Saskvalley Primo 40P x Prairie Lane Sparkle 1K embryo transfer calves

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KFShorthorns

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We experimented with embryo transfer for the first time last spring, put in 10 embryos that resulted in 7 pregnancies. 6 calves on the ground so far with 1 girl still holding onto hers.

These are 4 full sibs sired by Saskvalley Primo and out Prairie Lane Sparkle. 3 heifers, 1 bull. All born within a week, Feb 6 - Feb 12.

Looking forward to watching these critters grow and develop, really liking them already!


First 3 are the heifers, 4th is the bull.
 

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KFShorthorns

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The second-last pic is the bull calf. Lots of colour in him!
 

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justintime

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Did I mention that you owe me more money for the embryos that result in heifers?  Just kidding. I am glad you got 4 of those as they should develop into excellent calves. I have only had 1 Primo X Sparkle and it was a bull calf. I had him sold to Minnesota at 3 months of age and I was to deliver him when I weaned him. I found him dead on pasture just before I planned to wean him. When we had a postmortem done, his diaphragm had broke and the vet said he would have died within seconds of that happening. He was a very good calf. He got the best of both parents. The extra length of Primo and the thickness and volume of Sparkle.

Old Sparkle is now 15 years old and just came back from the ET center again. We did two successful flushes and all the embryos were sold to New Zealand. She looks as good now as she did when she was 7-8 years old and she is flushing as good as she ever has. I would expect she has been flushed at least 20 times now. I am going to flush her at least one more time and these will probably be for myself. I am completely sold out on her embryos again.

I am looking forward to see how these calves develop for you.  What are the other two ET calves you have?
 

KFShorthorns

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justintime said:
Did I mention that you owe me more money for the embryos that result in heifers?  Just kidding. I am glad you got 4 of those as they should develop into excellent calves. I have only had 1 Primo X Sparkle and it was a bull calf. I had him sold to Minnesota at 3 months of age and I was to deliver him when I weaned him. I found him dead on pasture just before I planned to wean him. When we had a postmortem done, his diaphragm had broke and the vet said he would have died within seconds of that happening. He was a very good calf. He got the best of both parents. The extra length of Primo and the thickness and volume of Sparkle.

Old Sparkle is now 15 years old and just came back from the ET center again. We did two successful flushes and all the embryos were sold to New Zealand. She looks as good now as she did when she was 7-8 years old and she is flushing as good as she ever has. I would expect she has been flushed at least 20 times now. I am going to flush her at least one more time and these will probably be for myself. I am completely sold out on her embryos again.

I am looking forward to see how these calves develop for you.  What are the other two ET calves you have?

Thickness, volume, and depth is exactly right. They all look great, but the first heifer pictured is sure something else! Very excited to see them develop.

The other 2 are Waukaru Patent x Shadybrook Marina 7T (DF Pure Gold). A roan bull and a red heifer that came significantly heavier than I was expecting. He should be a good show steer prospect I guess... Will try and get some good pics of them up in the next couple days.

The cow that is still holding out on us is carrying a Salute x Presto calf from the embryos we got from you. It was the only one that my vet couldn't confidently determine sex when ultrasounding so excited to see what she has any day now!
 

Okotoks

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3 heifer calves out of Prairie Lane Sparkle 1K is pretty exciting. That white one is is pretty impressive already! If they are anything like their maternal sister HC FL Sparkle Delight 2X they will be great additions to your herd.
 

shortybreeder

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Hi, I was looking for more information on Saskvalley Primo trying to decide if he was still a "relevant" bull, and your pictures have convinced me to order a few units! That white heifer is very impressive, and I really like all of the other calves! My first question is how were the BW/CE on the calves? Would you use him on 2 1st calf cows? Both are heifers right now but due to calve in the next 2 months. One of them is a Homedale Red Demand x GFS Red Cloud 044 and the other is a Homedale Creole 135 x Homedale Blizzard 820. Second question, is he a larger framed bull? He looks pretty big in his picture, but pictures can be deceiving.
Thanks!
 

KFShorthorns

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Thanks for the positive feedback, we're really liking these calves more and more everyday!

Calving ease was perfectly fine. 2 of them were out of very moderate framed angus recipient cows and 2 out of sim/angus crosses that arent huge by any means either. All 4 were born completely unassisted with lots of vigor at birth.

Birth weight was a little more than I expected. The 4 Primo calves averaged 106lbs. With the lightest being the white heifer at 100. With Primo's 82# BW and moderate BW EPD with good accuracy I wasn't expecting a 106# average. Their ET mother, Prairie Lane Sparkle 1K, doesn't have much reported for BW's in her pedigree but her EPD's do suggest that there could be some BW come with the calves. It's also worth noting that these calves were born in the dead of winter in Manitoba, Canada with abundant igloos and polar bears to distract us from the ungodly cold weather.

