By Ashley Edwards, Peveto, Kyle, Faulk, Lee, Deshotel, Vincent, Holmes, Jason E.
LSU AgCenter
Each year beef cattle producers face decisions over whether to cull females from their herds because of decreased productivity, illness or injury, age and many other factors. Along with culling comes the decision to replace these females with heifers — young females that have not yet given birth to a calf — to maintain herd size and productivity. It is not uncommon for producers to have a replacement rate of 15% to 20% annually.