When buying bulls, commercial producers need to keep top of mind that one size doesn’t fit all. Forget the fads that come and go with the wind, and purchase bulls custom fit to your unique circumstances. This means purchasing bulls that will fit best into an individual’s matrix of environment, management, labor, feed resources and market that are unique to every operation.
Although bulls should be bought to optimize profitability on the individual’s ranch, they should also be designed to give the next segment of the industry a reasonable opportunity to be profitable. Plus, always keep in mind that someone needs to have an enjoyable eating experience from everyone’s cattle if we are to survive as an industry.
Our industry is really in the danger zone when commercial producers start to drool over whichever recent bull had a 1,000-pound weaning weight. Just think about that. What profitable commercial operation has the affordable feed resources and cheap labor to wean 1,000-lb. calves? And if you were raising 1,000-lb. calves at weaning, what cost will there be in supplemental feed to meet the nutrient needs of a cow herd with the milk and growth genetics to produce those kinds of calves?
Then there is the size of the cows in the herd, which will go up accordingly with the growth potential, and when combined with the high milk potential of dams that can produce a 1,000-lb. calf, the maintenance requirements will get out of hand quickly. The other cost will be decreased reproduction and longevity, causing higher replacement rates of heifers that are more expensive to develop. This is not a scenario for profitability.
Some go the other route, with tiny cows compared to the industry standard, with low growth and milk potential. Yes, they will have low maintenance requirements and likely have a higher breed-back rate. These systems may have improved reproduction and longevity compared to the very high-maintenance cattle discussed prior, however, this cannot be taken for granted. The whole thesis of running these lower input and output cows is to increase the stocking to produce more calves per acre to make up for the lower productivity.
Another standard selling point is smaller calves sell more per pound than large calves. However, this also can’t be taken for granted. Small calves generally are that way because of things like being short of feed due to drought and/or weaning early. However, when operations with purposely developed low-growth potential cattle enter the market with light calves, many feedlots will put those cattle that are known to have those genetic inputs on their “no-buy list.” This actually makes it desirable for the cattle to be marketed with anonymity as to their source, which is getting harder and harder to do in this day and age.
Now for some specifics. Many, if not most, Western herds have maxed the weaning weights their cattle will express due to environmental limitations. There are several datasets that show this clearly. However, purebred breeders generally continue to linearly increase the weaning weight growth potential in their cattle. This is to the detriment of their customers, as maintenance costs on their cows will generally increase right along with it and longevity will decrease in kind. Therefore, both Weaning Weight and Milk EPDs should be looked at as threshold traits with the proper threshold being different for each ranch. Buying bulls whose genetics way undershoot what a producer’s environment will express, or bulls that overshoot what the environment will allow to be expressed, are paths to unprofitability.
The late, great breeder and performance pioneer George Chiga was the one who coined the term “convenience traits” 60 years ago, which are now more commonly referred to as “functional traits.” He used to ask, “How much performance do you need?” and then answer himself, “Enough to make money and then focus on convenience.” That means cattle that fit your environment, are easy to work, easy keeping, sound and good footed, shed quickly and completely in the spring, calve easily and have vigor, have good disposition and are fertile. This all adds up to cattle that take less labor and feed, and have more longevity.
Chiga managed a good-sized herd and was an expert on facilities, and his philosophy allowed him to manage his herd with only some seasonal help. Most of the time, he worked the herd alone. One of the founders of the Red Angus Association of America in 1954, he was a man far ahead of his time, and buying bulls using Chiga’s philosophy stands up today as well as it did 60 years ago.
Sleeping at night is a great thing, so purchase bulls that have appropriate calving ease. Remember, the dam contributes half the genetics and all the environment, so keep this in mind when you decide what is appropriate calving ease in your sires. Again, this is a threshold-type trait, and what is appropriate will differ for heifers and cows. Overshoot the mark and you might end up with too many small, weak calves, which can eat up a lot of time keeping them alive in cold or muddy situations.
Undershoot the mark significantly, and you should be ready to spend more nights than you would like out pulling calves. I think the Beef Improvement Federation should not only have calving scores but also ones for vigor. It makes all the difference in the world if a calf has a desire to live, getting up quickly and nursing. I am convinced there are differences in breeds, herds and bloodlines on this trait.
The last job when buying a bull is to make sure he has enough post-weaning growth potential, as well as genetics for carcass traits to produce feeder cattle that are desirable to feed and will hang a heavy carcass that will pay on a value-based system. If you are selling at a minimum of quarter loads, there is high likelihood feedlots can source your calves in their yard back to your operation. If you want repeat buyers and competitive bidding on your calves, don’t forget about your customers.
It is an exciting time of the year. Bull-buying season is a time of promise and will determine where your cowherd is five to eight years from now. Do your homework and buy the bulls that are right for your operation. Forget about the fads and fancies, and what others think. What is important is your knowledge of your operation, and only through that knowledge can the correct bulls be had. — Dr. Bob Hough, WLJ correspondent
