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You need a Hereford

Doug Thorson

Well-known member
to get baldies!! :lol: :lol: :lol:

My type of cattle vol 2

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First calf heifer

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My favorite baldie
 

Soapweed

Well-known member
Nice looking baldies. I like using a Hereford bull on Angus cows better than using an Angus bull on Hereford cows. Either result will get you that highly desirable F1 baldy. Heifer calves kept from this cross make dandy cows. Then a person can use a third terminal "continental" cross type of bull on those baldy cows to get an optimum three-way cross that maximizes all possible heterosis and hybrid vigor. Don't keep any heifer calves out of that cross though, for they will not be very efficient cows.

As far as staying with a British breed cross, I prefer to use Angus bulls on baldy cows rather than Hereford bulls on the bald cows. In using Angus, most of the calves will turn out black or black baldy, with an occasional red or red baldy. If you use a Hereford bull on the F1 baldy cows, about a fourth of the calves will come out looking like a Hereford, even though they are a quarter Angus.

You have very nice Hereford and baldy cattle, Doug. If all the Herefords of the past were as nice as yours of the present, more of us would have stayed with Herefords. :wink:
 

RobertMac

Well-known member
Soapweed said:
If all the Herefords of the past were as nice as yours of the present, more of us would have stayed with Herefords.

I read recently that the quality grade of beef has been declining since 1970. What breed did most cattlemen have before 1970?
 

Soapweed

Well-known member
RobertMac said:
Soapweed said:
If all the Herefords of the past were as nice as yours of the present, more of us would have stayed with Herefords.

I read recently that the quality grade of beef has been declining since 1970. What breed did most cattlemen have before 1970?

Herefords were predominant before 1970, that is for sure. Many Herefords of that era had plenty of problems. My dad was selling straight Hereford yearling steers in those days, and his regular buyer that had bought from him for a long time, told him, "Bob, I really like your cattle, but if you stay with straight Herefords, I will no longer be able to buy them. I am just taking too big of a hit when I sell them."

With those words to spur him on, my dad bought some very nice Angus bulls to breed to his straight Hereford cows. He also started buying up some Angus replacement heifers. I am glad he made the change, because those spring snow storms sure made for a lot of sore teat doctoring.

I am sure that beef doesn't have the quality and taste in this day and age that it did when British breeds ruled the day. I guess that is why the Certified Angus program has been so successful. They have stayed the course. It is nice to see that the Certified Hereford beef program is catching on. The modern Herefords have undoubtedly eliminated a lot of the problems that were part of the breed forty years ago.
 

rainie

Well-known member
Good pics Doug and real nice baldies. I'm still having trouble finding a good a.i. bull that will throw these easy keeping good uddered type cows. Of the bulls I used the females turned out being too big and framey. If they weren't too big then the udders were crap. I don't want a whole bunch of milk, just breed average or a little below. NORTHERN Do you know of any bulls, preferably polled but not necessary. I don't want any show bulls or high growth bulls. DOUG, Do you have any bloodlines to suggest that would be available in Canada.
 

PPRM

Well-known member
Doug,

When i read you title there, i was not sure if it was a question or statement........If we are talikng the kind of cows you have there, well, we could all use those kind....

One thing that the Hereford Association is showing right now is that any hereford cross in a cow will significantly raise the fertility compared to before crossing....


PPRM
 

Doug Thorson

Well-known member
Thank you all for the nice comments.

DOUG, Do you have any bloodlines to suggest that would be available in Canada.
I am not sure what bloodlines are available in Canada but I will tell you what I have. All my Herefords that were in the pictures are Line 1 horned. Every other type I have tried(sorry, never tried polled) has thrown questionable udders. My herd is small though, so I haven't used a lot of other lines.
As for the baldies, Alliance, Gardens Prime Time, PS Power Play and Traveller lines have worked the best for me. Bando was ok but I think there were a lot of Bando bulls that were better than the ones I got. EXT will fix a bad bag, but I didn't like most of the heifers(as I typed that I had to check what cows I put up because there were a few really good ones)
First cow is Bando
next 2 are Alliance
Heifer is Gardens Prime Time
Traveller
last one is Alliance
 

Northern Rancher

Well-known member
Rainie F-R 552 Lad 20P will do exactly what you are trying to do. His mother has a perfect little udder and great feet and legs. I bought him to calve black heifers too and to raise black baldies from. I've had good luck with cattle on both sides of his pedigree doing that same thing. You won't find more practical purebred breeder than the Fraser's.
 

John SD

Well-known member
Doug, I'm impressed with your cattle and your "hardass" philosophy! :twisted: :p 8) :wink: You're right. No way to get those baldies that most everyone likes without the Hereford influence there.

I'm a little bit the opposite of Soapweed. I'd rather run a herd of Hereford cows and put Angus bulls on them. I'd rather deal up close and personal with the Herefords instead of those overly maternal Angus! :shock: :p :wink:
 
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