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Bull choices?

i would go with some good gelbvieh and red angus cross cows(cherokee canyon ) and breed them to some leachman right time and lucys boy angus bulls.
as far as the semen goes 50 straws of Free Agent
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Kevin,

I agree with the Angus/Gelbvieh cross cows, but have you had to tag a calf out of a Lucy's Boy sired mom? :shock: :shock: :shock:

We AI'd to Lucy's Boy for several years, by gosh, wish we hadn't. Cows have an attitude Wish they had EPD's on ATTITUDE :mad: Not only that, they have that ugly "dish" face. We don't need to look for the letters at the top of the tag of the mom (her sire), just have to see the dish face.....
 
Hanta, sounds like the Boys that we had out of Lucy Boy.. Man, I had a couple times in the bull pasture that first winter where I thought I might have to make a mad dash for it.... I know folks around here are wary of Lucy Boy for this attitude issue... Strange how the Russ bull I am thinking of was dead hog gentle, as were the steers we had out of him...

I need to go look at some Gelbvieh cattle in person.. My wife has a second or third cousin that raises them down in Ten. on a small scale. They tried to sell me some back at a family reunion 2.5 years back... Wil probably see them again this summer, maybe I'll go take a look.
 
I've started AI'ing about 60 of my cows each year mainly to raise bulls for my own use at somepoint I may get to selling bulls.I don't wean the biggest calves in the area but I don't spend $20,000 on fertilizer for a 200 head herd of cows as many here do.I believe my heifers are as good as any so I'm not going to chase after someone else's genetic's I have 250 females to breed in the spring if I can't find 60 or 80 replacements from that I need to quit.Cattle that produce well on my ranch are the genetics I want to reproduce both bulls and heifers.My goal is to be just like Soapweed he's got things figured out. :wink:
 
Denny said:
I've started AI'ing about 60 of my cows each year mainly to raise bulls for my own use at somepoint I may get to selling bulls.I don't wean the biggest calves in the area but I don't spend $20,000 on fertilizer for a 200 head herd of cows as many here do.I believe my heifers are as good as any so I'm not going to chase after someone else's genetic's I have 250 females to breed in the spring if I can't find 60 or 80 replacements from that I need to quit.Cattle that produce well on my ranch are the genetics I want to reproduce both bulls and heifers.My goal is to be just like Soapweed he's got things figured out. :wink:
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Thanks for the kind words, Denny. Someday I might even be in the market for some of your bulls. They sound like the type that would compliment and nick well with my type of cows. :-)
 
I'd stick with the direction we're going now - building a herd of Galloways that can finish on grass and winter with minimal supplements. We're starting out with some great genetics, the kicker with Galloways is trying to find high-quality OUTCROSS bulls that come from forage-based programs. I'd like to see the Brass Ring herd in Montana, the Waples family. Or Tom Wrchota in, I think it was Wisconsin, has forage-based seedstock. They're tough to find, but I think in time we'll be recognized as a source for grass genetics...at least that's part of my dream. :lol:
 
Purebred Galloways that are grass-based? If so, NR, let me know. The other thing too, is an outcross to what rkaiser and I are already working with. As for grass-based genetics on a commercial basis, I know there's alot of them close to home. Dylan and Colleen's herd comes to mind, of course, and numerous others. That Red Angus bull you posted a few months back certainly raised my pulse, as does that Anhinga or what's-his-name Hereford bull. Those are the type of cattle that fit in with the top end of my commercial cows. I won't say ALL my cows, because we do have some big, raw-boned Angus cows still kicking around from years past in the showring crowd. :lol:

Grassfarmer paper didn't really have anything to do with it either, though. I've seen some of Waples Galloways in herds in Alberta, and there's a pattern to them. Shorter legged, thicker, fleshier, grass-type cattle in my opinion. So, I'd like to see their herd, naturally.
 
I can't imagine raising galloways in anything other than a grassbased deal-we put some semen up on that old bull this summer if you are interested. I think we'll breed some to those EXT's try and suck some of the poison out of their attitude lol.
 
IL Rancher said:
Hanta, sounds like the Boys that we had out of Lucy Boy.. Man, I had a couple times in the bull pasture that first winter where I thought I might have to make a mad dash for it.... I know folks around here are wary of Lucy Boy for this attitude issue... Strange how the Russ bull I am thinking of was dead hog gentle, as were the steers we had out of him...

