Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
Picked this guy up for $1172.50 Saturday. Weighed 875. Very calm natured young bull, I'm hoping to use him to bred back 7 cows this fall.
Hereford bull
- Thread starter Calhoun Farm
- Start date
Help Support CattleToday:
salebarn junkie
Well-known member
I think for 7 cows and 1175 you did the smart thing to many people overpay for commercial bulls. I don't think I would have taken a pic and posted it though. Its definitely a back 40 bull.
OP
OP
Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
I've grown thick skin since joining this site, I'm not really worried about my bull's approval rating.
Since it appears that you paid kill price for him. To me anyway the question would be.........
Was he semen tested before you bought him?..........or are you just hoping he is fertile?
No offense intended just curious.
Was he semen tested before you bought him?..........or are you just hoping he is fertile?
No offense intended just curious.
OP
OP
Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
Hoping he's fertile lol. These pics are from a cell phone so not that great but he's very young. I'm going to have him semen tested in a few months. I won't have calves on the ground until Aug/Sept anyway. In that time if he's sterile I should make money on weight gain at least.
boondocks
Well-known member
Calhoun Farm":2jx6u7wj said:
Hi Calhoun,
As a newbie and for a learning exercise, would you be interested in telling me what you would change about him if you could "Photoshop" him? I'm trying to learn the difference between a "decent-enough/good value" bull and a bull you'd trade your mother for. Thoughts? Thanks!
Nesikep
Well-known member
For me, yes he is still young, but he isn't showing much masculinity... no curly hair, no hump of the neck... I can't really judge his length in the pictures.
As for if he'll do the job, well, for 7 cows, it might just be fine... he's good natured, which is a point on the good side for him too.
We have 25 cows and we can hardly justify spending over $3000 on a bull, and no one around here calves in the fall, so it would be hard to go 'halvers' with someone on a better animal. We were lucky to find the long yearling we got in the fall for $2500.
I think you're about right with your logic... you paid a price that unless he goes tits-up, you won't lose money on him... And you know it's only the really nice animals you find tits-up in the morning, this one has no danger, he'll breed until he's 20 years old!
As for if he'll do the job, well, for 7 cows, it might just be fine... he's good natured, which is a point on the good side for him too.
We have 25 cows and we can hardly justify spending over $3000 on a bull, and no one around here calves in the fall, so it would be hard to go 'halvers' with someone on a better animal. We were lucky to find the long yearling we got in the fall for $2500.
I think you're about right with your logic... you paid a price that unless he goes tits-up, you won't lose money on him... And you know it's only the really nice animals you find tits-up in the morning, this one has no danger, he'll breed until he's 20 years old!
OP
OP
Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
Here's a little better pic of him in the trailer.
I'll use our actual camera and get a side pics of him.
I'll use our actual camera and get a side pics of him.
OP
OP
Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
boondocks":3ruvkw3w said:
I'm no expert, but I look for flat back, wide butt, solid feet and legs, and good size testicles. After I that I like to see how they act in the ring, if they are wild I don't care how good they look, no animal is worth getting hurt over.
boondocks
Well-known member
Thanks for the replies. It's been interesting to me to watch how the bulls (Angus, Hereford, etc) really do go thru a "masculinizing" phase at puberty (or whatever it's called in the bull world).
I luv herfrds
Well-known member
I would like to see some better pictures of him. Looks like he has some good depth to him. His head I am not too crazy about but that does not breed cows. :lol2:
novatech
Well-known member
How much would you loose by not having your cows bred?Calhoun Farm":k7cfvi0r said:
M.Magis
Well-known member
That's what I was thinking, but then I read it again. I think what he's saying is that his cows are currently bred and won't calve until Aug/Sept, and before he needs the bull to go to work he'll have him tested.novatech":1cahtbi4 said:
highgrit
Well-known member
With a bull and cow herd you see every day you would have to be lost to not know if the bull is doing his job. I can see the need for BSE. But correct me if I'm wrong, I have heard of bulls failing a BSE, and then passing it the next week. Pay attention and keep records of what going on, and you will be fine.
OP
OP
Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
I'm going to have him semen tested in August or early sept. If he fails I'll sell him by weight and should make money after he eats grass all summer. The way my loan is setup I have to pay it back once a year then I can get it right back out again, this bull and all the cows/calves will be sold in late Nov. I'm hoping to do a package deal (private sale) and save some sall barn commission.
highgrit
Well-known member
Your missing what we're trying to tell you Calhoun farms. Having open cows for 4-5 months is going to cost you lots of money. You need to make sure that your cows are bred ASAP.
M.Magis
Well-known member
I believe they are already bred, set to calve in Aug/Sept.
OP
OP
Calhoun Farm
Well-known member
My cows are already bred, expecting calves to hit the ground in late fall. I'm hoping to use this bull to breed them back so I can sell calves, bred cows, and a bull come Nov.
highgrit":51dzhx2i said:
Just my opinion but we'd never buy a bull that hadn't been given a BSE prior to purchase and it shouldn't be on the buyer to have to get it done - it's good practice for anyone selling bulls to have a BSE done prior to sale. We take our yearling bulls for sale as well as our herd bull to the vet each spring to get a BSE because not only do we want to guarantee the bulls we are selling are fertile but want to make sure the bull we are using ourselves is still fertile. Even if a bull was good the prior year a yearly BSE is smart to do because you never know if a bull might have injured himself or gone sterile for some odd reason during his downtime and I don't know of anyone that could afford to find it out too late when he has a bunch of cows come up open later.
And yes you could have a bull fail a BSE then pass it later, especially yearling bulls. Could be a number of things, either he's behind on his reproductive development plus they have not been sexually active yet so sometimes it takes another sample collection because the 1st one possibly contained old sperm cells and he needed to be stimulated more. Other factors could be nutrition or possibly any vaccinations or pours the bull recently had that could temporarily affect fertility while the drug is still in their system.
