(COWGEEKS.COM) – We are rolling through winter and parts of the country have been impacted by cold outbreaks, others not so much. We still have a long way to go and more cold will likely take place in regions before the spring grass starts to bloom.

I thought I would put a list of articles that you could glance through to help you decide how to keep your cattle safe through the cold time of the year.

How Cold Weather Stresses Cattle

Just like humans, cold weather will impact cattle. It will not only impact their physical state, but will also impact their growth if severe enough. That means money in the cattle industry.

The bottom line is that cattle producers strive to do their best to keep their cattle safe and comfortable through turbulent weather.

Cattle are made tough with thick hide and fluffy hair that play a roll in their bodies temperature regulation. Sometimes this is not enough in extreme weather events as factors such as a soaking down of the haircoat from rain/snow or high wind in combination can create a higher stress on the their bodies defense to the surrounding elements.

Wind Chill and the impact on Cattle

I have put together a list of articles that may help you better understand how cold stress can impact cattle in the cold below. I hope you enjoy.

COLD STRESS IN BEEF CATTLE
This is a good article from Penn State Extension

Winterizing Your Cowherd
This is an article published through the University of Nebraska
Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources

Prepare your Cattle for Cold Weather
This article features some practices you can use to help through the winter

Lingering effects of Cold Stress
This is an article talking about some of the lingering impacts cold stress can have such as fertility and calving problems

Beef Magazine (beefmagazine.com) produced this resource of articles about cold
Cold-weather cow care resources

The Bottom Line

Cattle are tough and can handle most normal winter conditions, but they will be challenged as the environment becomes more severe depending on their husbandry available.

Some things to keep in mind as you evaluate your situation:

– What is the BCS of my livestock?
Body condition score plays a big roll in the animals ability to defend itself against the harsh weather environment including frigid cold.

– What is the age of the animal?
The age may influence the ability of a specific animals response to the cold. Is it an older stressed cow with a low BCS? Is it a young newborn calf? Is it a healthy fat steer?

– What weather is coming?
Is it just cold? Is it both cold and strong wind? Is it heavy snow that will drift and cause serious problems in open environments? Is it going to rain and soak the animal down and then have a temperature drop that will seriously challenge the animals ability to use it’s own defense mechanisms.

I hope this was a help to put some articles in one location for you to sift through.

• If you have any articles that you like and want added to list, please let me know. We are here to be a quick resource for the producer…

Have a safe winter and let that spring grass boom and grow!