Brad Hanewich
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2010
- Messages
- 60
As I mentioned in an earlier post on one of our Simme bulls, I am the worlds WORST at following these boards and repsonding to questions....thanks to several that have pushed me to get on here and let you know what I know, I'm writing (very much delayed) on Apollo. There is an old post on here that states something like "I thought about him, seen the picture, hated the picture, and didnt use him. My repsonse: HIGH FIVE...I'm not a fan of that photo either and truthfully, if I had to base breeding decisions on that picture alone, I myself would be luke warm and hesitant to breed to him...I dropped the ball on that one! Unfortunaley, that is the only one that I have had to use up until this point, we are going to re-picture him as a mature bull, he is WAY more impressive and will give you a better look at what he really is. We did video him as a calf and I will also video him as a mature bull. These photos and videos will be availible to view on our web-site. Apollo was on lease right out of stud from the time he was a yearling up until his second calf crop by Russ Harkema (yearling) then on to JBR club-calves as a mature bull. Brad White (JBR) has kept several heifer calves out of his first calf crop that are nursing calves and making TREMENDOUS cows and replacements for him.
About Apollo: FIRST and foremost...he is a DOUBLE CLEAN bull and WILL BREED LIKE ONE. By this I mean he will ABSOLUTELY follow the cow on hair, if shes slick the calves are generally slick...most clean bulls do just that. Birthweights here and at Brad Whites in IA have been great on a variety of cows of various breed compositions, (I know his yearling photo doesnt lead you to believe what Im about to say), Apollo is THE STOUTEST and Hardest musled bull that I have EVER owned. On intensively crossbred cows or exclusively steer oriented pedigrees, he could throw birthweight (look at his pedigree). He himself was an 82 pound calf out of a three year old cow. His mother has been consitent in producing 80-85 pound calves mated a variety of ways. This is one factor some people forget about when mating crossbred cattle....they are crossbreds which means very little predictability on birthweight and a couple other things that go along with composites (its simple math 2 x 2 = 4, 10 x 10 = 100...you get my point). The reason I mention his extra bone and muscle is to caution use on extra stout cows, by this I mean you have to know you genetic base...I use him on heifers, but our average birthweight on any sire group including Angus sired calves or composites will hang around 80-85, thats our cow factor here. Yours may be different dependng on parentage, breed composition, or forage selection/ feed program. What Im trying to say is "Apollo is stout", know you cows and breed accordingly.
About the bull himself: HUGE legged and footed (Brad Hook term here: "Soft Boned" - big but he can walk), as a mature bull (I know yearling photo doesnt show this) extra big middled and good flanked, freakishly loose made (esp for his power), and awesome fronted. Bred to hairy cows=really hairy, bred to slick cows= built great,consistent sire groups, but slick haired. The bulls holes: DO NOT breed to tight hearted, open shouldered cows (his pedigree tells you that), hes good this way as a big bull, but needed more forerib as a calf. His hip height as mature bull: 51 inches, way moderate and chunky made. He will throw red and ABSOLUTELY REMOVES BODY WHITE and SPOTS
Progeny: We have sold several replacement females out of this bull, truthfully have yet to get a steer by him until this year! Last week sold a red baldy out of him to TX that is headed to Dallas to slick, this morning, sold an EXTRA HAIRY red steer out of a SHAGGY Simme cow to CA for that state fair. We will have a group of Apollo sired calves on our Customer appreciation sale Oct. 17th 2010, check them out and also see his influence at JBR club-calves, Estherville, IA on their pastur sale this coming Sept. Hannons here in Rensselaer have a maternal brother to Apollo sired by Echo that they are running as a herd sire, he has done them a tremedous job on a variety of different shapes, colors, and breeds of cows. Daughters are making great milking, higly fertile first calf heifers out of straight bred cows
Breeding Reccomendations: Steers: use on extra hairy cows or double dirty cows to produce steers---this should keep the hair, he can do the rest
Heifers: works best on moderate to larger "Angus oriented" or Simme-influenced cows
***Awesome SLICK SHEAR SIRE***
I hope this helps out to those that have been wondering, and again my apologies for being SO LATE at responding to this. If you have any questions, please feel free to call or stop by and see him, his mother, his siblings, and his progeny.
Thankyou,
-Brad
About Apollo: FIRST and foremost...he is a DOUBLE CLEAN bull and WILL BREED LIKE ONE. By this I mean he will ABSOLUTELY follow the cow on hair, if shes slick the calves are generally slick...most clean bulls do just that. Birthweights here and at Brad Whites in IA have been great on a variety of cows of various breed compositions, (I know his yearling photo doesnt lead you to believe what Im about to say), Apollo is THE STOUTEST and Hardest musled bull that I have EVER owned. On intensively crossbred cows or exclusively steer oriented pedigrees, he could throw birthweight (look at his pedigree). He himself was an 82 pound calf out of a three year old cow. His mother has been consitent in producing 80-85 pound calves mated a variety of ways. This is one factor some people forget about when mating crossbred cattle....they are crossbreds which means very little predictability on birthweight and a couple other things that go along with composites (its simple math 2 x 2 = 4, 10 x 10 = 100...you get my point). The reason I mention his extra bone and muscle is to caution use on extra stout cows, by this I mean you have to know you genetic base...I use him on heifers, but our average birthweight on any sire group including Angus sired calves or composites will hang around 80-85, thats our cow factor here. Yours may be different dependng on parentage, breed composition, or forage selection/ feed program. What Im trying to say is "Apollo is stout", know you cows and breed accordingly.
About the bull himself: HUGE legged and footed (Brad Hook term here: "Soft Boned" - big but he can walk), as a mature bull (I know yearling photo doesnt show this) extra big middled and good flanked, freakishly loose made (esp for his power), and awesome fronted. Bred to hairy cows=really hairy, bred to slick cows= built great,consistent sire groups, but slick haired. The bulls holes: DO NOT breed to tight hearted, open shouldered cows (his pedigree tells you that), hes good this way as a big bull, but needed more forerib as a calf. His hip height as mature bull: 51 inches, way moderate and chunky made. He will throw red and ABSOLUTELY REMOVES BODY WHITE and SPOTS
Progeny: We have sold several replacement females out of this bull, truthfully have yet to get a steer by him until this year! Last week sold a red baldy out of him to TX that is headed to Dallas to slick, this morning, sold an EXTRA HAIRY red steer out of a SHAGGY Simme cow to CA for that state fair. We will have a group of Apollo sired calves on our Customer appreciation sale Oct. 17th 2010, check them out and also see his influence at JBR club-calves, Estherville, IA on their pastur sale this coming Sept. Hannons here in Rensselaer have a maternal brother to Apollo sired by Echo that they are running as a herd sire, he has done them a tremedous job on a variety of different shapes, colors, and breeds of cows. Daughters are making great milking, higly fertile first calf heifers out of straight bred cows
Breeding Reccomendations: Steers: use on extra hairy cows or double dirty cows to produce steers---this should keep the hair, he can do the rest
Heifers: works best on moderate to larger "Angus oriented" or Simme-influenced cows
***Awesome SLICK SHEAR SIRE***
I hope this helps out to those that have been wondering, and again my apologies for being SO LATE at responding to this. If you have any questions, please feel free to call or stop by and see him, his mother, his siblings, and his progeny.
Thankyou,
-Brad
