We always wean our calves in September whenever the sign is right. This year that fell early on Sept 5th. This is the earliest we have ever weaned and I was nervous that it would still be blistering hot right after Labor Day. However, a blast of fall air showed up that week and we enjoyed well below normal temperatures for that early in the season.  
The process that day went extremely well. Greg and I had plenty of help to go along with the good weather. KBN Facilitators Jacob Settles and Cody Burke helped run the chute and work the cows. Becky and Alex recorded data and labeled blood tubes. Jake Harrod and Danny Coy stayed busy videoing new BQCA modules as we worked through the day’s tasks. I owe a huge Thank You to all these folks for helping make the day go nice and smooth!

I was pleased with our weaning data. The calves weighed 457 lbs. While a bit lighter than in years past that is right on tract had we weaned later in the month. The calves averaged 2.2 lbs/day, therefore 21 more days on the cow would have made them weight 503 lbs, which would be our second heaviest weaning ever.

The cows had an average weight of 1226 lbs with a body condition score of 5.5 and a hair coat score of 2 (measured 1=slick; 5=hairy). The cows on average weaned 37% of their weight, which is also on tract with our previous five year average.

We also pulled blood to do a pregnancy check on all the cows and replacement heifers. The heifers had a good conception as 22 of 25 (88%) were bred. The problem was with the cows. We had 19 open cows, or 55 of 74 (74%) bred.

There are a few things to note about this year’s breeding season. The cows were in good condition throughout the summer due to plenty of rainfall and good grass despite the heat. Eden Shale had 5 inches of rain in July and it did not start to get dry until later in August, well after we had pulled the bulls. The bulls all stayed sound and there were three bulls with each group of cows to ensure the girls all got covered.

The biggest concern of the breading season was the heat. Early summer was cooler than normal and it was 67° when when we AI’ed the cows on May 30th. 18 to 21 days later when the cows were cycling again, the heat had arrived. Those four days had an average heat index of 88° followed by seven days with heat indexes over 100°.  Again, 18 to 21 days later we still had the same conditions with a four day window averaging 95° and the following seven days at 97°. This is awfully hot to expect cows to breed and settle. I am honestly happy with the fact that we got 74% of them breed.
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In tough seasons like these I am thankful for our infrastructure at the farm. We were blessed with enough moisture to have good grass, we have plenty of natural shade in our pastures, and abundant sources of clean water throughout the farm. I would imagine if we did not have adequate shade, our pastures were burnt up, and the cattle had to drink out of ponds our conception rates would have been much lower…

My goodness, this summer has been hot! I know that us farmers are bad about complaining of  the heat in the summer and the cold in the winter, but when you have to endure these conditions all day, it wears on your patience. I know that those of you who work outside are in agreeance with me, but I am going to backup my hypothesis with some data anyhow.

We are blessed to have the Owen County WKU MESONET weather station on our farm. This allows us to have very accurate data for our exact location.

According to the MESONET data, the true summer heat began on June 16 with the heat index reaching 93 degrees. That was followed by a heat wave that lasted from June 22-27, when the heat index was above 102 degrees every day. After that, the remaining days of June all experienced heat indices above 90 degrees.

July did not offer any relief from the baking temps as the month had 19 days that experienced heat indexes above 95 degrees. In fact, there were only three days all month that were below 90. There is no denying that the hottest stretch of summer so far occurred July 24-30. These seven consecutive days all had heat indexes above 100 degrees with the max reaching 106! The only saving grace to the whole thing is that we have received 5 inches of rain in the month of July, which has kept it from turning brown and us being in a drought.
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August gave us a brief break on the first weekend, but temps have quickly returned to normal since then. We are currently in another seven day stretch of heat indexes over 90 degrees, and we are not even two weeks into the month. But it is August, and they don’t call it the dog days of summer for nothing…