using limmys for recips

[M K genetics]

what do you think about using limousin cattle for recips i currently know where a small herd is for sale cheap and i was just wondering if they would be good recips

 

[justintime]

My only concerns would be their dispositions and their milking ability. The Limo breed has done a very good job of eliminated the crazy goofy cattle they once had, and they have also greatly improved the milk in them. If the cows you are considering have any disposition issues, I would not put embryos in them, as if the recip has issues, the ET calf will have issues. Disposition is heritable, but the calves will also pick up disposition traits from the dam that raises them. Check them out carefully,as there may be a ligit reason they are selling them cheap. If everything appears good, they still would not be my first choice as recip mothers, but they may be worth considering. If everything is not in order, walk away and save yourself a lot of grief.

 

[M K genetics]

thanks the reason this person is selling them is bc hes getting old and doesnt have anyone to help him around the farm they were never used as recips but thank you

 

[Show Heifer]

Yep, the limmi's were/are known for the "attitude".... most of those dispositions have since been consumed in between a bun!  Just like the simmi's had the problem of stupid calves, maines had a problem with large bw, and herf's had troubles with prolapses and eyes and angus had no butts. Some of these problems have been addressed, some have not (sometimes its been addressed by breeders, sometimes not)
I was raised with limmi's and all of ours milked well, and had longevity second to none!  The maternal ability of a limmi cow is unbelievable! I would definately buy them if they are in good condition and will work for your management!

 

[cdncowboy]

My only concerns would be their dispositions and their milking ability. The Limo breed has done a very good job of eliminated the crazy goofy cattle they once had, and they have also greatly improved the milk in them. If the cows you are considering have any disposition issues, I would not put embryos in them, as if the recip has issues, the ET calf will have issues. Disposition is heritable, but the calves will also pick up disposition traits from the dam that raises them. Check them out carefully,as there may be a ligit reason they are selling them cheap. If everything appears good, they still would not be my first choice as recip mothers, but they may be worth considering. If everything is not in order, walk away and save yourself a lot of grief.

JIT, for maybe the first time I'm disappointed in your post, especially the first line.  I too was raised in the limi business, and I'm sick and tired of the their nuts and don't milk line, why not throw in that their basically infertile - I've heard that before to.  Their udders may not drag the ground like the so called "maternal" breeds but that little udder produces more than enough milk and typically doesn't break down like the udders on other breeds.  Sure their were some nut bars, but what breed doesn't have them - yes a couple of the SHORTHORN cows I had were screwballs.
People that have little to no experience with the breed seem to be the first to jump up and say their nuts.  If my time as a feedlot rider taught me one thing bad temperaments are exclusive to no breed - push the wrong button and they all come unwound.
I guess if were proliferating old myths my dad told me not to buy shorthorns because the ones they had in the late 50s/early 60s were tight gutted, hard feeding cattle.  Something I also heard from a few other people in my area as well on my foray into shorthorns.  Thankfully I didn't listen to this "advice" I made some pretty good money off those shorthorn cows.
If I took that line of thinking if he was interested in a herd of Herefords would you tell him to be careful because they will either prolapse every year or get cancer eye?

M K genetics - in your shoes evaluate the cattle, if they are good productive cows go ahead I don't think you'll regret owning your very own Limi's.

 

[Shady Lane]

The Limo Association didn't develop a Docility EPD because their cattle were known for good temperaments.

That said, of course there can be some nasty temperaments in litterally every breed, these cattle could have perfectly reasonable temperaments or they could be nut-balls like many Limo cattle CAN be.

I've never owned any Limo cows before but I have clipped and fit quite a few over the years and found some that were flat out NASTY to work on, not too much fun to work on when they are rocking the chute like a paint shaker, blind folded and on Ace.

That said, I can also remember a Limo heifer that I used to LOVE to show back in the day in showmanship classes because she was such a sweetheart and would make just about any showman look like a super star.

I say kudos to the Limo Association for recognising a known problem affecting the forward movement of their breed and doing something proactive about it.

The issue with temperaments in recips like has previously been posted is that calves can and DO learn all sorts of behavioural traits from their dam, even though genetically they might be predispositioned to be the quietest cattle on earth. It's the same old "Nature over Nurture" debate.

To give my opinion on whether these cows can be used as recips, I would simply say "Maybe". Go check them out, they might be just the ticket or they might not.

