Beef AI/Bulls MEGATHREAD

dodo mommy

Just had our first record (LM8550) calf, nice square little calf off a small type ZAG cow. Anyone else have any calfs off him how do the turn out?

Hard Knocks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121348854#Comment_121348854

He looks a good bull. Any problem calving? Did the cow carry much?

dodo mommy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121348872#Comment_121348872

She calfed herself, at 292days.

dodo mommy

Couple of pictures of record LM8550 calf.

IMG_20231110_175021.jpg

IMG_20231110_175042.jpg

patsy_mccabe

Fine looking calf. Record Lm8550 is Myostatin nt821/nt821, very unusual for a Limousin. I've a cow incalf to him here, so fingers crossed.

Sheep breeder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121341138#Comment_121341138

Ah Tanko icbf computer never gives out wrong figures on calving %, their system is tried and tested and the ones that are wrong are the fella’s caving cows on the ground and sure he will produce milk like a Hol/Fr cow being out of a Vantastic cow. Honestly how can there be a faith in what icbf claim. Remember the Charolais bull Gurkha that come in from England and was given an easy calving bull by progressive and turned out somewhere in the 20%.

Hard Knocks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121354249#Comment_121354249

Was Gurka very hard calved or just used on cows he should not of been put with due to his mislabelling.

DukeCaboom

Has anyone here used Dou dou the lm bull.

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360282#Comment_121360282

I never used him anyway, can he still be got? If i remember right he was supposed to be a good bull to breed heifers, never heard much about him tho, one of those low muscle, height skeletal bulls with milk best used on smaller muscly types maybe.

DukeCaboom

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360519#Comment_121360519

That's funny cause I remember in the ai book he looked a tall bull.

patsy_mccabe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360282#Comment_121360282

AI guy that was covering for my regular AI guy used him once here, but she didn't hold. I saw a lovely PB heifer by him recently that made big money at a sale. I would love to get some straws too. He breeds quiet, plenty of milk and great open type hips. Have you straws?

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121362163#Comment_121362163

You could try NCBC, think i read somewhere that straws of him were available last year.

ABitofsense

Anyone use Fuschia? 2% calving difficulty, just wondering what type of cow he'd suit?

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121414074#Comment_121414074

He’d suit a cow with a bit of height and length needing a muscle injection i’d be thinking. He’s the sire of Loyal the Bova bull.

ABitofsense

Thanks. Going to use him on a big tall PD LM

SuperTeeJay

Have a Knell Heifer here that calved.Put an Ivor bull on her and she had a nice heifer calf.After Dna registration turns out it's a Wilodge Joskins calf.Was definitely keeping the Ivor as replacement but not sure about Joskins.Has anyone kept Joskins as replacements and what are they like?Thanks

DukeCaboom

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121416811#Comment_121416811

Does that happen often. Did yer man mix up the straws?

SuperTeeJay

It has happened before yes occasionally. Am in the Greenbreed Dna last 5/6 years so it's highlighted that way.

DukeCaboom

I remember 30 years ago there used be an AI man around here, I don't ever remember him sober in the yard. I'd say he was lucky he packed it in before DNA testing!!

SuperTeeJay

Luckily it was a heifer calf as a bull might have been a bit harder on her as joskins is reportedly hard calved.

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121416811#Comment_121416811

Joskins is a Vantastic son, sons of Vantastic are notorious for breeding heifers/cows with poor milk, kept a couple of Milbrook Dartagnan heifers here once, they were a disaster for milk. Looking at Joskins breeding/figures you’d think he’d be one of the last bulls you’d keep heifers off, then again i’ve seen lads on Facebook etc saying his heifers have enough milk so who knows.

Had the first Gamin ZGM heifers calved here this year, not much udders on them but their calves did very well, they’re off milky Saler and Sim cross cows tho. Have a few more Gamin weanling heifers this year which i’ll keep on for cows

Having tried a lot of breeds nothing beats the Saler or Saler cross cow and Charolais bull on poor land imo. The fertility, longevity, hardiness, good milk and feet and calving ability of them is out in its own.

DukeCaboom

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121421440#Comment_121421440

How du find the gamin for docility? I've a heifer with gamin breeding in her, her sire a gamin son had terrible feet. I wasn't going to bother bulling her I just presume she'll go lame fast enough. She's off a simm cow so it's a pity to kill her.

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121421641#Comment_121421641

Docility wise i don’t find them any different to anything else around the place, i wouldn’t have the quietest cattle but when my vet is doing the TB test he reckons they’re quiet compared to a lot of cattle he deals with. The heifers were grand the day they calved anyway. I’ve been using Gamin for years but only started keeping heifers off him in recent years, they’re all young so haven’t noticed any feet problems yet anyway. He’s very easy calved and the muscle they have helps them sell well i find. I’d imagine you’d have a fair idea what her feet will be like at this stage, long toes etc.

SuperTeeJay

The mother is a knell heifer with shorthorn blood in her so might be worth keeping maybe.

Have a few purebred Salers and Saler crosses here too...Rio/Ulsan/Ivan cows.I can't fault them either and all very quiet cows too.

Seanhorse91

Jesus these new ICBF figures are an absolute joke. Cerberus is after dropping €50. My best cow is a Cerberus x Sympa. €82 down to €35. Goes incalf to 1st straw every year. Her mother just left the farm a few weeks ago, just going on 15 years old. 13 calves with a calving interval of around 354 if I remember correctly. Feet never touched, proper fertile cow. Super breeder with 1 bull exported for breeding to the uk. Just checked her figures, been downgraded from €54 to €-9. Absolutely baffling. I’m in all the sucker schemes and have been. Filling out all accurate data. Actually doesn’t matter a feck.

They’re actually destroying the good cows of Ireland

White Clover

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121434296#Comment_121434296

Your last sentence says it all. Same happened dairy cows. Nothing but slips of things in most places now and them lads have forgotten what a decent cow looks like.

ABitofsense

If you want to see how bad the changes are for LM bulls check out the revised catalogue for Athenry LM sale. Loads of bulls dropped below 4/5 stars which would have qualified on Monday. Feel sorry for breeders.

Sheep breeder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121434296#Comment_121434296

This is what icbf and the government want is good cattle gone out of the system and the suckler man growing trees or rewetting land to keep industry going, had a IDU ped char cow similar caving interval and rearing great calves, she had a set of twins and reared them and calved 10 days later the following year with a bull calf and was dropped from 3 star to a 1 star, rang up asked the question about the drop was told she calved later than previous year and her two calves were lighter at sale than her comrades, explained they were twins and for her to go back so quickly was a sign of good fertility, no the computer reckoned she wasn’t doing her job correctly, that was the end of stars for me. Have used Cerberus here and found him a good bull and reliability good.

valtra2

Can anyone tell me if the bulls I have used for ai in the last few weeks that were 4/5star and now are 3 star. Will they be counted as 45 star or 3 star.

ABitofsense

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121435175#Comment_121435175

They're counted as 4/5 star if they are that when used. Issue is your replacement heifers off them will be lower than you were expecting