  BeefTalk:
Sire Selection Decisions Have a Long-Term Impact on the Herd
By Kris Ringwall, Extension Beef Specialist,
NDSU Extension Service
As the bull sale season gets into full swing, the importance and magnitude of
those buying decisions weigh heavier on individual producers.
Most cattle producers know their local bull suppliers both professionally and
personally. Many are neighbors or joint cooperators in the many projects that
exist in rural communities. Why so much thought? Well, these bulls will sire the
foundation for beef opportunities in the future.
In a lot of ways, beef producers are like those people who can juggle three
or four balls at one time. The juggler starts with one ball, catches it with one
hand, then two balls, one for each hand. Most of us would stop there. But
occasionally, the juggler will switch hands and eventually three balls, and even
four balls, will be going.
Bull buying decisions are no different, and the purchasing decisions linger
for a long time.
At the North Dakota State University Dickinson Research Extension Center, we
have 118 calves born in 2000 on feed. These calves, from the bulls purchased in
the spring of 1999, have the largest single impact on the center’s operation
today, drawing $1.74 per head per day as of Jan. 31. The feed efficiency and
gain of that pen of steers is critical to the center today.
Let’s look at the second ball needed to juggle--the bull that sired today’s
calf. The Center’s cows started calving Feb. 3. This calf, and all the rest of
them born this spring, currently demand the most labor. Talking to the herdsman
this time of year, you only get one of three comments: "They aren’t very
big, but at least they’re alive." "Don’t you ever breed to that
bull again." Or "She’s a good mother, I told you we needed more like
her."
Choices made in purchasing last year’s bulls are "in your face"
today. That dripping wet calf is a direct result of your efforts at selecting
bulls, and you can’t help but wonder if the calf really looks like that
outstanding glossy print of the sire you picked. Fortunately, you remind
yourself, that even as a newborn calf, the truth is in the genes you selected
not the picture.
Enter the third ball. The phone rings and you are reminded you need to start
looking for the bulls to sire next year’s calf crop. Like juggling, most of us
can handle two balls relatively well, the third one gets challenging. It’s not
that you can’t keep it going, it’s just that the first two balls won’t let
you concentrate on the third one.
You have a heifer that should have calved an hour ago, an old boss cow that
just ran the dog and you out of the pen, and you open the mail and get a dead
slip from the feed yard. And now, someone wants you to give them $3,000 for a
bull. But, the cycle must continue.
The bulls that are bought this year will sire the spring of 2002 calf crop
and return the cash on the rail in 2003. Projecting ahead on future trends in
beef, and then designing a program to meet those trends is challenging. Adding
value to cow-calf beef production is both simple and complicated. The rewards
are still in the finished product: the ability to lay claim to that tender, lean
meat product that provides your neighbors their needed nourishment.
In the end, the success of the producer’s juggling is not known for two
years. That is why it is important to know the numbers and what they mean and
make informed decisions. It will cut down on the worry and cause one to miss
fewer meals worrying about whether to add another bull to the juggling act.
Well, speaking of nourishment, the local bull sale has lunch at noon, so I
better collect my paper work and go check out the bulls. May you find all your
ear tags.
Your comments are always welcome at www.BeefTalk.com
For more information, contact the North Dakota Beef Cattle Improvement
Association, 1133 State Avenue, Dickinson, ND 58601 or go to www.CHAPS2000.COM
on the Internet. In correspondence about this column, refer to BT0027.
###
Source: Kris Ringwall, (701) 483-2045, kringwal@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu
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