Many studies have consistently shown a marked increase in BW in colder environment so I am in no way suggesting that all Primo calves will come with these weights, I'd bet most are significantly lower in most climates (his latest 15 progeny listen on the ASA were all under 100# BW except for one)

I'll also add that the SULL GNCC Salute 532R x Shadybrook Presto 73G ET bull calf that was born the same week as these Primo x Sparkle ET calves had an actual BW of 95lbs and was completely unassisted as well... I guess I had to open that can of worms on here at some point.

The bull with what could easily be called the worst CE and BW EPD's in the breed, if you account for the very high accuracy, gave me the lightest of all my ET calves this year (all out of cows with very similar EPD's too!)
 

shortybreeder

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That is good to know, a canadian breeder on another forum talks about how his bw typically average 110lbs+ so what you are saying about colder climates makes sense. We are in MN and we've maybe had 1 calf under 70lbs and that was a CE angus out of a 1st calf heifer that was also sired by CE angus, that one still came out at 50lbs.
 

justintime

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My experience with Primo has been exactly the same. While I have never assisted a calf from him, they all had more BW than expected. Part of the reason for this may be due to body length of the calves. Primo was longer bodied than many bulls and this is why I have said for a long time, that we need to be discussing calving ease at the same time as birth weight. When Primo sold in the Saskvalley sale, I struggled between him and Saskvalley Pioneer as to which bull I would try to buy. Each bull had their own attributes. I finally decided that Pioneer was maybe a bit more complete but Primo was definitely longer bodied.  If you add even 1 inch to the middle of a calf it certainly is going to weigh more, and it may not mean anything when it comes to calving ease. I look forward to seeing these Primo calves develop as I think they should be pretty good.

A couple years ago, I had a visit with one of the biggest cattle buyers in Western Canada, and he said that cattle producers had to get over their fixation on birth weights. I asked him what he meant, and he said that he had seen far too many short bodied feeder calves in recent years. He also said, that some breeders were having calving season wrecks by breeding their heifers to low birth weight bulls that were really calving ease nightmares. When he described what he was taking about I had to agree.

I don't want this to turn into a Salute bashing session, but I have never had to assist a Salute calf at birth. It is a few years since I had any Salute calves but I used a son HC TImeline 17T ( a full brother to KF's bull calf) here for 4 years and we never assisted a single calf from him. He was only used on cows, but I never castrated a son of his for having too big a BW. In regards to Timeline, I discussed his BW and CE numbers with the ASA on a few occasions and I was told to keep sending in my data and the EPD numbers would eventually correct themselves. I am beginning to think he would have had to be used for 20 years to see his numbers change where I think they should be.
 

KFShorthorns

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Okotoks said:
3 heifer calves out of Prairie Lane Sparkle 1K is pretty exciting. That white one is is pretty impressive already! If they are anything like their maternal sister HC FL Sparkle Delight 2X they will be great additions to your herd.

I'm hoping that they perform and produce like their mother and sisters have! I also purchased 4 embryos from Grant out of HC FL Sparkle Delight 1X that are sired by Paintearth Rama 53U that I'm planning to implant this spring. The herd may be fairly steeped in the Sparkle lineage in a few years!
 

KFShorthorns

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Thought I'd post some updated pics of a couple of these calves from some summer shows. I showed KF Sparkle 1C ET at 3 shows, 2 of which she was champion heifer calf and one 2nd place finish. Both judges that placed her first commented after the Grand Champion Female class that they were very close to slapping her over all the breds and cows! The flush mate sisters are coming along very well too, will try to get some pasture pics of them in the next couple days.

KF Primos Chunk 3C ET is the only bull calf I got from this flush. He definitely has the quietest, most laid-back personality of any bull calf I've ever worked with. It's much easier to lead him somewhere than to try and sort/chase him somewhere like a normal cow!

These 2 have been very popular this summer, both in the show ring and with producers coming by the stalls and to the farm. I'll be weaning them on Friday and I think these 2 will each set a new record for WW on our purebred calves here!

The images from Carman Fair was the Manitoba Provincial Shorthorn Show July 11 2015, Sparkle 1C ET was Champion heifer calf and Primos Chunk 3C ET was Reserve Champion Bull Calf

The images from the Manitoba Youth Beef Round Up were from August 2. Sparkle 1C ET was Reserve Champion heifer calf, and Primos Chunk 3C ET was Champion bull calf.

 

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KFShorthorns

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Pic I snapped this afternoon of Sparkle 1C ET on pasture with her recip mother. The quiet wean paddle doesn't seem to be bothering her too much!

