Help me decide what to breed to

Azriel

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I like to plan ahead, and have 2 heifer calves that i will be breeding next summer. They are Charolais/Angus mix. One is bigger, larger frame like the Charolais, and the other smaller more like the Angus. I've been trying to decide what to breed them to, and will be doing AI, so have several choices. #1 in importantance to me is calving ease, so low birth weight. I've been looking at Dexter, but would perfer no horns, so also been looking at Lowline. I don't really care about color, so I've looked at Shorthorn, but from what I've read birth weight is about 85#- I thought Shorthorn were smaller, is that big or not? Also been looking at Red Angus, but what is considered low birth weight, I was thinking 50# or so, but I guess I don't know what a 50# calf versus a 85# calf looks like.
This year I bred my heifer(Brown Swiss/ Shorthorn) to a Jersey both for low birth weight and because I'm hoping she will have a heifer so I have my future milk cow, but I don't want to keep breeding all my heifers to a Jersey just for low birth weight, altho what people want for Jersey/Jersey mixes around here, maybe thats not such a bad idea if you could guarantee you would only get heifers. Any thoughts or advice welcome
 

BrownSheep

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People around here actually use long horns for the low birth weights on heifers. Most of the calves are polled
 

jhm47

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There is a tremendous variation in calving ease in each breed. There are even easy calving Charolais, if you search for them. On the other hand, there are Angus that are very hard calvers, so studying the EPD's and choosing a bull with a high predictability is very important. Any of the major AI studs will have this information on their bulls.

If I were you, I'd look closely at Red Angus. They are polled, mainly easy calvers, have excellent carcass/marbling/meat quality, and their disposition is usually good.

Look more at the column under "CE. This is calving ease, and is a far better indicator of how hard a calver a bull will be rather than the BW (birthweight) column. Birthweight of the donor bull in the stud is also not a very good predictor of calving ease, since you have no idea of whether his dam was a 1st calf heifer, how his dam was fed during pregnancy, and many other environmental factors. Also, some calves can be quite heavy at birth, but if they are long and slender with a small head and shoulders they will not have problems. Conversely, a light birthweight calf can be short and blocky and be a problem birth.

Do a search of AI studs and look under calving ease sires. They will have a good list of suitable bulls for you to choose from. Good luck!
 

Azriel

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I've been looking at the AI studs (Red Angus) and have found "CED" which I assume is calving ease, but not sure what the D is, when looking online there isn't much to tell you what all the letters mean. Also the numbers go from -7 up to + 20, what am I looking for. The Nile stock show is going to be in Billings next week, so I hope to get down there and talk to some of the AI reps. I think we have ABS, GeneX and Accelerated Genetics in this area.
 

jhm47

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The "D" in CED stands for direct. The CED index stands for the difference in percentage of unassisted births, with a higher value indicationg greater calving ease in first calf heifers. In other words, a +10 will be easier calving than a lower number.

BW means the difference in birth weight in pounds compared to breed average. The lower the number the smaller the calf should be. However, the shape of the calf can make them harder to give birth to. A short blocky calf can weigh much less than a long, lanky calf that weighs more, and the blocky calf might need assistance.

Of course, you will be much better off with a highly proven sire than a younger, less proven one which might have excellent EPD's. Having hundreds/thousands of calves on the ground will give you a much better idea of what to expect.

I give little attention to the birthweight of the bull himself. There are far too many environmental influences that can make a bull weigh more or less than the calves that he will sire. For instance, a first-calf heifer that is fed a poor ration during her pregnancy will generally have a light calf, and a well fed, older cow will usually have a heavier calf. That doesn't mean that the resulting calf will sire lighter or heavier calves. Therefore, I pay far more attention to well proven bulls with a high CED ratio, and less attention to the BW figure. I pay no attention to the bull's birthweight.
 

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