It's getting to be that time of year again. Winter feeding is well under way, calving will begin soon and carry on over the next few months depending on your chosen calving season. Tradeshows and bull sales will attract producers from all over the province.
Are you looking for a bull this year? What does he look like? It may seem like the last calf crop has just gone to market, the next round of calves are not even here yet, and now, I'm going to ask you - what do you want your 2014 calf crop to look like? The decision you make when purchasing a bull this year will impact your herd for many years to come.
Bull selection is one of the most important decisions a cattleman makes. That bull out there with your herd contributes half the genetic material for your calf crop and perhaps your replacement heifers if you practice retained ownership. When making this very crucial decision, now is the time to reflect on the status of your herd. Were you happy with this year's calf crop? Was weaning weight any better or any worse this year compared to last year? Could you see any temperament issues in these young calves? What would you like to change in the future? This is where record keeping is very important when looking back. If there is room for improvement you need to sit back and evaluate what happened last year to determine how you can implement changes.
The genetic value of a bull is determined by both his outward appearance and his genetic potential. Both of these things are influenced not only by his genetics but also by the environment under which the bull was raised and that which he continues to live in. Climate, nutrition and management will all play a role in the bull's performance.
The choice of sire profoundly affects the performance of the herd, no matter what breeding program is used. Some traits are readily transmitted from sire to all calves and some identified in the sire can produce a desirable response in female offspring. Traits to consider when selecting a new bull for your cow herd include: growth, calving ease, frame size, muscling, structural soundness, fertility and maternal performance traits such as milk production and mothering ability.
The long-term economic viability of beef enterprises depends on continual improvements in productivity. Traits that will either lower the costs of production or increase the value and quantity of output from the herd are the key. A great option to help determine if you have been on the right track when selecting bulls in the past, is to use the Beef InfoXchange System or BIXS (www.bixs.ca) which will help in evaluating the success of previous calf crops. This information has been available online since the fall of 2011 and all you need is your CCIA tags from calves you have sold. Packing plants are inputting carcass data so producers are able to obtain this data from BIXS. This includes yield grade, hot carcass weight, quality grades and any downgrading that may have been given to that carcass. When evaluating the carcass traits from BIXS you may find that there is some opportunity to increase the quality of your calves. Whether this is carcass weight, marbling, etc., all are goals you can set to assist you when searching through the bulls this year.
Sire selection is the major tool available to producers for changing the genetic potential of a herd whether you sell these calves or keep females for replacements. Sire selection can be one of the easiest methods used to improve your bottom line. Bull selection depends on the type of cows to be bred and the objectives of the producer. The best bull for one herd will not necessarily be a good choice for another herd.
2013 boasts the Fourth Annual Bull Selection Workshops hosted by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. This year's workshops take place Feb. 4, 2013 in Tisdale and Feb. 6, 2013 in Mankota.
For more information on this, or other livestock related topics, contact Jenifer Heyden at 306-446-7961 in North Battleford, Kim McLean in Tisdale at 306-878-8847 or the Agriculture Knowledge Centre at 1-866-457-2377.
