How Cow Size Can Affect Your Bottom Line

How does the size of your herd's cows, affect your bottom line? Performix Nutrition Systems Animal Nutritional Consultant Dr. Boone Carter says a 1500 pound cow eats more than a 1200 pound cow and their calves weaning weights are not that much different.

Carter: "If we are comparing a cow that weighs 1200 pounds to a cow that weighs 1500 pounds then there is a about a 7 pound per day difference in the amount of hay that the 1500 pound cow will eat. So if we are pricing hay at $90 a ton so that 4 cents a pound is that is 31 cents a day more that the cow is going to eat. The question is does she wean a being enough calf to offset that. If you have to feed your average cow 120 days or four months that is $40. Divide that .125 a quarter that means that calf needs to weigh 30 more pounds at weaning time. I don't think that we get that from those big cows. I think if we really look at weaning weights over the past 30 years, that cow size has increased and weaning weights have not."