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HEAT STRESS CAN OCCUR AT FAIRLY MODERATE TEMPERATURES FOR MOST CATTLE BREEDS.
surface in order to cool her blood,” Paschal says. “This reduces oxygen and nutrient fl ow to those lo-
cations. High internal temperatures can also increase early abortions and or fetal death leading to abortions as well as reduce semen viability in bulls. “The heat affects calves just as much, if not more,
than their mothers. Because as calves are lower to the ground they absorb more heat and have less surface area with which to dissipate it. Calves can get heat stroke and die, but usually the stressed calves just gain less and weigh less. Heat stress effects on semen production can last for a month or more after the stress has moderated.” Perkins says the use of “tropical and subtropical
adapted bulls” will add much needed levels of hybrid vigor when included in the predominantly black-hided cow population we see today. “Replacing cows in hard drought-hit areas with
Brahman-derivative females will be the fastest way to produce replacement females that will fi t the operat- ing environment across much of Texas and the South.”
But don’t breed away profi ts Discounts for Brahman-cross cattle have been com-
mon for years. There’s a reputation that they won’t perform at the feedyard or packer. Many “northern” producers have imagined that anything with a Brah-
Santa Gertrudis Brahman
man cross looked like a rodeo bull. Paschal says that is wrong thinking. “In the Texas A&M Ranch to Rail Program, conducted
mostly in the 1990s, the Brahman-crosses performed as well in the feedyard and made as high fi nancial returns as the non-Bos indicus cattle,” he says. “As expected, they tended to have slightly smaller ribeyes and lower marbling scores. “But breeders of these cattle have made signifi cant
strides in the past 10 years in improving the feeding performance and muscling of their cattle. They are not your grandfather’s, or even your father’s cattle.” Perkins says that for Brangus and others, the added
effi ciency of growth and potential reduced cost of gain “certainly make the Brahman-infl uenced cattle an option for offsetting the loss of Certifi ed Angus Beef premiums. “However, the Brangus breed (3/8 Brahman 5/8 An-
gus) continues to bring value to the commercial cattle industry, because they excel in lower birth weights, good milking ability, above average weaning weights and high fertility, all in a polled package. “Use of Brangus cattle will also keep the cattle black
while maintaining excellent carcass marbling so that they wouldn’t have to lose out on the Angus premiums.”
How Much Ear? The hotter the weather, the larger the percentage of Brahman infl uence, Paschal says. “It depends on where
82 The Cattleman November 2014
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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