SRBeef
Well-known member
Do you leave your bull in with the herd year round or pull him out after 45-60 days to concentrate the calving period and eliminate/cull open stragglers?
SRBeef":2o6s92rn said:Do you leave your bull in with the herd year round or pull him out after 45-60 days to concentrate the calving period and eliminate/cull open stragglers?
Aaron":79mw7k7b said:Have seen many herds that got lazy one year and let the bull run much too long. It's a death wish that is almost impossible to recover from, without selling more that 50% of the herd to bring them back in synch. :cowboy:
Aaron":1nc6ev2f said:Have seen many herds that got lazy one year and let the bull run much too long. It's a death wish that is almost impossible to recover from, without selling more that 50% of the herd to bring them back in synch. :cowboy:
randiliana":3pr1oq84 said:We generally run the bull for about 60 days. This year we have some cows that only had a bull for about 45 days. We will usually put the bulls back out with the cows for late fall, just for convenience sake. But we preg check around the same time and all the dry cows are either gone or leave shortly. We like to have all the calves on the ground in March and April. That way they are about 600 lbs (or more) by sale time in the fall.
milkmaid":344u6547 said:Aaron":344u6547 said:Have seen many herds that got lazy one year and let the bull run much too long. It's a death wish that is almost impossible to recover from, without selling more that 50% of the herd to bring them back in synch. :cowboy:
It shouldn't be. If the bull is left in too long, then the cows that are calving late are ones that would have been open and culled if the bull was pulled out at the usual time. No need to worry about bringing the herd back in sync, just sell the subfertile cows that should have been culled anyway.
Aaron":10nvxzh2 said:milkmaid":10nvxzh2 said:Aaron":10nvxzh2 said:Have seen many herds that got lazy one year and let the bull run much too long. It's a death wish that is almost impossible to recover from, without selling more that 50% of the herd to bring them back in synch. :cowboy:
It shouldn't be. If the bull is left in too long, then the cows that are calving late are ones that would have been open and culled if the bull was pulled out at the usual time. No need to worry about bringing the herd back in sync, just sell the subfertile cows that should have been culled anyway.
As a vet student, your comments shock me. I would think that someone like you would be in favour of having a regulated breeding season. I suppose if you have access to a vet for preg-checking, than you could run the bull long-time. We have lost our large animal vets in this area (not to mention preg-checking is pricey anyways - last price on time for a vet for the neighbour was $36 per 15 minutes). Nearest practicing large animal is over 300 miles away. Good and tough management eliminates the need for vets. Our area is a testament to that. :cowboy: