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Jersey heifer - Bull selection advice
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<blockquote data-quote="farmerjan" data-source="post: 1542663" data-attributes="member: 25884"><p>The reason I asked about what breed(s) of cattle you had as to understand better why you were so torn between the 3 very different sires to use. And thought that perhaps you hadn't been breeding cattle very long and so was not well versed in different breeds and their resulting offspring. I asked what you were planning to do with the resulting calf because if it was a heifer, and you were planning to keep it then it would be different if it were to be a terminal cross and the calf would be leaving. I am assuming from what you have written that you direct market your beef. Here in this area, the "coat color" of the calf will have a huge impact on the saleability of the calf if you are not direct marketing as freezer beef. I've been there, done that, and find that I no longer want to deal with the public to direct market the beef, except to tried and true regular customers. By the way, I raise and sell nearly all my jersey and jersey cross calves as direct marketed beef, and have for many years. </p><p> I already said I must have misunderstood your phrasing on the affect the service sire would have on the milking ability of the heifer. </p><p>I made the comment on the reason why the guy used a red brahma bull on his jerseys, instead of a jersey bull on red brahmas, that was in part due to the disposition of a jersey bull. I had forgotten that in a previous thread it was once revealed that he had a milking herd of jerseys and the red brahma crossed calves were a "value added product" as opposed to trying to market jersey bull calves. </p><p>There are quite a few dairies here that are breeding the lower 1/2 or 2/3rds of their milking herd to beef bulls, AI, to give them a little more value back on the calves. And yes, 99% of them are using "black" bulls because that is what sells. They are using sexed semen on their best cows to be able to keep the heifers from those breedings to go back into their milking herd. The dairy industry is in very difficult straights and any way that the farmers can improve the value of their calves, they are trying.</p><p>I will have to say that we do not see any reduction in size of our beef calves in the fall compared to the spring. Perhaps that is because of the abundance of good grazing that we have and the good nutrition the cows get during the grazing months. The bulls we use are specifically chosen for the size of calves that they throw. We also buy from breeders that do not creep feed their calves, while on their dams, so the calf has to grow from the ability of the dam to produce enough milk on a forage based system. Grain is a treat for our cattle, it trains them to come into the catch pens and trains the calf to learn to eat out of the feed bunks so that when weaned and retained, they are not traumatized and go backwards for those first few weeks. We have 2 bulls that are specifically used for calving ease and have not had a calf over 70# from either. The heifers have them, lick them off, they get up and off they go. We have several bulls that are used specifically on cows and are plus on calf size so we do not keep breeding our cows smaller over the years of retention of replacement heifers.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="farmerjan, post: 1542663, member: 25884"] The reason I asked about what breed(s) of cattle you had as to understand better why you were so torn between the 3 very different sires to use. And thought that perhaps you hadn't been breeding cattle very long and so was not well versed in different breeds and their resulting offspring. I asked what you were planning to do with the resulting calf because if it was a heifer, and you were planning to keep it then it would be different if it were to be a terminal cross and the calf would be leaving. I am assuming from what you have written that you direct market your beef. Here in this area, the "coat color" of the calf will have a huge impact on the saleability of the calf if you are not direct marketing as freezer beef. I've been there, done that, and find that I no longer want to deal with the public to direct market the beef, except to tried and true regular customers. By the way, I raise and sell nearly all my jersey and jersey cross calves as direct marketed beef, and have for many years. I already said I must have misunderstood your phrasing on the affect the service sire would have on the milking ability of the heifer. I made the comment on the reason why the guy used a red brahma bull on his jerseys, instead of a jersey bull on red brahmas, that was in part due to the disposition of a jersey bull. I had forgotten that in a previous thread it was once revealed that he had a milking herd of jerseys and the red brahma crossed calves were a "value added product" as opposed to trying to market jersey bull calves. There are quite a few dairies here that are breeding the lower 1/2 or 2/3rds of their milking herd to beef bulls, AI, to give them a little more value back on the calves. And yes, 99% of them are using "black" bulls because that is what sells. They are using sexed semen on their best cows to be able to keep the heifers from those breedings to go back into their milking herd. The dairy industry is in very difficult straights and any way that the farmers can improve the value of their calves, they are trying. I will have to say that we do not see any reduction in size of our beef calves in the fall compared to the spring. Perhaps that is because of the abundance of good grazing that we have and the good nutrition the cows get during the grazing months. The bulls we use are specifically chosen for the size of calves that they throw. We also buy from breeders that do not creep feed their calves, while on their dams, so the calf has to grow from the ability of the dam to produce enough milk on a forage based system. Grain is a treat for our cattle, it trains them to come into the catch pens and trains the calf to learn to eat out of the feed bunks so that when weaned and retained, they are not traumatized and go backwards for those first few weeks. We have 2 bulls that are specifically used for calving ease and have not had a calf over 70# from either. The heifers have them, lick them off, they get up and off they go. We have several bulls that are used specifically on cows and are plus on calf size so we do not keep breeding our cows smaller over the years of retention of replacement heifers. [/QUOTE]
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