manuals. Thanks to the generous support of the Merck Animal Health technical services veterinarians, we are able to provide easy-to-read articles that educate and inform ranchers about various aspects of beef cattle health management. thecattlemanmagazine.com

Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

3

After 60 Years, Implants Still Proving Worthwhile The first growth-promoting implant was approved in the mid-1950s and is still available today. Cow-calf producers might consider implants in their herd development program to capture value.

While the use of pharmaceutical technologies has become more controversial in recent years, they have been safely used for many years to increase value to the producers and make the beef industry, as a whole, more efficient.

For margin operations, such as stockers and feedlots, use of these technologies becomes important in order to remain competitive, but the ultimate benefits go to the ends of the beef supply chain — to the cow-calf segment and to the consumer.

Dr. Wade Nichols, senior technical services manager with Merck Animal Health, says that while it is important to select the right implant for the production scenario, the most important thing is that they are used. Lower- and moderate-dosed implants should be used for stocker cattle and suckling calves.

He says, “A single Ralgro implant in a suckling calf is going to increase weaning weight by 23 pounds on average. In today’s

market, that could be well over $35 per animal, which is a pretty substantial value.”

For stocker operations, the increase in average daily gain (ADG) from implanting is about 0.24 pounds per day with the use of Revalor®-G. Even cull cows that are retained and grown, or finished before sale, can benefit from implants.

However, despite the value of implants as a production tool, only about 30 percent of cow-calf operations industry-wide utilize implants today. Nichols says that figure appears to have leveled off recently after 20 years of declines.

“Even a low-potency implant has a lot of value, especially in a suckling calf,” he says. “There is really no greater rate of return on an investment than an implant.”

Nichols says it’s a myth that implanted calves bring a lower price at the sale barn. He says a number of universities have investigated that assumption, using sales data from country sale

4 Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6 thecattlemanmagazine.com

There’s really no greater rate of return on an investment than an implant. barns and video auctions, and have determined there is no basis for it. “When you correct for other issues impacting price, like lot size or hide color, there is really no difference between that of an implanted calf versus one that is not implanted,” he says.

Nichols adds that it’s also a myth that cattle won’t perform as well at the feedlot if they were implanted earlier.

In addition, use of implants does not result in high hormone levels in beef. Intact males and females have higher sex hormone levels than do implanted steers. While some international markets, such as the European Union, maintain bans on the import of beef from implanted cattle, the World Trade Organization ruled in favor of the U.S. and Canada in finding that there was no evidence of a human health risk from beef implants.

Choose the right implant There are more than 25 implant products available (a comprehensive chart is available at thecattlemanmagazine.com).

Some are only suited for feedlot situations, while others are appropriate for calves or for yearlings.

The product labels restrict which products should be used for which sex and phase of production (suckling calves, on pasture, or in the feedlot).

The primary difference between products is the hormone contained in them. They are either estrogenic (female hormone), androgenic (male hormone), or a combination of the 2.

Among the estrogens are estradiol 17-beta, estradiol benzoate (72 percent as effective as estradiol 17b for growth promotion), and zeranol (33 percent as effective as estradiol 17b). Androgens usually contain testosterone or trenbolone acetate (an analog of testosterone with a greater anabolic response). The other difference between products is the dose — the greater the concentration, the higher the dose.

Nichols says replacement heifers can be implanted only once in the suckling or growing phase, but producers should consult the label for restrictions on age. Across multiple studies, the effect of implanting on heifer pregnancy rates has ranged from an 11 percent decrease to a 19 percent improvement, but on average, the effects are minimal. If there are any bull calves that may be retained for breeding, those bulls should not be implanted.

There are no implants available for use in suckling calves that combine an androgen and an estrogen. Calves are limited to estrogen products. For stockers, Nichols says that in most cases he would recommend use of a combination implant containing both estradiol and trenbolone acetate. “The 2 hormones work through different pathways to increase animal growth,” he explains.

