Recent content by WRFarms

I just want to point out that when you cross beef bulls and milk cows you're getting bigger calves, period. Doesn't matter if it's an Angus with a thousand tiny calves to its name.

Sticking to the younger bulls that have at least some daughters in production. KCF Bennett Encore Z311 is going to be very prominent in a few years. His first daughters are just now in production and they're very impressive. I'll second Churchill red bull as another good cow maker. KT Built Tuff...

We always have a few come in below freezing weather, it's not a problem most of the time, but there was one this year that was pretty bad. Had one night with freezing rain. Naturally, had a heifer pick that night to calve. Calf's fine, it took too long to get up on it's own, so I had to put in...

"Herd Bull Fertility" by James E. Drayson "Reproduction & Animal Health" by Charles Walter and Gearld Fry

The damned things are spreading. I haven't seen any here yet, but a friend about thirty miles away lost six calves last spring and that was with only four or five buzzards. He applied for a permit to shoot one, but you know how that goes. I'm planning on spending a lot of time out in the pasture...

The likeliness of reduced fertility of a male twin born co-twin to a heifer is a subject that still needs more investigation. There have been several small studies done over the last few decades and they've been largely inconclusive. Results range from a 58% reduction in fertility, to no...

Outward appearance (phenotype) is an expression of genetic and environmental factors and should be taken seriously by everyone in the cattle business. The appearance of a cow can be a strong indicator of fertility. In general, an absence of masculinity in heifers and cows suggests fertility. No...

How do you normally feed them at this age? They seem to be developing nicely on forage.

I had one this year that I couldn't get the CIDR in. It was like hitting a wall and I was always taught that meant she was a freemartin or she was twisted up inside. I'm ashamed to say I never even thought to palpate her and immediately went to assuming she was a freemartin. I ended up calling...

The best recipients are fertile and good milking. Fertility is hard to judge unless you have some background information. Generally the cows that calve earliest in the season among their peers are the most fertile. The cows that raise the heaviest calf are generally the best milking. Age and...

When the angle from the hooks to the pins increases beyond the ideal ~20-25 degrees it causes problems. It introduces unsound structure in the hind legs. The cow will walk under herself with her legs angled too far ahead. She will have difficulty moving at speed or on a slope. It also forces the...

Herefords will do fine on fescue pastures if they've been acclimated to it. We have some high percentage fescue pastures and from what I've seen the genetics are less an issue than the environment they were raised in. For example we have a number of Trust 100w cows, most were raised on fescue...

Since nobody has talked about her much, I think it's worth mentioning the Dam. The number one thing I look at when deciding to keep a bull is his Dam. Unless she consistently does everything I need her to do then I don't even think about keeping the calf as a bull. The dam has to be sound...

Very little to recommend some of these. Several appear to be post legged. Everything from the UK lacks capacity. It's difficult to correctly judge a topline from a picture, but I think it's fair to say that one or two have too much sway in their backs. I also like to see a nicely hooded eye...