The effect of early weaning of Brahman cross calves on calf growth and reproductive performance of the dam

Abstract

It is shown, for a herd of Brahman cross cattle in the humid tropical lowlands of Papua New Guinea, that reducing the age of weaning from seven to four months advances the date of subsequent calving by ca 39 days. The calving interval is nevertheless always considerably shorter than that recorded from similar equatorial climates elsewhere. The 4-month calves showed an unexpected sensitivity to pasture quality, the nature of which requires further investigation.