“Estradiol helps increase the frame size of the animal and thecattlemanmagazine.com

ultimately its growth, while trenbolone acetate works directly on muscle cells to ultimately increase muscle mass,” he says.

A combination also allows the use of a lower dose of estrogen. Nichols says estrogen increases the maintenance energy requirement of the animal. “That is important in a stocker situation where we might have low rates of gain or limited forage availability,” he says. “A combination implant is going to give a more consistent response at a lower rate of gain (when forage is limiting) than an estrogen-only implant.”

Implant technique Implants are applied under the skin, typically under the middle third of the ear. There are 2 ridges of cartilage between the top and bottom of the ear. It’s important to keep that site clean and to use a disinfectant in a tray with a roller-type sponge to wipe off the needle between uses.

Although only 30 percent of cow-calf operations use implants, well more than 90 percent of feedlot cattle receive them. Cattle will typically receive implants multiple times in the course of their lives. Most implants are expected to be effective for about 100 to 120 days, so it may be advantageous to administer another one after that period of time. When the animals get to the feedlot, the dose typically increases.

However, Nichols says that studies show implanted cattle outperform non-implanted animals for as long as 180 days in grazing trials, so it appears the improvement in rate of gain persists beyond what would be expected to be the effective life of the implant.

Feed additives, such as ionophores, can also be used. Rather than being an alternative to implants, Nichols says that since their mechanisms are different, the effects are additive. On a cow-calf operation, an ionophore such as Rumensin works by reducing the amount of feed that the animal consumes.

Ionophores alter the population of ruminal microorganisms, resulting in more efficient ruminal fermentation. They reduce feed requirements by 5 to 10 percent, with no effect on cow reproductive efficiency, milk yield, or weaning weight. They also reduce time to the heifer’s first estrus by 10 to 35 days. However, because it must be included in feed, correct dosing can be difficult and will be most effective when stored feeds are used.

Ionophores can be fed at all stages of the animal’s life without withdrawal. In a cow-calf operation, they are primarily fed to cows in order to reduce feed intake and thereby improve feed efficiency.

In a stocker operation, they can be delivered via supplement and can increase ADG in the neighborhood of 15 percent. In a lot of cases that is 0.15 pounds per day, but with high quality Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

5

Use of implants does not result in high hormone levels in beef. Intact males and females have higher sex hormone levels than do implanted steers. feeds such as small grain pastures, as much as a 0.45 pound per day increase in ADG through use of an ionophore has been documented.

Another advantage to ionophores on wheat pasture is that they help control bloat. They can also be delivered free choice in the appropriate minerals, but ionophores are toxic to horses so producers should be careful to restrict the access of horses to treated feed.

Nichols says the only reason to limit either implant or ionophore use in cattle would be as the usage is dictated by marketing conditions. “All natural or non-hormone treated cattle (NHTC) market channels do exist, which can reward limiting implant and additive use,” he explains. Cattle producers who want to explore these programs need to understand what the requirements are for each program, and they also need to make sure a program will be available to them.

Nichols says, “If there is a premium out there for raising

an all-natural calf, I want to make sure that the premium will exist and be high enough when I market the calves, and that my cattle can qualify for the program if I forego an implant,” and lose the 23 pounds of weaning weight, or the 0.24 pounds per day ADG achieved in stocker operations.

While the biggest decision is whether to use implants and feed additives, with several products available it is important to select the correct tool for the production setting. Nichols notes that many of these products have been around for a long time. The first implant was approved in the mid-1950s, and it is still available today.

