Epigenetics studies in beef cattle have revealed surprising long-term effects of cow nutrition on performance of offspring in muscle and fat development, calf survivability, growth, carcass characteristics, reproduction, and health. Don Llewellyn and Tip discuss research what is meant by fetal programming (the more familiar name for this branch of epigenetics)and some of the research from Nebraska and Kansas that has illuminated the relationship between the health of the mother and the subsequent health of the calf throughout its life.

LINKS

Feeding Beef Cattle II: Fetal Programming, by Don Llewellyn. http://pubs.cahnrs.wsu.edu/publications/pubs/em060e/

Fetal Programming: Cow Nutrition and its Effects on Calf Performance, from North Carolina State Univ. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/fetal-programming-cow-nutrition-and-its-effects-on-calf-performance

Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle, by Tom Hamilton, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food. https://www.canadiancattlemen.ca/2014/01/29/fetal-programming-of-beef-cattle/

Nutrition During Gestation and Fetal Programming (scientific paper by Kimberly Vonnahme). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/242680621_Nutrition_During_Gestation_and_Fetal_Programming

Feeding Beef Cattle I: The Realities of Low-Quality Forages, by Don Llewellyn. http://pubs.cahnrs.wsu.edu/publications/pubs/em053e/

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