The_Ledger_Summer_2022

American Aberdeen Cattle and Drought

Efficiencies of the Breed as a Drought Mitigation Strategy

BY KELSEY POPE, CONTRIBUTING WRITER

but the cows were able to maintain themselves and had good body condi tion scores at weaning. “We pregnancy tested our cows in October and had a remarkably suc cessful pregnancy check,” he adds. “Out of 240 cows, only 19 were open, which included one donor cow that we flushed.” Cattle selection and managing resources in planning for drought is a research focus for David Lalman, Ph.D., professor and Extension beef cattle specialist at Oklahoma State University. Lalman gives producers sugges tions for short- and long-term drought planning. “Perhaps the highest priority is to know ahead of time what steps will be taken to adjust stocking rate to match lower forage production during dry periods,” Lalman says. “Overgraz ing during drought [or any time] leads to deteriorated natural resources, which, of course, are the lifeblood of any ranching enterprise.” In the short term, culling during a drought is a terrific opportunity to improve cow efficiency long term. Lalman considers the “three O’s” to develop a culling priority list: open, old and other problems. “Open and late-bred or late-calving cows should be the first to go,” he says. “Next, consider older cows that may be nearing the end of their productive life. Other problems might include history of low calf weight, bad attitude, poor udder structure, bad feet, inability to maintain body condi tion and so on.” Longer term, the idea of matching cows to the environment and graz ing system can cushion a ranching enterprise from the negative effects of drought. This concept can be boiled down to creating a cow herd

that maintains a high level of fertility without requiring a lot of expensive inputs. Eventually, we hope to find a way to identify cattle that can con sistently breed back early each year, maintain their body condition and wean a large, healthy calf without requiring excessive inputs (forage, purchased and harvested feed, health products, labor, etc.). “In our research program, we have found there is tremendous variation in forage intake among contemporary groups of cattle,” Lalman adds. “For example, some cows may consume 20 pounds per day, while others might consume over 40 pounds per day. It is interesting that some large cows do not eat a lot relative to their body weight, while some small cows do eat a lot relative to their body weight. However, on average, there is a strong, positive relationship between cow size and daily forage intake.” While it isn’t a perfect index for “cow efficiency,” mature cow size can be used to better match cows to their forage resources and management system. On average, each additional 100 pounds of mature cow weight results in increased calf weaning weight between 6 to 28 pounds. The problem is that each additional 100 pounds of mature cow weight costs about $50 to maintain. And that cost will likely be substantially greater with escalating input costs. Finally, in tough environments prone to drought, breeding those moderate, fertile cows to terminal sires excelling in growth, feed efficien cy and carcass quality makes a lot of sense. Ranch revenue is increased due to heavier calf weaning weight and improved calf – and eventually carcass – market value. Continued on page 32 

W idespread drought has plagued much of the cen tral and western United States, persisting into the second half of 2022. Droughts have always occurred in the ranching business; therefore, ranchers need to plan for the short- and long-term im plications of drought before it occurs. With continuing widespread drought, efficiency is more important than ever. That not only includes water and feed efficiency, but also ef ficiency in cattle. Neil Effertz owns and operates Effertz EZ Ranch, located north of Bismarck, N.D. Effertz has been instrumental in the breed and has seen many years of weather patterns affecting cattle production. The 2021 drought in North Dakota was the worst he’s been through. “We were in the bullseye of the drought,” Effertz says. “From the first of the year until mid-September, we had around 4.5 inches of precipita tion – incredibly dry.” Not only was drought hard on the cattle themselves, it made feed hard to find. There was no dryland corn harvested for grain in their whole county, so they cut silage from corn that was zeroed-out from insurance to feed. They also wintered their cows largely on a very low feed value ration that was two-thirds cornstalks and one-third hay. Effertz was most worried about how the cows would breed back after the harsh, drought conditions they en dured while nursing their calves. His calves were a little lighter at weaning,

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