Canesister's 2025 journal - Bushel & Peck Farm

[farmerjan]

He doesn't have any easy calving/small calves semen at the moment.
And I want to check out my 'squeeze chute' & clean up the stalls first.
But I'll certainly be monitoring her backside more closely.

I would not especially worry about easy calving so much. She is a mature cow.. half angus right? any of the ones that I have kept that are half dairy, will get bred to whatever bull we have at that pasture ... AFTER their first calf. Most bulls put 75 + lb calves on the ground that we use for our mature cow herd... We do use an easy calving bull on all first calf heifers... but those calves had better be in the 65-75 lb range.... We do have 2 bulls now that are producing calves in the 60-70 lb range... but they only get used on first calf heifers...

I can see your reasons... I was only thinking that you wouldn't want a calf too late in the year... For very "general" figuring... say 9 months... 1st of Mar=1st of Dec calf... I want all our bulls out by or before the 1st of March this year to stop all these late fall/early Jan winter calves.
The jersey in her will help mitigate the calf head and shoulder size so she should have no trouble spitting it out unless it is mal-presented... 99% chance that will not happen... And for what it's worth... a hereford would be my last choice for a calf on a jersey... maybe an easy calving one will be okay... but the older ones were known for their blocky heads and shoulders.
A good limousin would put a longer, more slender calf on the ground that would grow like gangbusters. I would not use a simmental as they tend to be blockier built too... nice calves... but wider....
I am not sold on the angus / jersey cross... so I am not promoting angus above any other breed.

She should show a clear mucous, sorta slimy, when she is in heat but sometimes you won't see it... and sometimes it will wind up on her tail since they often switch their tail more when in heat... sorta like the picture of the gyrating cow... which is just plain CUTE...... kudos to finding that...

 

[canesisters]

I get all that, and I've mostly gone with angus bulls in the past. It's mostly been "Whatever you've got in the tank that has easy calving characteristics". But since I'm taking a little time to plan this one - and most other things being even - I'd like the chance to get some eye candy for a year. She had 1 other calf from a hereford, little baldy bull calf. He was turning out to be a Very nice little guy. I traded him for some excavator work around the barn, so I never saw how he ended up.
I actually prefer milking in the cold - no flies. And since I've got a nice snug barn to house them in cold, wet weather, it hasn't been a problem in the past.
It turns out that I've only got 1 tech in the area & he's only part time, so my choices are limited to what he has available.

 

[canesisters]