If i was going to go look for a set of recips tomorrow morning, i would likely take primarily British Based cows for improved maternal abilities rather than exotics but that's just my $0.02

 

[justintime]

My only concerns would be their dispositions and their milking ability. The Limo breed has done a very good job of eliminated the crazy goofy cattle they once had, and they have also greatly improved the milk in them. If the cows you are considering have any disposition issues, I would not put embryos in them, as if the recip has issues, the ET calf will have issues. Disposition is heritable, but the calves will also pick up disposition traits from the dam that raises them. Check them out carefully,as there may be a ligit reason they are selling them cheap. If everything appears good, they still would not be my first choice as recip mothers, but they may be worth considering. If everything is not in order, walk away and save yourself a lot of grief.

JIT, for maybe the first time I'm disappointed in your post, especially the first line.  I too was raised in the limi business, and I'm sick and tired of the their nuts and don't milk line, why not throw in that their basically infertile - I've heard that before to.  Their udders may not drag the ground like the so called "maternal" breeds but that little udder produces more than enough milk and typically doesn't break down like the udders on other breeds.  Sure their were some nut bars, but what breed doesn't have them - yes a couple of the SHORTHORN cows I had were screwballs.
People that have little to no experience with the breed seem to be the first to jump up and say their nuts.  If my time as a feedlot rider taught me one thing bad temperaments are exclusive to no breed - push the wrong button and they all come unwound.
I guess if were proliferating old myths my dad told me not to buy shorthorns because the ones they had in the late 50s/early 60s were tight gutted, hard feeding cattle.  Something I also heard from a few other people in my area as well on my foray into shorthorns.  Thankfully I didn't listen to this "advice" I made some pretty good money off those shorthorn cows.
If I took that line of thinking if he was interested in a herd of Herefords would you tell him to be careful because they will either prolapse every year or get cancer eye?

M K genetics - in your shoes evaluate the cattle, if they are good productive cows go ahead I don't think you'll regret owning your very own Limi's.

cdncowboy... please reread what I wrote. I said that the Limo breed has done a very good job of eliminating the crazy goofy cattle they once had, and they have also greatly improved the milk in them. I would say that no breed that I can think of, has done a better job of cleaning up some problems that were once there in the breed. I remember working lots of Limo sales in the early years and seeing cattle that were almost impossible to handle... in any kind of handling system. You never see this now. I would be the first to say that there are goofy cattle in any breed. I say "hats off " to the Limo breeders who moved the breed in a very positive direction. Quite frankly, I am amazed at how good a job you have done in this regard.

I purchased a set of half blood Limo heifers very soon after the breed came to North America, with the intention of breeding them up to purebred status. I think there were 12 of them and we shipped the worst ones to the auction mart a few months after buying them. We had purchased them while they were still on their Hereford mothers from a neighbor. Once they were weaned and placed in a pen with our own heifers, before long they had the entire group circling the pen at full speed every time you walked into the pen. We culled the worst ones and kept the rest and AI bred them. When they calved we knew the entire group would have to be sold as they were going to hurt us. They would actually hunt you down if you walked into the pen where they were with their babies. This may have been an exceptional bad group we had, but I also saw some pretty wild Limo cross cattle go through our feedlot. Today, if you see a pen of Limo steers in a feedlot, disposition is generally not a concern.

I am just saying that there was some insane cattle in the very early years, but again I will say no set of breeders has done a better job that the Limo breed to correct a problem, IMO.
I would also say that  most of today's Limo cows are awesome females. In regards to the question asked here, I was just saying that they should check them out carefully as there may be a reason they were for sale at a cheap price. Nothing more. Sorry if my comments were not clear enough.

 

[savaged]

For several years I exclusively raised pure-bred Limousin calves.  I purchased several cows of good genetic background, and owned some very good Limi bulls.  The calves, from a production standpoint, were second to none.  The cows were great mama's, milked well, and I never, ever, pulled a calf.  The calves were super vigorous and quick to nurse, despite all kinds of birthing weather conditions.  Eighty pound calves weaned at five-hundred in the fall on grass and brought top prices.  Most of my cows were red, and I mostly used black bulls. 

My experience was and is ( I have one of these cows left) that they are way more flighty and "head-up" than my cross bred cows, or my Simmental cows.  I agree that they will pass these behavior traits on to their calves.  The cow that I have left will invariably "teach" her calves to shy from me and become flighty when being worked or contained.  I have bred her to calm disposition angus bulls (A.I.) that last three years and she still ends up with a difficult to manage calf.  I just hate to part with her as she is a great cow with wonderfully put-together calves.

At least for me, my Limi cattle were/are way more nervous and alert to me than my other cows. 

I would visit the herd and see how they respond to you.  If they head for the back of the pasture when you approach, I would head for the car.

Just my two-cents.