PREGNANCY testing is currently the “best bang for the buck” in the tool armoury for cattle producers, a leading cattle production veterinarian believes.
“I would think if you don’t have a pregnancy test glove or a set of scales your business is a little bit behind where it should be,” Dr Ian Braithwaite told the Queensland Country Life.
Dr Braithwaite, who works extensively across northern Australia with beef cattle operations, will deliver two herd efficiency workshops at Eddington Station, Julia Creek, 28 and 29 April, and Gleeson Station, Cloncurry, May.
The workshops aim to teach producers the art of pregnancy testing and how to use this information to increase business profitability.
The workshops, are being delivered by Southern Gulf NRM in partnership with Beef Sense.
Spaces are limited and its aimed at the decision makers, with teaching hands-on.
Dr Braithwate said pregnancy testing provided vital data to help implement profitable breeder management systems.
“It’s not pregnancy testing for the sake of pregnancy testing,” Dr Braithwate said.
“We actually control mate through pregnancy testing rather than removal of bulls.
“We pregnancy test to get the calving groups we want.
“My whole practice is a production practice based on foetal aging and putting cows in calving groups.
“Once you have cows in calving groups there’s very few sensitivities that interfere with that.
“If I put 1000 cows into a group to calve by November/December the only sensitivity is loss from pregnancy testing and weaning which can be from 9 to 15 per cent.
“As a result you have predictability.
“Out of 1000 cows pregnancy testing in calf you are getting about 85 per cent weaning.
“From there you can do accurate stock flows which means accurate sales for calves which gives you good cash flows – and that’s what the banks are after.”
The workshop will also cover how to measure breeder performance and pasture and stocking rate management.
Dr Braithwaite, who expects to carry out up to 280,000 pregnancy tests for clients this season, said preg testing was a particularly useful tool during drought years.
“You have to measure parameters to move forward in your business,” he said.
“As opposed to blanket calving for 12 months in your cow herd, if you change to a group calving herd you start making some fairly powerful strategic decisions in terms of destocking and when to destock.”
Good Grazing Key to Success
GOOD rangelands grazing management is a key driver to successful beef operations, leading production veteriarian Dr Ian Braithwaite said.
“There’s three things you try to balance in a big business and that is cash flow, the number of calves you get and rangelands,” Dr Braithwaite said.
“The rangelands become a very important if not the most important part. What drives calves is body condition score of the cow and what drives body condition score of the cow is nutrition and what drives nutrition is good grazing management.
“If we haven’t got sustainable grazing rangelands management we suffer. We don’t get calves therefore we don’t get the cash flow.”
Dr Braithwaite’s workshops are being delivered by the Southern Gulf NRM in partnership with Beef Sense. Workshop participants will learn pregnancy testing, profitable breeder management systems and pasture and stocking rate management. For information call 4743 1888.
