breeding question

[unclejae]

Hi all. I am currious as to what you think would be a good breed to use on our new heifer. We bought the little Dexter/Jersey heifer that Sher had listed earlier this year. The wife and I have been discussing what to use. We have our opinion but would like to hear yours also. She would not be bred until next summer.

Thanks, James and Stephanie

[Rockin'B]

Are you looking for a meat calf? If so, cross with a smaller meat breed like Angus.

[francismilker]

Call me oldfashioned, but I always breed a Jersey bull to heifers. (not matter what kind of cow they are beef or dairy) They just throw small calves! If you get lucky and your baby is a heifer, you've just had $500 "day-old" dollars hit the ground. If it's a bull, you've got meat!

[Carol K]

Well you could use a small Jersey bull if you wanted a more dairy calf or you could use a Dexter bull if you wanted a beefier calf.
As a side note, if you go with a Dexter find out from Sher if a Carrier or Non Carrier bull was used on the Jersey ( or if it was the other way around and the Dam was a Dexter find out if it was carrier or Non carrier). That way if you decide on using a Dexter bull this time, you will know if the calf you have now has any chance of carrying the Chondrodysplasia Gene, if it does have that possibility, this time use a Dexter that is Chondro. clear, otherwise you may risk the chance of a bulldog calf, so if it's somethink you can avoid then all the better. Like I said though you may not have a problem in the first place, but better to know up front.

Carol

[Sher]

Hi .. yes..The jersey was a friends cow and Woody our Dexter is the daddy. He was most certainly a carrier. Whether or not she is .. I do not know.

She sure was a cute little scamp! How are you getting along with her? I know Cathy was sooo pleased that she went to your home.

Oh...I vote Dexter..big surprise right?

[DJ in WA]

If you want beef, Lowline angus would be better than Dexter. I have a lowline/Jersey cross cow I breed to lowline bull semen. Lowlines do come in different sizes - from about 38 inches tall to 48 inches. Shop the internet.

Of course, few people change their minds, so you'll probably get whatever you're currently thinking.

[LMonty]

I second Lowline. We just bought our first heifer from a board member too, shes Dexter. I plan to go the LLA route with her. Would give you the smaller calf, and a more valuable one, since the baby is probably worth 800 to 1200 as a half lowline rather than the 500 3/4 jersey. If you are looking for a calf to keep as a milker or eat yourself, then the jersey or Dexter (non carrier only) route makes more sense.

[unclejae]

Sher, she sure is cute. Her name is Maggie and she looks like a small black jersey. And she is very vocal. She always thinks she needs fed.

Thanks for all the input everybody. We were thinking of going with belted galloway or highland. Keep the info going. Let us know what you all think of our idea.

Thanks, James and Stephanie

[Carol K]

With the beltie or highland you wouldn't need to worry about Chondro. You may want to find out what weight calves the beltie throws, can't they be quite big?

Carol

[Rockin'B]

I'm a big fan of Highlands so that would be easy for me!

[Philip]

I'm with DJ and LMonty. We AI our Jersey's with Lowline, which gives a very easy birth, a naturally polled calf (important over here, as freezing works and sale yards either won't take, or will give a price disincentive, for horned animals), white fat (for those with an aversion to yellow fat), and a fast growing blocky calf that tastes delicious when slaughtered

[tinknal]

I think a heifer calf would be more valuable bred to one of the 2 original breeds. Mix it up too much and it will soon just be a crossbred mutt.

[DJ in WA]

I like mutts. Hybrid vigor.

Whether mutts are bad or not depend on what you're interested in. We need more information to answer this question. Otherwise we're just giving our personal preferences.

Unclejae, do you want a calf to sell or keep?

If you're going to sell, what is your market? What are your buyers interested in?

If you're going to keep the calf, what do you want more from it, meat or milk?

[unclejae]

DJ, great question. The calf, Maggie, will become our homestead milk cow. We are thinking of milking her once a day and letting the calf nurse also. The calf she has will be for meat only. We sell privately. We have two "regular sized" yearling steers and Maggies half brother whose is Simental/Dexter. The smaller calves will be for our and my fathers freezers. I am also going to add two to four Hereford heifers to the mix so we can raise our own calves. Hereford is our personal choice. It is also the only breed that we can all agree on. My father has to have his say in the decision also.

Thanks for all the input. Keep it coming.

James and Stephanie

[francismilker]

If you're planning on putting Maggie's calf in the freezer, I'll now withdraw my motion for Jersey and 2nd the lowline motion. It'll just be a beefier calf without yellow fat.

[rggambrell]

I agree with a small frame Angus bull.