Early weaning and planning to get ahead during drought

Prior to 2019, Jim and Jenny Cross, and their daughter Rebecca, weaned from March to April when the calves were 6-9 months old. However, during the severe drought in 2019, they were forced to make some tough decisions to get their cattle through the dry time. Rebecca recalled, “There was a lot [of discussion] about early weaning around that time. There were some specific articles around nutrition of cattle as well as managing water.” She recalled how every time the FutureBeef emails came out, they triggered discussions. “We would go through, read them and then have a chat about the different things that could be implemented… and we could then take it to our cattle nutritionist and our vet and say we are thinking about doing this, what can you recommend. We went through every scenario and all the options for feeding those calves.” The combination of the FutureBeef resources, the input from their service providers and their own discussion gave them the confidence “… to make a good decision.”

To read how the Cross family went about incorporating early weaning into their management plan and the role FutureBeef played in their decision making, click here.