Why???

commomsense · #1 11/02/05, 10:11 AM

Why is their a shortage of Jersey bulls WV? You can't find many cows and if you want a bull you will have to look a long while for him, but you can find Jersey steers .

My question is were did all the Bulls and Cows go and why does everybody turn young bulls to steers?

DJ · #2 11/02/05, 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commomsense

why does everybody turn young bulls to steers?

So they can charge more for a bull when you find one? There must not be much of a market here or someone to supply it. Maybe you just haven't tapped the right resource yet. And tomorrow or next day you'll be knee deep in bulls. Good Luck with the hunt.

coso · #3 11/02/05, 10:45 AM

Most of the dairies anymore just AI instead of using live cover. Plus Dairy bulls are notorious for being ornery. No one wants to keep one unless they have to. You can probably find a newborn bull calf pretty easy if you can find some dairies that are milking jersies in your area.

ozark_jewels · #4 11/02/05, 11:13 AM

Well, the biggest reason we steer almost all our Jersey bull calves is quality. Any bull calf that is not sired by a really good bull, and is from a really nice cow should be steered. There are plenty of inferior bulls out there siring calves already. No need to add to them. We do keep a bull around, we look for a bull calf out of a cow with strong udder qualities, good milk qualities and good conformation. And the sire needs to carry these traits as well. We usually buy a bull calf under two months old and raise him on the bottle. We have a four month old bull calf right now who will be clamped in the next few weeks and sold for meat. His sire was nice, but his dam doesn't have the best udder and she is three-quartered. NOT BULL QUALITY. I think I just found a new herd sire for us to raise. He is two months old and comes from very good lines. The biggest mistake you can make in your herd, no matter how small a herd it is, is to buy and use a bull simply because he still has testicles and can service a cow. Buy a bull that is better than your cow. Never breed your cows to an inferior bull. It is a fast step-down in your herd and it is hard to get the quality back. Yes, it takes much longer to locate a *good* bull calf as compared to *just* a bull calf, but it will be worth it in the long run.
Another reason bulls are harder to find is that most people steer any unwanted bull calves because steers are easier to sell. Many people buy our Jersey steers for freezer meat. They wouldn't buy them if they were bulls.

Emily Dixon
Ozark Jewels
Boers, Nubians, Lamanchas and Alpines

Celtic Herritag · #5 11/02/05, 08:28 PM

Have you considered using AI for your herd? Almost everyone over here uses it for their herds, beef or dairy. It's cheaper in terms of the quality of genes your purchasing and a great way to diversify and improve your herd because you can match each bull with each cow so that they kniche better. It's easy enough to learn the only difficulty is catching the cows heat, and there are a number of ways and products out there on the market to help you do it. Your vet or another cattleman could help you get started, you could even look at your local Aggie colledge for classes that teach how to AI cattle.

ps did I mention that you can even get sexed semen? So you could decide wither you wanted a hiefer or bull calf out of each specific cow in your herd.

commomsense · #6 11/02/05, 08:48 PM

Thanks guys. I only have one cow in my herd which is a jersey cow. I will not use AI for my cow. If I can not find a Jersey bull I will just have to use the first Dairy bull I come across.

genebo · #7 11/03/05, 08:37 AM

What do you intend to do with the calf? If you want to put it in the freezer, you might want to breed her to a beef breed, but one that throws small calves, like a Dexter.

Where are you? I'd love to have a Dexter/Jersey heifer bred from my Dexter bull.

Genebo
Paradise Farm

commomsense · #8 11/03/05, 09:46 AM

Genebo, We hope to find a jersey bull so hopefully our 9 year old cow will have a pure bred heifer to replace her. If It would be a bull we will have to sell him.

Celtic Herritag · #9 11/03/05, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Thanks guys. I only have one cow in my herd which is a jersey cow. I will not use AI for my cow. If I can not find a Jersey bull I will just have to use the first Dairy bull I come across.

