Table 1.
Summary of selenium, copper, and molybdenum concentration data for serum samples collected from beef calves at or near the time of weaning in the fall of 2021 (n = 1998 calves, N = 106 herds).
| Selenium less than adequate (< 0.08 ppm) | % calves < adequate selenium | % of herds with ≥ 1 calf < adequate | Mean herd prevalence < adequatea (SD) |
| Western provinces: 2021 | 52.8% (799/1512) | 83% (63/76) | 0.53 (0.40) |
| Eastern provinces: 2021 | 76.7% (373/486) | 90% (27/30) | 0.79 (0.34) |
| Selenium deficient (< 0.025 ppm) | % calves deficient selenium | % of herds with ≥ 1 calf deficient | Mean herd prevalence deficienta (SD) |
| Western provinces: 2021 | 0.5% (7/1512) | 3.9% (3/76) | 0.005 (0.026) |
| Eastern provinces: 2021 | 3.3% (16/486) | 20% (6/30) | 0.044 (0.138) |
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| Copper less than adequate (< 0.6 ppm) | % calves < adequate copper | % of herds with ≥ 1 calf < adequate | Mean herd prevalence < adequatea (SD) |
| Western provinces: 2021 | 38.1% (576/1512) | 93% (71/76) | 0.38 (0.27) |
| Eastern provinces: 2021 | 35.8% (174/486) | 87% (26/30) | 0.35 (0.28) |
| Copper deficient (< 0.5 ppm) | % calves deficient copper | % of herds with ≥ 1 calf deficient | Mean herd prevalence deficienta (SD) |
| Western provinces: 2021 | 17.1% (258/1512) | 74% (56/76) | 0.17 (0.23) |
| Eastern provinces: 2021 | 14.2% (69/486) | 57% (17/30) | 0.13 (0.19) |
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| Molybdenum high (> 0.10 ppm) | % calves high molybdenum | % of herds with ≥ 1 calf high | Mean herd prevalence highb (SD) |
| Western provinces: 2021 | 5.5% (83/1512) | 21% (16/76) | 0.06 (0.19) |
| Eastern provinces: 2021 | 7.0% (34/486) | 30% (9/30) | 0.07 (0.20) |
SD — Standard deviation.
a,b
Herd prevalence was calculated as the number of calves in each herd below (a) or above (b) the specified threshold as a proportion of the 20 calves sampled per herd.