Nichols says, “It’s easy for those of us out in the country to forget what the real value of these technologies is, so we get into a rut where we’ve used them for a while and wonder if they really still have value. It’s clear that they do, and there are many resources out there to help producers better understand how to apply these technologies in appropriate situations.” ❚

6 Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6 thecattlemanmagazine.com

PROTECTS DAYS LONGER THAN

Bovi-Shield Gold One Shot.™1

NO OTHER PRODUCT CAN MATCH THE PROVEN DURATION OF VISTA® ONCE. 1, 2

Vista Once, Vista 5, and Vista 3 vaccines demonstrate protection for 365 days against IBR and BVD Types 1 and 2 — 86 days longer than Bovi-Shield Gold One Shot.1 Pyramid®5 + Presponse® protects against BVD Type 1b for 217 days.2 All Vista vaccines are labeled for use in pregnant cows and calves nursing pregnant cows.

Vista Once and Once PMH® SQ also provide 16-week protection against Mannheimia haemolytica and Pasteurella multocida – the only products with duration claims against these respiratory bacteria.

Ask your veterinarian for Vista vaccines.

It’s the only name that matters when protection matters most.

1 Vista product labels and Bovi-Shield Gold One Shot product label 2 Pyramid 5 + Presponse product label merck-animal-health-usa.com • 800-521-5767 Copyright ©2016 Intervet Inc., doing business as Merck Animal Health, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved.

3/16 BV-VST-54085-R

Tips to Reduce Post-Weaning Stress

By Gary DiGiuseppe

It’s a big change when a calf comes off its mother’s milk, or when it is moved to a new location. Big changes produce stress and failure to manage that stress through feed and handling can take dollars out of a producer’s pocket.

“The cattle that are being weaned are going through the stress of weaning, and the most important thing about the arrival of new feeder cattle or stocker cattle is weaning the animals,” says Dr. David Hutcheson, animal nutritionist and consultant with Animal Agricultural Consulting in Scroggins.

“Stress has been shown to decrease the responsiveness of the immune system. The survival of weaned, newly arrived stocker or feeder cattle is dependent upon a functional immune system so they can take care of diseases, or any other outside influence that they need to take care of. This is a big challenge, and it’s a totally new adaptive process for the calf.”

Hutcheson defines stress as a nonspecific response of the body to any demand, and to the environment in which the calf resides. “Stress alters the steady state of the body,” he says.

Managing this in calves has 2 major components, one of which involves extremes in the environment. If it’s cold, provide the animals with protection. If it’s hot, make sure they have shade. If it’s wet, see that they are comfortable, putting them in a barn if necessary.

The other component revolves around nutrition.

Stress can produce or aggravate nutrient deficiencies. It can lead to deficiencies of trace minerals like copper, selenium, zinc and manganese, all of which are necessary in specific quantities for the immune system to function as it should.

In addition to trace minerals, the animal needs to consume enough protein and energy to ward off nutritional stress, and you can get into a vicious cycle. For instance, if the calf does not eat due to protein being low, it will not get enough nutrition in its feed and any deficiency is exacerbated. If the feed components were assembled with a healthy animal’s needs in mind, reduced consumption due to stress will contribute to those deficiencies.

Another thing that can create major stresses during weaning and in newly arrived calves is deprivation of water.

Hutcheson says, “Having clean, clear water available immediately when the calves come in is very important. Water is the first thing that they need when they arrive or begin weaning. If a calf does not drink it will not eat, and of course, the deprivation of water or feed can cause stress.”

Crowding also can be an avenue to stress. The crowded situation itself creates anxiety in the animals, and the close proximity to their cohorts exposes them to disease. In addition,

8 Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6 thecattlemanmagazine.com

any form of processing — from castration and dehorning to vaccination and deworming — can contribute to stress.

Hutcheson says the most common response to stress is a decrease in appetite.

“Willingness to eat is low during the first few weeks of weaning, or after the arrival of new calves,” he says. “If an animal has a disease and has fever, it will not eat. That turns off the appetite mechanism.”

Research shows the feed intake of healthy calves can be more than twice the amount consumed by sick or unhealthy calves. Hutcheson says during the first 7 days after weaning or arrival, a general rule of thumb is that a healthy calf will consume feed equivalent to about 1.5 percent of its body weight, while an unhealthy calf will consume about 1.0 percent of its body weight.

