Some pictures from today - EPD's accuracy, reality, etc.

Help Support CattleToday:

SRBeef

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 22, 2007
Messages
2,931
Reaction score
3
Location
SW Wisconsin
I have come to the conclusion I need to sell my bull after this season, as much as I hate to part with him. I am a one bull operation and am keeping heifers to build my herd. Done a bit of linebreeding already but gone as far as I can go with my bull after this season.

I have also been away from my cattle for about 10 days, just moved them to a fresh paddock (clipped after last grazed 36 days ago). This is the second of probably four times grazing this paddock this season before weaning. I took some pictures of my bull and a couple of his 2009 yearling heifers and 2010 spring calves.

There is another thread active on this board about EPD's vs progeny and we have had numerous discussions regarding EPD statistical accuracy numbers. If there was an EPD for disposition, T21 would get an A+. I do not register calves so I guess my bull will never increase in accuracy like an AI stud bull would but here are some pictures.

I am going to miss this bull:
IMG_1446_bull_T021_071310_2.jpg


He has a way of getting good (at least by my stds) heifers even out of mediocre commercial cows. This is retained heifer #3
IMG_1451_T021_yearling_heifer_nbr3_.jpg


Here is T21 retained heifer #4
IMG_1453_T021_yearling_heifer_nbr4_.jpg


And here is one of T21's spring 2010 steer calves.
IMG_1465_T021_Spring_bull_calf_0713.jpg


So I guess you could say I am a believer in EPDs. This pasture has also responded well to clipping. We have been blessed by some rain too. The steer is standing in a waterlogged spot near the dam that has been under water a couple times in the past month. This steer will be weaned in Nov, Graze standing corn in January, go for processing in April and be in folks freezers and on their grills in late May.

FWIW. Jim
 
My bull is a spring 2007 calf so he is three. He has these all bred as far as I can tell, including the heifers. But I don't want to go any further with line breeding. I have some of his calves from other earlier retained heifers but not yet from his own heifers pictured yet. He is a great calving ease and growth bull. I see no rproblems on. On smaller heifers or mature cows. The only calving probleM I've had have been caused by me Leaving 2 Pregnant bwf heifers on corn way too long. That's not the bull's fault. Every other calf has had moderate bw and about fallen out the back of heifers and cows. Jim
 
SRBeef":2hqni6re said:
My bull is a spring 2007 calf so he is three. He has these all bred as far as I can tell, including the heifers. But I don't want to go any further with line breeding. I have some of his calves from other earlier retained heifers but not his own yet. Jim


Why not just AI his dtrs and or take them off the place and run them with another bull for a couple of months to be bred. Seems like a shame to get rid of a bull that nice at the age of 3.
 
fwiw - have you considered collecting the bull prior to selleing him? that way you could infuse him into the her later.

can your neighbor with herefords keep him for a year
 
fwiw - have you considered collecting the bull prior to selleing him? that way you could infuse him into the herd later.

can your neighbor with herefords keep him for a year
 
Thanks for the ideas. As far as AI goes I just don't see it as a possibility in my situation. I am not there for much of the time and would rather have a bull do heat detection... In my system it seems very valuable to have as tight a calving period as possible - hopefully one cycle, 22 days. I want my March steer calves as old and uniform as possible the following April. I will talk with My neighbor with Herefords and see if we can work out a compromise swapping bulls or heifers at breeding time. The problem is always having facilitIes to keep a bull separate over a tough winter from the femaLes from weaning to breeding time. We'll see if we can work something out. Thanks all for the ideas. Jim
 

Latest posts

Top