AI for the rich and famous!!

[redfornow]

Jeepers, I've run a bull here the last few years, but he was AI'd and now my next herd bull is busting up my barn, but he was AI'd?

How am I supposed to feel about myself??

If i was a bull and got AI'ed i'd bust more than your barn.

:shock:

 

[AngusLimoX]

Jeepers, I've run a bull here the last few years, but he was AI'd and now my next herd bull is busting up my barn, but he was AI'd?

How am I supposed to feel about myself??

If i was a bull and got AI'ed i'd bust more than your barn.

:shock:

Sorry, ( I wonder, is it a matter of poor composition or poor comprehension?? ) :lol: :lol:

To clarify, both my bulls have been the product of AI but they service my commercial cows. ( And if someone asks "How many" I will reply "go rub salt " ).

I always thought that all these fancy PB animals were being bred for the commercial operator? If commercial guys aren't buying all these cows and bulls, then who is, and why?? :lol:

 

[Karl]

I dont see why some people get down of AI. If your good at it then you dont need to keep as many bulls around. On a commercial operation such as mine, I dont look for the next big one that costs an arm and a leg to get a straw. I look for the ones that will do the best for my operation, and usually he costs 15 dollars a straw. On a second note I like to AI my heifers. It seems to reduce injury on them as they dont have this big bull riding on them. I want to give my heifers the best chance to stay on the ranch and an injury to a heifer from a bull is unacceptable to me. I am good at AI so I figure I can do just as good a job as a bull would. I like to AI and will continue to do it.

 

[S.R.R.]

I am good at AI so I figure I can do just as good a job as a bull would.

:lol: :lol:

Now that was funny thank you for breaking the ice!!

 

[KNERSIE]

I like to believe that I am also quite good with AI, but will be the first to admit that the bull does a far better job than I do.

 

[Susie David]

And faster too...I'll bet :roll:
sorry...couldn't resist...slow cold day here and I really don't want to muck out the pens before winter. DMc

 

[dun]

I like to believe that I am also quite good with AI, but will be the first to admit that the bull does a far better job than I do.

Now if you could just get that bull to squirt different dna when he breeds different cows you'ld have it made.

dun

 

[3MR]

I like to believe that I am also quite good with AI, but will be the first to admit that the bull does a far better job than I do.

Now if you could just get that bull to squirt different dna when he breeds different cows you'ld have it made.

dun

Now that would be a bull worth having.

 

[S.R.R.]

And faster too...I'll bet :roll:
sorry...couldn't resist...slow cold day here and I really don't want to muck out the pens before winter. DMc

Slow cold day or not, you have a good sense of humor!!

 

[KNERSIE]

If cows could talk I wonder what their take on this would be?

 

[C HOLLAND]

If cows could talk I wonder what their take on this would be?

MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO,,,,what else :lol: :lol:

 

[S.R.R.]

"How many of us on this board are "STILL" in the cattle business or are you just on here to brag about the next best bull that you are buying a few straws of sperm off of!!"

Folks lets get real!! Yes if you are raising reg. bulls or replacement heifers AI has a real place in your operation!! But can we really sit here and give advice to people new in the ranching business that they should shy away from having a bull as a vital part of their ranch???

My bulls have to service 20-30 cows a year. When I but pen to paper and add up the cost of AIing vs the use of live bulls it does not add up!! I save money, time, stress, and labor when I use the real thing!!

 

[Daybreak]

Howdy,

I use AI on selected dams. I use natural service on selected dams. My AI conception rate varies year to year. This last season I got a 58% conception rate on my AI. The bull got 100% on his service and backing me up. You still need a good bull. (his nose knows when thier ready)

 

[msscamp]

"How many of us on this board are "STILL" in the cattle business or are you just on here to brag about the next best bull that you are buying a few straws of sperm off of!!"

We are still in the cattle business for another month or two, but we haven't AI'd in years so I guess that leaves us out on the bragging part.

Folks lets get real!! Yes if you are raising reg. bulls or replacement heifers AI has a real place in your operation!! But can we really sit here and give advice to people new in the ranching business that they should shy away for having a bull as a vital part of their ranch???

Yes, I honestly believe we can, because it provides a way to improve one's genetics, overall herd, and it also provides a way to breed each heifer/cow to a corresponding bull that will allow her to produce a better calf than if she were bred to a (pardon my term here) generic herd bull that cannot be matched according to her strengths and could improve her weaknesses.

My bulls have to service 20-30 cows a year. When I but pen to paper and add up the cost of AIing vs the use of live bulls it does not add up!! I save money, time, stress, and labor when I use the real thing!!

Yes, that is true. But, I think the real quesion is this - What are you sacrificing in quality and possible improvement? As the old saying states, you have to spend money to make money. I'm not knocking your methods, just giving you a little something to think about.