So a 500-pound calf will normally eat 7.5 to 8 pounds of feed a day — not very much to begin with — while an animal that is under the weather will only eat 5 pounds of feed. Neither calf will gain, but the healthy calf will be able to maintain its body weight during those crucial first 7 days away from the cow or on its new premises, whereas the calf that is eating incorrectly will actually lose weight.

Hutcheson says it usually takes 6 to 8 weeks for healthy calves to achieve rates of gain in line with their genetic potential. By then they are consuming up to 3 percent of their body weight daily, so a 500-pound calf will consume about 15 pounds. However, the calf that was sick during the 6- to 8-week period will only consume 10 to 12 pounds of feed, and will not achieve a good rate of gain as a result.

Calves that are gaining at the rate of their genetic potential can achieve daily gains of 3 to 3.5 pounds during this period, while the calves that were sick or unhealthy will be gaining about 30 percent less.

Preconditioning pays Hutcheson is a firm believer in preconditioning or value-added programs. Typically, they require calves to be weaned 45 to 60 days prior to their sale in order to decrease the effects of stress. He says, “The 45- to 60-day value-added program period prior to leaving the cow-calf operation produces a profitable, healthy calf for the next phase.”

With the price of calves as strong as it is, he says the calves must be kept healthy during this period so they continue to gain weight and achieve the best sale price for preconditioned animals.

The programs also require vaccinations and other processing to get the animals ready to perform in a pasture, on a growth ration or in a feedlot — before they leave the ranch. Hutcheson says, “Tremendous stress can occur when calves are weaned, and good stockmanship with low-stress handling techniques needs to be practiced. Instead of hollering, shouting, running and chasing them, try to move them as quietly as possible into the weaning pens. There are several techniques for weaning, and whatever technique you’ve been using in the past that works for you is a good technique. There is no one answer to this.”

The right intake levels The most important thing to keep calves performing as they are weaned or relocated is to maintain their intake at appropriate levels. Hutcheson notes that diets are formulated in percentages, so stressed calves have to receive the right formulation with the low intakes in mind.

He says, “If we’ve got the protein too low, and the calf should be eating 15 pounds of feed instead of 10 pounds, we will be feeding 25 to 30 percent below the needs of the calf just for protein. Other nutrients are the same way.”

The calf also needs the right levels of nutrients for its immune system to function optimally. This means that not only should protein and energy be matched to its consumption level, but also trace minerals and vitamins.

The ration should be blended with the proper amounts of copper, zinc, selenium, manganese, and vitamins A and E. “Critical nutrients must be prioritized for specific situations to ensure optimum performance during stress,” Hutcheson says. “Protein and energy are first. Then, trace minerals and vitamins. When we get ready to wean or receive the calves and we bring them into the system, they need to get good quality, free-choice hay. This is a natural product that they like to eat.

The first few days, we need to give them 0.5 to 1 percent of their body weight as hay. Take care of the good quality hay, so they’ll eat it.”

The right ration At the same time, the calves can be introduced to a total mixed ration. It can be purchased in bags or in bulk, or mixed in bulk, if you have enough calves.

Hutcheson recommends the mixed feed contain 80 to 90 percent dry matter, with 13.5 to 14.5 percent protein. The energy should be 70 to 72 percent total digestible nutrients (TDN), the equivalent of Net Energy of maintenance (NEm) 74

The 45- to 60-day value-added program period prior to leaving the cowcalf operation produces a profitable healthy calf for the next phase. thecattlemanmagazine.com

Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

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The most common response to stress is a decrease in appetite.

to 77 megacalories (Mcals) per pound, and Net Energy of gain (NEg) from 47 to 52 Mcals per pound.

“Good energy is very important,” he says. “One of my preferences over the years has been to not use non-protein nitrogen in the first 30 to 45 days or 45 to 60 days when we’re trying to alleviate as much stress as we can so they’ll adapt to the new environment. But as a preference, it can be used successfully.”

