Friday, September 28, 2012

Breeding Beef Cattle Guide - Six Important Suggestions On How to Breed Beef Cattle Correctly

By Tim R Smith


There are many things to consider when raising cattle, particularly beef cattle, and one of these is actually breeding cattle. Many cattle farmers spend a certain amount of their time trying to breed their cattle not only to be able to increase the herd but to also produce high quality, healthy, and close-to-perfect calves. They know that consumers and other cattle breeders only want the best in their herd, so breeding beef cattle should be a major addition to one's agenda when engaged in cattle farming.

Unfortunately, some farmers tend to forget the most basic tips and methods to breeding high quality cattle and have failed to renew the expenses made for ill-fitted cows and calves with health problems at birth. To be able to avoid this, here are some helpful tips on how to effectively breed beef cattle:

1) Keeping the best and raising the best is the key to successful breeding because it not only produces cows with the best meat but also reduces the time, effort, and money spent on work at breeding time.Breeding beef cattle means knowing how to balance between genetics and herd management. With this in mind, remember to be selective with one's own herd by learning how to distinguish the good animals from those with health and bone structure problems.

2) Try certain techniques to increase your chances of producing well-rounded cattle. For example, make sure to choose heifers with large pelvises and a bull whose mother also had a large pelvis. Bulls and heifers should be examined once in a while, especially when the cows are starting to show pregnancy signs and are ready to conceive.

3) There are two ways to go for when breeding beef cattle depending on what your preferred way are. You can either artificially inseminate the cows or keep a good bull to breed with your cows.

4) If you've chosen the second method, have your bull/s examined for STDs, health problems, and once in a while for sperm count, general physical check-ups and scrotum circumference to be sure that your cows will easily conceive.

5) Choosing the bulls for breeding also means choosing those that have been known to produce well-rounded calves. You can go around, ask other cattle farmers, and see if they have good bulls up for sale that you can keep in your herd.

6) Never forget to maintain cleanliness in the cattle's environment and to keep your cattle always in good condition.




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