MB, Canada | t-boss - 3/7/2024 01:20
Coming soon, a discussion on bulls that have been feed efficiency tested. Everyone will have to redo their math.
Every positive trait has its trade-offs. I would wager that if you breed for feed efficiency you also end up breeding for docility but eventually you end up with a bunch of bulls that lay around all day and don't bother breeding cows. Feedlots will push the idea since it benefits them while cow/calf producers will start having to run a bull for every 20 cows, wondering what happened to the days when a bull used to service 50 cows.
Just like when we bred for growth, we ended up with big cows that milked so hard that they needed grain on pasture so they didn't lose condition. And the only way to truly take advantage of the calf's frame and genetics were to start creep feeding when they're about 5 months old. It's not uncommon around here to have producers "backgrounding" on 20+ lbs of grain as it's really the only way to get the 3-3.5 lbs/day gain that those "performance" genetics are capable of. |
Bad bull math on Working Ranch Radio