 

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justintime

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KFShorthorns said:
Thought I'd post some updated pics of a couple of these calves from some summer shows. I showed KF Sparkle 1C ET at 3 shows, 2 of which she was champion heifer calf and one 2nd place finish. Both judges that placed her first commented after the Grand Champion Female class that they were very close to slapping her over all the breds and cows! The flush mate sisters are coming along very well too, will try to get some pasture pics of them in the next couple days.

KF Primos Chunk 3C ET is the only bull calf I got from this flush. He definitely has the quietest, most laid-back personality of any bull calf I've ever worked with. It's much easier to lead him somewhere than to try and sort/chase him somewhere like a normal cow!

These 2 have been very popular this summer, both in the show ring and with producers coming by the stalls and to the farm. I'll be weaning them on Friday and I think these 2 will each set a new record for WW on our purebred calves here!

The images from Carman Fair was the Manitoba Provincial Shorthorn Show July 11 2015, Sparkle 1C ET was Champion heifer calf and Primos Chunk 3C ET was Reserve Champion Bull Calf

The images from the Manitoba Youth Beef Round Up were from August 2. Sparkle 1C ET was Reserve Champion heifer calf, and Primos Chunk 3C ET was Champion bull calf.




Justin... I think the docility you mentioned here comes from the Sparkle line. Old Prairie Lane Sparkle will be 16 in January and every calf I have had has been super quiet, regardless if it was a natural calf of an ET calf. The Bluebook bull of ours is a grand son and he was exactly the same. I have had reports from people in the UK, Australia and New Zealand and they all have mentioned how quiet her offspring are. You calves are looking great and they should really start to pound it on once they are weaned. The Sparkle line are also some of the easiest fleshing cattle I have ever found. Right now I am flushing two daughters and 5 grand daughters of the old Sparkle 1K cow.
 

KFShorthorns

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E3 Durhams said:
That last heifer pictured on anything but grass and momma? Well just grass now I guess with the weaning deal in her nose. She looks good.

She got a few mouth fulls (maybe 2-3lbs) of calf starter ration per day in July when I was showing, mostly just to keep her looking full. No creep in pasture or anything. In that pasture pic it's been almost 2 weeks since she's seen any grain and 3 days with no milk (unless she's one of the few that can 'beat the system' with the quiet wean paddles!)
 

KFShorthorns

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Here is the Primo x Sparkle bull calf all cleaned up for his sale picture a couple weeks ago. He had an adjusted 205d WW of 701lbs and is easily on pace for a 1200-1300lb YW on a slow growth high protein pelleted ration. Will be semen testing in a couple of weeks.

He is still incredibly docile, and combines great structural soundness and performance. Him and his flushmate sisters have been very popular and well accepted over the last year. If I don't get him sold this spring he will certainly have a place with some purebred and commercial cows at our place.

Thoughts and comments always appreciated!

 

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KFShorthorns

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Thought I'd add some recent input to my old topic. Let me know what you all think of the bull calf and how the young cow is progressing.

The roan ET heifer has had a pretty exciting couple of years for us. From her 681lb 205d WW, 1021lb YW, settling to her first AI, calving at 2 years and 2 days old, and now weaning off our most exciting bull calf since her flushmate brother a couple of years ago!

Her bull calf is sired by Saskvalley Yesterday 116Y- KF Yesterdays Envy 2E

1st pic- KF Sparkle 1C named Grand Champion Female at Manitoba Ag Ex in 2016

2nd pic- 2E at 5 weeks of age enjoying some snow drifts after a nasty blizzard

3rd pic-  2E at 4 months. Nothing but hay all winter and native grass once spring hit for the cows

4th & 5th pic- 5.5 months old
 

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KFShorthorns

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Sparkle 1C's udder nursing at 5.5 months. Nice tidy udder, reasonably sized teats, good attachment.

2E at about 7.5 months old. 205d WW was 665lbs.


1C and 2E at Manitoba Ag Ex a couple of weeks ago. He weighed 816lbs at 258d. She was reserve champion 2 year old to the eventual grand champion female. 2E was second in class as well.
 

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mark tenenbaum

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Really good progression-AND YOU KNOW HOW TO TAKE THE RIGHT KIND OF PICS-Out in the field etc from the side AND BEHIND-thats how I can tell what they are-good doing and thick-the bull caf is a breeding tool being out of a first calf heifer that was showed hats off O0
 

justintime

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I wish I could have got down to Brandon for the show. I heard a lot of great comments about your Sparkle cow and her Yesterday bull calf. In my opinion, this is another great example of how ET can work for you. You purchased this set of Sparkle X Primo embryos and got some very good offspring, at a very low cost. Great job!
If I was needing a herd sire I would definitely be looking this calf up. He is definitely the type of bull we need many more of in the breed.
 
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