Selecting a proper mineral supplementation strategy can be quite complicated with all the different product offerings and brands available. In selecting the right program for your herd, it is helpful to not only have an understanding of your forage quality but to also think about what goals you want to achieve.

As cattle producers – beef or dairy – it is critical to remember that both our industries have the same end product: beef. This concept that all cattle contribute to beef production has never been more closely aligned than with the current growth in the mating of dairy cows to beef semen.

In cow-calf operations, reproductive rate is the foundational productive function of the enterprise. Obviously, if cows do not become pregnant, then no calves are produced for revenue generation the following year.

Most beef producers who routinely test cows and heifers confirm pregnancies when their calves are either weaned or preconditioned in late summer. However, experts recommend checking for pregnancy much sooner, especially during a dry spell.