Breeding back issues

[BARNSCOOP]

In October of 2011 we bought a new herd bull along with three new bred heifers. The heifers started calving, on time, in mid January of 2012 along with our other cows, we have only five total. Now as it turns out in 2013 two out if the five where late to have calves. 2014 and two, two different cows , are already late. So in a span of two breeding years all of my cows have gotten behind in calving. We can see they are bred but just late. A month behind last year and counting, so what can be the problem? I see the bull doing his job but should I have him checked? He only has five ladies, how hard is that?

 

[B&M Farms]

What kind of condition are you keeping on the cows? If the cows are in good condition when they calve then I would say the bull needs to be checked.

 

[BARNSCOOP]

They are in good condition. We are feeding hay until April, with free choice salt ,minerals and a protein tub. Automatic waterers. We usually have our hay tested to supplement if needed. Could we have VD of some sort? We vacs yearly Triangle 10, Covexin 8 and moraxella bo is bacterin for pink eye.

 

[3LEGGED1]

The shell that being shot might not be loaded as hot as it should.Time for bse test.

 

[B&M Farms]

Have him semen tested.

 

[BARNSCOOP]

He was semen tested in October 2011 when we got him as a two year old. What could make a bull with only five cows to service lose a good sperm count? The other day I pulled up to the fence on the tractor with some grain to feed and the guy blew a load for no apparent reason other than he wanted to do so.

 

[B&M Farms]

I had a neighbor buy a 18month old angus bull and put him in with 37 cows. They all calved the same month. He is retired and watches his cows close and the next breeding season he called wanting to use my bull to clean up because he had too many coming back in heat. It happens.

 

[dun]

It's cheap insurance but we have our bulls checkd a month or 2 before we start breeding. A couple of years ago we had a bull that tested good as a yearling with a scrotal of 48 cm/ Got everything bred in a couple of weeks so I sold him to the neighbor. Worked out well for him and 6 months later all of the cows kept coming back into heat. He was shoioting blanks for some reason and his nuts had no tone at all. Neigbor fed his milkers, which was where the bull was, a high cotton seed grain mixture. That could have been the problem, or it could have been something else.