In Sync

Alfred Lord Tennyson once said, "In the spring, a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love."

Well, I don't know about love, exactly. But it's "birds and bees" time on our Kansas farm. Last week on Earth Day, we ran the heifers through the working chute in preparation for this season of "love," or, more accurately, lust.

Earlier, the bulls had their doctor's appointments with Veterinarian Bruce Figger to make sure they were ready to fulfill their job description here on the County Line. But the bulls aren't the only factor in the "birds and bees" of a Kansas cattleman. The heifers who will become first-time mothers next winter also have been getting some extra care.

Beginning in March, our 25 yearling heifers had their silage topped with MGA. MGA is melengestrol acetate, which suppresses the ovulation cycle for the heifers. For 14 days, Randy added the MGA to the silage and fed the equivalent of 1/2 a pound per head per day.

This was the first step in getting the heifers to come into estrus (or heat) at the same time. These young ladies were born in early 2018. In 2020, they will become mothers for the first time.

During their Earth Day "doctor's" appointment, the heifers each got a shot of Lutalyse, which makes them come into heat. We do this to synchronize the heifer's reproductive cycles.

N'Sync isn't just a singing group. We get the heifers' reproductive cycles "in sync" to shorten the calving season for the heifers, which saves labor at calving time. (Well, it saves some labor for the humans - not the mama cows.) Because heifers are first-time mamas, we check them frequently in case they are having trouble calving.

 

 Randy also gave each heifer a vaccination to prevent respiratory issues and diarrhea.

Then it was time to introduce the guys to the ladies. Some 283 days later, the babies are supposed to arrive. So we will expect to get our first 80-pound bundles of joy next January 28 or so. 

Later this week, we'll be moving the remainder of the older cows to summer pastures. Then, we'll "assign" bulls to their respective pastures. 

The bulls are ready. The cows are ready. And if all goes as planned,  the miracle of life begins yet again on the County Line.