g.d. fike 1 , m.e. king 1 , l.r. corah 1 and w.d. busby 2 1 certified angus beef llc
DESCRIPTION
Effect of Time of Birth Within the Spring Calving Season on Performance and Carcass Traits of Beef Calves Fed in the Iowa Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity. G.D. Fike 1 , M.E. King 1 , L.R. Corah 1 and W.D. Busby 2 1 Certified Angus Beef LLC 2 Iowa Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Effect of Time of Birth Within the Spring Calving Season on
Performance and Carcass Traits of Beef Calves Fed in the Iowa
Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity
G.D. Fike1, M.E. King1, L.R. Corah1 and W.D. Busby2
1Certified Angus Beef LLC2Iowa Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity
2010 Annual ASAS Meeting
Introduction and Background• Larson, et al., (2010)
found that calves born during the first 21 d calving period had greater HCW, marbling scores and greater % grading premium Choice and higher carcass values than calves born in the 2nd or 3rd 21 d intervals; however, no differences were found in ADG
Objectives• Does age of calf and
time of birth within the calving season affect:– Feedlot performance– Marbling score and,
ultimately, USDA quality grade
– Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) acceptance rate
Materials and Methods• Data were analyzed on 1,369 calves from a
single, central Missouri ranch for a six-year period (2002-2007)
• Genetics were Angus/Simmental-based, rotating sires among different years
• All cattle were fed a common dietary energy level and administered similar health and implant treatments in a southwest Iowa feedlot
• All cattle were weighed, sorted, vaccinated, implanted, disposition scored and body conditioned scored within 4 days of arrival
Materials and Methods• Calves were sorted and harvested when visually
determined to have one cm of fat cover• Only cattle with full, detailed carcass and
performance information were included in the study
• Calves were divided into four sequence groups:– Early – born d 1-21 of calving season (E)– Mid-early – born d 22-42 (ME)– Mid-late – born d 43-63 (ML) and– Late – born d>63 (L)
Materials and Methods• Statistical analyses:
– Continuous outcomes were quantified using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA)
– For rate analyses, Chi-square was employed
Percent Angus of the Calf by Birth Sequence Within the
Spring Calving Seasona
abcMeans with unlike superscripts differ (P<0.05)
Disposition Score1 of the Calf by Birth Sequence Within the
Spring Calving Season
a
abMeans with unlike superscripts differ (P<0.05)
1Disposition score: 1=docile; 6=very aggressive
Feedlot Delivery Weight, Adjusted Final Weight, Harvest Age and HCW by Birth Sequence Within
the Spring Calving Season
VariableBirth Sequence
E ME ML LDelivery Wt., kg 328.2a 321.7b 310.8c 291.4d
Adjusted Final Wt., kg 554.2a 550.7ab 552.8ab 538.6b
ADG, kg/d 1.46a 1.49ab 1.53b 1.51ab
Harvest Age, d 476.5a 463.8b 448.3c 435.2d
HCW, kg 341.1a 338.4ab 342.1ab 332.5b
abcdMeans within a row with unlike superscripts differ (P<0.05)
Carcass Merit by Birth Sequence Within the Spring
Calving Season
VariableBirth Sequence
E ME ML LFat Thickness, cm 1.00a 1.02ab 1.07b 1.05ab
REA, sq. cm. 84.13 84.26 84.13 82.77MS1 459.3a 453.7a 436.0b 430.0b
Calculated YG 2.59 2.59 2.69 2.65Carcass Value, $/hd
$1046.88a
$1035.93ab
$1035.63ab
$1006.61b
a bMeans within a row with unlike superscripts differ (P<0.05)1Marbling score: 400=Small0; 500=Modest0
Quality Grade by Birth Sequence Within the Spring
Calving Season
USDA Quality Grade
Birth Sequence
E ME ML LChi-
SquareP value
Prime 0.53% 0.78% 0.00% 0.00% 0.3915CAB® 28.60% 24.37% 16.28% 11.24% <.0001All Choice 85.05% 83.63% 76.88% 77.89% 0.0087Select 13.88% 14.81% 23.12% 21.05% 0.0043Standard 0.53% 0.78% 0.00% 1.05% 0.9695
Conclusions• The oldest calves were/had:
– Heavier at feedlot delivery – Heavier at harvest and greater HCW– Greater marbling scores– Higher percentage of calves grading USDA
Choice and CAB®
– Greater carcass value per heado Than their latest born counterparts