His recommendation for trace minerals would be between 10 and 15 parts per million (PPM) for copper, and that can even rise to 20 PPM, depending on the status of the calf coming in.

Zinc should be 100 to 150 PPM, manganese 75 to 100 PPM and selenium 0.2 to 0.3 PPM. “One of the important things about adding trace minerals is bioavailability,” Hutcheson says. “With the exception of selenite, very little of the oxides are absorbed. They may decrease the cost of the ration, but they’re not good trace minerals.

“I recommend either a mixture of chelated copper, zinc and manganese, or a mixture with all of these minerals in sulfate form. The best biological availability is from chelated minerals; there are several out there, although some have different characteristics.”

He also recommends 0.4 to 0.5 PPM cobalt in the ration. In

the rumen, cobalt is changed to Vitamin B¹², which is necessary for the animal. In addition, the cobalt can improve appetite in some cases.

The calves need to get salt, as well as calcium, phosphorus and potassium. The total mixed ration needs to be 1 to 1.5 percent of the diet and should be added to the hay.

The calves need about 15,000 to 20,000 units daily of Vitamin A. Hutcheson says that’s a little high but should be adequate for calves coming off dry pastures.

If they’re coming off green pasture, Vitamin A could be around 10,000 to 15,000 units per day.

Vitamin E needs to be 125 to 200 units per day. He cautions, “Remember, these are always formulated in parts per million or percentages and calves eat ‘amounts’. We have to look at how much the calf is eating and the level of the nutrients in the feed to make sure we’re getting adequate intake.”

And finally, Hutcheson warns against over feeding the animal.

He says, “It’s best to feed them so that they’ll clean up and get used to eating the feed and hay in the beginning, because if there’s a lot of hay or feed left over, that means they’re not eating it properly. Feed should be monitored every day during that first period. Most people feed once a day, some feed twice a day, and there are some other combinations.” ❚

10 Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6 thecattlemanmagazine.com

DON’T LET WHAT

COULD HAPPEN CHANGE WHAT

SHOULD HAPPEN Raising cattle comes with as much uncertainty as it does potential. And given today’s unpredictable market dynamics, minimizing uncertainty is more important than ever. Vision® clostridial vaccines, propelled by the legendary SPUR® adjuvant, helps producers prepare for the unknown and protect from the unnecessary, ensuring that the profit potential of their cattle won’t be hindered by blackleg.

merck-animal-health-usa.com • 800-521-5767 Copyright ©2017 Intervet Inc., doing business as Merck Animal Health, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved.

5/17 BV-56194

Calf Supplement Considerations

By Gary DiGiuseppe

There are a number of potential benefits to supplementation during the grazing season, and they can all add up to a better bottom line.

“Whenever we’re supplying supplemental nutrients to cattle grazing pastures, it can be a profitable practice,” says Dr. David Hutcheson, animal nutritionist and consultant with Animal Agricultural Consulting in Scroggins.

“Following weaning, calves are biologically ready for a rapid growth and development period. These calves have developed a functional rumen, thus allowing the efficient use of forage.”

As for older calves in a stocker situation, their growth can be limited by their level of forage intake on summer pastures.

Supplementation can increase the forage intake. It can also correct nutrient deficiencies. Most forage, including improved forage, is not always nutritionally balanced for the type and class of cattle that are grazing the pastures.

The consumption of a feed or mineral supplement balances the forage grazed by cattle in order to optimize production.

Hutcheson says cattle on pasture need a specific, minimum level of each type of nutrient to achieve maximum production efficiency. Nutrients that are commonly deficient in grazed forages are protein, energy, phosphorus, salt, and in some cases, trace minerals, particularly copper. thecattlemanmagazine.com

Five performance improvements There are 5 ways supplementation can improve the performance of both cow-calf pairs and stocker calves on pasture.

• By supplying nutrients in which the growing grass is deficient.

