Pathfinders

gizmom

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Got a nice suprise in the mail last week. Two of our cows made pathfinder!

Gizmo Pride 525 065 0125 Registration #15394906 and

Gizmo Pride 717 314 4132 Registration #16030500

I was sure suprised and proud to get that kind of news.

Gizmom
 
gizmom":1xd7pwtf said:
Got a nice suprise in the mail last week. Two of our cows made pathfinder!

Gizmo Pride 525 065 0125 Registration #15394906 and

Gizmo Pride 717 314 4132 Registration #16030500

I was sure suprised and proud to get that kind of news.

Gizmom

Me too! I was surprised! And I just bought her in November,as a bred cow,due any day now! Reg#16245113. She's bred to #16098337 Congrats Gizmom :banana:
 
Gizmom: can you explain what pathfinder means or is. I've often heard the term but never really understood.
 
Congrats Gizmom. That's no easy feat! My guess is you worked just as hard as the cow did to achieve that honor! :tiphat:
 
Lazy M":33gw0e4p said:
Gizmom: can you explain what pathfinder means or is. I've often heard the term but never really understood.
Copy and pasted right off the Angus website:

The Pathfinder Angus program was started in 1978 in an effort to identify superior cows in the breed based on their records of performance from Angus Herd Improvement Records (AHIR). In identifying these superior cows, emphasis was placed on early puberty, breeding and early calving, followed by regularity of calving and above-average performance of the offspring.
While outstanding cows can be identified after their first or second calves, the Pathfinder Report requires a minimum of three calves from a cow to determine her regularity of calving and ability to produce superior calves for weaning weight year after year. In addition, an important part of the report is the list of bulls that have sired five or more qualifying females.

The Angus Pathfinder Report identifies cows that have excelled in production based on AHIR records of performance. To qualify for the report, a cow must have produced a calf measured through AHIR in the past 18 months.

In addition, bulls that have sired a minimum of five or more Pathfinder Cows are listed as Pathfinder Sires in this report.
 
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Congratulations Gizmom , you should be proud !! :D I am sure you are going to get many more certificates as a breeder in the years to come. :clap:


The follow criteria are used to determine Dams of Merit and Dams of Distinction in the Gelbvieh Association :

A Dam of Merit must have produced at least three calves all with weaning information reported to the AGA. A Dam of Distinction must have produced eight calves or more.
She must have produced her last calf during the time period between January 1 of the prior year and March 1 of the current year.
She must possess a minimum average weaning weight ratio for all calves of 101.
She must have a calving interval not exceeding the maximum, calculated by the following formula: (Number of Calving Intervals x 365 Days) + 30 Days
Number of Calving Intervals

I framed my very first Dam of Merit certificate as a breeder and it is proudly mounted in my office . It is a great feeling of accomplishment to get those certs and recognition in the mail .
 
TN Cattle Man":1hpfliyh said:
Lazy M":1hpfliyh said:
Gizmom: can you explain what pathfinder means or is. I've often heard the term but never really understood.
Copy and pasted right off the Angus website:

The Pathfinder Angus program was started in 1978 in an

In addition, bulls that have sired a minimum of five or more Pathfinder Cows are listed as Pathfinder Sires in this report.
Thanks for the explanation.
that is impressive. Congrats!
 
When we got the papers in the mail for one of our Pathfinder dams, we were in complete shock. This newly deemed Pathfinder cow had just been moved to "recip cow" status. She had the ugliest calves ever, no matter the AI sire. Not one calf was ever kept for a replacement heifer or bull. She obviously met all the requirements and her data was great, but that certainly did not translate to looks. We had a good laugh over it. Hope your cows produce far better looking offspring!
 
red one":12qyeyo6 said:
When we got the papers in the mail for one of our Pathfinder dams, we were in complete shock. This newly deemed Pathfinder cow had just been moved to "recip cow" status. She had the ugliest calves ever, no matter the AI sire. Not one calf was ever kept for a replacement heifer or bull. She obviously met all the requirements and her data was great, but that certainly did not translate to looks. We had a good laugh over it. Hope your cows produce far better looking offspring!
:clap: Good stuff. How'd she do with the embryo calves?

Gizmom, congradulations. We've seen pictures so we know your's didn't earn it with ugly calves. :lol: Well worth being proud of and earned the right way. :tiphat:
 
The 717 cow is consigned to the Southeast Classic in May, she has a Coleman Midland 430 heifer calf on her side is AI'd back to Coleman Regis and has been palpated safe to the AI date. I hate that she is consigned but this is the first time we had been invited to participate in this sale, so when we went out to pick lots for the sale we wanted to take some really good ones and she is one that we picked, I didn't know at that point that she was a dang pathfinder lol.

This is another bit of information on the pathfinder program and the requirements to make pathfiner.

The program identifies Pathfinder Cows in herds actively involved in AHIR. First, the female must produce her first calf near the herd's average age for first calving. More specifically, the maximum age accepted for first calving of a Pathfinder Cow is the within-herd average for first calving plus 30 days. The within-herd average is determined separately for each herd on AHIR.
As a second criteria, the Pathfinder Cow must maintain a regular calving interval. The maximum calving interval is:

365 Days + ( 30 Days / Number of Calving Intervals )


Next, the Pathfinder Cow must produce at least three calves with an average weaning weight ratio of 105 to qualify for the report. A minimum of 10 herdmates or contemporaries must be evaluated together each year to determine the weight ratio. Additionally, her calves must be sired by registered Angus bulls. To continue to qualify each consecutive year, the cow must produce regularly and wean a calf that helps maintain the average weaning ratio of 105 or above. It is pointed out that once a cow is designated Pathfinder, she is always a Pathfinder, even though she might not qualify for listing each year.

We breed all of our heifers anywhere from 13 (if large enough) to 15 months old so the majority of our heifers will have a calf on their side when they turn two years old. We breed the heifers one month ahead of the cow herd to give them some additional time to recover from having that first calf. We run the first calf heifers with what I call our sophomores or three year olds with their second calf. This way we can give the younger cattle a little TLC, if a heifer or sophomore doesn't breed back they go to town.

The 525 cow is out of one of the old cows (065) we have been flushing and a herd sire that we owned with Sweetwater Plantation in Georgia.

The last flush was a barn burner for sure the A47 cow was flushed to OCC Juneau 807 and we were able to put 18 eggs in the tank. The 065 cow was flushed to Final Answer 0035 and we got 32 eggs so 50 total between two cows. We were over the top. I have pictured both cows on this site at one time or another over the years.

Both the 717 and 525 cows are really nice looking animals I can't really say the same for the 065 cow she would never win any cow beauty contest. The truth is we don't breed for pretty although it is nice to have what we want is a cow that produces a live calf each and every year and weans a nice one that is structually correct.
 

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