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Beef Health Solutions is a veterinary practice that primarily focuses on beef cattle production. Our goal is to help cattlemen meet their goals.
12/01/2024
From our friends at NDSU
13/12/2023
With most spring calving cows in the Great Plains being in the third trimester of pregnancy, I thought a review of fetal programming and the impact third trimester nutrition and the impact it has on the lifetime health and performance of the in-utero calf was in order.
Chips from the Cowpath
A newsletter from Beef Health Solutions
December 2023
Fetal Programming and It’s Relevance to Beef Cattle Production
Background
The first time I heard the term “fetal programming” was nearly 20 years ago when I heard Dr. Stephen Ford from the Center for the Study of Fetal Programing speak at an Academy of Veterinary Consultants meeting I was attending. Dr. Ford’s presentation focused on organogenesis, primarily the pancreas, heart and kidney, during embryonic and early fetal development. I remember struggling to see what impact this would have on every day beef cattle production. Today I struggle to understand how I failed to see the importance of these early developmental processes.
Shortly after Dr. Ford’s presentation, I saw some work by Dr. Rick Funston at the University of Nebraska. Dr. Funston’s work showed steer calves born to cows receiving supplemental protein during the last third of gestation, while grazing native winter range, had better feedyard performance than the steers born to unsupplemented cows. Additionally, the heifers born to supplemented cows had improved yearling reproductive performance when compared to the heifers born to unsupplemented cows. Now that was something I could understand!
Dr. Funston recommended reading a book titled “Origins” written by Annie Murphy Paul that is a discussion of how the nine months before birth shape the rest of our lives. The foundation of the book is reviewing the health issues incurred in adulthood (diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiac disease and mental health issues) by babies that were in-utero during the Dutch Starvation Winter during World War II when the Germans shut off the food supply to Holland.
It was after reading this book that I made the connection between the work of Dr. Ford and Dr. Funston. It became more and more evident that calves are not created equally. I had always had a strong interest in nutrition, but when you think about fetal programming and gestational nutrition, nutrition takes on even more meaning. Nutrition Matters! Any stressor, nutritional or otherwise, during pregnancy, can affect the lifetime health and performance of the calf.
Feedyard Health and Reproductive Performance
In looking at the details of Funston’s work, the steers born to cows receiving supplemental protein in the third trimester had a hot carcass weight of 820 pounds and graded 85% choice while the steers out of unsupplemented cows had a hot carcass weight of 803 pounds and graded 71% choice. The heifer mates born to supplemented cows were 19 pounds heavier at weaning and reached puberty 13 days sooner than the heifers out of the unsupplemented cows. This difference resulted in a yearling pregnancy rate of 90% for the heifers out of supplemented cows while 83% of the heifers out of unsupplemented cows were found to be pregnant. It is necessary to note that these differences were observed on cows that were supplemented while grazing dormant winter range. These differences were not observed in cows supplemented while grazing crop residue with grain present. If cows are forced to clean up husks and leaves after the grain is gone, protein supplementation should be provided.
A 4 year study done by Dr. Travis Mulliniks at New Mexico State University illustrates the importance of fetal programming in relationship to lifetime health. In this study, one group of cows was fed supplemental protein and loose mineral was provided free choice, a second group had continuous access to protein meal that had the mineral incorporated into it, while the third group was fed protein supplement intermittently as deemed necessary depending on weather conditions in addition to having loose mineral provided free choice. The protein supplement in each of the three groups was a rumen undegradable protein. The steers were put through a 45 day preconditioning program on the ranch and then transferred to the feedyard. Forty eight percent of the group 1 steers were treated for respiratory disease in the feedyard compared to 16% for the group 2 steers and 37% of the groups 3 steers. Death loss was similar between the 3 groups. In a follow-up 1 year study a different rumen undegradable protein source (corn gluten meal) was used following the same protocols. In the feedyard, 37% of the group 1 steers were treated for respiratory disease. This compared to 0% of the group 2 steers and 25% of the group 3 steers. There was a 16% death loss in the group 1 steers, 0% in group 2 and 0% in group 3. While the 0% death loss in group three raises questions as to why this occurred, the thing that stands out in these studies is that the group 2 steers in each study had significantly lower respiratory treatment rates compared to the other two groups. The studies did not separate protein effect from mineral effect, attributing the differences to the differences in protein supplementation. I believe that since the cows got a bite of mineral every time they took a bite of protein, it provided the cows more liver stores of trace mineral to transfer to the calves, thus improving the immune function of the calves.
