by Chevy-Lynn Vaske, K-State Research and Extension

Every pound counts at the sale barn — and sometimes, the weight loss happens long before calves ever hit the scale.

For cattle producers, shrink isn’t just a biological response to stress; it’s an invisible drain on profit margins that can be managed with the right timing and techniques, according to K-State beef cattle experts.

Veterinarian Brad White explains “shrink” as the weight loss that occurs between gathering calves at home and their final weigh-in at the scale.

“In general, I expect calves to lose weight if they’re sitting in a new environment, new water source, just transported and everything else,” veterinarian Bob Larson says. “So even though it might be easiest for me to take calves on the day that’s most convenient for me, in order to address shrink, I think it’s better to move that transport to the sale as late as possible.”

“You think about a 500-pound (lb.) steer; you know, every 1% difference in shrink is 5 pounds.” — Bob Larson

There are also economic implications associated with shrink.

“You think about a 500-pound (lb.) steer; you know, every 1% difference in shrink is 5 pounds,” Larson says. “So, you add a couple more percentages of shrink, and the amount of money we are talking about is easily offset by hiring somebody to help me gather them.”