How To Keep Ahead On Weaning Livestock

The 3 main benefits of having livestock born in the winter:

1.) The colder temperatures protect livestock from worms (AKA internal parasites) and fly larvae laying their eggs in the soil where they graze or sleep; or, on the animals, themselves. All babies are vulnerable, even after they're weaned!

2.) The weight that is needed for the livestock to show at the fair needs to be enough to make the money worth it for the buyer (for meat or dairy) or weigh in for selling needs to be enough to make decent money at the auction.

3.) The age needs to be of at least weaning age (for breeding), which is 3 months AFTER their 5-month gestation period (specifically in goats, other species will differ on weaning age) to make money well spent for the buyer and gives you a little more money than a bottle baby (or not of weaning age).

The 1 main deterer from having livestock born in the winter:

1.) The babies can become hypothermic fast, but ONLY IF they fall, jump, or get headbutted by the other dams, other babies (if you have twins or more), the sire(s), and even accidentally by their own dam into any water bucket or puddle. There is a very minimal possibility that the baby could either be born in the water or just flip over in the water source when there is confusion from the new mothers giving birth or the babies learning how to walk (anything can happen with babies and water at anytime of the year, such as drowning or freezing). A well cleaned off baby will survive in any weather, and a good mother will not neglect cleaning her baby.