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Got a bull

Aaron

Well-known member
Here's a pic of the bull that I got today through Oddan's sale. Not one of my top picks, but for the price, I think he'll do just fine. Looking forward to seeing him at 3 or 4 years when he's had time to fill out on pasture. Now that I got everyone to focus on just one bull, what's your thoughts? :) Good or bad, I wanna hear 'em.


bull3.jpg
 

3words

Well-known member
For being almost 2 years old,where is his size?He has no hind end,and he has horns.For his birthweight,he sure didn't wean very heavy.I don't like him one bit,but as long as you are happy.That's all that matter's.
 

Aaron

Well-known member
I suspect #10 was one of the 2 top sellers at $7000. I am not sure about #18; I was interested in him until I learned he only had size 35 nuts on him.
 

Hereford76

Well-known member
Looks like an alright canadian pedigree - that 256B cow on the very bottom goes back to some pretty good stuff (656 and even further back 91L).

I wouldn't worry about those comments about the horns - I guess some people don't know what they are loosing when they breed the horns off them. Sure you might have to dehorn some calves - but there is a price you pay for most everything and if I can pay for it with my time spent dehorning then I'll do it until the day I die. My time ain't worth as much as some of the folks on here as it looks to me.

I don't think that 570 lb WW is what 3words is trying to make you think it is. The bull is an April 17 born calf and if he was weaned when everyone else weans (1st part of October) that would make him about 5 and 1/2 months old at that weight - you adjust that out to 205 and it is roughly 685 adjusted WW which in my mind and I would probably say ranchers in the real world isn't bad. Besides, I bet you anything that number is raw and unmolested - unlike most of the numbers you see printed in sale catalogs.

I like his good hair and bone - but would change just a tich. Looks like you did alright to me.

Are you going to the Midwestern Sale in Lloydminster? If you do take a look at Mitchell's 6S calf. Also look at Bannerman's 58R and 65R. I would love to go up but wouldn't do much good if I couldn't bring him back down here.

I might try and buy another bull tomorrow - we'll see. That is why I am up so late - can't stop thinking about it.
 

Aaron

Well-known member
Won't be going to Midwestern. Now that I got my bull, I am done for the year. I don't want to be thinking of bull buying again for at least a couple of years. The fact that I finally got my first Horned Hereford bull makes me like a little kid again. I always favoured the horned over the polled, but when my next door neighbour purchased SNS 288D Alberta Eclipse 6F from Brad and Kathy Dallas of Bowden in 2000 as a 4 year old, I was sold. That bull is without a doubt one of my favourite bulls I have seen. They brought a load of 19-1000+lb. long yearling steers into the mart in '03 off of that bull and they went in as one lot. Looked like 19 clones. I haven't seen a Polled bull yet that brings that much consistency in his calves.

I think this is a 3 year old pic of him on Dallas' website

http://www.dallasfarms.com/herdbulls/6f.htm

and here he is at 7 years in Sept 2003:

P9270148.jpg
 

Faster horses

Well-known member
Ohhh, that is one hunk of a Hereford bull.
Thanks for posting the picture.


And I think the first bull is fine too.
An old Hereford man told me, "when you take their horns off,
you take their brains too."

He was a commercial Hereford breeder and he NEVER took
the horns of his cows. They all had horns. His was the only place
I ever saw that. He was as good a cowman as there ever was.

Mr. FH says there is nothing better than a Black Angus cow
and nothing better than a horned Hereford bull.
 

Denny

Well-known member
Down here most all polled herefords are desendents of show cattle I would'nt use anything other than a horned bull they make the best baldies.

I see your new bull has dark pigment on his scrotal he should work fine.
 

jigs

Well-known member
I absolutely love those dark curly bulls. I think this cat will fill out fine, and ought to make you some nice calves....just hope he ain't gay!

I always thought that the more curly hair on the bull meant more growth vigor in the calves he throws. seems that way for me anyway...... hell I might want to buy one of his calves if you are saving bulls!
 

Soapweed

Well-known member
I like your new bull, Aaron. He looks to be a good one.

My preference in Herefords is horned over polled. The bulls just look more macho somehow. And when an old owly Hereford cow puts a feller up on a fence, her horns gives you a place to step on to help get you up and over. :wink:
 

Shortgrass

Well-known member
3words can tell more from a picture than I can. I appreciate his candid opinion though. That beats saying one thing while thinking the opposite. As for horns, take em or leave em, look at the other end! He looks like a straight barrelled rascal.
 

Manitoba_Rancher

Well-known member
Aaron said:
Won't be going to Midwestern. Now that I got my bull, I am done for the year. I don't want to be thinking of bull buying again for at least a couple of years. The fact that I finally got my first Horned Hereford bull makes me like a little kid again. I always favoured the horned over the polled, but when my next door neighbour purchased SNS 288D Alberta Eclipse 6F from Brad and Kathy Dallas of Bowden in 2000 as a 4 year old, I was sold. That bull is without a doubt one of my favourite bulls I have seen. They brought a load of 19-1000+lb. long yearling steers into the mart in '03 off of that bull and they went in as one lot. Looked like 19 clones. I haven't seen a Polled bull yet that brings that much consistency in his calves.

I think this is a 3 year old pic of him on Dallas' website

http://www.dallasfarms.com/herdbulls/6f.htm

and here he is at 7 years in Sept 2003:

P9270148.jpg

Aaron,

Dont let OT see this, in another thread he was telling me I should be cutting the heads off bulls when they are 4 yrs old. This 7 year old looks very impressive and in his prime herdsire days.
 

Hereford76

Well-known member
That is one thing I have never understood - turning bulls over at four or five years old. You don't really know how good of a bull he is yet. The last four major herd bulls I've used here bred over forty cows each at 10 years of age.

Doesn't that bother any one that for a lot of breeds 4 or maybe 5 is old, ancient, or "antique".

I have a question - doesn't efficiency mean anything anymore especially now a days.
 

Faster horses

Well-known member
We get rid of bulls at 4 and 5 years of age because they usually get
onery by then. And we have heifers/cows out of them that we need
new bulls for.

'Sides, buying bulls is just TOO MUCH FUN!!!!!!! :wink: :roll: :p
 

Denny

Well-known member
Our oldest bull is coming 8 in the spring his bull calves did better than any of the AI sired calves we had last year we have used him on our commercial cows the last 2 years he runs by himself with 70 to 80 cows we will be putting him back on 40 registered cows this year.He is very mild mannered until you get him in a corral with other bulls then the fight is on.
 

IL Rancher

Well-known member
We have a coming 9 year old bull on the farm right now. Still fertile and although he might appear to be lazy in that he doesn't persecute the cows like a 1 year old would, they all get bred and get bred early.. I am disappointed in bulls that I have to get rid of as 4-5 year olds. To me that means their feet are shot, they are shooting blanks or there is an injury... As far as onery, I guess they get grumpier as they get older but I haven't noticed my older bulls get much worse as they age, the only thing they realy get is slower and more deliberate in their movements.. But we are on small breeding pastures here so I don't see why I bull can't go till 10 years of age if not longer...

Bull buying might be fun, well it is fun, but with the price of bulls these days I would rather be buying 1 a year or 1-2 every other year to replace the injured ones than turn over the entire bull battery every 3-4 years
 
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