Managing Body Conditioning in Cows, Cause and Management of Weak Calves

Managing Body Conditioning in Cows, Cause and Management of Weak Calves

From Cattle Chat by BCI Cattle Chat

January 30, 2026 · 25 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the management of body conditioning in cows and the causes and management of weak calves.

The experts discussed whether it is more costly to have thin or fat cows going into the calving season. Thin cows are generally more costly because they are at high risk of having calving issues. Determining when to be aggressive with supplementation is important when addressing thin cows. The team also answered a listener’s question regarding weak calves. They discussed the factors that could be causing the calves to be weak. The key takeaway is that weak calves are associated with long or difficult births, weather stress, and poor nutrition. Better monitoring of heifers and calving progress can prevent many issues. 2:35 Thin vs Fat Cows 19:53 Weak Calves For more on BCI Cattle Chat, follow us on X at @ksubci , Facebook , and Instagram at @ksubci . Check out our website, ksubci.org . If you have any comments/questions/topic ideas, please send them to bci@ksu.edu. You can also email us to sign up for our weekly news blast! Don’t forget, if you enjoy the show, please go give us a rating!

People in this episode

Host: BCI Cattle Chat

Topics covered

  • body conditioning
  • calving season
  • thin cows
  • fat cows
  • weak calves
  • nutrition
  • calving progress

Keywords

  • body conditioning
  • thin cows
  • fat cows
  • weak calves
  • calving issues
  • nutrition
  • heifers
  • calving progress

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Kansas

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