Compensatory growth is an enhanced growth rate achieved by feeding an animal that is underweight or just plain skinny.

When an animal is not consuming enough groceries to fulfill her genetic growth rate, her brain sends out an alarm signal to the body. That signal pushes the animal's system to increase amounts of growth hormone. The animal's nutrient reserves are gathered for this growth and used very efficiently--even though the growth rate is retarded. This results in an animal that looks unthrifty. When feed is introduced at higher levels than needed for the genetic gain, the brain increases insulin, which allows the animal to efficiently utilize the feed. This amounts to a very fast growth with a high feed efficiency. So rapid gain when feed is introduced is called compensatory gain.

Compensatory gain happens with all animals at all ages. It includes mature cows and bulls as well as calves. Many humans see this phenomenon when for one reason or another they lose weight and then return to eating. Recovering lost pounds doesn't take very long.

An example of compensatory gain in action: If a animal is fed for 60 days, at levels targeting 1 pound of gain per day for the first 30 days, then targeting 2 pounds of gain for the final 30 days, the animal's system will make more efficient use of the feed than if the same animal was feed for a 1.5 pound per day gain the entire period. The body's signals to use the feed for growth pushes efficiency in the early feeding.

With feeding replacement dairy heifers, research shows that they not only gain more efficiently (1.5 times) but they also give 21 percent more milk the first lactation and 15 percent the second lactation compared to constant-gain feeding regime. After four lactations, cows and heifers that were fed a compensatory feeding program averaged 10 percent more milk than cows fed as heifers conventionally.

Research shows that heifers fed in a compensatory growth manner had approximately 50 to 150 percent higher amounts of mammary milk-secreting tissue than heifers fed for a constant gain. Milk composition was not different between the two different feeding regimens.

So what does all of this mean?

It says that when you grow beef or dairy heifers that the gain you are shooting for does not need to be exactly on the curve. It behooves you to feed cattle for different amounts of gain. The heifers not only gain more efficiently but also give more milk. As a matter of fact, quite a bit more milk (21 percent the first lactation, 15 percent the second and after four lactations 10 percent).

Practically, this shows that there is nothing wrong with having cattle on pasture with just protein supplementation. But then you are making up the difference three months later. Here are some examples on how heifers could go out to pasture for three months then brought in and fed when the pasture plays out.

• Feed Cattle Charge free choice for 25 days.
• Feed Trendsetter at 1.5 percent of body weight for two months along with grass pasture or hay.
• Feed Trendsetter at 0.5 percent of body weight along with pasture or grass hay for three months and then feed 1.5 % body weight for three months.

Obviously the first option is the easiest, fastest and the cheapest. However, after you finish with the 25 days you still need to feed them at 1 percent of body weight with Trendsetter or else you will be starting over again. Starting over again is OK as long as you are aware of what you are doing.