New Bull

cjc

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Hey Everyone :). I haven't been on in awhile and just wanted to share a picture of a new bull we got. 5 of the heifer bottle calves I raised a year ago I am going to give a go at breeding this year. I picked up this red angus bull for $1,700. I don't know if that's a good price but my friend told me it was so I grabbed him. He's very quiet. Last year we only had 1 out of 4 cows have a calf that it raised no problem. 2 other calves died, one I had to raise on a bottle, 2 dams died...horrible year. We swore we would never do it again and here we are :) about to breed more than we ever have and bought a bull....may the odds be ever in my favour
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babsbag

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Good to see you on BYH. Is life keeping you busy? We like pictures of two legged kids too. HINT HINT.

I know zero about cattle but you are certainly due a good year after that last one. Hope it all goes well and that your new bull likes the girls.
 
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greybeard

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For this year, not a bad price for a bull, depending on his lineage, and hopefully you had a Breeding Soundness Examination done on him before buying. Anyone buying a bull needs to have this done and preferrably, get some kind of guarantee from the breeder in case the bull cannot/does not perform, and most certainly be checked for Trich.
http://veterinarycalendar.dvm360.com/trichomoniasis-and-other-stds-beef-cattle-proceedings
I do like the Red Angus breed very much, but not many in my area to choose from.
From a physical "eyeball" standpoint, you look for 3 things in a bull first. 'nuts/butt/gut'. Meaning Scrotal size (circumference) , muscling in his hind quarter, and girth of his mid section. He has to be able to take in, store, and process plenty of forage in order to be able to do his job all day.
Beyond those 3 things, conformity on top and bottom line (should be straight), size of sheath (less is better and the sheath on your new bull looks good) his attitude, should be an easy doer and easy to handle.
If registered, you should be able to access his EPDs via the breed association using his registration #. This will show you any potential problems and whether he is a good candidate to use on heifers or even 2nd calf cows.

(if there was not a BSE done prior to purchase, I strongly suggest having it done before he is turned out with the cows and most certainly have him checked for trich!!!)
 
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farmerjan

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I was thinking about you the other day and wondered how you were, how the baby situation was. Meaning human not animal !!!!
How is your jersey and the calf? Since you brought home a bull it does sound like you are getting back into the animal swing of things.
All that Greybeard said is good. Trich is a problem in cattle and can cause real havoc. Did this guy come from a breeding herd? Knowing if he is "sound" is important. We had a bull we used for 5-6 years, then one summer he was shooting blanks and had 15 out of 16 cows open !!!! What a disaster... normally we don't do a BSE on bulls that we keep and use regularly. Guess that guy just ran out of steam... We did have a problem last year at a pasture and did have the bull checked this year that had been there to be sure he was okay, and he was.

Being red angus you should be good on heifers, MOST angus will throw calves that heifers will not have problems having. Not all but most. Yes you can check the epd's if he is registered. The red angus seem to have nicer butts than many of the blacks so you ought to get some nice calves from the bottle calves which are angus/holstein if I remember correctly. And he will be fine on your jersey since she is a "cow" now.

We have one angus bull that is not safe on heifers, but we bought him with the idea to replace a "cow bull" that we sold. His calves are supposed to be bigger at birth, and that is what we wanted. In fact we didn't go to buy a bull at all, but to visit with people as we have bought from this farmer/breeder many times over the years, and this bull did not bring alot because every one is wanting calving ease bulls. We couldn't pass him up and will put him with the cows this fall at one pasture. He actually has been sitting for a year with nothing to do but grow a bit. But he was insurance in case something happened to one of our other bulls. I think we paid $2500 for him. These last 2 years bull prices have come down; we paid over $5000 for a calving ease " heifer bull" 5 years ago. What you paid for him seems fair if he is a proven breeder.

Glad to see you back. Catch us up on what you have been doing....
 

greybeard

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Did this guy come from a breeding herd? Knowing if he is "sound" is important. We had a bull we used for 5-6 years, then one summer he was shooting blanks and had 15 out of 16 cows open !!!! What a disaster... normally we don't do a BSE on bulls that we keep and use regularly. Guess that guy just ran out of steam...

