Bright Raven
Well-known member
ddd75":2cx2kauw said:Raven -- I'd say its more the cattle then the operator. My reseasoning behind that would be that I bought these heifers (herefords) from another guy. I've never had a hereford cow before. They are all around 22-24 months old and now giving calves.
My black angus heifers have given me several nice 65 lb calves with no assistance. Now with the same bull, all on the same feed, all in the same area, these herefords are giving me trouble. I've had to pull everyone. I even had to pull this one.. I know she is 1400 lbs.. she is 2 1/2 years old, and gave around a 70 lb calf and I still had to pull it.
My cattle are Simmental. My average calf is 87 pounds. The average went down from 88 to 87 based on this year's numbers. For my size cows, I consider anything under 80 pounds too small. In the past 8 years, I can remember at least 4 heifers delivering 100 pound calves, unassisted. Clearly, in this case, it is a Hereford issue! All my experience is with Simmentals and Angus with the exception of the dairy cows I was raised around.