Weight and price of different cattle

[WildRoseBeef]

I also have a story about a bull versus a wooden fence.

I was just a little girl when my dad had kept a Charolais bull separate from the steers to keep him from causing trouble. He was only about a year old, and the wood fence seemed like it would be enough to hold him in. But when I was out playing near the cattle pen, for some reason he decided he would make a break for it. All I remember before I turned tail and ran screaming bloody murder for the house was a very loud crack of boards breaking and this big white thing coming over the fence. That bull wouldn't be much older, only by a few months, than your bull, and the fence you have was built almost exactly the way we had it. So don't think for a second that your fence is heavy-duty enough to withstand the power of even a young bull.

I can't think of any recommended sires to AI your girls to, because I don't know enough of their weaknesses to know what's best for them like you would. I'd sooner shop around for a bull to rent, or look around for some Angus breeders in your area that could point you in the right direction, or even loan you a bull. But, JHM may have some recommendations though, as he is the AI tech on here and the one who more than likely has a wealthy access to some good bulls to recommend for your girls.

It's fine that your neighbour is straight with you, but being short-bodied and a bit post-legged, I still say I wouldn't keep him intact. If you're wanting to go cow-calf, you can invest in a much better bull if/when it comes to that.

What are your plans for the heifers if you consider buying some?

Can't tell you how much you'd get for all the animals, but I was thinking (just a hunch, so don't quote me on it) you might get about $4k to $5k out of them, and I hope I'm not being too generous. You might get less if you just sell the bulls/steers (except for the new calf of course) and keep the two females. And as was mentioned, there's no guarantee that cattle prices are going to stay the same next year. It's a real gamble in deciding whether to sell now, or wait, that's for sure.

 

[greybeard]

I like this one, and think he will suit your plans--low birthweight--calving ease.
http://www.selectsiresbeef.com/index.php/bull-database-view-page?bid=54&breed=Angus
"

• 
  
  
  • Delivers consistent high quality maternal genetics
  • Cowmaker genetics powerful enough to build a herd around
  • Proven calving ease and low birth weight offering
  • Moderate for size and one of our best to improve udders

• "

From this catalog:
http://www.selectsiresbeef.com/index.php/beefsires/breeds/angus

I don't care much for this one, (note his birthweight)
http://www.selectsiresbeef.com/index.php/bull-database-view-page?bid=328&breed=Angus

EPD explanation:
http://www.selectsiresbeef.com/index.php/beefreources/term
http://www.angus.org/nce/definitions.aspx

https://extension.tennessee.edu/greene/Documents/What Do The Angus EPDs Really Mean.pdf

 

[Bossroo]

WRB do you have a certain sire that you reccomend for me to buy his sperm to insemenate by girls with? Also some guy from the department of agriculture is coming out tomorrow to dehorn my cattle and maybe casterate. Sorry bossroo that I thought you were insulting my cattle. I plan to keep the males till next summer seeing as how I have the room and what do you guys think of me buying 3-4 more pure black angus heifers to breed? To break even I need to sell the entire herd I have right now for 3650. Do you guys think that I could sell my whole herd for more than that? Also I don't think that any little ol bull is about to knock down my heavy duty wooden board fence (maybe my other one). You know maybe it is just some of the cattle down in my neck of the woods that aren't very good but the one guy that said I should keep the ba bull he gives everything to me straight. Said that he was short but would ultimately be a good bull. He also said that the jersey steer looks like it only weighs 300#. But maybe he just might be wrong IDK??? Thanks for all of the replys

Well cowguy, if that one guy likes your angus bull calf so much, sell it to him post haste and let him grow it out to prove that he will ultimately be a good bull. Not only his say so, but better than the cull bulls posted here. Now, if I owned your cattle , I would SELL ALL of them at the first available auction or to " one guy" and using the proceeds from all of these cattle buy 2 quality Angus heifers. When ready, breed them to a quality bull using AI . With the new calves that you produce, you will have cash in your pocket and will be the envy of the neighborhood.

 

[COWGUY1123]

Ok so first things first, I never seem to be able to tell when either of my girls are in heat. That would be the only problem for me doing AI. My other neighbor( who's pasture is a 100 feet away) said that he had a 3/4 black angus bull and 1/4 jersey that he would sell to me this fall or just lend him to me. I don't know about this. He also said that he has a pure blooded jersey cow (looks a lot better than mine and looks filled out, I can get a picture soon)with horns that is 8 months pregnant with what will be her second baby calf. He said that he would sell her to me for $1200 as she is. She was bred to the bull up above. She only lives a 100 ft away so no gas money or time will be spent moving her. Do you guys think that this is a good buy or not???? Thanks Greybeard I i'll look into it. So as of right now for my cow fund I have my entire herd and $3600 to spend.

 

[COWGUY1123]

Oh and another thing is how long can you keep the bulls semen and in what conditions before you inseminate the cows. Also I thought that the AI didn't always work so then I would just be wasting my money

 

[SheepGirl]

AI is very successful. That's why nearly all dairy herds utilize artificial insemination rather than natural cover by a bull. Cheaper too--liability, feed & care for the bull (possibly separate housing and fencing, too), etc.

 

[OneFineAcre]

How long can you keep the semen?
Frozen in a semen tank a long, long time

 

[Sweetened]

Dont you lute cows you want to breed a few days before ai to bring them into heat? I am curious if this is how its done as well

 

[greybeard]

Dont you lute cows you want to breed a few days before ai to bring them into heat? I am curious if this is how its done as well

WRB or JHM47 would be the folks to address your AI questions.
You can snynchronize with one of the Prostaglandins such as lute, tho many just AI on observed standing heat if they do it themselves or have an AI tech on standby or call and he/she can be there the afternoon of morning observed standing heat (or AI on the morning after observing heat in the PM).

There are 3 different protocols for synchronizing the cycle.
http://beef.unl.edu/learning/estrussynch.shtml

http://extension.missouri.edu/adair/documents/Livestock/AInBeefCattle.pdf

 

[WildRoseBeef]

AI won't work as well if you're not experienced enough to get it done right, from when the straws are taken out of the tank to when the semen is deposited in the cow. It's best to get an AI tech to do it for you to guarantee higher success rates of settling them versus doing it yourself. Straws kept frozen a semen tank will keep for much longer than a bull's natural life span. That's why some of the remaining straws from a bull that died go up in price because the worth of the straws increase in value compared to the price of straws that would be expected from a bull still alive and still able to have semen collected from.

It takes a lot of monitoring to tell when your girls are in heat. Average time between heats is 21 days; about 18 days at the least, and 24 at the most, usually. One way to tell if they're in heat is how much attention that one female is getting compared to what is considered normal to you. If the boys are eager to follow her around and are trying to mount her more often than usual, chances are she may be in heat. She'll be pacing and bawling a bit more than usual. Some females have "silent" heats, but I don't think this is all that common. Estrus only lasts for only around 24 hours. There are good detection methods you can use to better detect heat in your cows. Patches put on the rump (on the back just beyond the tail head) are good for telling when and if one of your females has been jumped and even how often. Patches like Estrotect (http://www.selectsires.com/products/heatdetect/estrotect.html ) is one example, and there are many like it on the market. These patches are great for increasing visual detection of heat so you know when it's best to AI.

Synching heats also help so that you can get both girls bred at the same time without having to call the AI tech out on separate occasions. A shot of Lute to the heifer will also cause her to abort if she's already been bred and bring her back in heat. Producers will often give their heifers a shot of Lute at weaning to ensure none of them are mistakenly in calf well before they should be.