Might have been trich, may have injured himself while breeding or 'bullin' around. Lost libido is always a risk too. Sometimes it's correctable with something as simple as a change in minerals or better overall nutrition. Other times, only fix for it is a set of axles and wheels under him.
Tho it's not often discussed here at BH for reasons unknown, people need to educate themselves in what to watch for during the breeding act. A broken penis for instance, and that malady is more common than folks think. It can happen at any time to any bull.

I'm sure you see lots of bull reproductive problems in your line of work with dairy animals Jan and in the cleanup bulls and it's money down the drain when you find supposedly bred cows .........open. :he:he
I lost nearly a whole season of calf crop one year because of a blank shooter.
As far as trich and aborted calves, unless the females are kept in a small paddock and watched closely, the herdsman will more than likely never even find an aborted fetus and the first sign of trich in the herd is open cows when they come back into heat unexpectedly. :th
 
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cjc

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Thanks for all this great info @greybeard @farmerjan. I know about zero when it comes to bulls! I will ask my friend about all this stuff. He’s a big Cattle raiser in our area (500 head). I just trust him with what he gives me but this bull is from auction. And he owns the auction so...the circle goes around :). He did give me the bull last year that through me that 200lb deformed calf. He wanted me to raise short horns still but im taking a break and trying Angus! I don’t like the Angus temperament but they sell easiest in our parts. People just want a solid black or red calf it seems.

@farmerjan @babsbag baby is doing well thank you! He will be 5 months on the 26th. It’s definitely slowed down my cow activities but he’s been great. He’s a big boy! 18lbs already so lugging him around the farm is hurting my back! He has an obsession with animals though...it was bound to happen.

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frustratedearthmother

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I don't know anything about bulls either ... but I have a little experience with babies - and yours is a keeper! He is a doll!
 

Baymule

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Your bull is a nice looking boy, but your baby is waaaay cuter! It won't be long before you have a lil' cowpoke trailing along with you!
 

farmerjan

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Congrats on the "little" bundle of joy!!!! He' a cutie.

I have to take a little issue with the statement of the "angus temperament". I honestly find them no more difficult to work around than a hereford or a shorthorn. And they are certainly better than a dairy bull. If this friend is a cattleman, runs the number of cattle you say, and is the owner of the auction, then he probably knows where the bull came from. If he is quiet and has a good disposition, then I would trust this guys judgement.
Especially after last years horrible experiences, and him being well aware of what all happened, it is very unlikely he would steer you wrong. I think that you are on the right road to getting the cows/heifers bred and being a productive part of the farm.

Just a note greybeard, on that bull of ours; it was probably just time he was gone. His libido was very low, he had some age, no broken penis, no feet or leg problems. He went down the road 2 days later. Put 2 bulls in there, one was only past a yearling but the other was 18-19 months. All the cows settled to them within 40 days or so, 2 to the younger bull, who was red and the calves the next year were red. We didn't lose the whole breeding season but they were definitely behind the rest of the cattle for spring calves. Some got ahead the next year and gained a little bit, a few we just held back for the fall calving group. Not ideal, but not a total loss. Thank goodness we preg check.....
 

greybeard

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I'm unsure of how stringent trich regs are in Canada, but here in Texas, they are pretty tough. There's a big sign at the payout window of both auction salebarns I go to reminding buyers of the regs and their responsibilities.

The Texas control program has evolved through the years—and continues to evolve. Today’s regulations include, but are not limited to:
• A trichomoniasis test is valid for only 60 days.
• Neighbors should be notified when a ranch finds a positive animal but neighbors are not required to test for trich.
• “Cutter” bulls can move to feedlot for castration at the feedlot.
• Buyers of untested bulls have seven days to decide whether to test, slaughter, feed or resell said bulls.
• Virgin bulls moving interstate into Texas more than 12 months of age must be tested, while those under 12 months of age do not need to be tested.
• Breeding bulls from Canada or Mexico entering directly into Texas may move under an entry permit and remain under hold order at designated premises, away from female cattle, until they test negative.
• Out-of-state untested bulls can go to feedyards.
• Infected bulls can be sold at markets and moved under permit to slaughter.
• Large ranches identified with trich have three years to manage it and must at least test once a year. Bulls testing positive must go to slaughter. The ranch must enter into a herd plan with TAHC and their veterinarian to effectively remove the disease from the herd during the three years. • The maximum time for retesting bulls in infected herds is 60 days.
 
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