 

[Beef11]

I am not convinced running bulls is cheaper than an AI synchro program. I think you could lower your cost per calf by utilizing both methods. AI is a valuable option not to be overlooked by the large operation. I mentioned a few big outfits who use AI earlier in this post. I will not go as far as to say that big outfits should go bulless.

 

[dun]

"How many of us on this board are "STILL" in the cattle business or are you just on here to brag about the next best bull that you are buying a few straws of sperm off of!!"

Folks lets get real!! Yes if you are raising reg. bulls or replacement heifers AI has a real place in your operation!! But can we really sit here and give advice to people new in the ranching business that they should shy away from having a bull as a vital part of their ranch???

My bulls have to service 20-30 cows a year. When I but pen to paper and add up the cost of AIing vs the use of live bulls it does not add up!! I save money, time, stress, and labor when I use the real thing!!

OK, I give up. It's has been explained why people sometimes recommend AI vs keeping a bull for beginners but you don;t seem to be able to understand and turn around and come up with your same gibberish.

dun

 

[S.R.R.]

I started this thread after reading through post after post on the BEGINNERS board about fancy cows and all the fancy bulls they were being AIed too.

I believe thta the reason that AI is frequently recommended on the beginners board particularly is the simple reason that it is a beginners forum. Someon without the basic knowledge of care and management of cows doesn't need the added headaches of dealing with the unpredictability of bulls. Alos, a bull will eat feed that could be better run through a cow to generate income in the form of a calf.
You're mixing apples and oranges when you talk about people just starting out and people with a couple hundred head.

dun

Also it seems a lot of the times the people everyone recommends to A.I. instead of a bull is because they have 1-5 cows or heifers they want to breed. So many times there has been recommendations to not worry about a bull it would be more economical not to use one.

Yes you are right it seems to be a fault of mine that I regularly forget many of the members of these boards are hobby farmers with only a few head for fun, my bad.

Lets see if you two are right. I will start a poll to see how many people that are getting into cattle plan to make money off them by raising more then just a few. Should be interesting!

dun do you remember this post??

As you can see from the poll 95% of people that have started raising cattle within the last 5 years or so are not just a bunch of wannabes with no care or management skills and only a few head with no plan to make money from their herds!

I think you and have greatly underestimated a lot of the folks on here that are new to cattle production. ( not all but a lot, as ALX pointed out there are some off the wall questions asked that make you wonder at times :roll: .) That is why you continue to see my "gibberish" about why do we so often see the advice to most new comers as

" stay way from bulls and go the AI route!

Yes bulls can be a real pain at times but I believe that new comers can learn how to handle them just like they had to learn how to handle cows!

 

[dun]

So 95% plan on making money. Most probably start wityh a modest herd. Why throw a bull into the learning curve when they're still trying to get a grip on cow behaviour/handling? I forgot, tradition! I still fail to see the logic in having a bull for breeding a half a dozen or dozen cows. But I'll bow to your vastly greater knowledge of small scale cattle raising, particualrly where it comes to smaller acreages.

dun

 

[bigbull338]

i sat here an read this whole post.those for AI an those against it.AI is great if you have the tome to go 100%.an its good if you use it selectively.no need in jumping down peoples throats because they do or dont use it.its a genetic tool to improve herds.doesnt matter if they are reg or comm.you have tobe constant checking for heats.breeding cows when they come in heat,an if you use syncing you still need to check for heats.an breed when you see standing heats.then time breed the rest.AI does cost alot of money an time.weather its done right or wrong it costs money.

 

[C HOLLAND]

i sat here an read this whole post.those for AI an those against it.AI is great if you have the tome to go 100%.an its good if you use it selectively.no need in jumping down peoples throats because they do or dont use it.its a genetic tool to improve herds.doesnt matter if they are reg or comm.you have tobe constant checking for heats.breeding cows when they come in heat,an if you use syncing you still need to check for heats.an breed when you see standing heats.then time breed the rest.AI does cost alot of money an time.weather its done right or wrong it costs money.

Bigbull,,,,I agree about the time involved in AI and the cost is probally greater than just turning the cows out with your bull/bulls.

The payoff in the end on a program that sells bulls has the potential to be much greater if you do your homework and know what the end user wants and what sells. I think (and may be wrong) that most PB seedstock breeders has a commercial side and usually they are culls from the registered side for some reason or the other. I do think that even the commercial customer is looking for better bulls to fit his needs and he prefers to buy from someone who uses the best genetics available from proven AI bulls.

We all need bulls that do the job intended and thats to produce pounds at the point of sale in the quickest amount of time, or to produce good replacement females.

JMO for what it's worth.