Immune System Function
The transfer of trace minerals, especially copper, zinc and selenium, from the dam to the fetus during the third trimester of pregnancy is essential for the immune system of the neonatal calf to function efficiently. If cows do not receive adequate levels of these trace minerals during late pregnancy due to either inadequate levels in the provided mineral, the absence of mineral supplementation or cutting the provided mineral with salt in order to reduce intake, the immune system will not function efficiently during the first 50-60 days of life. This makes the calves especially prone to neonatal diarrhea and/or respiratory disease. I believe that this shortfall actually impacts the calves their entire life.
A number of the processes occur in order to optimize the lifetime health and performance of the resulting calf. We have discussed some of these topics but I want to discuss several more of them as we dig deeper into this topic.
It is important to note that the immune system does not miraculously become functional when the calf nurses colostrum immediately after birth. During organogenesis, which occurs during the embryonic stage or first 40 days of gestation, the thymus is one of the organs that is formed. If nutrition is not optimal during this time, the thymus, which produces T-lymphocytes, does not form properly and the number of T-lymphocytes that form is reduced. Since T-cells play a role in viral immunity, the result is that the calf is more susceptible to viral infections such as IBR and BVD.
A fetal programming research project at South Dakota State University demonstrated that if mid-gestation energy does not meet NRC requirements, the ability of the resulting calf to produce antibodies is impaired. To relate this to the cow-calf production cycle, let’s assume that after weaning the cows are toughed on low quality forage without supplementation for a period of time. Low quality forage without supplementation of some kind will not meet the energy requirements of the mid-gestation cow and the calf will have a less than optimal antibody response to antigens whether they be natural exposure antigens or vaccine antigens.
We know that if the BVD naïve cow is exposed to BVD virus between day 50 and 150 of pregnancy, the resulting calf will likely be persistently infected with the virus. After day 150 the fetus has the ability to mount an immune response to the virus and prevent the persistent infection. This reinterates that the fetal immune system becomes active at approximately 150 days of gestation and points out that we need to be taking care of the cow nutritionally in mid-gestation.
Colostrum
When we think about colostrum, we typically think about the antibodies that colostrum provides and the role those antibodies play in a functional immune system in the neonatal calf. Those antibodies are indeed important and provide protection for pathogens in the environment such as E.coli and other enteric pathogens. Colostral antibodies is one of the reasons that we vaccinate cows for respiratory pathogens such as IBR and BVD at preg check or 30 plus days pre-calving. Antibodies to these respiratory pathogens help provide protection for these diseases the first few weeks/months of life. Keep in mind that colostrogenesis begins approximately 35-40 days pre-calving, so scour vaccine boosters and other vaccines need to be given prior to that time.
An interesting note related to colostrum comes from a Weak Calf Syndrome study a number of years ago. Standardized colostrum was used to measure colostrum absorption in calves from heifers supplemented with protein in the third trimester compared to calves from heifers that did not get supplemental protein. Colostrum absorption was significantly improved in the calves whose dams were protein supplemented.
Colostrum also provides brown fat that serves as an energy source for the calf and is critical for thermogenesis in the first few hours of life. In order for the colostrum to provide this fat it is necessary to have the cows in an adequate body condition score (BCS). As a rule of thumb, a BCS of 5-5 ½ for cows and a BCS of 5 ½-6 for heifers immediately pre-calving provides adequate fat in the colostrum and enough energy for good rebreeding rates.
Other critical components of colostrum that are related to the colostral fat content are the fat soluble vitamins A and E. These vitamins cross the placental barrier in very, very small quantities so calves receive 95 plus percent of their vitamin A and E via the colostrum. Because these vitamins are fat soluble it is imperative that the colostrum have adequate fat, again a function of body condition. Zinc is necessary for the mobilization of vitamin A from the liver so it can be transported to the tissues, so, another reason to make sure that the cows are receiving adequate trace minerals.
