Weaning Weights: See Which Cows and Bulls Pay Their Way
Start your 14-day free trialYou weighed the calves on a Tuesday. The numbers are on the back of a hand, a feed tag, or in a text to yourself. Calves are never weighed on day 205. Some are 190 days old, some 240. To compare them you have to adjust each weight to the same age, and that takes a calculator and an hour you do not have.
So most weights get written down once and never used. That is a waste, because weaning weight is one of the clearest ways to see which cows and which bulls are paying their way.
What good weight records give you
- Every weigh-in on the animal, with date
- Growth between weigh-ins (average daily gain)
- A weaning weight adjusted to a common age so calves compare fairly
- Weaning weights by cow and by sire, over the years
How Herd Advisor handles it
Every weigh-in adds to the animal's weight history and average daily gain.
Herd Advisor takes whichever weigh-in is closest to 205 days of age, anywhere from 120 to 280 days, adjusts it to 205 days, and charts the herd's weaning weights by year. For calves 30 to 120 days old with a birth weight, it projects where they are headed at weaning.
On each cow, you see her calves' weaning weights over the years, and her last calf as a percent of her own weight. On the Sires report, you compare bulls by their calves' average weaning weight and growth curves. The performance index uses daily gain, weaning weight and yearling weight.
Working calves at weaning
Record weaning, castration and other life changes one animal at a time or for a whole group with bulk edit: wean the calf, turn bull calves into steers, and move heifers up to cows. In Chute mode, set a plan that includes weight, then scan or type each tag as calves come through. A summary at the end lists worked and skipped head.
The calf crop report
The Current Calves report puts this year's calves next to the last five years: birth and weaning weights, average daily gain, how many you lost, the steer and heifer split, and calves by pasture. Switch from all calves on hand to just calves born on your farm to see one year's calf crop.
Selling by weight
When you sell, enter the sale date and weight, and price by head, pound, cwt or lot. Each calf sale counts toward its mother in the Cow Productivity report. Export weights on a set of calves to Excel or CSV for a buyer.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to weigh every calf on day 205?
No. Herd Advisor adjusts the weigh-in closest to 205 days, from 120 to 280 days of age.
Can I enter weights for a whole group?
Yes, with bulk edit, or one at a time as each animal comes through in Chute mode.
Does it compare bulls?
Yes. The Sires report shows each bull's calves' birth and weaning weights and growth curves.
Can I bring in old weights?
Yes. Weights come in with a spreadsheet import, or we'll load them for you.