Good morning to everyone. This is my first time posting a topic. I currently have a 20 head herd of registered Angus and registered Hereford cattle running a registered Hereford bull with the herd. My black baldy calves averaged about 15 pounds heavier than the straight Herefords due to the crossbred hybrid vigor. I've been considering using a black Gelbvieh/Balancer bull to produce black/black baldy calves. I would like your opinion of the Gelbvieh breed both good and bad. Thanks
Gelbvieh/Balancer Bulls
- Thread starter wtrapp
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HOSS
Well-known member
I have a balancer bull. First calves should be on the ground in February so I'll let you know how they do. I researched it for a long time before settling on the Gelbvieh influenced bull. I bought homo polled and homo black. I really like the way he has come along on grass and hay. The Gelbvieh puts on allot of muscle.
HOSS":3n8zv9cv said:
Thanks for your input. I'm located in Middle Tennessee and would like to hear how your calves turn out. Please give me your thoughts on disposition of the breed. I work my cattle by myself and don't want anything with an attitude.
SRBeef
Well-known member
I think I would be careful about making a major change for 15 lb average difference. Are there other differences between the baldies and the straight Herefords? I have both baldies and straight Herefords also. Some of the Baldies really have an attitude problem. More so than the straight Herefords. As I posted about shrink. You can lose 15 lb pretty quick so I would be careful about other traits that you may not be noticing now but are there because of the Hereford bull. 15 lb average difference in wt between two groups of 10 calves may or may not be significant compared to some other traits. Do you plan on retaining any heifers? I'm going the other direction towards pure Herefords for other reasons. Good luck.
HOSS
Well-known member
wtrapp":1v3m363d said:
wtrapp, the Gelbvieh have a good reputation on disposition. That was a main concern for me also. I work my cattle alone and dealing with the bull has been a pretty good experience. As any young bull he showed some attitude after I first got him but one crack across the nose with a piece of pvc pipe and he mellowed out quick. Now that he is just turned 2 years old he is as easy to handle as any and comes to a feed bucket with no problems. Loads and moves through the chutes and alleys very easily. On a docility scale of 1-10 (10 being most docile) I would rank him as an 8. All of the balancer and Gelbvieh bulls I looked at were very docile and tolerant of close human contact.
If you are looking for a good breeder in the Middle Tennessee area I can recommend Thomas Mears of Circle M Farms in McMinnville. He is a straight up guy and really stands behind his bulls. The first one I bought failed a BSE. He let me trade him straight out for a more valuable bull for my inconvenience. He is also an ABS rep so he has top of the line semen that he uses to AI his calves. He has bulls from great bloodlines like Carolina Fortune, Flying H, JBOB and Atlas 101N. He comes highly recommended by me for the way he treated me as a customer. He took most of an afternoon to show me all the bulls he had and made sound recommendations for my program. I don't think you can go wrong with a Balancer or a straight Gelbvieh bull. If you are interested in contacting Mr. Mears drop me a PM and I can get you his cell phone number.
We've been using a gelbvieh bull on one set of cows for a couple years now and I'm sold on the breed. Bought a simmi bull at the same time and ran him on another set to compare calves. The simmi bull hit the road a couple months ago and we're going to get another gv bull, maybe a balancer.
As far as disposition, our gv bull is as calm as our horned herf bull, you can walk up and scratch both of them. We went and looked at a group of gv and balancer bulls a couple days ago. The balancers I've seen (never owned one) have more attitude than the straight gv, more like an angus. In your situation with straight english cattle I'd prefer a pb gelbvieh over a balancer, but to each his own.
Don't know how far you're willing to travel, but Knoll Crest Farm in Red House, VA, is having their bull sale the first Friday in December. They've got some of the nicest gv and balancers I've seen, as well as herfs and angus.
