Select a Herd Bull for Your Cows

Herd bulls are one of the most important aspects of the breeding herd because without a bull, cows (and heifers) cannot produce calves. Selecting a good herd bull is based on many factors, including the goal to improve your herd if you wish to keep replacement females.

Steps

  1. Identify the breed[s], strengths and weaknesses of your cowherd. You will need to start basing your selection of a good herd bull on whether you wish to do some crossbreeding or pure breeding. The weaknesses of your cowherd are the second issue you need to focus on, because you need to find a bull that will improve on these weaknesses.[1]
    • Such weaknesses to improve on include:
      • Poor calving ease
      • Poor conformation (see How to Judge Conformation in Cattle for more)
      • Mature weights (you may wish to increase or decrease mature body weights in your herd)
      • Weaning/Yearling weights (may wish to increase or decrease weaning/yearling weights depending on whether you intend to sell the calves as feeders or keep some as replacements)
      • Fertility
      • Feed Efficiency
      • Ability to grow
      • Milking ability
      • Mothering ability
    • Note that some traits listed above are more heritable than others. Some, like fertility and feed efficiency, are much less heritable than weaning/yearling weights are.
  2. Identify the type of bull you wish to have based on its breed. There are three types of bulls that you must decide between:[2]
    • Terminal - a bull that is used to increase weights and growth in calves, and is used only if you wish to sell all of your calves as feeders.
    • Maternal - a bull that is used for producing replacements. The qualities of this type of bull should be less on increasing weights and growth and more on improving the quality of your herd in terms of mothering ability, milking ability, calving ease, and calf vigour.
    • Rotational - a bull that is suitable both as one for maternal traits and for producing calves for the meat market. Also one that can be used for cross-breeding.
  3. Decide what breed of bull you wish to buy. It is best to buy a purebred bull instead of a cross-bred one because you have a higher chance of getting a more uniform calf herd than one that seems to be all over the map.[3]
  4. Start looking for advertisements of bull sales, bulls for sale, dispersal sales, etc. to find the bull that you need. Such sales can be found in a local agricultural newspaper in the classifieds section or in a cattle magazine.[4]
    • Once you have found a seller that seems to have the type of bull you are looking for, phone and ask the seller if you can come over to see the bull and check him out before you decide on your purchase. If yes, go have a look at him. If the seller says no (which is quite rare), then find another seller.
  5. Before you go over to the farm or ranch that are holding these bulls that are for sale, you must come prepared. Bring a camera, a pen/pencil and note pad, and a list of questions. The questions are best if you are buying via private-treaty, but not if you are going to a bull sale where you are competing with other buyers.[5]
    • Questions should include everything from what his dam and sire are, how he's been fed and how he's been raised from birth to sale, vaccinations, if he's been tested for sexual diseases like Trichomoniasis (applicable only to older bulls that have been previously used for breeding), if he's had a semen test done, etc. Think of anything about this bull that you want to know before you decide on buying him.
  6. Typically the seller will give you a sheet with the bull's EPD's (Expected Progeny Differences) written on it.[6]
    • It's best if you know how to interpret the EPD numbers before you have even considered buying a bull! If you already know how to interpret them, study them to see if the numbers are what you are looking for. In a bull sale, you will get a little booklet with all of the bulls that are for sale and their EPDs, as well as who the dam and sire are.[7]
      • If the seller doesn't give you any information on who the dam and sire are, ask. You should also ask to see the dam and sire of that bull to see what type of dam and sire he came from.
  7. Now you are able to have a look at this bull. Study his conformation and take pictures of him to study later (best for private treaty, not auction sales). Also ask the seller your questions that you have written up.
  8. Set a price-ceiling based on what you believe is the best price for this bull according to breed, breeding, conformation and genetic qualities. If the seller wants to sell higher, either barter with him to bring the price down or go find another bull-seller.[8]
  9. Once you've found the bull with pretty well everything you want in him and bought him for the price you wanted and expected, now you can take him home and turn him out with the cows.[9]

Tips

  • Always ask to see the bull you're interested in. There's nothing worse than buying a bull unseen, only to find out he's not what you were looking for.
  • If you are looking to buy a cheap bull, tread lightly because there's a risk that you may end up with a bad apple.
  • Conformation and EPDs are the two best methods of selecting a good herd bull. Do not select a herd bull based on only one of these methods: you must use both in order to find what you want.
  • Besides breed and genetic qualities, also select a bull based on his temperament. It's best to have a bull that is quiet and docile than one that is wild all the time. Many producers believe that temperament is genetic, and can be passed from the sire (or dam) to the offspring.
    • Beware though, that a calm bull is often more dangerous and unpredictable than a wild one.
  • Look at the seller's farm. Often a rancher with that has a place that doesn't look like a dump will be one that has taken very good care of his/her animals.
  • If you are buying a proven experienced bull (not a virgin yearling that are often put up in bull sales, always ask if he has been tested for sexually transmitted diseases such as Trich., BVD, etc. If not, get him tested. If he is positive for any of the STDs that can be transmitted from cow to bull and vice versa, pass him on. It's not worth the risk (nor the cost) of getting a bull that has an STD to affect your herd.

Warnings

  • Don't let a seller sell his bull to you for too high a price. This is called "ripping off" and can possibly end up in troubles.
  • Never buy without seeing the bull first. Also don't buy based on emotional value nor on impulse.

Related Articles

References

  1. ↑ https://www.beefmagazine.com/management/better-business-analyze-your-cowherd-s-production-facts
  2. ↑ https://extension2.missouri.edu/g2040
  3. ↑ https://extension.tennessee.edu/publications/Documents/W333.pdf
  4. ↑ https://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.html?number=C553&title=Bull%20Buyer%27s%20Guide
  5. ↑ https://extension.msstate.edu/sites/default/files/topic-files/cattle-business-mississippi-articles/cattle-business-mississippi-articles-landing-page/mca_oct2007.pdf
  6. ↑ https://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.html?number=C553&title=Bull%20Buyer%27s%20Guide
  7. ↑ https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/400/400-804/400-804.html
  8. ↑ https://www.beefmagazine.com/seedstock/what-s-bull-really-worth
  9. ↑ https://www.beefmagazine.com/blog/buying-new-herd-bull-do-these-4-steps-first
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