Calving Intervals and Small Herds
5 June 2025Calving intervals are one of many key performance indicators (KPIs) that can be used in any suckler herd to assess how a herd is performing. Some consideration is needed when applying these to small herds. Calving intervals now have implications for support payments for all herd sizes. This short guide explains what a calving interval is, why it matters and how to monitor and improve it using tools like ScotEID.
What is a calving interval and why does it matter?
A calving interval is the period between a cow having one calf and her next. The most productive herds have cows producing a calf every twelve months. From 2025 the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) is changing, to be eligible for payment, the calving interval of the individual cows in your herd must not exceed 410 days. Calves from all heifers will receive payment, providing they meet all other criteria in the scheme.
Remember the calving interval is calculated even if you buy an in-calf cow or one with calf at foot. Calves not born on your holding still count towards the cow’s calving interval whether she was within the 410 days or not. This may require more caution when purchasing.
How to monitor your herds calving interval?
You can check your herd’s calving interval through ScotEID. To access this information on ScotEID, follow this guide:
-
Log into your account
2. In the cattle menu, click on the drop-down bar labelled ‘ScotMoves+(Births,
deaths,Sales…)’.
3. Open ‘My HerdStats’.
3. Use the menu on the left hand side to open ‘Cow performance’ to view calving interval
average, or ‘Calving Interval Table’ to view individual cows calving intervals.
4. You will be able to see your herd average calving interval and view individual animals.
ScotEID also now has a handy function that displays the mother’s calving interval when you are registering your calves.
Tips to reduce calving intervals
Reducing the calving interval of your cows not only helps you meet the requirements for the SSBSS scheme to receive payments but also helps your business to become more productive and efficient.
- Identify any animals on MyHerdStats that are not currently meeting the calving animal requirements. Assess why:
- Is her body condition score (BCS) low? BCS 2.5-3 is ideal for restarting the oestrus cycle after birth: tn756-body-conditioning-scoring-suckler-cows.pdf
- Is there an infection or illness present in the cow? This could be a good time to discuss with your vet as part of annual herd health planning required for QMS.
- Record any cows that you see bulling and look out for any that come back bulling.
- Look at selling any barren cows and any animals that are due to calve out with the 410 day limit.
- Consider using bulls with a shorter gestation length EBV: Maternal Matters: EBVs and Indexes for suckler herds | AHDB
How to get the most out of the scheme:
- Apply by 31 December and note all calves – no penalties will be issued for late calves although payment will not be issued.
- It may be advisable to adjust your tagging regime, so calves are tagged earlier. Calves that are tagged and registered but then die will not impact the mother’s calving interval, whereas an unregistered calf that dies would.
- Tighten the period the bull is with the herd – 9-week bulling period will tighten calving period.
- If using a Crofting Commission bull on your common grazing, communicate with neighbouring townships to swap bulls over – this increases chances of successful insemination.
Example of recording calving intervals
Recording past calving dates alongside serving dates/bulling period can make it easier to identify which cows may be outwith the 410 day calving interval period. Identifying ahead of time when the cow should be served by to meet this requirement can take future pressure off.
Christina Macinnes, SAC Consulting
Sign up to the FAS newsletter
Receive updates on news, events and publications from Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service