Choosing the Right Weaning Strategy for Your Beef Operation

Now that fall has arrived, weaning is top of mind for many beef cattle producers. Weaning is one of the most critical and stressful events in a calf’s life, and how it’s managed can have a lasting impact on calf health, performance and overall welfare. While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, understanding the advantages and considerations of different weaning methods can help producers select the strategy best suited to their operation. 

Traditional (abrupt) weaning, fence-line weaning and two-stage weaning are the most popular weaning methods in Canada, and each has different benefits and drawbacks when it comes to labour requirements, stress and calf health outcomes. 

Traditional (Abrupt) Weaning
This is the most common method used in many beef operations. Calves are physically separated from their dams and moved to a new location all at once. 

Advantages: 

• Reduced time and labour: Calves are handled only once. 
• Lower facility requirements: No need for specialised fencing or additional weaning tools. 

Management Considerations: 

• Calves may show reduced short-term performance due to increased stress behaviours like pacing, bawling and reduced feed intake. 
• This stress can lead to higher rates of morbidity and treatment after weaning.  
• It’s important to have a suitable holding area for both cows and calves. 
• Delay other stressful events—such as vaccinations—to avoid compounding the stress of weaning. 

The abrupt weaning method may be the most straightforward, but it’s also typically associated with greater short-term stress and increased health risk for calves.