to breed heifer or not?

[Anonymous]

My husband and I are in a big argument. We found a calf last july that was either left behind, or a twin someone didnt know they had out on a road. We brought it home and bottle fed it. She was average size when found for a 1-2 week old calf. Now, she is 10 months old, and maybe MAYBE - 500 lb if that. She is small! Hubby thinks she can be bred in July just fine to our yearling red angus. (Granted, he probably wont hurt her, but its the birth Im worried about with her size). I say WAIT! Shes not big enough, and to have the vet do a check on her to see if she was a twin, if shes got all her "parts" and if he feels shes ready to concieve. I really feel were asking for trouble breeding her this small. But my husband does not listen to me, "He is always right". Any comments on this please?

 

[Anonymous]

most heifers don't need to be bred until they are 15 months old,that would be october . but they need to weigh 65% of mature weight.

> My husband and I are in a big
> argument. We found a calf last
> july that was either left behind,
> or a twin someone didnt know they
> had out on a road. We brought it
> home and bottle fed it. She was
> average size when found for a 1-2
> week old calf. Now, she is 10
> months old, and maybe MAYBE - 500
> lb if that. She is small! Hubby
> thinks she can be bred in July
> just fine to our yearling red
> angus. (Granted, he probably wont
> hurt her, but its the birth Im
> worried about with her size). I
> say WAIT! Shes not big enough, and
> to have the vet do a check on her
> to see if she was a twin, if shes
> got all her "parts" and
> if he feels shes ready to
> concieve. I really feel were
> asking for trouble breeding her
> this small. But my husband does
> not listen to me, "He is
> always right". Any comments
> on this please?



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[Anonymous]

As a rule you generaly wait till they reach 900 lbs. If she is a Freemartin, heifer born twin to a bull calf, she will not have a normal repro tract, and you will never see her in heat.

in my opinion a heifer weighing only 500 pounds will have an imature repro tract, unless they are those miniature Dexter type cattle. Why is your Hubby in a hury to breed her?

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[Anonymous]

Our coming two year olds only way around 900 lbs. Remember there are different environments that dictate different mature size cattle. That being said. I wouldn't breed her even if her repro tract score is 5. Unless she can really bloom in the next couple of months she'll have a hard time reaching 650-700 by July. For most british breeds that is about the minimum you would want to breed her.

dun

> As a rule you generaly wait till
> they reach 900 lbs. If she is a
> Freemartin, heifer born twin to a
> bull calf, she will not have a
> normal repro tract, and you will
> never see her in heat.

> in my opinion a heifer weighing
> only 500 pounds will have an
> imature repro tract, unless they
> are those miniature Dexter type
> cattle. Why is your Hubby in a
> hury to breed her?

 

[Anonymous]

Why is your Hubby in a
> hury to breed her?

I dont know why hes in a hurry to breed her, doesnt want to keep one around that wont produce I guess. I appreciate everyones response, and will pass it on to him. Maybe he will then listen to hold her back, or at least get her vet checked and get his opinion too.

 

[Anonymous]

You are right and Hubby is wrong. But, you know that already.

So, Hubby wants to breed her in order to make her a productive, useful cow.

Well, you have already fed her for 10 months. Breed her and you feed her for another 9 or 10 months, or more. Lose her while calving and you've lost just under 2 years of feed and care.

500 pounds is pretty small for a 10 month old. I would not consider her to be breeding quality. It would be foolish to hold her back because of her size, too. In all honesty, she should probably be culled.

She needs to have $20 or $30 invested in a vet exam - reproductive exam and pelvic diameter measurement, then decide. That's far cheaper than feeding her for nearly another year with a good possibility of losing both her and her calf.

> Why is your Hubby in a

> I dont know why hes in a hurry to
> breed her, doesnt want to keep one
> around that wont produce I guess.
> I appreciate everyones response,
> and will pass it on to him. Maybe
> he will then listen to hold her
> back, or at least get her vet
> checked and get his opinion too.

 

[Anonymous]

If the animal is not replacement quality, sell her and go by a bred 5 year old cow or a pair for a few more bucks. You avoid several unknowns and reduce the chances of what all can and sometimes does go wrong.

> You are right and Hubby is wrong.
> But, you know that already.

> So, Hubby wants to breed her in
> order to make her a productive,
> useful cow.

> Well, you have already fed her for
> 10 months. Breed her and you feed
> her for another 9 or 10 months, or
> more. Lose her while calving and
> you've lost just under 2 years of
> feed and care.

> 500 pounds is pretty small for a
> 10 month old. I would not consider
> her to be breeding quality. It
> would be foolish to hold her back
> because of her size, too. In all
> honesty, she should probably be
> culled.

> She needs to have $20 or $30
> invested in a vet exam -
> reproductive exam and pelvic
> diameter measurement, then decide.
> That's far cheaper than feeding
> her for nearly another year with a
> good possibility of losing both
> her and her calf.



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[Anonymous]

> I will pass on all your insight to my husband, and hopefully he will see the light on this one. I agree with everyone on this matter myself. But, of course, he knows it all. Thank you for your comments!!