Management
are the most important determinants of profit that relate to genetics .
So , bull selection should be based on fertility , calving ease ( direct and maternal ), disease resistance and longevity , maintenance requirements and temperament . I would add adaptability ; but , if cows have these traits in your environment , they are becoming adapted .
Some would add milk to the list , but I contend that milk is anti-maternal . The conversion from grass to milk to pounds of calf is a terrible conversion . If you reduce the milk , you can add to carrying capacity and improve conception rates .
I would use milk EPDs to put a limit on milk production as I would use hip height and mature weight EPDs to put a limit on cow size . I think there are not yet good , reliable EPDs for fertility , longevity , cow herd maintenance requirements and disease resistance .
Remember , herds producing their own replacements will not be as profitable as those buying replacement cows and producing “ high growth , high carcass ” calves unless you sell bred cows as a major profit center . To be successful as a maternal breeder :
• Select bulls that won ’ t undo what you are trying to accomplish by culling . Actually , cow culling is accomplished by selecting which cows to market as bred cows . They are not bad cows — just not as good as you want yours to become .
• For strong maternal traits , bulls should be selected only from cows that always calve as a result of first cycle breeding . There should be evidence in closely related females that the bulls you are purchasing have a high probability of siring females with good udders , structural soundness and good body condition with minimal supplementation .
• Expose heifers to bulls for a very short season .
• Maintain a very short calving season . I like leaving bulls with the cows for a long time and selling all the late bred and / or late calving cows . Be disciplined to not keep any late-calvers .
• Without excuse , market every open , dry or late-calving cow . Market bad dispositions , mothers of poor calves and those that require individual handling .
• If you strictly cull for these problems every year , you will soon not have many to cull each year for reasons other than being open or dry . And the numbers of opens and dries will diminish also . You will be selling far more pregnant cows than opens .
I know several herds where selling bred cows has become a significant enterprise . Well over 50 % of their total livestock revenue comes from the sale of bred cows .
In several of these herds , only the very best cows are kept beyond 6 years of age . They are capturing the appreciation that occurs in the younger cow years and avoiding the market value depreciation that begins to occur at about age 6 . Also , the steer calf or yearling steer by-product of this system can still be a very acceptable product in the marketplace .
It appears to me that too many in our industry are trying to straddle the fence and combine both terminal and maternal in the same herd . It doesn ’ t work . Because of the available and most popular EPDs , you end up selecting for too much growth and carcass quality and lose cow efficiency .
Everywhere I go , I see bigger cows giving much more milk . Stocking rates are falling , and / or much more supplemental feed is being brought in . Conception rates are falling .
I know that it is not a scientific sample , but anecdotally I hear from the people who respond to these columns that they are having the problems just described and they are beginning to make changes to get profitability back in line . When bigger calves mean fewer total pounds sold and for a lower price , it isn ’ t really working very well .
For those buying replacement cows , don ’ t be afraid to pay a nice premium for good cows . Those selling them deserve and need the premium for breeding and calving heifers . Those yearling heifers take up space ( feed ) but don ’ t produce a calf that year . The one paying the premium for good replacement cows is making a low-cost substitution of depreciation for heifer development costs . I
Teichert , a consultant on strategic planning for ranches , retired in 2010 as vice president and general manager of AgReserves , Inc . He resides in Orem , Utah . Contact him at burketei @ comcast . net .
This article was reprinted with permission from the BEEF Magazine .
42 | OCTOBER 2018