Getting heifers back in calf

Farmer Dan

I just have a query. I have 13 heifers calving next march & i want to know has anyone used any successfull meathods in getting these back in calf quickly so they will calve down again in March the following year.

Thanks in advance

ddogsbollix

well they should nearly all come back in heat within a 6-8 week period remeber if they are calving in march they dont have to be bulled until late may early june. if not ya can synchronise them to come into heat.

pakalasa

sucklers or dairy?

5live

And what are they in-calf to?

john mayo 10

If they havent came bulling within 6 to 8 weeks after calfing give them a bulling injection, first time calfers are usually slow to come back in heat as a rule.

Bodacious

I find dairy nuts at grass the job to get them back bulling and plenty of Pre calving licks and all trace boluses just in case

blue5000

A copper bolus in March might help too, if they are suckling take the calves on/off twice a day might also help bring them in heat.

Farmer Dan

Thanks for all the feed back.
They are sucklers, incalf to a aberdeen angus.
Ive been reading here that heifers slip about 6 weeks.
This is my first time calving heifers so i dont want them calving mid april the following year. I know now i should have put these in calf earlier to fit in with the cows, too late now.

Bizzum

I agree with much of the advice above.
What age are the heifers calving down at?
A 6 week slip sounds extreme to me, nutrition is vital in a heifer growing herself and rearing a calf, so feed them well.
Some lads put a lot of faith in washing out cows that don't clean within a few hours.

pakalasa

Agree with all of the above. AA cows tend to be very fertile so it should be less of a problem. Worth putting a lot of effort into it alright. If they slip back at all, next to impossible to bring them back again. It might be worth the hassle of seperating cows from calves from 1 month old, to twice a day suckling. It will bring then forward by about 2 weeks.

charityboy

john mayo 10 wrote: »

If they havent came bulling within 6 to 8 weeks after calfing give them a bulling injection, first time calfers are usually slow to come back in heat as a rule.

i could be wrong here but is it not pointless injecting heifers / cows if they have not come bulling at some stage previous to the injection

fatoftheland

for all cows and heifers dairy or beef the most common reason for a delay in getting them back in calf is they have a negitive energy balance so after calving a good quality beef or dairy nut will sort out the problem not above 16% protein as it will make them milk more which isnt a problem for dairy stock

sh1tstirrer

charityboy wrote: »

i could be wrong here but is it not pointless injecting heifers / cows if they have not come bulling at some stage previous to the injection

You are right, PRID works better for cows that are not cycling.

49801

a good precalver mineral 6-8wks before calving to ensure they clean properly.

a rising plane of nutrition post calving to bulling (turned out to grass)

separating calves so only sucking twice a day can help them come back into heat quicker even if done for a couple of weeks will work.