Breeding small Hereford - which calving ease bull--??

[susie]

I'm looking for a bull for my small Hereford heifer. She's been cycling at least 3 months now, but she is very small. I'm not sure of her age, but when we got her in February or so, she was 325 pounds. She has since filled out, but is still short. Now I'd say she's 500-550 pounds, but like I said short. Like 40- 42 inches tall. So I think she will mature at maybe 850-900 pounds, that's just a guess.
Anyway, we aren't going to rush it, but will want to get her bred at some point. Does she sound like she will be big enough to breed to an Angus? If so any recommendations? If she has a heifer we may keep it, bull would be for our meat.
Could go Murray grey too, or even lowline Angus? just wondering if there's an angus that might work also, BTW my ai guy is with ABS.

Thanks!

Suse

 

[alabama]

That is sure a small heifer.
Take a look at this ABS bull.
http://abs-bs.absglobal.com/beef/angus. ... o=29AN1593

 

[Alan]

I may end up red faced about this post, but I have never been able to find the price of semen on the ABS web site, is it hiding or am I blind?

So I don't completly hijack this post if your heifer isn't 800 to 900 lbs now you may not want to breed her at all she sounds too small. JMO

Alan

 

[Farmgirl]

Susie,

Look at the ABS Red Angus bull named Above and Beyond. He is supposedly an extreme calving-ease bull. I think Dun has calves from him.

 

[dun]

I may end up red faced about this post, but I have never been able to find the price of semen on the ABS web site, is it hiding or am I blind?

So I don't completly hijack this post if your heifer isn't 800 to 900 lbs now you may not want to breed her at all she sounds too small. JMO

Alan

They don;t publish the prices. It's in a seperaate hadnout/flyer deal. Either your ABS rep or contact ABS Global for it

 

[Chris H]

I'd suggest you contact a mini-Hereford breeder.

A (full sized)Hereford sire well known for calving ease is 767G,
http://abs-bs.absglobal.com/beef/hereford.asp?CodTouro=29HH0834

 

[mnmtranching]

To small to breed, I think she should be at least 750 when bred even that is small. Give her some time, see if she puts on some size. If she is just small find something with a very small birthweight, like about 40 to 50 pounds.

mnmt

 

[SPRINGER FARMS MURRAY GRE]

Try a young Murray Grey ;-) :cboy:

 

[Susie David]

Susie....how old do you really think she is?
325 in February I would think that even a late fall calf would be bigger than that. Could be an early cyclier, some start at six months. If you believe that she isn't a poor preformer or been stunted for some reason....out of curiosity...did she come from the sale barn? My bet is that she has a mouth full of baby teeth, I'd let her grow up before I put her under a bull. Just my opinion. Dave Mc

 

[msscamp]

Susie, based on your description she sounds too young to breed.

 

[susie]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Susie....how old do you really think she is?
325 in February I would think that even a late fall calf would be bigger than that. Could be an early cyclier, some start at six months. If you believe that she isn't a poor preformer or been stunted for some reason....out of curiosity...did she come from the sale barn? My bet is that she has a mouth full of baby teeth, I'd let her grow up before I put her under a bull. Just my opinion. Dave Mc

I really don't know how old she is. Yes, we picked her up at the sales barn- funny thing, we had bought a bull the year before that ended up being from the same seller- we thought he was young too, bought him at 625 pounds, turned him into a steer , put him on grass, grain-fed him 60 days, one year later he was 1000 pounds - he had never really gotten taller, just stockier. So that's what I'm basing this on-- She looked like a small weanling when we bought her, but when we got the slip that listed the seller, we said uh oh, another dwarf ( not really a dwarf, but small), boy we know how to pick 'em!
She's probably grown 3 inches taller since we bought her, I wormed her, she's been on lush pasture minerals, etc.
How can I tell her age? She's just a few inches taller than our 3 month old hereford/MG heifer.
If you recall, we live on small acreage, so I'm not concerned if she stays small. It actually would be for the best, and if a mini breed bull is what I need it shouldn't be a problem. I guess I was just wondering what the minimum size would be to breed a cow to an angus easy calving bull, vs going with a Dexter, lowline, or mini Hereford. Any answers?


Like I said, I''m not in any hurry to breed her, but again she's only grown a few inches taller since we got her in Feb. or so, so I'm not sure how much "growing up" she will do

Thanks!

Susie

 

[Farmgirl]

Susie,

A rule of thumb is that a heifer can have a calf that weighs 7-8% of her weight. There are other factors to consider, such as the shape of the calf. If a calf is heavily muscled it will usually be a harder delivery. We looked that with our first calf heifers and the rule was pretty close for us.

Hope this helps.

 

[dj]

How can I tell her age?

http://www.google.com/custom?domains=Ca ... 1%3B&hl=en

 

[susie]

Thank you for those links- I did not know that!! I'll go look at her teeth.



Susie

 

[cowpunk'd]

My a.i tech would try to talk you into breeding her to a jersey for her first calf. Atleast then you will get a live calf and you probably won't have to pull it or pay for a vet to deliver it thru a hole in her side.

 

[Frankie]

I'm looking for a bull for my small Hereford heifer. She's been cycling at least 3 months now, but she is very small. I'm not sure of her age, but when we got her in February or so, she was 325 pounds. She has since filled out, but is still short. Now I'd say she's 500-550 pounds, but like I said short. Like 40- 42 inches tall. So I think she will mature at maybe 850-900 pounds, that's just a guess.
Anyway, we aren't going to rush it, but will want to get her bred at some point. Does she sound like she will be big enough to breed to an Angus? If so any recommendations? If she has a heifer we may keep it, bull would be for our meat.
Could go Murray grey too, or even lowline Angus? just wondering if there's an angus that might work also, BTW my ai guy is with ABS.

Thanks!

Suse

She sounds like she might be a mini? Who will do the breeding? If your vet or the ABS rep will do the breeding, get them to look at the heifer. They might be able to help you age her and select a bull. But, yes, I'm sure there's an Angus bull out there that will work. Remember though that just because she's cycling doesn't mean she's ready to breed. Good luck....

 

[cathied]

Hi Susie,
I'd use a Highland Bull !
Highland meat is great (& healthy) but it is not a popular breed as they're slow growers & a smaller breed. Highland calves are smaller, so it's easier on mom, the off spring of a cross breed don't have the highland horns (if that's a concern) Calves also look like the mother with little (if any) resemblance to highlands.
Good luck my dear !