Why not? If you want a good quality hiefer and don't want a bull and can't find a bull for live cover why not consider AI? You could replace her with even better genes and have the guarantee of a hiefer, plus she wouldn't have to risk geting injured in narutural cover. Why are you close minded to AI?

commomsense · #10 11/04/05, 06:04 PM

In response to AI. In the area it is expense and hard to get it done in a timely manner. More to the point I am just a old fashion home steader and like to use a real bull.

ozark_jewels · #11 11/07/05, 07:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commomsense

In response to AI. In the area it is expense and hard to get it done in a timely manner. More to the point I am just a old fashion home steader and like to use a real bull.

Your not alone there! I am old fashioned and prefer to use a real bull too.

I will and have used AI, but I just like to use a good bull. Just personal preference......

Emily Dixon
Ozark Jewels
Dairy and Meat Goats
Boers, Nubians, Lamanchas and Alpines

willow_girl · #12 11/07/05, 08:02 AM

I will not use AI for my cow. If I can not find a Jersey bull I will just have to use the first Dairy bull I come across.

This doesn't make a whole lot o' sense to me either, but ...

However, I would caution against using one of the bigger dairy bulls, for instance Holstein or Brown Swiss, on a Jersey ... seems like you'd be setting yourself up for possible calving problems. Just a thought!

ozark_jewels · #13 11/07/05, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by willow_girl

I will not use AI for my cow. If I can not find a Jersey bull I will just have to use the first Dairy bull I come across.

This doesn't make a whole lot o' sense to me either, but ...

However, I would caution against using one of the bigger dairy bulls, for instance Holstein or Brown Swiss, on a Jersey ... seems like you'd be setting yourself up for possible calving problems. Just a thought!

I have had several Jerseys who can and have had Brown Swiss calves and did great. No calving problems at all. I wouldn't use a larger breed bull on a Jersey heifer, but a mature jersey cow that has easy calvings I wouldn't hesitate to breed to a brown swiss bull. As long as your cow isn't narrow, or is known to have hard calvings, she should be fine. Those calves turn out very nice, too! I haven't ever used a holstien bull on a Jersey cow........Usually we do it the other way round.

Emily Dixon
Ozark Jewels
Dairy and Meat Goats
Boers, Nubians, Lamanchas and Alpines

Oxankle · #14 11/07/05, 10:54 AM

How on earth is AI going to be more expensive than finding, buying and raising a Jersey bull that is going to be a danger to everyone on the place?

I don't know your costs, but I can get beef semen for around $20 or $30, plus $l5 to $25 for the service and if I want to register the calf another $30 to $40 for the AI certificate. Not all that expensive, especially since the certificate can usually be delayed until I know whether or not the calf is worth registering.

An what is it about homesteading that makes using modern technology and the best bulls in the world unattractive to you?
Oxankle

commomsense · #15 11/07/05, 11:31 AM

In reponse to willow_girl we have thought about the problems our cow may have by breeding her to a bigger dairy bull but I am not concerned. We have Bred her to a holstein before and she had her calf not problem. Also one time we had to breed her to a 1600# Limazine(sp) bull and she had that calf no problem.

In reponse to Oxankle I know that A.I would be cheaper but will not use A.i for my cow. I like using real bulls to breed my cows. And I like being old fashion and will never use A.I for my cow.

ozark_jewels · #16 11/07/05, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commomsense

In reponse to willow_girl we have thought about the problems our cow may have by breeding her to a bigger dairy bull but I am not concerned. We have Bred her to a holstein before and she had her calf not problem. Also one time we had to breed her to a 1600# Limazine(sp) bull and she had that calf no problem.

In reponse to Oxankle I know that A.I would be cheaper but will not use A.i for my cow. I like using real bulls to breed my cows. And I like being old fashion and will never use A.I for my cow.

There is no reason you should have to defend your choice. Its just that, a personal choice. Do what works for you. Going to pick up my new Jersey herdsire(age 2 months) tomorrow......Hope you find a good one...no matter the breed!

Emily Dixon
Ozark Jewels
Dairy and Meat Goats
Boers, Nubians, Lamanchas and Alpines