Compensatory Growth Response and Breakeven Economics of Yearling Steers on Grass

A trial was conducted to evaluate compensatory growth in yearling cattle while on summer pasture, following variations of winter feed restriction. Winter gains were FAST, FAST/SLOW, SLOW/FAST, and SLOW. No summer gain differences were found among restricted cattle (FAST/SLOW, SLOW/ FAST, or SLOW); however, gains were increased on grass compared to steers on the FAST treatment. SLOW cattle compensated 17.4% during grazing. FAST steers had lower slaughter breakevens compared to SLOW (64.05 vs 66.94 $/cwt, respectively). Due to little compensation by steers on the SLOW treatment, steers on the FAST treatment had heavier slaughter weights resulting in lower slaughter breakevens