Is this a good idea?

[Tod Dague]

I breed my heifers to any bull I choose and I don't care if it is a (low birthweight bull). Almost never any problems and if there is I pull them and ship the heifer. In my opinion heifers need every chance they can get to raise a good calf. If they can't get rid of them.

Do you have a top end Actual BW that you will accept for breeding your cattle? Or do you look at that at all?

Tod

 

[J Baxter]

85 lbs.

 

[TheBullLady]

I can't put a "maximum birth weight limit" on my cattle. I've got registered Brahmans that have never had a calf over 75# at birth, no matter what bull is used, and I've got Fleck influenced Simmentals that will have a calf that's 10 lbs heavier than any other cow in the herd. We're back to the same point.. 50% cow x 50% bull.

 

[cherokeeruby]

Birth weight has never been a concern for us. We have had brahman heifers give birth to 95 lb bull calves with no trouble at all.

 

[BLACKPOWER]

I breed my heifers to any bull I choose and I don't care if it is a (low birthweight bull). .

This is about as backward thinking as you can get. EPD's are here to stay and they're proven, with every generation they only get more proven. Educate yourselves on how to use EPD's as selection criteria, it will improve your bottomline. Thinking the way this man does is as ignorant as it is plain stubborn. On the other hand I like to compete against fellow cattlemen who think like this, it only makes my calves and my bottom line look better.

 

[Oldtimer]

I breed my heifers to any bull I choose and I don't care if it is a (low birthweight bull). .

This is about as backward thinking as you can get. EPD's are here to stay and they're proven, with every generation they only get more proven. Educate yourselves on how to use EPD's as selection criteria, it will improve your bottomline. Thinking the way this man does is as ignorant as it is plain stubborn. On the other hand I like to compete against fellow cattlemen who think like this, it only makes my calves and my bottom line look better.

Blackpower- Pretty much agree with you--- Can't see why anyone would want to breed angus heifers to any bull with high epds-- Let alone anything to a high birthweight bull.- Or a hereford bull--We've found that its more economical to breed cows to lower birthweight bulls and have live calves in the spring than have no calf at all -- I breed to low birthweight angus bulls - ( angus under 2.0 epd, under 80 lb birthweight) - heifers and cows-and I'll still end up with steers that average around 600 lbs in the fall- with some weighing in the 700 lb. range.

The old story that you have to have 100lb birthweight calves to have have 600 lb calves is a crock-- Those 70 lb. calves that have much more vigor will jump up, suck, and live, where the 90-100 lbers will die in cold or bad weather.

Around here, even many of the purebred hereford breeders breed their hereford heifers to a low birthweight angus bull for the first calf to guarantee a live one.

No way can I see putting a hereford bull on first calf angus heifers if you can use an angus bull-- One thing people forget is that even when the calf is in the cow- heterosis kicks in- a lot of the epd and birthweight statistics go out the door when you crossbreed--Some of the largest calves I've ever pulled came out of hereford -angus X's (148lbs).

My biggest complaint with the angus and hereford industry has long been that they had a good thing going-- then tried to make them all the size of the exotics, and increased much of the frame size and birthweights so bad that the ruined what the good thing is that they had going for them.... Give me a pasture of 75lb birth calves over 1 100 lber anyday..

 

[BLACKPOWER]

I breed my heifers to any bull I choose and I don't care if it is a (low birthweight bull). .

This is about as backward thinking as you can get. EPD's are here to stay and they're proven, with every generation they only get more proven. Educate yourselves on how to use EPD's as selection criteria, it will improve your bottomline. Thinking the way this man does is as ignorant as it is plain stubborn. On the other hand I like to compete against fellow cattlemen who think like this, it only makes my calves and my bottom line look better.

Blackpower- Pretty much agree with you--- Can't see why anyone would want to breed angus heifers to any bull with high epds-- Let alone anything to a high birthweight bull.- Or a hereford bull--We've found that its more economical to breed cows to lower birthweight bulls and have live calves in the spring than have no calf at all -- I breed to low birthweight angus bulls - ( angus under 2.0 epd, under 80 lb birthweight) - heifers and cows-and I'll still end up with steers that average around 600 lbs in the fall- with some weighing in the 700 lb. range.

The old story that you have to have 100lb birthweight calves to have have 600 lb calves is a crock-- Those 70 lb. calves that have much more vigor will jump up, suck, and live, where the 90-100 lbers will die in cold or bad weather.

Around here, even many of the purebred hereford breeders breed their hereford heifers to a low birthweight angus bull for the first calf to guarantee a live one.

No way can I see putting a hereford bull on first calf angus heifers if you can use an angus bull-- One thing people forget is that even when the calf is in the cow- heterosis kicks in- a lot of the epd and birthweight statistics go out the door when you crossbreed--Some of the largest calves I've ever pulled came out of hereford -angus X's (148lbs).

My biggest complaint with the angus and hereford industry has long been that they had a good thing going-- then tried to make them all the size of the exotics, and increased much of the frame size and birthweights so bad that the ruined what the good thing is that they had going for them.... Give me a pasture of 75lb birth calves over 1 100 lber anyday..

Yep and if you look through your big ranch progressive angus breeders 95% of them calves are under 85 pounds.