Stressed Calves

Jane Parish, MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist, highlights many of the recommendations the National Research Council reports for stressed calf nutritional programs.

She explains that stress places demands on the bodies of calves that can result in performance losses. Common stresses on young cattle include weaning, cattle handling and hauling, feed and water deprivation during the marketing process, exposure to temperature or weather extremes, and processing practices such as dehorning, castration, and vaccination.