Bunk Breaking Calves for Success in the Feedyard by Emily Pendergrass, Extra Dimension Marketing

by Emily Pendergrass, Extra Dimension Marketing

A smooth transition into the feedyard is crucial, after all if your calf isn’t eating, he isn’t gaining. So, stop delaying gains and start bunk breaking calves at home before you send them to the yard. “Those first few days set the tone for the entire feeding period,” said Mark Sebranek, chief operations officer for Nextgen Cattle Feeding’s Riverbend Feedyard. “When calves come in and back off feed, they get sick, they’re slow to come back. We can lose seven to 10 days of consumption, health and performance. If you have a lack of consumption or no consumption one day, that day’s performance/health is never coming back. Those first few days are huge.” Sebranek said the first 45 days in the feedyard are the most crucial from the standpoint of getting calves acclimated to the new climate, dry lots, water tanks, and feed bunks. Bunk breaking calves at home prior to sending them to the feedyard can remove one of those hurtles from the process. In fact, Sebranek says it’s the single most important part of the process. “The most important deal when calves come into the feedyard is getting them used to coming up to a bunk to eat,” Sebranek said. “So, if they’re not familiar with bunks it takes us longer to get calves to start eating and therefore bring consumption up.” Beyond gains lost, days without consumption can lead to illness and further lost profit. “If cattle don’t eat, that’s when they get sick,” Sebranek said. “When cattle don’t come up to the bunks and back off, we have health problems. Then if you have to take them up to mass treat them, you’re talking $35 to $50 per head right there. If you’re dealing with individuals and you have a lack of consumption, performance, and everything that number is probably closer to $50 to $75. Bunk breaking calves could be that crucial.” Sebranek said the second biggest issue when acclimating calves to the feedyard is getting calves used to eating a ration. He recommends bunk breaking calves and starting them on a simple ration 45 to 60 days before sending them to the feedyard. Additionally, implementing a vaccination program and regularly handling cattle is well worth the effort when it comes time for cattle to perform in the feedyard. continued on page 18

“Teaching calves to eat a concentrated ration or something with grain goes a long way and it doesn’t have to be a whole lot,” Sebranek said. “It can be as simple as a little bit of cracked corn or whatever is available in your area that doesn’t cost a whole lot of money. Some people use a little bit of premix. Some will put rations out by hand, some will use a tractor and wagon, really whatever you’re set up to do will work. “Just regularly interacting with the cattle can make a huge difference when they get to the yard. Drive around them, walk through them, move them around, just get out there and handle them. Just having them used to a human touch can make a big difference. Driving up to put feed out and getting them used to hearing a ‘dinner bell’ will also help prepare them for the environment of the feedyard,” Sebranek said. Lawrence Makuakane, owner and operator of Ella Mae Farms, bunk breaks his calves before sending them to Riverbend Feedyard. He says the benefit of bunk breaking calves is twofold. “The first mechanism is to identify the disposition of our cattle and genetic selection,” Makuakane said. “We can observe traits and then trace those traits back to their dam. This gives us intrinsic value by selecting based on those desired traits. If a calf’s disposition is acceptable, that ends up paying us dividends in the feedyard. The second benefit of bunk breaking calves is that it gets their stomachs used to a ration and gets them on a routine.” Makuakane starts introducing calves to sweet feed two weeks before weaning. “Two weeks before weaning we’ll put feed out in bunks so the calves will start coming off their dams a little bit and start setting their rumens up before we put any more of a ration into them,” Makuakane said. “We also silent wean which plays a big role for us when we bunk break. We’re able to wean the calves on their dams which reduces stress which translates to pounds kept rather than pounds lost to stress. It takes about four to five days to get calves weaned. Once weaned we sort the calves off their dams and really get serious about bunk breaking. “You don’t need a fancy set up, you just need a set up that works for you. Your environment is going to dictate how you set up your pens for bunk breaking. What will make the biggest impact is your consistency with your feeding routine and cleanliness. Those things pay dividends in the long run,” Makuakane said. Makuakane echoed Sebranek saying bunk breaking doesn’t require an expensive ration. “Actually, bunk breaking is probably the most economical time to feed cattle because their inputs are very low,” Makuakane said. “We tend to feed one percent of their body weight initially and towards the end of backgrounding we’ll get them up to one and a half percent. Just reach out to your local co-op about a commodity blend that will likely be at a discounted price. You do not need an expensive ration to do this. Just a simple ration to get their gut set up for the feedlot and get them used to the routine of eating from a bunk.” Makuakane also warns not to worry too much about pushing calves hard, but to focus on setting their digestive system up for success in the feedlot. “Again, it all comes down to consistency, cleanliness and handling calves routinely,” Makuakane said.

Emily Pendergrass Freelance Writer Extra Dimension Marketing