These stages for propagation of life are the God-given mysteries to mankind. Many times we take them for granted or assume that it will occur regardless of what we do. The drive to reproduce is so strong that it usually does occur. However, in the cattle industry, whether it occurs at a 90 percent success rate or a 30 percent success rate translates to success or bankruptcy.

By the time you read this, most cattle will be calving. We call this spring calving, but it's actually winter calving--and during the coldest months. It is kind of late to worry about body condition scoring, vaccinations, worming or pregnancy checking. Right now we're simply reaping the results of what we did last year from conception on.

Before we go any further, it would be appropriate to discuss what nature is providing with conception, gestation and lactation. With conception, the brain announces to the body that all is well for pregnancy to occur. If the animal is sick or in general losing weight, the chance of conception is reduced. If, on the other hand, the animal is healthy and gaining weight, the brain gives the "all systems go" and the chance for pregnancy is greatly increased. Thus, healthy animals that are gaining weight have much higher conception rates than healthy animals losing weight.

An example is flushing animals with increased feed during breeding season. Animals that have more than one offspring, such as sheep or hogs, demonstrate the phenomena by increased incidence of twins in sheep and increased litter sizes in sows.

Once pregnancy occurs, the animal's system does everything to maintain pregnancy. During gestation, the animal may lose a considerable amount of weight while pregnancy is still maintained. Even though a cow may lose 200 lbs. during pregnancy, the calf will only be slightly smaller than if she had not lost any weight.

Once again, at calving, or slightly before lactation starts to occur, Mother Nature does everything to ensure survival of the offspring. The cow will have colostrum and milk for her calf even if she is losing weight rapidly. In other words, she will give milk at the expense of her own body. Milk production is extremely draining on the mother; however, her system is efficient at using nutrients from the feed or mother's body for the production of milk. Remember, a cow uses nutrients at 70 percent efficiency for the production of milk but only at 35 percent for her own body weight gain when she is not lactating.

That's what seems a miracle--when a cow is lactating or has a calf nursing, her efficiency of body weight gain increases to 70 percent; therefore, body weight gain is twice as efficient during lactation as it is when she is not giving milk. This phenomenon never ceases to amaze me.

Practical application of this efficiency becomes obvious. If your herd is calving now, it is wise to feed grain for 30 to 60 days. Because we are not yet into spring pasture, grain feeding at 5 to 7 lbs. per head per day will allow the mother to have increased strength at calving, give more milk and start cycling sooner. You should get cows into good condition in the fall (BCS 5.0), and feed only protein to the gestating cow. This will maximize fiber digestion and won't push her to have to gain weight. Feeds to do this with are MFA #1 and #2 salt mixes, Breeder Cubes, Range Cubes, and protein tubs, blocks and liquid supplement.

At calving, or 2 weeks prior to calving, if you feed the cow all the grain you may be tempted to feed during gestation, you will be providing the cow the nutrients to allow maximum milk production and have the brain signal the body that all is well for pregnancy to occur. Furthermore, whether the energy is used for lactation or weight gain, it will be used at 70 percent efficiency. You will get twice the use out of feeding grain at this time rather than during gestation. Feeds that are recommended to be fed at this level of 0.5 to 1 percent of body weight are TrendSetter, Turbo or Heartland Dairy feeds or corn & Super Beef 40 to make a 14 to 16 percent protein ration. This table illustrates the benefit of having the cows in good condition and gaining weight at breeding season.

The table not only shows that the BCS is important but that having cows too fat or too thin is not as troubling as having them in a weight gaining situation at breeding.

The feeding principles I've mentioned apply only if adequate protein is balanced with other nutrients. Feeding straight corn or a byproduct without adequate mineral may not do the job. Check with your local MFA for details. Cows fed at calving can be fed 1 percent of their body weight every other day and perform as well as daily feeding. Just assure adequate bunk space.