Youngstock are an investment in your future herd. It is likely that your well-grown heifer calves have now left the home farm for grazing. Whether this is with a grazier, or on your property, you need to ensure they are set up for reaching their goal of joining the herd at the required mature liveweight.

The first challenge after leaving the home farm is continuing to grow well through summer. Calves need a consistent supply of energy, protein and fibre in the right balance to grow optimally.

There are two main reasons that calves don’t grow adequately on pasture in summer. Either they are not receiving enough pasture, or the pasture available is not suitable quality for growth.

Offering quality pasture is particularly challenging over summer when both the protein and energy content of pasture declines. To receive enough protein and energy to grow, calves grazing dry stalky summer pasture would need to eat more than is physically possible. Protein is particularly important for youngstock to develop their skeletal frame size. Failure to provide enough protein to growing calves pre-puberty can stunt growth, and this is something that cannot be corrected by improved feeding post-puberty.

Why does this matter? To achieve good reproduction in heifers, the target is to reach 60 percent of mature liveweight by mating time. A 500kg cow would need to average 700 grams per day from birth to achieve her mature weight.

Knowing the likely challenges heading into summer, declining growth rates and pasture low in energy and protein, what can we do to minimise the impacts?

As pasture quality decreases during the summer, closely monitor the pasture available. Consider other options like grass silage and well-balanced calf meals as supplements. High temperatures can reduce feed intake, so ensure calves have access to shade and cool clean water to help them cope with the heat. Weighing calves every 4 to 6 weeks to ensure they are meeting their target liveweights and identify drops in weight gains allows for early intervention. Prevent health challenges with strategies against parasites, facial eczema and trace element deficiencies.