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Beef Cattle Production Facts

The life of beef cattle in Canada has several stages.

Stage 1: Cow-Calf

Late winter is a preferable time for calves to be born because, although it is cold, calves stay relatively dry and are therefore less vulnerable to disease.

Calves remain with their mothers for approximately 7 to 9 months after birth.

Most calves will spend the summer grazing in pastures across western Canada. In early October, calves are taken away from their mothers; this is called weaning. The following chart depicts a typical timeline for the early life of a beef calf.

Typical Cow-Calf Production Timeline

Calves born

Cows rebred

Cows and calves graze on summer pastures

Calves weaned

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Stage 2: Calf Weaning

Once weaned from their mothers, calves are led into a chute where they are weighed, vaccinated, dewormed, and ear-tagged. If necessary, calves are also dehorned and castrated at this time.

Some cattle are born without horns and are referred to as "polled". Farmers can choose to breed polled cattle, eliminating the need for dehorning. While polled cattle are much less common than horned cattle, interest in polled cattle is increasing.

Following processing, calves are separated depending on size and then sent to Stage 3.

Stage 3: Growth

Where the calves go following weaning depends on their age, breed and size:

Larger calves (300kg +) are sent directly to feedlots.
Smaller calves (less than 300kg) are often kept over the winter, fed hay and then sent to feedlots in the spring.
Calves born late in the year are often kept over the winter, put back out on pasture in the spring and then put in feedlots the following fall.
A small amount of good quality heifers (young females) are kept as replacements in the cow-calf system.

Therefore, calves may enter the feedlot as early as 7 months of age, or as late as 18 months of age. As mentioned, some females are retained for breeding purposes and therefore do not pass into Stage 3.

Stage 4: Finishing at the Feedlot

The stocking density of cows varies between feedlots (approx. 13m² – 28 m² per calf).
Calves are accustomed to low-energy, high-fibre diets, such as hay.
They are slowly introduced to high-energy diets (such as barley grain) to encourage weight gain.
Depending on their entering size and breed, calves may be in the feedlot for anywhere from 60 to 120 days in order to reach the necessary slaughter weight.
Smaller breeds will finish at 450kg, whereas the larger breeds will finish around 600kg.

Stage 5: Shipping and Slaughter

Most calves are sold direct-to-packer (to abattoir/slaughter plant), so they do not endure the stress of auction markets.
The calves are usually slaughtered within 24 hours of leaving the feedlot.

Prepared by Gosia Zobel, UBC Animal Welfare Program Alumnus. All photo credits: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada


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