I Give UP

[plbcattle]

I am hoping that by posting my flustrations that maybe this will turn around. last year out of 50 calves I only had 6 bull calves. this year out of 27 I have only had 2 with about 50 more to go. I have the best matings that I could ever dream of. I guess I will get into the replacement female business instead of the bull business.

 

[Jake]

start buying the sexed semen

 

[haybalin fool]

It could just very well be the bull because he is the one who determines the sex of the calf. I have put a very good bull with 10 very good commercial cows and 6 out of the 7 born so far have been bulls. The bad part is, I WANT HEIFERS!!!, lol

 

[Jake]

haven't you two heard of what you want is what you won't get... as soon as you find a way to get rid of the heifers or get used to having a set of steers they'll all switch.

 

[CKC1586]

Ain't that the truth!!! Never fails when you're looking for heifers you get bulls and vice versa.

 

[Dee]

plb, is that the same bull from last year? Strange. I am always so close to 50-50. 1st year I had 6 extra bulls, last year 3 extra heifers. But of course those I would love to have replacements from have the bull calves not the heifers!

 

[Rod]

Isn't that how it goes! I'm in need of replacement heifers and I'm having 90% buuls calves. I've got black angus and brangus bulls out the wazoo. Maybe we need to do some trading.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

plbcattle,start planning on getting heifers and then you'll get those bulls. I had to chuckle to myself when I read the original post. I thought HA...I have been hoping for heifers since pretty much day one, and most of the time I get bulls, this poor guy has the opposite problem. I'm trying to build the herd.
Good luck next time around, maybe you'll finally get those bulls. That's always how it seems to go, ya get just what ya don't want. :lol:

Katherine

 

[jerry27150]

if it is the same bull get a deferent one. i once had bull when i had a 50 cow dairy that only throwed one heifer calf in two years

 

[jgn]

The year before last out of 14 calves 12 were bulls, last year out of 15 calves I had 9 heifers and 6 bulls. These were all out of the same bull. Go figure.

 

[Craig-TX]

We've always run amazingly close to 50/50. They will go in surges and sometimes we're selling more heifers than steers but over each year it averages out.

Craig-TX

 

[plbcattle]

same cows, different bulls

 

[jerry27150]

must be a case of bad luck

 

[dcara]

Below is copy of Vicki the Vets reply to a question back in Septmeber regarding sexing of ponies. I don't know how much it applies to cattle, but it would seem the mechanics would be similar. Maybe she'll chime in and comment on relavancy to cattle.


"Well, I didn't take the time to read all of the answers to the original question, so this may have been answered.

The male determines the sex of the fetus due to the presence of both an X and a Y chromosome. Male spermatozoa swim faster than the female, and die sooner, so if the mare is bred close to the time of ovulation, the highest liklihood would be a male offspring. If bred before ovulation, the highest liklihood would be a female offspring. Some mares will not allow breeding until ovulation, thus more colts, others will allow earlier, thus fillies.

Sexing of spermatozoa is still a bit hit or miss, since you can't guarantee 100% the sex, you can only increase the odds.

I'm really zonked tonight, so PM me if you need further clarification!
V"

 

[D.R. Cattle]

We've always run amazingly close to 50/50. They will go in surges and sometimes we're selling more heifers than steers but over each year it averages out.

Craig-TX

Same here. Usually ends up around 50/50.

 

[b l h]

The first bull I ever bought was a beefmaster and I had him for 2 years and both years the 20 calves that hit the ground only 1 was bulls both years. I was getting ready to put wheels under him, I helped the eldery man next to me, told him about he wrote me a check on the spot for him.
Told me he was too old to cut bull calves. After that of his 25 or so he would average 3 to 5 bulls