Livestock Management RANCHING
when bulls are grouped, fed together and developed, they can pass bacteria to each other that can cause the condition. In addition to affecting the bull’s semen quality, this can produce an irritation that affects the animal’s ability to mount.
60 days before breeding season Spire recommends these examinations be conducted
60 days ahead of the breeding season. If problems are detected with the feet or with the penis or seminal vesicles, they can be addressed without causing an interruption of breeding. If the BCS is too high or low, 60 days afford enough
time to change that, as well. “I like to have yearling bulls at the start of the breed-
ing season at a minimum of 1,100 pounds,” Spire says. “If I start getting bulls that are too heavy, I want to exercise them and cut out the carbs — just generally, the kinds of recommendations you’d make for humans who want to change their physiques.” If the bulls are too thin, the producer can make the
diet richer, as well as search for other factors that could be causing the condition, like parasites. And don’t forget hornfl y control. Spire says, “You’ve
got to remember that every one of those hornfl ies is going to feed multiple times a day, and when they’ve got 1,000 to 1,500 fl ies on them, that’s a lot of irritation that takes their mind off breeding and makes them worry more about trying to get fl ies off of them. The blood loss from feeding fl ies is signifi cant.” A 2-year-old bull coming into his second breeding
season should be at about 80 percent of his mature body weight. Spire says there’s a physiological reason to make sure the bull is that well developed — at 2 years old, they lose their central incisor teeth and can’t graze as effi ciently before the next set of teeth come out. “Because of muscle mass, they need to have a pretty
good protein load coming through them,” he notes. “They’re actually a lot more diffi cult to maintain than heifers.” Also, beginning at 60 days prior to the breeding sea-
son, a new bull can be caught up with the herd’s animal health program. Spire recommends a PI (persistent infection) test for BVD, and a test for trichomoniasis. A purebred operator will also want to make sure
that an animal is free of Johne’s disease and leukosis before introducing him into the herd. “In both the yearlings and the 2-year-olds, I like to make sure I de-
54 The Cattleman April 2014
thecattlemanmagazine.com
Bulls depend so much on eyesight to watch cows’ behavior, to pick them out and decide whether to have physical contact with them.
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