New dexter yearling heifer.

[Moody]

So I checked into AI and it seems like it could be done for as little as $70

 

[Moody]

I got the man on board with $70 esp since a guy he works with told m the exact same thing y'all told me. Jersey bulls are mean.

 

[greybeard]

I don't even know if cows are seasonal breeders or year round.

open cattle come into heat about approx every 21 days year round as long as their nutrition intake is adequate. (the first heat after calving may be late)

http://beefrepro.unl.edu/pdfs/heatdetection.pdf

For AI tho, your ai guy will likely synch, instead of being on 24 hr call for you to tell him she is in standing heat.
$70 is cheap enough, even if it doesn't include semen.

 

[Moody]

It was $ 20-25 for a visit
$20 for procedure
$25 is the high end for one straw


They said they would do it that way but that synchronizing is another option. 11-12 for the implant and she would need a set of 3 shots. I didn't ask if each of those items would require a visit fee. Seems like a much better option than the bull. Thanks all!

 

[SheepGirl]

Cheaper, too! One less animal to feed, bed, care for, and one less liability.

 

[jhm47]

First of all, cows are year-round breeders. If you use top quality semen, and hire an experienced AI tech, you can expect around 60% - 80% conception rate. Semen shouldn't cost more than $20 - $30 per straw, and the tech should do it for around $30. So, assuming even the 60% rate, you should be able to get your cows pregnant for less than $100 each. A bull will cost you much more than that, and feed, vet, yardage, depreciation, etc will make AI look very cheap. Add to that the fact that you will likely be using a top quality bull that most people couldn't afford, you would be foolish to buy the bull. Granted, it's easy to turn a bull out and let him heat detect and breed, but it's also very dangerous to have one around. Remember, bulls can change from docile to raging mad is a split second. Believe me, I've been around cattle all my life, and they are not to be trusted. ESPECIALLY Jersey bulls!!! And---if he hasn't been dehorned, you are gambling with your lives.

 

[purplequeenvt]

It cost us $35 to get our Jersey AI'd. Technically it was $70 since she didn't settle the first time.

 

[Sweetened]

A friend of mine had a jersey bull she had bottle raised from a day old. She brushed him daily, walked him, sat on him/with him, brought him to the girls for live cover, and had worked him a few times as an ox without incident. He was gentle, kind and an absolute treasure. I am certain if you asked her, she would tell you shed put a newborn in front of him. When he was 7, she finished brushing him down and shaving him for a show, turned to walk out of the pen and he tried to kill her. Threw her, rammed her up and down the walls, stomped and pushed her with his head and hooves and her husband had to come in with a high powered cattle rod to get him to back off. They hung onto him another year without incident for breeding and butchered him, but she is very lucky to be alive.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

One reason why bottle-fed bull calves and Jersey bulls should never be trusted!!

 

[Moody]

What an awful experience! I'm surprised she kept him another year.