Vitamin A
It is well established that green forages have a high vitamin A content and the liver will store a several month supply of vitamin A as a result of grazing those forages. However, the drought that has affected much of the Great Plains in recent years has resulted in green forages to be scarce and cows consuming much more brown forage than they typically do. This, combined with high priced feed grade vitamin A caused short supply due to a manufacturing fire several years ago, has resulted in vitamin A deficiency being a more common diagnosis.
Among the maladies associated with vitamin A deficiency in the past 2-3 years include scours that are refractory to treatment, respiratory disease in young calves and in one case, what appears to be placental insufficiency, where the placenta quit developing, resulting in very light birth weight calves.
In one 400 cow herd where they were treating half of their calves for scours each year for 5 years and losing 4% of their calves to respiratory disease each summer, correcting the vitamin A deficiency and the copper deficiency made a large financial difference in the herd. In 2022 they treated only one calf for scours and respiratory disease death loss was reduced to 1%. The calves were also 75 pounds heavier at weaning. The result was a nearly $72,000 increase in gross income. This makes the additional money spent on mineral seem very miniscule.
Some of the more recent fetal programming studies have looked at placentogenesis and vascularization of the placenta. These studies have shown that early gestational energy plays a vital role in placental development. There are some references in literature to vitamin A being related to placental insufficiency but there has very little work done on this. It is my opinion that energy and vitamin A play a major role in placental development in early gestation. Perhaps this accounts for some of the early embryonic loss that we see each year, especially during drought conditions.
Summary
My reasoning in writing this newsletter at this time is to emphasize the point that “Nutrition Matters”.
Many of the “bugs” that we associate with issues such as respiratory disease are actually normal inhabitants of the respiratory tract that become secondary invaders when immunodysfunction occurs. Some bugs need to be chased, but many of the problems we see each year during calving and on thru weaning can be prevented and/or minimized by fine tuning the herd nutrition and thereby improving immune system function.
I urge you to take a critical look at the body condition score of the cows and heifers. Is there adequate forage and/or harvested feed to get to green grass? Is there enough protein in the forage or thru supplementation to allow the cows to utilize the cellulose in the forage? What does your mineral tag look like? Trace mineral levels and sources? Vitamin A level? Considering the drought we have been thru, what is water supply like?
In other words, “Don’t be a Bug Chaser”! Dig deeper. Ask, “Why is immunodysfunction occuring?” Correct the underlying problem.
I would like to close with two thoughts that were in an e-mail I received last week.
What you decide to implement today will have an affect on the cows and calves 60-90 days from now, to realize it then is too late.
The “nutritional perfect storm” can occur in the calf 30-90 days post-partum without an adequate mineral program in the cow-calf herd.
I hope each of you has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Dr. Dave
"He has told you. O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?"
Micah 6:8
27/02/2022
I wrote this newsletter shortly after ad passed away in July of 2020 and shared it with some close friends but did not post it on FB. given the situation in our country and in the world today, I felt that now is the time to share.
Chips from the Cowpath
When my Dad was extension agent in Clark County, Kansas a number of years ago, he wanted to write a newsletter but was struggling with a name for the newsletter. With the assistance of the editor of the Clark County Clipper, the name “Chips from the Cowpath” was chosen and the newsletter was a regular part of his outreach as extension agent. It lay silent during Dad’s years of ranch management in Clark County but was revived during his tenure as Agricultural Loan Officer in a bank in Smith County, Kansas. I used the name for my business newsletter while practicing in Nebraska. While the name has again laid silent for several years, I have been wanting to use it in conjunction with my business page, Beef Health Solutions. After the events of recent weeks, I feel compelled to take a different approach to this inaugural newsletter, in order to share some of my thoughts and beliefs on dealing with adversity.
