The herd expanded for 3 years to This contraction continued to , when environmentally dry conditions began and persisted through During the most recent full cycle — , fewer cattle entered the value chain increasing the demand for feeder cattle imported from Mexico. This cycle event caused feeder cattle to move into feedlots earlier than normal. By late and early , grazing conditions improved, and feed prices decreased.
These conditions increased feeder calf prices, which helped to improve cow-calf profitability. A 7-year liquidation of the national cattle herd ended on January 1, at Since then, the cattle herd grew to a peak in of As of January 1, , the herd has decreased by 1. Embed this chart Download larger size chart pixels by , dpi.
Cow-calf operations mainly maintain a herd of beef cows for raising calves. Most calves are born in the spring and weaned at three to seven months. Following the weaning stage, calves can move through the value chain in several different ways. Some of the female calves heifers and male calves bulls may be retained in the herd or sold to another producer. If additional pasture forage is available at weaning, then some calves may be retained for further grazing and growth until the following spring when they would be sold.
Throughout the United States, cow-calf operations are located on land not typically suited or needed for crop production. Beef cows graze on forage from grasslands to maintain themselves and raise a calf with very little, if any, grain input.
The cow is maintained on pasture year-round, as is the calf until it is weaned. Operations with or more beef cows compose 9. Operations with 50 or fewer head are often part of multi-enterprises or they provide supplemental income to off-farm employment.
When calves are weaned, producers must decide if they should retain some heifer and bull calves to replace older cows and bulls or for expanding their herd. The remaining bulls are then castrated to become steers, and together with the remaining heifers not kept in the herd, are sold into the feeding system for slaughter. There are different ways for these new steers and heifers for slaughter to grow to market weight.
After being weaned, the calves may enter a stocker program, where they will graze on grass for three to four months before being placed in a feedlot. Another option is to move calves into a to day preconditioning program. Hover over Click on a tile for details. Number of Beef Cows by State The number of cattle in every state is a good indicator of how much beef each state produces.
The ten states with the highest number of beef cows are: Texas - 4,, Oklahoma - 2,, Missouri - 2,, Nebraska - 1,, South Dakota - 1,, Kansas - 1,, Montana - 1,, Kentucky - , North Dakota - , Florida - , Together, these states have 18,, beef cows, comprising Here are the 10 states with the highest number of cows: Texas 4,, Oklahoma 2,, Missouri 2,, Nebraska 1,, South Dakota 1,, Kansas 1,, Montana 1,, Kentucky , North Dakota , Florida , Beef Production By State It is labour intensive but calves benefit by getting used to yards, people, handling and group socialisation.
In addition, being in yards makes it easy to do health checks, vaccinations and parasite control. This weaning method is important if calves are going to a feedlot or are destined for live export. Cattle producers aim to mark identify , dehorn if necessary, and castrate calves before weaning.
It is acceptable to use a knife to castrate calves less than four months of age or rubber rings to castrate calves less than two weeks of age.
The horn bud may be removed up to eight weeks of age by heat cauterisation or dehorning knife. Where the herd is spread over a large area, some animals may miss musters and unfortunately will be older when these procedures occur.
In this case, it is best if both castration and dehorning are treated as surgical procedures — performed only by a veterinary surgeon using anaesthetic. Identification of cattle is used for on-farm management and tracking from birth to slaughter, but some methods are painful. Microchips or other electronic methods cause little discomfort. Beef calves are weaned at six to 10 months of age when they weigh pounds. Calves leave their ranch or farm of origin between six and 12 months of age.
Younger or lighterweight calves may be sent to a backgrounder or stocker who continues to graze them on grass or other forages until they are 12 to 16 months old. Both the cow-calf and stocker segments graze cattle on range and pastureland that is largely unsuitable for crop production. In fact, about 85 percent of U.
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