Daily Management Measures and Technical Key Points for Beef Cattle During the Fattening Period

I. Brushing the cattle body and appropriate exercise during the fattening period

1. Brushing can keep the cattle body clean, promote skin metabolism and blood circulation, increase feed intake, and facilitate cattle management. Brushing must be done regularly 1—2 times daily, carried out in the exercise yard after the cattle are full.

2. For feeder cattle fattened in stages, appropriate exercise can be given in the early stage (free movement in the exercise yard) to promote the development of digestive organs and bones. In the middle stage, they are tethered and fixed to wooden posts, and the cattle can move in a circular motion. In the late stage, the rope length is 0.5 m, tethered short to limit activity so they put on fat. At this time the cattle can only stand up and lie down or sleep, but cannot move left or right.

3. Cattle rest at night and are fed during the day inside the barn. They should be allowed to bask in the sun for 3—4 hours every day. Sunbathing has a good effect on skin metabolism and cattle growth and development, giving good coat, easy fattening, and fast weight gain.

II. Keeping the barn warm, preventing heatstroke, and maintaining dryness and cleanliness

1. The barn should be on high, dry ground, facing south, either a closed building or an open shed type (used as a cool shed in summer, covered with plastic sheeting as a warm shed in winter). Manure and urine should be removed frequently, cleaned daily, and kept dry and clean. Air should circulate.

2. In winter, the stocking density in the barn must not be too high, to prevent crowding and dampness in the barn. The cattle body should be kept clean to prevent parasitic diseases (ringworm). In the high-temperature summer season, a shade shed should be built at the front of the barn or in the exercise yard to avoid direct sunlight and prevent heatstroke. Summer temperatures above 25 degrees C and winter temperatures below 6 degrees C noticeably affect beef cattle fattening and weight gain.

III. Observe the herd frequently and weigh the cattle live weight regularly and on schedule.

1. The keeper should pay attention to the hygiene of the feed trough, cattle body, forage and feed, and drinking water, and clean the ground daily. Observe the cattle's feeding, rumination and defecation, and deal with any abnormalities promptly.

2. Weigh regularly, keep good records, and calculate costs. During the beef cattle fattening period, weighing is generally done once a month, at the end or beginning of the month, and weighing is done in the morning on an empty stomach, with good records kept. Based on weight gain and forage and feed consumption, calculate the fattening performance and economic benefits.

IV. Persist in regular disinfection and epidemic prevention to ensure the safety of the herd.

1. At the farm gate, production area, cattle entrances and exits, and disinfection pools, the medicinal solution should be changed frequently (2% sodium hydroxide solution). People and vehicles entering and leaving the gate should be disinfected.

2. The barn should be cleaned thoroughly every day and disinfected once a month. Large-scale disinfection of the production area should be carried out twice a year in spring and autumn. Commonly used disinfectants are 10—20% quicklime milk, 2—5% caustic soda solution, 0.5—1% peracetic acid solution, 3% formalin solution, and 1% potassium permanganate solution.

3. If suspected infectious diseases are found, isolate promptly, put prevention first, and do immunization well. Inject blackleg formaldehyde alum vaccine, anthrax vaccine, tetanus toxoid vaccine, foot-and-mouth disease vaccine, Clostridium welchii inactivated vaccine, etc.