Since my days as a student at Kansas State, Dad and I talked on Sunday evening. We also talked at other times during the week, but it was rare to miss a Sunday evening. As his health began failing, I made it a point to talk to him 2-3 times a week and then when COVID-19 confined Mom and Dad to assisted living, I talked to him every night. During one of the last conversations I had with him became a rather poignant discussion of how frustrated he was with the political partisanship we are experiencing as well as the riots and destruction that are occurring in this great country. His last comment to me that night was “You know, bad things happen when good people do nothing.” At the time I felt as if Dad was telling me that I should do something about this. The more I thought about it I felt as if God was speaking to me thru Dad. I reminded myself that God does not call the prepared, rather, He prepares the called. I must admit that I felt much like Moses in Exodus 3 when God spoke to Moses about leading the people of Israel out of Egypt in that I found myself saying, “Really God? That isn’t in my skill set.” But God kept talking to me. After a discussion about racism, a young veterinarian that I work with sent me a picture that stated “Daring leaders are never silent about hard things.” Then a young man who was in the clinic had two scriptures tattooed on his arm, Jeremiah 29:11,
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope,
and Philippians 4:13,
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
At that point, my thoughts were, “OK God, I get it.”
One of my all-time favorite quotes is John F. Kennedy’s quote “Ask not what you country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” I have asked myself for the past two weeks since that conversation with Dad what I can do for this country. My answer is to follow my business mission philosophy, “Caring, Serving, Leading, Empowering.” I find that Micah 6:6-8 gives me my starting point.
6 “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
I believe that verse 8 is the “meat” of this scripture and that in all we do we should seek to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God. It applies in all aspects of our lives, whether it is how we deal with people in our daily lives, how we deal with political partisanship or how we handle racial inequities. If we treat people fairly, equally, kindly, and do it with prayer and humility, I believe we can get our country back. It is my belief that the moderate left and moderate right in this county have more in common than some want us to believe. It is time for these two factions, aka the silent majority, to work together, compromise, vote, get rid of the career politicians and elect people who are committed to government of the people, by the people and for the people.
Several years ago, I came across the Paradoxical Commandments for Christians in some of my reading and found them very meaningful. A very good friend of mine typed them up for me on paper suitable for framing and I had them framed so they could hang near the door of my office in a manner that I could look at them each time I leave my office. Those commandments are:
1. People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
2. If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
3. If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
4. The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
5. Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
6. The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the
smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
7. People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
8. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
9. People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
10. Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.
As we were helping Mom and Dad sort through belongings in their home a few weeks ago, one of the items Dad put in a box to go to one of our daughters-in-law was a book entitled “Jesus Did It Anyway, The Paradoxical Commandments for Christians”. It was written by the author of the paradoxical commandments nearly thirty years after he wrote the commandments and explained his thoughts pertaining to each commandment and cited biblical examples for each.
The past few weeks have given me an opportunity to begin reading the book and I was reading it on a Sunday morning as we waited for our on-line worship service to begin. The biblical example used to illustrate paradoxical commandment number 8 was that of Job. Job lost his children, his servants, and all of his livestock in addition to enduring painful sores over his entire body. Yet, through it all he continued to praise God. He asked his wife, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” Because of Job’s unwavering faith, God made him prosperous again. This earthly life is not always easy, but if we keep our faith in God, we have the promise of God’s help and the promise of eternal life. With God’s help we can rebuild this country and that starts with treating people with love, dignity and respect.
As I think about rebuilding this country and what is needed, I was reminded of 2 Chronicles 7:13-14:
“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear them from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land.”
As one digests this scripture, it is a two-part deal. IF those who are called by God’s name humble themselves, pray, seek His face and turn from their wicked ways, THEN He will hear them from heaven, forgive their sins and heal their land. Among those wicked ways we need to turn from is that of judgement. Matthew 7:1-2 tells us:
“Judge not, that you not be judged. For with the judgement you pronounce you will be judged and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.”
James 4 is a warning against worldliness and 4:11 also speaks of judgment and the law:
“Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.”
(In fact, the book of James is a concise review of what is expected of us and how we should live.) Jesus speaks of judgement in John 8:7 when the crowd wants to stone the woman caught in adultery:
“Let him who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”
Pray, seek God, repent, love, be kind, trust, respect, caring, serving. None of us are perfect, each of us has work to do. A friend of Dad’s in Clark County is known for saying, “We can do this, let’s get to doing!” Good advice. Bad things happen when good people do nothing.
Rest In Peace Dad.
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, they will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen
Dr. Dave
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