• By an increase in the consumption of forages. A shortage of protein can lead to reduced appetite and weight loss, so supplementing protein can restore the desired levels. That, in turn, increases the amount of energy intake and improves weight gain.

• By improvement of growth rates; and that goes for stockers as well as weaned calves.

• By better utilization of the forage; getting more out of it, if it has deficiencies. Cattle are attracted to the supplements, which can be strategically placed to pull them into grazing areas where they might not ordinarily go.

• By allowing you to increase stocking rates and get more out of limited pasture.

Test to determine what your forage does and does not have According to Hutcheson, a supplement program needs to take into account both the type of forage available and the type of cattle that will be grazing the forage. “Forage nutrient values may be chemically determined or may be established from Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

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IS YOUR DEWORMER PASSING THE TEST? AVERAGE PERCENT EFFICACY2 90% Required to Pass 4

P 99.6%

PASS FAIL

F 83.5%

P

F

80%

F 70%

Consult your local veterinarian for assistance in the diagnosis, treatment and control of parasitism.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION Safe-Guard EN-PRO-AL Molasses Block RESIDUE WARNING: Cattle must not be slaughtered within 11 days following last treatment. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in preruminating calves. Do not use in calves to be processed for veal.

Safe-Guard Protein Block RESIDUE WARNING: Cattle must not be slaughtered within 16 days following last treatment. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in preruminating calves. Do not use in calves to be processed for veal.

Safe-Guard Mineral, feed through products and liquid feed RESIDUE WARNING: Cattle must not be slaughtered within 13 days following last treatment. For dairy cattle, the milk discard time is zero hours. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in preruminating calves. Do not use in calves to be processed for veal.

60%

Safe-Guard®/Panacur®

LongRange® Injectable

Dectomax® Injectable

Cydectin® Injectable

Ivomec® Injectable

Safe-Guard®/Panacur® Plus an Avermectin

72.3%

F

The FDA has identified growing levels of internal parasites resistant to the Macrocyclic lactones (Avermectin) class of dewormers.1

98.7% 90%

78.4%

49%

100%

50%

40%

0

Results from the Merck Animal Health Fecal Egg Count Reduction Test National database2 shows several cases of internal parasite resistance and supports concurrent treatment protocol to manage resistant parasites.

The majority opinion among parasitologists attending the FDA public forum on managing resistant parasites was that concurrent treatment of two different classes of anthelmintics is the best way to manage these resistant parasites.

Merck’s database supports 2008 USDA National Animal Health Monitoring Study (NAHMS) showing confirmed or suspected resistance in several U.S. states to Macrocyclic lactone (Avermectin) class of dewormers.3

ADD SAFE-GUARD ADD POUNDS

Safe-Guard Drench and Paste RESIDUE WARNING: Cattle must not be slaughtered within 8 days following last treatment. For dairy cattle, the milk discard time is zero hours. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in preruminating calves. Do not use in calves to be processed for veal.

Safe-Guard is a registered trademark of Merck Animal Health. Panacur is a registered trademark of Merck Animal Health. Ivomec is a registered trademark of Merial, Ltd. Cydectin is a registered trademark of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica. Dectomax is a registered trademark of Zoetis.

LongRange is a registered trademark of Merial, Ltd. 1 FDA Public Resistance Forum-March 2012 2 Tests from 1/1/2008 - 4/12/2016 3 NAHMS 2008 4 Dobson R., Jackson F., Levecke B., Besier B., et al. Guidelines for fecal egg count reduction tests (FECRT). World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP) (2011) Proceedings: 23rd International Conference of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology 2 Giralda Farms – Madison, NJ 07940 – merck-animal-health-usa.com – 800.521.5767 Copyright © 2016 Intervet, Inc. d/b/a Merck Animal Health, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved.

5/16 BV-SG-55108

Following weaning, calves are biologically ready for a rapid growth and development period. published values,” he says. “However, published values may not represent the actual nutrients available from the forage.

