Evaluation of Initial Implants for Finishing Heifers

Authors

Travis B. Farran, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Galen E. Erickson, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Terry J. Klopfenstein, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Gary Sides, Intervet, Inc.
Chris Reinhardt, Intervet, Inc.
Bill Dicke, Cattlemen’s Consulting, Lincoln, NE
Jim S. Drouillard, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS

Date of this Version

January 2004

Comments

Published in 2004 Nebraska Beef Cattle Report. Copyright © 2003 The Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska.

Abstract

A commercial feedyard experiment evaluated initial implant strategies for feedlot heifers. Heifers were administered either Revalor-IH or Synovex-H at initial processing, with both treatment groups receiving Revalor-200 as a common terminal implant. Implanting heifers initially with Revalor-IH improved feed efficiency and ADG compared to heifers implanted initially with Synovex-H. In addition, Revalor- IH implanted heifers had higher marbling scores while 58% more carcasses achieved the upper two-thirds Choice category. There were no differences in USDA yield grades. Selling Revalor- IH implanted heifers on a carcass merit basis returned $14.22/head more than Synovex-H implanted heifers. New reduced-dose initial implants can improve both feed efficiency and marbling scores, suggesting carcass quality can be positively influenced with no negative impact on growth performance.