I need to go look at some Gelbvieh cattle in person.. My wife has a second or third cousin that raises them down in Ten. on a small scale. They tried to sell me some back at a family reunion 2.5 years back... Wil probably see them again this summer, maybe I'll go take a look.
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You oughta come back out to MT, we've got some dandy Gelbvieh bull calves...they 1/2 blood and up.
 
AFter the last 4 days or so going the way they went Hanta, I might have to make a run for it.. Oh wait, the vehicle has seen better days.

Day 1) Monday... Everything went fine...
Da 2) Blew belt on stalk shreader, should I say a quad belt..
Day 3) Baliing stalks, hear hising noise,look behind me and hydro oil is spraying all around. Hose is shot. No one has fitting in stock.. 2 more days of no baling
Day 4) Go out to hook up feed wagon to back up tractor.. Someone has bent the PTO shaft. Someone didn't tell me and this is the second time this is happened. Someone also put away something that I needed to unhook shreader in the wrong place... At least I found a way to fix that and won't have that problem again
Day 5) Finally get part for tractor, get hooked up, go pick up some extra netwrap (foolish optomisim) and run baler and shreader until brillant me gets a plug and flips a belt on the baler.

Day 6) Today. Fix baler, start feeding bals to cows. Ram bale into back of by truck that some dern fool parked where it didn't belong (This time, the dang fool was me). Crushed the right rear of the pick up, Can't wait to get that to the shop for fixing... I am really looking forward to talkingt o ym insurance company and the shop about my stupidity... I just walked away, hoked up the baler and baled some more stalks... At least I had no break downs except for the fact that I drove 3 miles to bale before seeing that I was almost out of fuel...

Day 7) That woudl be tomorrow.. Baling again.. I hope.. knowing my recent history I predict... Well, the shreader tractor hasn't broken yet, knock on wood..
 
Oh... I think it all finally caught up to me, lol... The only thing that really ticks me off is the PTO shaft as this means he dropped a quick hitch on it AGAIN and that should be freaking impossible. No need to even touch the darn thing for the 40 minutes the wagon is on the tractor a day... Actually, what bugs me the worst is he just didn't tell me. I am not a screamer at people when I am mad or anything, I would have said "okay, thanks for telling me", walked away to the house or my truck and drove away and than muttered stuff under my breath..

It wasn't all bad. Thanksgiving was okay, minus the 4 hours in the car to go see my dad and mom and brother and SIL.. Dinner was good, ate to much of course and heard my Dad actually talk a bit about Nam which is strange for him until he mentioned something about it never being out of mind but always being out of the conversation or something like that... His radio guy called him on the phone, they hadn't talked since 1969 or 70 or something like that... Guess his Landing Zone from that tour is looking to do a reunion, as he said, this is what happens when men get grey hair and start retiring, they have to go to reunions (Had a HS reunion in Puerto Rico (Army Kid) and a reunion with folks that he served with when he was stationed in Gernmany)... It was just nice to see him talking about it, I know there are stories in there that he just isn't ready to share.


I might take you up some day on those Gellbviehs however... One of my three favorite Cont breeds for some reason (I guess I do have a bull that I really like that is 1/8th gelb)...
 
i would like to have soapweeds heifers and some herefords that are compatble. And cross them all with my solid red shorthorn bulls. Yep thats what i want or some ohlde cows same differance i suppose moderate frames easy doin gentle cows. With some growing carcassing little calves. I would be happy than. If i could get some stockers like that life would be so much easier. We have been getting some little boot scooters lately must be your ext's northern rancher lol
 
IL Rancher said:
Oh... I think it all finally caught up to me, lol... The only thing that really ticks me off is the PTO shaft as this means he dropped a quick hitch on it AGAIN and that should be freaking impossible. No need to even touch the darn thing for the 40 minutes the wagon is on the tractor a day... Actually, what bugs me the worst is he just didn't tell me. I am not a screamer at people when I am mad or anything, I would have said "okay, thanks for telling me", walked away to the house or my truck and drove away and than muttered stuff under my breath..

It wasn't all bad. Thanksgiving was okay, minus the 4 hours in the car to go see my dad and mom and brother and SIL.. Dinner was good, ate to much of course and heard my Dad actually talk a bit about Nam which is strange for him until he mentioned something about it never being out of mind but always being out of the conversation or something like that... His radio guy called him on the phone, they hadn't talked since 1969 or 70 or something like that... Guess his Landing Zone from that tour is looking to do a reunion, as he said, this is what happens when men get grey hair and start retiring, they have to go to reunions (Had a HS reunion in Puerto Rico (Army Kid) and a reunion with folks that he served with when he was stationed in Gernmany)... It was just nice to see him talking about it, I know there are stories in there that he just isn't ready to share.


