Correlations of first period and second period average daily gains of cattle fed all-concentrate rations

Cattle feeders' profit margins have been declining rapidly, therefore ways of cutting costs are constantly being sought. One costly item to the feeder is slow gaining cattle. Their lower rate of daily gain means less profit is being made each day from the conversion of grain to beef. Too, the extra time required to obtain the desired finish on these animals costs the feeder in both extra interest on his investment and extra feed for maintenance. Evidence of a high positive correlation between the early short term gains and the later long term gains would enable the feeder to cull the slow gainers after the short period and replace them, hopefully, with faster gainers.

The objective of this study was to determine if there is any significant correlation between the early short term gains and the later longer term gains of cattle fed high concentrate rations.

Data analyzed in this study were collected from experiments conducted at Texas Tech Feedlot, Lubbock, Texas, and Texas Tech Research Farm, Amarillo, Texas, in which high concentrate rations were fed.