MYT Farms said:
I am looking to use some terminal bulls next year as I have enough cattle to raise both maternal and terminal traits. I wanted to know which of these three breeds work best for you on Angus and Angus X maternal cows. Also, if you could give me some names of bulls, it would be helpful.
Thanks,
Cade
Why not have your cake & eat it too? My dad weans 600-800 lb. calves every year without any creep feed, on KY Fescue. And he uses black purebred Tarentaise bulls on purebred Tarentaise cows, so he doesn't get the advantage of heterosis to accomplish that. Our neighbor crosses Tarentaise with Angus & has similar results. Tarentaise cross extremely well with Angus & Angus cross cows. Pharo Cattle Company, Oregon Country Beef, Padlock Ranch, Hat Ranch, Leachman's, Hole in the Wall Ranch, are just a few off the top of my head, along with a bunch of commercial producers, who have used that cross. Actually, we've sold Tarentaise genetics to all of them except for Leachman's & Oregon Country Beef. Anyway, you could get some heavy steers & sell the F1 females as replacements. We had the 2nd highest gainning steer overall at the Great Western Beef Expo out of 150 head, as well as, a top 10 pen (out of all breeds) for feed effciency, back in the mid 1990's, so these Tarentaise cattle do extremely well in the feedlot. If you would be interested in semen, I can get one or 2 of my dad's bulls collected & I'd sell it pretty reasonable. Or if you want a bull or 2, he has those also. All of my dad's bulls are black & most are at least double polled. If you go to Pharo's website & check out Bluegrass Energizer... my dad raised that bull & almost everything in my dad's herd has several common ancestors with Energizer. I don't know if Achilles is still listed on Pharo's site, and although we didn't raise Achilles, he sold Kit the Achilles bull also. Anyway, my dad has some bulls with more performance than those 2 bulls, if more performance is that's what you are looking for. His bulls will sire CAB also. Now you might not get "barn burning" show calves, but I took a Tarentaise X Lowline (Doc Holliday) heifer to Louisville & even though we didn't fit her at all (just clipped her & blew her), she beat the recent 2008 American Royal Reserve Grand Champion Percentage heifer in her division in the Lowline Show, so you might actually end up with something that you could show. Although you don't necessarily want to produce momma's... I'd put a Tarentaise X Angus cow up against anything. 3 years in a row, that cross was the high selling pen of females at the NWSS in Denver (commercial guys love them!), including winnning 2 Grands & 1 Reserve Champion Commercial Pen of heifers during those 3 years. If interested, reply or send me a PM. If not interested, sorry to waste your time.
TJ
