Post by grassfed on Jan 20, 2016 10:58:38 GMT -5
I have a little while yet before I have to breed my heifer. I am just trying to figure out what I will do when it is time. My heifer's father is a Dexter and her mother is 3/4 Jersey and 1/4 Lowline. She is 6 months old and is about 38-39 inches tall and weighs in around 460-480 pounds on the beef weight tape. The breeder thinks she will be close to 48 inches tall when full grown. I am thinking her first calf should be by a Dexter or maybe a Jersey. I have a little time as I plan to breed her at 15 months. That means October for the first cycle.
Dexter's are hard to come by but they can be found. Jersey's are pretty common around here. I could easily get a young, under a year old, jersey bull and keep him just long enough to get Penny bred. Or do I find a Dexter and do the same thing? Or should I really look into AI a lot more? Friends that have Jerseys say that the bulls don't become difficult till after they are a year. What are your thought? I am not super excited about bulls. The breeder where I got my heifer has 2 Dexter bulls and they were extremely docile. They were safe enough for children to be around. That makes me think more along the Dexter line than Jersey. I like the safer plan of AI but the better results of live cover.
If this makes any difference... I plan to get a steer calf Jersey or something else small that would be for the freezer eventually but this could also help with heat detection. I
What are your thoughts? Bull or AI? If bull which breed?
Thanks!
Dexter's are hard to come by but they can be found. Jersey's are pretty common around here. I could easily get a young, under a year old, jersey bull and keep him just long enough to get Penny bred. Or do I find a Dexter and do the same thing? Or should I really look into AI a lot more? Friends that have Jerseys say that the bulls don't become difficult till after they are a year. What are your thought? I am not super excited about bulls. The breeder where I got my heifer has 2 Dexter bulls and they were extremely docile. They were safe enough for children to be around. That makes me think more along the Dexter line than Jersey. I like the safer plan of AI but the better results of live cover.
If this makes any difference... I plan to get a steer calf Jersey or something else small that would be for the freezer eventually but this could also help with heat detection. I
What are your thoughts? Bull or AI? If bull which breed?
Thanks!