Selecting Animals Suitable for Feedlot

Weight and Condition

Economic success is more likely in feedlots with healthy calves that have just been weaned and are disease and parasite free. Be especially vigilant for pinkeye and lameness. Live weight information at regular intervals is important and a fundamental requirement for efficient management so the feedlot must have scales. Use them when selecting lambs and monitor performance over time. Scales need to be easily accessed so weighing can be done frequently. If selecting bull calves that will be housed together, select those calves that are similar in size and weight. That will provide a low-stress feedlot environment resulting in fewer problems.

Veterinarian Check and Animal Identification

All animals must be ear-tagged, branded or painted with an individual identification number. This is essential for proper herd management. All animals need to be weighted on the feedlot scales regularly to track the weight gain of each animal and feed conversion rate. A herd record-keeping book is available. The feedlot design needs to have a walkway along the side of the lot where animals must walk through in a single file. Scales with gates on both sides must be built into the animal walkway. This will allow individual animal weighing to record weights and for veterinarian treatment needs.

Calves should be clearly identified with an ear tag

An isolation pen away from the rest of the feedlot and not sharing the same fence is needed to put all new animals into for the first 3 weeks. That is to avoid introducing any new diseases to the rest of the feedlot animals. While in the isolation pen the veterinarian must check all calves for pinkeye, lameness and any other diseases and treat all animals with a broad-spectrum de-wormer.

Calves should be vaccinated for any known cattle diseases that are common in the region where the calves were bought and given a shot intramuscularly with vitamins A, D, E and B12. The neck or ear area is the best site for vaccinations, so damage is not done to the carcass. The calves should also be castrated at this time.

This procedure is needed for meat quality in the finished steer and for the safety of workers. A pen full of healthy bulls can be very dangerous for workers. A castrated bull becomes a steer. Banning the bulls at purchase time is preferred over surgical castration.

Selecting Cattle

Cattle can be classified according to their maturity type. Early maturing types start depositing fat at an earlier age and can be market-ready at a live mass of 380 to 400 kg. Late maturing types can reach market readiness at a live mass of 500 kg or more.

As a general rule, dual-purpose breeds are late maturing types with high growth rates and require a longer feeding period. The beef breeds, excluding the Sussex which is medium to late maturing, are generally early maturing and although their growth rates are relatively lower, they need a shorter feeding period to reach a good carcass finish. Indicus cattle can do well in feedlots, but temperament and problems with laminitis can occur.

Maturity Types of Different Breeds of Cattle

A problem encountered in practice is that, especially in Natal, most cattle entering feedlots are crossbreeds and maturity type does not always follow as a mean of the breeds crossed. In addition, there has been a trend to breed larger cattle, resulting in late-maturing types within breeds traditionally known as early maturing. Fortunately, experienced stockmen can judge maturity type with reasonable accuracy.

Females are earlier maturing than steers and steers in turn are earlier maturing than bulls. Bulls can do well in feedlots, but often cause problems by fighting. Females can do well in feedlots but often have poor growth rates partly because they reach carcass finish at an earlier age and there is a tendency to be tardy in sending them for slaughter. Disruptions caused by females coming on heat could be a contributory factor.

Animals can be placed in the feedlot at any age, usually after weaning. In practice, animals tend to arrive at feedlots shortly after weaning (7 to 9 months of age), as yearlings (12 to 18 months of age) or at two and a half years of age. In most feedlots, there is no differentiation in feeding regimes between animals of different ages and it has been found that irrespective of the age, animals tend to gain about 150 kg and are then ready for slaughter. Cattle placed on high energy rations at an early age tend to deposit fat more rapidly than if they are kept on low energy diets for a time before being placed on a high energy ration.

In cases of emergency caused by food shortages e.g. drought, a question often asked is whether cows and calves should be separated before entry to the feedlot. The best practice is to place the cow in the feedlot with her calf. As the cow reaches carcass finish, the calf will have started eating concentrate. The dam can be removed from the feedlot and the calf remains until it in turn is ready for slaughter.

Irrespective of breed, sex or age, a proportion of animals (usually about 10%) do not adapt to feedlots. It is best to cull these animals as soon as possible. They can be identified by their poor performance in the initial stages of feeding.

Selecting Lambs

Economic success in feedlots is more likely with crossbred lambs because of the higher price paid per kilogram for their carcases, their faster growth rate and earlier maturity. There is a market premium for crossbred lambs over Merino lambs.

Live weight is important when choosing lambs. A fundamental requirement for efficient management is access to scales. Use these when first selecting lambs, and monitor performance over time.

Drafting lambs according to live weight and size, providing a low-stress feedlot environment and ensuring that adequate trough length is available will minimise shy feeder numbers.

Success, in terms of physical performance in the feedlot, is increased if lambs have reached a minimum live weight of 25 kg and at least a fat score of 2 before entry. However, fiscal success is more likely if the heavy trade and export market segments are targeted. In these circumstances, the minimum entry weight should be 35 kg or higher.

To finish lightweight lambs (25–35 kg) to export-grade weights requires additional time in the feedlot – which increases production costs and adds to financial risk. If such lambs are to be finished in a feedlot, it is recommended that the target is a trade weight carcase of 18–22 kg.

Click here to learn more about the physical examination of a cow.