Regardless, to establish a proper supplementation program, an estimation of these nutrient values must be available. It is best to have it analyzed each year, because the nutrient values do change,” he says.

The nutrient analysis report will identify the forage’s content of protein and minerals, which are nutrients necessary for optimal growth of stockers or calves. In some cases, the only supplementation necessary may be minerals. However, Hutcheson says many times the mineral supplements available are over-consumed; in particular, the consumption of those that are only needed in trace amounts can exceed requirements.

To improve gains for calves grazing with cows, producers can employ a creep feeding system that is not accessible to the cows. If summer forage is adequate, cows may only need a mineral supplement.

The calves themselves may not need supplementation during May and June, during which time Hutcheson says growing forages will normally support optimum gains for both stockers and cows with calves. The rest of the grazing season, though, pastures will have adequate protein for cows, but will be more than likely deficient in protein for growing calves or stockers.

“Do you change supplements monthly or not? The cost of labor many times does not allow for monthly changes; therefore, a compromise has to be established,” he says.

Feeding supplements daily is a labor-intensive proposition.

An alternative is to use liquids, blocks, or tubs containing ingredients that limit intake.

If only minerals are needed, these can be fed loose with wind and rain protection, in blocks, or incorporated with the supplements that you’re feeding.

Byproducts such as wheat mids and soybean hulls work well as supplementation and can be fed daily or 3 days a week.

However, when supplements are fed free-choice, it’s difficult to control the intake and a product with a feed limiter should be considered.

When supplements are fed free-choice, the stockers or calves will eat them in preference to going out and foraging for them, and the producer will not get the full benefit of the pasture.

Hutcheson says, “We like to supplement them between 0.75 and 1 percent of their body weight with some protein and some energy. Early in the season, it would be mostly thecattlemanmagazine.com

energy, but later in the season we would have both protein and energy.”

Forages for stocker cattle grazing do not always allow the animals to achieve their genetic potential for growth. This can be the case with both warm- and cool-season grasses. Hutcheson says protein from grazing small grains like wheat and oats is inefficiently digested due to the high level of degradable protein, which is broken down in the rumen.

There may be a better response if undegradable protein, which is absorbed in the small intestine, is included in the supplement. Hutcheson adds, “Supplementation of protein or energy should be accompanied by other nutrients that might be deficient, and/or feed additives, to stimulate efficiency.”

To improve use of forage, the producer can also consider feeding ionophores, which increase feed efficiency and weight gain by altering rumen fermentation patterns. This is another way to ensure that the pastures are being put to maximum use and no more money than necessary is invested in feed supplements.

“If you do start supplementation, you probably need to consider continuing to supplement unless you get some good rains,” Hutcheson says. “You should try not to supplement as long as you don’t need to. It’s a bit of a toss-up. But you have to consider what your goals are, particularly with our highpriced calves right now. If you can put a pound of gain on for $1, and you can get $2 per pound for the calf, that’s a pretty good trade-off in economics.”

Those high calf prices should also provide an incentive for producers to test their forages for content. Hutcheson recommends at least 1 test a month or 2 after the season starts. That’s one way to ensure those lush May and June grasses are indeed adequate for performance and, if you’re running stockers, how much additional supplementation may be required. Then, if it appears the condition of the grass is changing, another test 2 to 3 months in would be appropriate.

“The thing that goes down most quickly is the protein in the grasses,” he says. “Energy will go down, but as the grasses get drier with less protein, many times the cattle can eat enough energy.”

Because the animal is continuing to get bigger, he will need an increase in supplementation since the pastures are going downhill. Then, of course, in the winter, the producer should consider supplementation to hay or whatever system is being put to use. ❚ Merck Animal Health BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

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See labels for complete instructions merck-animal-health-usa.com • 800-521-5767 Copyright © 2017 Intervet Inc., d/b/a Merck Animal Health, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved.

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BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION SERIES – PART 6

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