As far as disposition, our gv bull is as calm as our horned herf bull, you can walk up and scratch both of them. We went and looked at a group of gv and balancer bulls a couple days ago. The balancers I've seen (never owned one) have more attitude than the straight gv, more like an angus. In your situation with straight english cattle I'd prefer a pb gelbvieh over a balancer, but to each his own.
Don't know how far you're willing to travel, but Knoll Crest Farm in Red House, VA, is having their bull sale the first Friday in December. They've got some of the nicest gv and balancers I've seen, as well as herfs and angus.
Red Bull Breeder
Well-known member
Anybody seen any foot problems with the Gelbviehs? Talked with a guy from Kentucky Last Friday who had been using Gelbvieh and was haveing foot troubles.
Red Bull Breeder
Well-known member
He was using Gelbvieh bulls.
I think you would like the cross a Gelbvieh or Balancer bull on your Angus and hereford cows. If you want a uniform set of calves, be sure to buy one that is homozygous black, so all of the calves are black. You will obviously get some black baldies from the hereford, but that should give you a nice group of blacks and black baldies to sell.
I have been breeding Geblvieh and Balancer bulls for a long time now. I love the docility of the Gelbvieh breed. We have never had a temperment problem with a Gelbvieh or Balancer bull. They should add muscling to your calves. I think you will like the outcome. PM me if you want some more information on Gelbvieh and Balancer bulls.
I have been breeding Geblvieh and Balancer bulls for a long time now. I love the docility of the Gelbvieh breed. We have never had a temperment problem with a Gelbvieh or Balancer bull. They should add muscling to your calves. I think you will like the outcome. PM me if you want some more information on Gelbvieh and Balancer bulls.
dyates
Well-known member
SRBeef":za70san9 said:
Purebred herf calves don't work in our part of the country for the commercial producer. 15 pounds lighter and 30 cents cheaper. There are a few people with some smarts who have learned to buy replacement herfs at the sale barn for a discount and sell black baldy calves for a premium; get their cake and eat it too.
hillsdown
Well-known member
Wow, this thread is a blast from the past. I don't know how I missed it last year. As far as foot problems my bulls never ever have a problem, whether they are in the bull pen for winter or turned out to pasture with the ladies, two of the pastures we have they need to walk in a dug out to drink the water and I never have a problem with foot rot on any.
As far as disposition, the breed is unbelievable. I can move my bulls anywhere, even through the yard by the house to another paddock when I need to use there bull pen for sorting and when I am done I walk them back over (all by myself).
I work my cattle most of the time by myself, I am in with the bulls all the time to feed etc, I have never had a problem .They are just an easy going ,happy go lucky group of boys..
I also had a commercial herd until last fall and the GV bulls did a heck of a job on my herfs .
wtrapp if I remember Hoss posted some pics of his calves out of his balancer bull on the breeds board and they look phenomenal, now if we can just get him to use a straight Gv bull on his cattle. ;-)
As far as disposition, the breed is unbelievable. I can move my bulls anywhere, even through the yard by the house to another paddock when I need to use there bull pen for sorting and when I am done I walk them back over (all by myself).
I work my cattle most of the time by myself, I am in with the bulls all the time to feed etc, I have never had a problem .They are just an easy going ,happy go lucky group of boys..
I also had a commercial herd until last fall and the GV bulls did a heck of a job on my herfs .
wtrapp if I remember Hoss posted some pics of his calves out of his balancer bull on the breeds board and they look phenomenal, now if we can just get him to use a straight Gv bull on his cattle. ;-)
novaman
Well-known member
I use Balancers along with a straight Gelb bull. It is my honest opinion that anyone with a herd consisting mostly of straight bred cows would do well by going with a Balancer. Several years back my herd was very heavily Char influenced. I was tired of getting docked for the white calves even though they were nice looking animals. I switched to Gelb and Balancer bulls and I would never go back. The calves are night and day difference. Very aggressive right out of momma and they just keep growing. You can't go wrong with the heterosis and Gelb breed ;-)