I might take you up some day on those Gellbviehs however... One of my three favorite Cont breeds for some reason (I guess I do have a bull that I really like that is 1/8th gelb)...
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You must have a hired man, then (I'm sure you've mentioned it in the past and I missed it). We quit hiring a loooong time ago, we do it all ourselves. The work doesn't all get done when we would like it, but it does eventually get done.

We got some friends started on Gelbvieh crosses....had about 30 we bred to calve for spring, they bought them from us and have been happy campers ever since. In fact, they are coming over later this week to buy some more spring calving cows. SHE says "Sure do love those Gelbvieh butts!" :lol2: :lol2:
 
I've only got two Guppy cows-they are deep-thick-perfect uddered and RANK-both are banished to the 'SIN' pasture to raise bucking bulls. I have a couple south devon daughters off them are ok but these two mommas want to reach out and touch you.
 
We had 13 half Guppy first calvers this year. 9 spit out 60lb Galloway calves that hit the ground and went like jack rabbits, and 4 had 110lb behemoths that would make you think a bull moose or a Percheron bred them. My belief is that the heifers being a 3-4 way cross just gave out a kick of extra hybrid vigor. Some of them are snuffy like yours NR, but most are gentle.

BTW, we got down to Calgary tonight to pick up a used Suburban we bought, and the neighbour called saying these hairy critters were in his yard. He said the gate was knocked flat, so I guess I'll just blame Kaiser's purebreds. :P There's no way one of my precious li'l Tarentaise crosses could do such a thing. :lol:
 
The Gelbviehs or, what are they calling the half bloods, balancers?, would be used as terminal sires for the most part. I am fond of my Black and Red Angus and baldies as far as momma cows.... The key as always will be birthweight and calf shape because the reason I got rid of the maines was too many pulls and I don't want to go down that road again.. I have two Tarentaise Bulls and I didn't puill anything out of them this year but their heifer calves are a bit on the goofy looking side.. Started out red and turned almost black as they approached weaning, Used to have Chi cross cows that would have calves like that too, it is s simple genetic thing but it was strange.... But I didn't have to pull any of them at least..

Their temperment was okay but man do I ahve some high headed Black Angus that I am slwoly but surely getting rid off... Problem is you pen them off and to ship and they jump fences to get back with the herd.. Need to lock them in the concrte lot and attatch razor wire to the top of the fence and post some guards... I have a a guy who comes out as day labour everyonce in a while and he wears that they were crossed with reindeer.. One of these days I need to figure out what blood line they are but as it is I simply yell yellow tag $#^%%^ as they come flying down the alley and decided not to buy from that guy again.

Yes Hanta, we have a hired guy but are most likely going to have to let him go for a number of reasons. Didn't have any help at all the past 4 days except a college kid to run a tractor for me shreading stalks on Sunday. That was helpful but those kids are easy to find out here in farm country, they all wanna sit in a cab and listen to the radio and talk on the phone all day. He did a good job. The rest of the chores I finished faster without him than with him and that is a problem. .That and I enjoyed it more after the bad times that is.. I just can't justify the added expense for 10 months when when I only benifited from him for two. .. It was nice being able to get away but I think me and my neighbor are just going to have to neighbor up more, which is fine with me even though for ever hour I get from him I give 3 hours (Of course, his hour included 3 people so it is fair)... If we farmed and ran cattle on the whole place it would be different but by the time that happens, if it happens, my kids might be 30.
 
We have crossed with Gelbvieh in the past. They sure add some width and dimension that is hard to get with straight Angus. My opinion is that a quarter-blood Gelbvieh cow is just right, 3/8 is acceptable, and half Gelbvieh is too much. A half blood cow gets too big, and sometimes their dispositions aren't the best, either. This of course, is just one feller's opinion. :wink:
 
Went out to shred this morning... all of the sudden liquid is spraying out the left side of the Big tractor... Dang sight guage on the coolant resevoir crakced and emptied the coolant from the tractor.. Now the fun part, getting the part from Cat... So now, all 4 parts of the baling operation have had a break down... I am so looking forward to parking them all and not having to worry about this again till summer... We were shy 10 bales of stalks, I think I will find a way to stretch the feed for the winter because it is starting to drizel..
 

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