For cattle owners spring means calving season. For some this time of the year is non-stressful and rewarding because they have taken the necessary steps to ensure as few problems as possible. If that is not the case with you hopefully this article will help reduce some of the stress and problems that might occur. 1. Use light birth weight (BW) bulls with appropriate BW and calving ease expected progeny differences (EPDs) for replacement heifers. Light BW bulls allow a first-calf heifer a better chance of calving unassisted. 2. Have a defined and tight calving season. The shorter the calving season the less labor you will have. 3. Calve heifers out four weeks earlier than the cow herd. First it allows for the heifers to have additional time to start cycling. This should get the heifers in sync with the mature cow herd so all females have a high possibility of rebreeding when the bulls are turned out. 4. Make sure all females are in the correct body condition score (BCS). This is an often misunderstood and overlooked part of the management operation. Cows should be in a BCS of 5.5 to 6.5 at calving. This BCS ensures two things: The cows will have enough energy for the laborious task of parturition and they are in the proper BCS for rebreeding. 5. Be prepared with OB chains calf jack fresh batteries in flashlights. Checking to make sure the calving equipment is where it is supposed to be and ready to use is time well spent. 6. Have a working area that is clean well-lit and functional. Make sure the head gate on the squeeze chute is adjusted to fit cows and not calves. Having adequate light when you have to pull a calf is beneficial. Have clean fresh hay available in the calving pen. 7. Feed in the evening to reduce nighttime calving. Studies have shown a response to evening feeding and its effects on nighttime calving. In essence feeding late in the day or early evening will reduce the amount of calves being born at night 8. Have nice clean dry pasture for calving. If you cannot easily see or get to the cows in a pasture the likelihood of running into trouble increases. Have the cows close to handling/working facilities in case you have to assist a cow. The pasture hopefully has not been grazed for a while and has plenty of forage available. The standing forage helps keep the cows clean (less mud) and increases the health of both the cow and calf. 9. Know the signs. It is important to know proper presentation of the calf. The soles of the hooves should be pointing down. If they are in any other position trouble could be ahead. Also if the cow is worn out and lacking energy she may need help. Keep your veterinarian's phone number programmed into your cell phone. 10. Move cows and calves to a different pasture after calving. Moving the cows to a different pasture after calving simplifies the monitoring process since there are fewer cows to watch. This is a good time to pair the cows to the calves. Again make sure to use a pasture that has plenty of standing forage available for the cows. | 
