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For suckler herds that calve down from February to May, the breeding season will be long finished.
Cows can be accuratley and safely scanned from six weeks after the last animal was served. Therefore, now is a good time to get spring-calving cows pregnancy scanned.
Scanning cows over the next two weeks means you have more options for dealing with empty cows.
Early identification
Early identification of empty cows means these animals can be sold live while they are still in good body condition.
It also means empty cows can be sold before the big rush of cull animals, particularly dairy cows, that come on to the market from late October onwards.
This should help to increase the sale value of cull cows, helping to cover the cost of bringing in a replacement heifer.
Early scanning and selling empty cows will also reduce demand for grass during October, freeing up more ground for the remaining animals in the herd.
Delaying scanning will mean later identification of empty cows. This means these animals will probably require housing before scanning.
Once housed, these animals will be eating silage, which increases daily feed costs, as well as tying up housing space.
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