Bull Buying

[Big Muddy rancher]

Since it's the season of bull sales I figured this was a timely topic.

What i like to buy is bulls with "Moderate" in my opinion birth wt.

I have noticed so many bulls that have a birth wt in the 70 to 80 lb ranges with EPD numbers from .1 to 1.5 have some ancestors maybe not to far back with +5 ect.for a BW EPD.
When the bull I had picked out didn't maje a sale last week I checked out the rest of the bulls. Found a good looking calf ,it's mother was a double bred Sitz Alliance 6595. The sire was a early Sunset Freedom son. He was a 70 lb BW with a BW EPD at+0.2. looks pretty good until I looked across the page and 3 half brothers had BW's of 90,106 and102 Bwt's with EPD of +4.9,+6.8,+6.4.
How much of that would have shown up in the offspring of the light birth wt bull?

 

[gcreekrch]

Never buy outliers. Seen that, done dat, it don't work. :wink:

 

[Silver]

I'd sooner have a bull with a birth weight of 90 lbs from a herd whose average was 105 lbs than a bull that weighed 80 lbs from a herd that averaged 75 lbs. I guess what I'm saying is that in my opinion a bulls birth weight means nothing to me if I don't know how he compares to his contemporaries.

 

[Howdy1]

I am a firm believer in knowing pedigrees and the epd history of those bulls. In my opinion a true calving ease sire should have at least two generations of calving ease on both sides of the pedigree. I do not personally trust a small BW EPD from a bull that has high birth weights in his history. I don't know how they figure the epd's but somehow the individual's actual birth weight must play a significant factor in his own epd calculation.

 

[Anonymous]

I am a firm believer in knowing pedigrees and the epd history of those bulls. In my opinion a true calving ease sire should have at least two generations of calving ease on both sides of the pedigree. I do not personally trust a small BW EPD from a bull that has high birth weights in his history. I don't know how they figure the epd's but somehow the individual's actual birth weight must play a significant factor in his own epd calculation.

AMEN--- And I am starting to become more of a believer in the genetic testing... I had a yearling virgin bull that I leased out two years ago... He had a history of calving ease and a +6 CED and +.1 BW... His BW was 81 lbs. and he had an inbreeding coefficient of 12.55%...

He had used him only on cows so when I got him back I decided to use him possibly on heifers... So had the Genomic PF50 DNA testing done... When all that came back- he had a calving ease EPD of +14 and a BW of -1.6... And now that the calves are coming- they are holding true to what the genetic testing said- small head and smooth shoulders and chest, birthweights running in the 70-85 lb weight with most in the 70-75 range... Absolutely perfect sleep all night heifer bull type....

 

[jigs]

it is a sad day here ..... I took delivery of a black bull for my heifers.... it flat out kills me to see him out there, but it is a one season thing, I think..... got a buddy who wants to buy him as soon as I am done breeding my heifers.


next spring it will be time to replace the Hereford bulls...lots more fun shopping for what you want, than what you need.

 

[Soapweed]

it is a sad day here ..... I took delivery of a black bull for my heifers.... it flat out kills me to see him out there, but it is a one season thing, I think..... got a buddy who wants to buy him as soon as I am done breeding my heifers.


next spring it will be time to replace the Hereford bulls...lots more fun shopping for what you want, than what you need.

Yes, but think of how well those nice black baldy calves will sell when the time comes. The extra pounds and extra price will more than ease the pain. :wink:

 

[Justin]

it is a sad day here ..... I took delivery of a black bull for my heifers.... it flat out kills me to see him out there, but it is a one season thing, I think..... got a buddy who wants to buy him as soon as I am done breeding my heifers.


next spring it will be time to replace the Hereford bulls...lots more fun shopping for what you want, than what you need.

Yes, but think of how well those nice black baldy calves will sell when the time comes. The extra pounds and extra price will more than ease the pain. :wink:

do with your black bull what i did with my hereford…..hide him over the hill so nobody can see him. :wink:

 

[Big Muddy rancher]

it is a sad day here ..... I took delivery of a black bull for my heifers.... it flat out kills me to see him out there, but it is a one season thing, I think..... got a buddy who wants to buy him as soon as I am done breeding my heifers.


next spring it will be time to replace the Hereford bulls...lots more fun shopping for what you want, than what you need.

Yes, but think of how well those nice black baldy calves will sell when the time comes. The extra pounds and extra price will more than ease the pain. :wink:

do with your black bull what i did with my hereford…..hide him over the hill so nobody can see him. :wink:

He's is Kansas, What hill? :wink: :lol: :lol:

 

[Justin]

Yes, but think of how well those nice black baldy calves will sell when the time comes. The extra pounds and extra price will more than ease the pain. :wink:

do with your black bull what i did with my hereford…..hide him over the hill so nobody can see him. :wink:

He's is Kansas, What hill? :wink: :lol: :lol:

good point. behind the barn maybe? in the barn?

 

[burnt]

do with your black bull what i did with my hereford…..hide him over the hill so nobody can see him. :wink:

He's is Kansas, What hill? :wink: :lol: :lol:

good point. behind the barn maybe? in the barn?

Cloaking. The answer lies in cloaking. Sounds like this technology could find a "bull" market in Kansas...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD83dqSfC0Y

Buy one of these "invisibility cloaks" and gain all the benefits of hybrid vigor without visibly sacrificing any of your dignity!

(Although the cows might wonder what hit them...)

 

[3words]

it is a sad day here ..... I took delivery of a black bull for my heifers.... it flat out kills me to see him out there, but it is a one season thing, I think..... got a buddy who wants to buy him as soon as I am done breeding my heifers.


next spring it will be time to replace the Hereford bulls...lots more fun shopping for what you want, than what you need.

I know exactly what you mean!I couldn't get a black angus bull at a sale for my heifers,and another person said they had red angus bulls for sale.Shelly and i went and looked at them,i told her to go pick out the one she would buy and i would write the check.I had no interest in buying a red angus bull,and if i remember right he only stuck around for breeding season and i sold him.

 

[3words]

it is a sad day here ..... I took delivery of a black bull for my heifers.... it flat out kills me to see him out there, but it is a one season thing, I think..... got a buddy who wants to buy him as soon as I am done breeding my heifers.


next spring it will be time to replace the Hereford bulls...lots more fun shopping for what you want, than what you need.

Yes, but think of how well those nice black baldy calves will sell when the time comes. The extra pounds and extra price will more than ease the pain. :wink:

do with your black bull what i did with my hereford…..hide him over the hill so nobody can see him. :wink:

Thats exactly what i did,hid him in the bush and hills.

 

[jigs]

the help from this forum is just amazing