Heat

[Ray]

I have always bought steers. This year I bought a nice Herford heffer. She is now about a year old. As far as I can tell she has never been in heat. The steers are all interested in her but she shows no sign of heat. Is this normal for a Herford? If it is when should she come into heat? I would like to heve her have 3-4 heats before breeding and I would like an April calf so things are getting close. I did have a vet check her when she was 6 months old and basically got a quick check according to my wife and he said most likely she would be able to breed but until she had a calf on the ground no one could say for sure. The breeder i bought her from says if she is unable to breed he would replace her. Also can an AI tech bring her into heat for breeding with hormones? Thank you for all your help. By the way when I hear people talk about "Dumb farmers I always direct them to this site and the Grazersedge site on Yahoo. Usually shuts them up.

 

[dun]

Puberty in cattle is an iffy thing. Some will start cycling when they're 6 months old, some won't until they're 12 months or more. You can have the vet do a reproduction (RTS) exam. They palpate the utereus and ovaries and determine at what stage of maturity they're at. If she is close to starting cycling, she may be succesfully induced to cycle, but she may also not be induced. You'll also have to have her at an adequate weight and body condition to cycle/breed. To calve in April your looking at breeding in July. In some areas, hot weather and the quality of the forage can make conception difficult during that time. How are you planning on breeding her, AI/Natural Service? Sometimes with heifers that are close, running them with horny steers or a bull will help to get them started.

dun

I have always bought steers. This year I bought a nice Herford heffer. She is now about a year old. As far as I can tell she has never been in heat. The steers are all interested in her but she shows no sign of heat. Is this normal for a Herford? If it is when should she come into heat? I would like to heve her have 3-4 heats before breeding and I would like an April calf so things are getting close. I did have a vet check her when she was 6 months old and basically got a quick check according to my wife and he said most likely she would be able to breed but until she had a calf on the ground no one could say for sure. The breeder i bought her from says if she is unable to breed he would replace her. Also can an AI tech bring her into heat for breeding with hormones? Thank you for all your help. By the way when I hear people talk about "Dumb farmers I always direct them to this site and the Grazersedge site on Yahoo. Usually shuts them up.