When do I begin breeding my angus

[Al F]

Hi again folks....i have been raising beef cattle the last two yrs and earlier this yr in May 2012 i bought a beautiful mom and daughter angus duo...the mom is 5.5 yrs old and the baby is now one 12-13 months old and weighing 8oo or so pounds after spending the yr w its mom, just a beauty she is.....two days ago the not so little little one showed signs of being in heat for the first time.....and i expect another loud day in three weeks...while i would like to breed her to an angus i cam concerned because every thing i read says...wait till 15 or so months...i do have a beautiful one yr old jersey which would likely mean a smaller calf...i also have two nice one yr old herefords in an adjoining area....oddly enough these boys only looked at here thru the electric fence, which surprised me....i thought someone would run a fence but neither gender did

would you wait to breed? and what would you recommend I do? I dont want to over burdern her if she is too young and breed her to an angus and likely the same for the hereford...would you normally use a smaller animal the first time or just wait till next spring?

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

What time of year would you like her to have her calf?? If you breed her now you get a fall calf if you wait till spring you get a spring calf.

 

[Chris H]

I don't hesitate to breed at 12-13 months IF they're adequate size and it puts the birth date when I want it.

 

[Al F]

Chris, at what weight for an angus do you feel is adequate?


Red BB, if we breed in the next 30-60 days it will be a fall calf, which is fine w me...waiting another four to five mos makes it a winter calf...which is fine since they will have shelter

 

[highgrit]

Angus heifers are ready to be bred at 12 months. And she should be bred back by the time she's 2 years old.

 

[Craig]

You can breed her on this next cycle and anytime after that. Use a high calving ease Hereford or angus bull. IMHO you would be wasting time and money on the Jersey cross. Good luck!

 

[Tim/South]

Breed when she is 80% of her expected adult weight.
That advice came from our Vet years ago and has always worked.

 

[3waycross]

Breed when she is 80% of her expected adult weight.
That advice came from our Vet years ago and has always worked.

So after reading this post do you think this person KNOWS what her expected weight is?

FWIW if she is at 800lbs at 13 months she will be fineto breed like was said just make sure it is a calving ease bull.

 

[Al F]

as always a heartfelt thank you for the replies....i raised the issue of the jersey because of likely calf size to make it easier the first go round

the weight was my concern....from all i read angus seem to be quicker to breed than others...the others such as herford being thought better/safer to wait until 15-18 months

 

[Al F]

i just love this forum!

 

[Chris H]

as always a heartfelt thank you for the replies....i raised the issue of the jersey because of likely calf size to make it easier the first go round

the weight was my concern....from all i read angus seem to be quicker to breed than others...the others such as herford being thought better/safer to wait until 15-18 months

What you said about the Herefords is not true. We raise Herefords. We're having to wean our heifer calves by 6 months if the bull is still running with the herd. Even then we run a risk of getting one bred at that young age. The youngest we've had calve was 15 months but that is not common. More common is starting to cycle around 9 months and the majority are cycling by 12 months.

I would suggest staying with a calving ease bull the same breed as your heifer. A jersey will throw a smaller calf but less valuable. If you cross with a Hereford you'll get a heterosis effect that makes the calf grow a bit faster, but that also applies to birthweight. If she's already 800 lbs then it she sounds like she's growing well. We aim for 2/3 of expected adult weight for the first breeding. If you expect a 1200 lb cow, then 2/3 of that is 800. Our heifers have to do that on grass, with some grain for a few months after weaning if they're weaned in the fall.

As for when you want a calf, there are a few things to consider. If you have her bred to calve at the same time as her mother the advantages are: the calves will be ready for shots, worming, & weaning at the same time. Cattle are herd animals and do better with a mate. You'll be able to feed them the same thing, at least until you might want to fatten one and keep the other for breeding stock. If you plan on selling both, I think groups get a better price than single calves.
Calving at a different season than her mother: (I'm trying to think of a good thing, I hate spreading out calving!) Maybe you'll want to have a couple calves ready to be butchered at different times of the year. Maybe you want to finish one on grass in the summer and one to finish on grain in the winter.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Turn the jersey in with her, it will all work not much out there any more calving ease than a jersey.

 

[Al F]

thank you Chris and RBB, the mother is 1700 pounds so we are talking about her daughter being closer to 50 percent i am assuming of her 2-3 yr old weight

 

[chippie]

Al F,
do you have a scale? Did you weigh her?
something about the Jersey bull. Be very careful around him. Jersey bulls are dangerous. They get aggressive and have a short fuse.

 

[Chris H]

thank you Chris and RBB, the mother is 1700 pounds so we are talking about her daughter being closer to 50 percent i am assuming of her 2-3 yr old weight

That is one big cow. I have to admit, I'm terrible about guessing cow weight. I tell people I'm aiming for a 1200-1300 cow that will weigh up to 1400+ if she's fat. I just shipped two old cull cows the last week, both were good flesh, but not fat. They were bumping 1600 lbs, I really didn't think they'd go that much; it just showed what a bad judge I am on cow weight.

Your heifer may not mature as big as the cow, do you know her sire?

 

[Al F]

i will try to get a pic later on today...i am thinking of sending in a yr old hereford two days after christmas but about a week and a half before her cycle is due

i have to do something because my friend has a scottish highland bull sniffing the air just up the road

 

[brihop]

My thought, do the herf but wait til 15 mo.

I have a small (est. ~900#) RAx heifer thats been together with lbw reg BA bull since she was weanling. Must have gotten bred at 12 mo. b/c she just gave birth to her first calf, big nice thick calf... thought it was a bull calf based on size/looks, upon closer inspection its a heifer. darn nice calf, hope they all turn out that way... a good score for a guy retaining heifers.

 

[OklaBrangusBreeder]

I have Brangus. I usually target the first calf by side at the 2 year old mark. So, I turn a new heifer in with a bull when it is 15 months old...

 

[Al F]

leaning toward letting one of the hereford one yr olds in w her and her mom two days Christmas

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Now, let me get this straight. Mom raised this calf for 12 months - and "mom" is going to be turned in with the bull 2 days after Christmas to get bred????
And we trust what weight this heifer is - - - - why???????