Backbone Ranch
Well-known member
We took our Murray Grey bull to the breeding center down in Elgin, TX this past Wednesday. The drive was long (5 hours) and our bull wasn't too happy about being next to 18 wheelers on the highway, but it was well worth it. The people at the breeding center were great. They assisted us with the required paperwork, showed us around the center, told us about the rations that he would be getting, and they were obviously very passionate about what they do. Our bull, BB Uncle Tony, will be there for a little over 3 months. He is going through the general series of testing, along with the CSS series of tests. The CSS testing allows his semen to be shipped out of the country. The breeding center also gives their clients weekly phone calls, letting them know how the bulls are progressing. They even offered to send us videos of our bull so we can actually see how he is doing! When we collect any bulls in the future, we will definitely take them to this breeding center.
This is BB Uncle Tony in breeding condition this past June at 3.5 years of age. As of two weeks ago, he weighed 1,610 lbs and is a true frame score 3. He was 86 lbs at birth and 682 lbs by weaning. His dam is our best cow who is still raising a great calf at the age of 12. Tony was tested for tenderness and marbling genes with Igenity last year. He scored a perfect 10 stars for tenderness and a near perfect 8 for marbling. That puts him in the top 4% of all cattle in the US for tenderness and the top 14% for all cattle in the US for marbling.
Tony's calves are looking exceptional. His heifers average 72 lbs at birth and his bulls average 78 lbs. Here are a few of them.
502 Heifer: pictured at 4 months
504 Heifer: Pictured at 6 months
508 Heifer: Pictured at 6 months. She is 75% Murray Grey x 25% Guernsey
510 Heifer: Pictured at 6 months
512 Heifer: Pictured at 5.5 months. She is 75% Murray Grey x 25% Angus
417 Bull: Pictured at 17 months
I will keep this thread updated as we hear back from the breeding center regarding his progress.
This is BB Uncle Tony in breeding condition this past June at 3.5 years of age. As of two weeks ago, he weighed 1,610 lbs and is a true frame score 3. He was 86 lbs at birth and 682 lbs by weaning. His dam is our best cow who is still raising a great calf at the age of 12. Tony was tested for tenderness and marbling genes with Igenity last year. He scored a perfect 10 stars for tenderness and a near perfect 8 for marbling. That puts him in the top 4% of all cattle in the US for tenderness and the top 14% for all cattle in the US for marbling.
Tony's calves are looking exceptional. His heifers average 72 lbs at birth and his bulls average 78 lbs. Here are a few of them.
502 Heifer: pictured at 4 months
504 Heifer: Pictured at 6 months
508 Heifer: Pictured at 6 months. She is 75% Murray Grey x 25% Guernsey
510 Heifer: Pictured at 6 months
512 Heifer: Pictured at 5.5 months. She is 75% Murray Grey x 25% Angus
417 Bull: Pictured at 17 months
I will keep this thread updated as we hear back from the breeding center regarding his progress.
