Consider Early Weaning, Even if Pasture Conditions Have Improved

Justin Waggoner, KSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist, Garden City, KS

Although many areas of Kansas have received some precipitation in recent weeks. The drought monitor (released 06/18/2026) indicates that in excess of 60% of the state is experiencing abnormally dry (D1) to exceptional drought (D4) conditions. Recent rains have likely improved pasture conditions and “green up”; however total forage production may be lower than normal due to lack of moisture earlier in the grazing season. Thus, cattle producers in these regions should closely monitor pasture and cow body condition and may want to consider early weaning as management tool to maintain (potentially improve) cow condition and reduce daily forage demand on pastures.

Early weaning is not well-defined but generally refers to weaning calves at less than 200 days of age (conventional weaning 180-220 days of age). Calves reared in extensive environments have a functional rumen at approximately 45 days of age and are capable of using dry feeds. Various research suggests that weaning calves no earlier than 90 days of age, with 120-150 days of age being suggested as the ideal minimum age to implement early weaning. The removal of the calf and cessation of lactation reduces cow energy requirement by 25-30%. The nutrients consumed by the cow previously being biologically allocated to support lactation are now available to support cow body weight gain.

A study (Table 1). designed to evaluate preconditioning duration conducted at K-State documented that cow body condition scores of cows grazing native grass pastures improved from 5.5 to 6.0 in 60 days following weaning calves at 100 or 115 days of age. The results of this study indicate the potential improvement in cow body condition that may be achieved by early weaning. There are many production benefits associated with improving cow body condition post-weaning especially if cows are managed to maintain that condition through calving. Early weaning can be especially beneficial for young cows which are more vulnerable to environmental stressors (i.e. reduced forage availability) due the increased nutrient demands associated with growth.

Table 1: Effect of calf age at weaning on cow body condition score (Bolte et al., 2007)

	Calf Age, days
Item	100	115	130	145	160	SEM	P-value
BCSa
Initialb	5.46	5.50	5.48	5.41	5.46	0.091	0.87
Finalc	5.90	5.99	5.85	5.67	5.48	0.091	0.01
Change	0.43	0.50	0.37	0.25	0.02	0.118	0.01

^aBody condition score (scale = 1 to 9; 1 = emaciated, 9 = obese)

^bInitial BCS was measured 60 d before calves were shipped to feedlot (d -60 weaning)

^cFinal BCS was measured 60 d after calves were shipped to feedlot

In addition, the removal of calves from pastures reduces daily forage demands on the pasture. Nursing calves (100-150 days of age) are capable of consuming 1.5 to 2.0% of their bodyweight in dry forage per day. Thus a 450 lb calf is capable of consuming approximately 7 lbs of dry forage per day. A dry 1400 lb cow consumes approximately 28 lbs of dry forage per day (2% of bodyweight). If we divide the 28 lbs of forage needed to maintain the cow by the 7 lbs of forage spared by removing the calf; for every 4 days that a calf is not grazing, one additional grazing day for the cow is gained. Alternatively, for every 30 days a calf is weaned and removed from the pasture, one week (7.5 grazing days) is gained to support the cow.

Cattle producers often express concerns regarding the performance potential and ability of early weaned calves to utilize feedstuffs in dry lot environments. However, early weaned calves ranging in age from 113 to 144 days in studies conducted at K-state have gained in excess of 2.0 lb/day with feed conversions ranging from 4.0 to 5.0 Feed:Gain (Bailey et al.,2013; Preedy et al., 2014). If managed appropriately and provided adequate nutrition, early weaned calves perform well and often exhibit a tremendous capacity for feed conversion. Additionally, early weaned calves may be managed to target value-added calf sales or preconditioning programs.

Early weaning is a herd management practice that can be implemented to manage the nutrient demands associated with lactation, reduce forage demands on pastures, and improve cow condition and market-ready calves if managed appropriately.